hiking – Aussie Reviews

Off the Track, by Cristy Burne

Harry’s perfect life was straying way off track. he looked pleadingly at Mum. Surely she could see? Spending an entire weekend tramping around stinking-hot snake-filled scrub was a horrible mistake. But doing it without a phone? That was just brutal.

Harry is not happy. Not only has his mum moved him from his comfortable life in Sydney to live in Perth, but now she’s agreed to spend the weekend hiking in the bush with her old friend Ana, and her daughter Deepika. There are snakes, and spiders and insects in the bush – and, worst of all, no mobile phones allowed. Well, not for Harry, anyway. Mum seems to be the only one allowed to have her phone. She says it’s in case of emergencies, but Harry knows she’ll be using it every chance she gets. Out on the Bibbulmun Track, his worst fears are realised – there really are snakes and spiders. And every time they are in range, Mum has her phone out. Then, just when he starts to enjoy himself, Harry discovers that things really can go wrong out in the bush.

Off the Track highlights the Australian outdoors, and especially Western Australia’s iconic Bibbulmun Track, in a pleasing blend of adventure and self-discovery. Many young readers will relate to Harry’s dismay of being ‘forced’ to live without every day conveniences like flushing toilets, beds, and technology. Others will love the outdoors setting and the taste of hiking the story offers.

Gripping junior fiction.

Off the Track, by Cristy Burne
Fremantle Press, 2018
ISBN 9781925591743

The Geography of Friendship, by Sally Piper

They haven’t seen each other for years, but here they are, falling onto the same old pattern as though there’s no other worth considering. Maybe it’s more to do with the place they’re walking through. Maybe the land has designs on them – maybe it always had – robbing them of the power to choose alternatives.

It’s been twenty years since they first walked the rail as teens, and twenty years since their friendship fell apart. Now, Samantha, Lisa and Nicole are walking the same trail, in an attempt to salvage something, even though it is clear to at least two of them what its they are trying to salvage.
That first hike was meant to be an adventure, a kind of coming of age in the wilderness, but what happened in those five days changed all of them, and severed their friendship. Will revisiting the scene of those terrible five days really mend their friendship, and will it help each woman to heal the wounds which continue to effect their lives?

The Geography of Friendship is a finely woven story. the use of three perspectives, and the shift bewteen the events of the past, the present and those in the intervening years, could become complicated, but rather makes for a pleasing complexity as the reader gets to know each woman and gradually piece together what has happened.

Absorbing and satisfying.

The Geography of Friendship, by Sally Piper
UQP, 2018
ISBN 9780702259975

Rockhopping by Trace Balla

The first time Uncle Egg took me on an adventure, canoeing, it was his idea. This time the adventure was my idea – or maybe it was both of ours …

‘I wonder where all this water comes from.’

‘How about we go and find out sometime, kid?

Well, some time came and some time went, and I was ready to go looking for the source of the river … or at least I thought so.

The first time Uncle Egg took me on an adventure, canoeing, it was his idea. This time the adventure was my idea – or maybe it was both of ours …

‘I wonder where all this water comes from.’

‘How about we go and find out sometime, kid?

Well, some time came and some time went, and I was ready to go looking for the source of the river … or at least I thought so.

Clancy and Uncle Egg are off on another adventure. This time, they’re off to seek the source of the Glenelg River. Clancy is ready to go, but discovers that first he has to do some preparation. Fortunately, Uncle Egg knows just what to do, and Clancy is soon in training. Then they plan what has to go in each of their backpacks, before setting off in the train to Gariwerd (Grampians) in Western Victoria. Their hike takes them up and down hills and mountains and includes plenty of adventure, both expected and unplanned. In addition to the narrative, local fauna and flora are identified throughout and in the endpapers, both in local languages and in English. Indigenous and colonial history are both explored. ‘Rockhopping is an 80-page graphic novel, wrapped in a picture book hardcover.

Clancy and Uncle Egg’s first outing, canoeing along the Glenelg River, is detailed in ‘Rivertime’. Rockhopping sees the pair searching for the source of the same river. They know where to look for it, but looking and finding are different things. It’s very clear that the joy is in the journey as much as – if not more than – the destination. Trace Balla fills her pages with adventure and knowledge. Clancy, the viewpoint character is a primary school student, and embodies a wonderful blend of openness, innocence and knowledge. He is happy to learn from his uncle and others they encounter, but he’s also developing a calmness and resilience and some great problem-solving skills. Rockhopping is a rich, accessible delight. Highly recommended for mid-primary plus.

Rockhopping, Trace Balla
Allen & Unwin 2016 ISBN: 9781760112349

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller