It would be hard to find a more satisfying hero than the young warrior Red Kangaroo, who by his mental and physical prowess became a chief of his tribe - the revered and powerful Red Chief of the Gunnedah district in northern New South Wales.
The true story of Harold Bell Lasseters discovery of a massive gold reef in Central Australia, his venture into the interior to find it again using camels, trucks and an aeroplane; and his disappearance, lost among Aboriginal tribes in the Central Desert.
In the 22nd edition of this book, Ion Idriess tells of his beginnings, of his childhood in Lismore, Tamworth and Broken Hill, of his apprenticeship in bushcraft, and of the growing love for the Australian Outback which illumines all his work. He tells of the jobs he had, - as rouseabout, horse breaker, horse tailer, shearer.
This book is the first in the Australian Guerrilla series by the author of The Desert Column, and one who was a sniper in World War 1. Published in 1942 with the imminent threat of invasion by the Japanese, this shows how one can become an expert with the rifle.
Idriess latest book is the romance of the Edie Creek and Bulolo diggings, situated inland from Salamau; and the associated names of diggers as "Shark Eye Bill" (William Park), Matt Crowe, Jim Preston, Arthur Dowling, Frank and Jim Pryke... men who in pre-war years crept across the frontier, defying the Germans and dodging the headhunters.
