AustLit

In the Australian outback early in the twentieth century, near Wiluna in the North West of Western Australia, Ron and Debbie Guthrey pioneer a cattle station. They build a shack near Kaapi Yalta, which means Cool Water, a spring and small pool, which is periodically visited by Aborigines. Ron earns additional income by droving cattle down the Canning Stock Route from Wyndham to Wiluna. After three months absence, he returns to Kaapi Yalta to find his pregnant wife missing and ominous blood stains on the mattress. Wiluna police form a posse to hunt for the perpetrators. Two Aborigines are killed in a misunderstanding. A sense of life in the Australian outback is dynamically presented through out, demonstrating the need to deal carefully with the harsh landscape and climate. Brief glimpses of traditional Aboriginal culture are embedded in the story. Social and cultural changes accompanying adjustments to the impact of the wider Australian society are highlighted. (Backcover)