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'When Fiona Collins meets Stuart Higgins at a conference in Melbourne, she isn't looking for a relationship, let alone the upheaval of falling for an eco-aware cotton farmer from South-East Queensland. But then life never goes quite according to plan.
When Stuart sends Fiona a pair of crusty old boots and a declaration of his feelings just sixteen days into their relationship, it's the start of a love story that endures - in spite of distance, the strain of Stuart's farm entering its fourth year of drought, and Fiona's own issues with commitment. Something's got to give and eventually Fiona puts everything on the line - her career, her Sydney life, her future - and moves to Stuart's farm. Nearest township? Jandowae, population 750. Here, Fiona encounters an Australia she's never really known, replete with snakes on the doorstep, frogs in the toilet, and the perils of the bush telegraph.
Gradually she begins to fall in love with rural life, but as Stuart struggles to balance commercial and environmental realities, she realises that farming isn't quite as simple as she'd imagined. Ultimately, Fiona has to learn how to cope with the devastating impact of the drought that grips the countryside, and what it means for Stuart, the farm, and their future together.' Source: www.loveintheageofdrought.com/ (Sighted 04/05/2009).
Notes
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Dedication: To the memory of my father Ian Granville Collins (1942-2008)
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Author's note: I only spent three summers in Jandowae. Not a lifetime, but long enough to begin to understand the difficulties faced by farming families Australia-wide. Many rural Australians don't have any other choice available to them apart from continuing to struggle against the difficulties of remote living in an age of drought, or flood, or fire. In my philanthropic career, I have encountered many charitable agencies doing excellent work in rural and regional Australia. One standout national organisation is the Foundation for Regional Renewal, which assists individiuals, families and communities in rural Australia through a range of grassroots initiatives that build capacity and resilience.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Boots and All Tale of Romance in a Parched Land
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 10 May 2009; (p. 12)
— Review of Love in the Age of Drought 2009 single work autobiography -
Smitten on Bush Tracks
2009
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 6 May 2009; (p. 4-5) -
Books Non-Fiction
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 2 - 3 May 2009; (p. 25)
— Review of Love in the Age of Drought 2009 single work autobiography
-
Books Non-Fiction
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 2 - 3 May 2009; (p. 25)
— Review of Love in the Age of Drought 2009 single work autobiography -
Boots and All Tale of Romance in a Parched Land
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 10 May 2009; (p. 12)
— Review of Love in the Age of Drought 2009 single work autobiography -
Smitten on Bush Tracks
2009
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 6 May 2009; (p. 4-5)