The books of the Bush

'Tis August, so must be time for another post.
This one is definitely bibliophilic -
It is a list of what Cal Flyn from the Guardian bookshop considered to be 'The Top 10 books about the Australian Bush'.

Heading the list is the quinessential book of the bush - Henry Lawson's "Drovers wife and other stories". 
Often included in the collections of his short stories, like "While the billy boils", "The Drover's wife" is his best known, originally published in 'The Bulletin' on 23rd July 1892. 
The drover is away with the stock, leaving his wife and children alone in a 2-room slab hut. While out at the wood pile she sees a snake go under the house, and knows that to protect her children she must stay awake to kill it when it appears, so she sits all night with just the dog for company, compemplating her lot in life.
The ...and other stories often include classics like "The Bush Undertaker", "The loaded dog", and "In a dry season".

The other essential element is to have "Down on his luck" (painted by Frederick McCubbin) as the cover image for the book.
Both speak of a time of swagmen, selectors, and dirt-poor farmers.

The second book on the list is the novel "My brilliant career" by Miles Franklin, which now elicits as much memories of Judy Davis in the film version, as it does Stella 'Miles' Franklin's depiction of her free-spirited heroine's coming-of-age. It was perceived by many to be largely autobiographical, and set in the area of New South Wales around Goulburn and Canberra.



The third book is definitely non-fiction - "The Bush : travels into the heart of Australia" by Don Watson. It is a journey through Australia's landscape, history and culture looking at our mythology and romantic views of the Bush. 

Number 4 was a mystery to me "All the birds, singing" by  Evie Wyld. Its Western Australian bush aspects are told in retrospect by an Australian sheep farmer now on an un-named British island.

At Number 5 is the book we chose to represent Australia in the 3 Horshams reading challenge (Horsham in Australia, West Sussex and Pennsylvania) - "The Secret River" by Kate Grenville. The historical novel of the conflict between William Thornhill & the first settlers who wished to tame the bush, and its indigenous inhabitants.

And the sixth book follows on the Aboriginal theme, it's Bill Gammage's "The biggest estate on earth : how the Aborigines made Australia". It describes the 'fire-stick' method of land management, that changed the landscape to a fire-resistant plant dominance.

The 7th book is "Letters from Victorian pioneers" selected by Thomas Bride. This was one of the first non-fiction books I had to purchase, as it relates to the Western District. It is a series of papers on the early occupation of the colony to Charles LaTrobe when he was Governor of Victoria. Written mainly by squatters it provides first-hand accounts of their view of the Bush.

Back to novels, at 8 is "Carpentaria" by Alexis Wright. It spans the gulf between the Dreamtime, the present and looks at the future. Set in the coastal town of Desperance where the Phantoms seek sovereignty against traditional owership of the land.

At number 9 is a perennial favourite, "Tracks" by Robyn Davidson. The tale of her camel trek through the deserts of Central Australia. Published in 1980, it was then made into a film in 2013.

And rounding out the Top 10 is  "The songlines" by Bruce Chatwin. Bruce took off to Robyn Davidson territory - Central Australia to search for songlines - the ancient labyrinth of invisible pathways sung by mythical totems in the creation of the country.

There are links between these books, but they are also very different in how they see or describe the bush. Would they be your 10 of the best?