This highly entertaining book is an essential resource for anyone who has dreamed of heading ‘out bush’ into the heartland deserts, or along the remote coastlines of Australia to find those magical remote spots where the night sky fills one with wonder.
Hailing from Wollongong, David Batty shares his hard-learned experiences on how to travel ’out bush’ in a simple, elegant style but with all necessities on board. And more importantly, how to get out of mechanical trouble, or better still, how not to break down or get stuck in the sand or mud in the first place!
David created the award-winning and popular TV series Bush Mechanics with Warlpiri elder Francis Jupurrurla Kelly in 2001. It is a legendary program. I am surprised the expression hasn’t yet appeared in the Macquarie Dictionary, but he has produced so much more.
He has travelled hundreds of thousands of kilometres across Australia, making films and visiting family, which can be anywhere from Southern Tasmania or the Far South Coast of NSW to Broome, Darwin, Alice Springs, or anywhere in between.
The book is littered with QR codes that you can simply scan with your phone and be taken to many of the wonderful short films that David has made, such as Bushwalking South Coast, Ringers of the Kimberley, or Sisters, Pearls and Mission Girls. The same entertaining style of these films permeates the book. Some of the analogies are hilarious, such as the engine that “was purring like eight kittens in a wicker basket” or the tent “with more poles than a salami shop in Warsaw”.
Few people have spent so much time travelling and camping with Aboriginal people in the Great Western Desert, the Kimberley, and the Top End. The tales in this book bring these experiences to life. Whether it is rainmaking in the Tanami Desert with the Warlpiri or being stranded on a desert island for days with the Yolgnu, living on stingrays and oysters, these are great tales.
This book is full of highly valuable, practical tips and tricks for the 4WD enthusiast, straight from the Bush Mechanic. It covers everything from the best tyre pressures for sand travel to the pros and cons of rooftop tents.
It’s a book you can dip into and out of or read cover to cover if you like. It's an easy and entertaining read, well-illustrated with lots of photos and great value – never mind all the free films! It’s worth it just for the camp oven recipes in the back – a great stocking stuffer for the husband and a good one for the glovebox on that next road trip!
Batty's Bush Bible (HarperCollins, $34.99) was published on 30 October 2024
