When I first learned that Russell Carrington had written down his yarns and memories I knew that they should be published for posterity. Russ grew up on Planet Downs station, near Burketown, in the very last of the ‘old days’ before mobile phones, internet and modern roads.
Russ grew up surrounded by formidable women and great outback characters — Fiery Ted, Jack Mac, Carney the Cook, and Hussein the hermit, who divided his time between a sandstone cave and a wild Gulf beach.
Russ operated machinery and worked as a ringer, then put himself through flying school, becoming one of the top mustering chopper pilots in Australia’s north. His story is a special one, short and succinct, with no filler, and easily read in one rainy afternoon. It’s also very sad in parts, the truth from start to finish, and I think it deserves a place on every bookshelf.
You can buy a copy of the book here.
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