I saw this in a selection of NYRB classic paperbacks while browsing at a little bookstore at Pike Place Market, and was interested. I am always looking to read more about Australia & especially its natives and fauna.

I am sad to say I was disappointed, and it is hard to understand why the editors thought this title was worthy of a reprint this century. Even with a publication date of 1959 the racism and bigoty standout, not mention the story is a simple, well-trod one. ( )

A book written about the clash between two white, privileged children from the American South and an adolescent Aboriginal performing his"walkabout" journey designed to winnow out the weak, unfit-for-fatherhood young men. Mary and Peter, two lone brother-and-sister survivors of a small plane crash in the northern territory of Australia, who are too ignorant to Know that they should stay by the plane crash if they hope to be rescued, head south into the desert in the direction of what they believe is Adelaid, where their uncle lives. Before long, they come face-to-face with the naked "darkie" (this was written in 1956). With an omniscient viewpoint, we learn much about this young man, the way of his people, and the amazing flora and fauna found on their travel. But the misunderstanding between Mary and the young Aboriginal will have tragic consequences. ( )

Walkabout was the very first book I was ever assigned for school. I remember very little of the discussions my class had about the book, but vividly recall almost every page of the book itself.

I'm surprised at people saying nothing happens in the book because in my mind, each plot point and each detail of Peter and Mary's interactions with the bush boy stand out clearly even 17-18 years after I read it: Mary clucking like a mother hen around Peter, the bush boy teaching the city kids to get water by sucking reeds, the bush boy trying to communicate with the city kids and vice versa, Mary giving the bush boy her underpants, the frenzied eerie ceremonial dance which is the precursor to tragedy, the bush boy realizing Mary is a girl and tossing her the heaviest load to carry, the kids eating a rock wallaby... It was all so well done and so very memorable.

I went in knowing absolutely nothing about Australia, this book was my introduction to words like "outback" and "wallaby". But I never felt lost while reading it, not even in the beginning, which is a testment to the clarity of the prose.

The only reason I'm not giving this book more stars is because it also scarred me a little. Mary, you see, is such a wet blanket. Decidedly the Uncool One, the one who clings to meaningless symbols of civilization at the expense of the more meaningful aspects of it, the one most in need of a lesson, the one who is systematically stripped of her power and self-esteem throughout the course of the book, both by the characters and by the narrative.


I didn't grow up seeing a lot of strong female characters in the media - I grew up in India in the 1980s, I had never seen or read a book with a female protagonist before. Walkabout's Mary was the FIRST real (i.e. independent) happily-female character (unlike George in Famous Five) I ever read about who was powerful and clearly a protagonist ... as it turned out, only in the beginning. Then the whole point of the story turned out to be to strip her of power and utterly destroy her.

I was immensely frustrated with Mary and immensely ashamed of myself by the end of her story. It didn't help that the boys in my class were totally gloating by the end, reading out loud their essays that talked about how this book showed them Mary being a "typical emotional weak girl" and how it fell to boys to show her the way to live and survive. To this day I can't think of Walkabout without that twinge of shame and depression.

Then there is the question of racism which is something I only see in the book in retrospect. The book employs the well-worn "noble savage" stereotype in its depiction of the bush boy, often in a direct authorial explanation rather than any "showing" incidents. The moment when the bush boy tosses a heavy load for Mary to carry is actually his most human moment, THE only one where he isn't acting the part of earth-mother native helping white folks. And then, even though the book is called "Walkabout" and it is the bush boy who is on this journey toward manhood, he dies and the journey to manhood becomes Peter's instead. It would have been so easy to avert it but of course the dark skinned helper must die to further the white heroes' journey. Really sad.

The book is at kids' reading level but because of the potentially sexist and racist message contained in it, I would NOT recommend it to any kids. So, two stars. ( )

Originally published in 1959, Walkabout by James Vance Marshall is the story of two children who survive a plane crash and find themselves lost in the Australian outback. They are American children who were on their way to visit their Australian uncle. They have no knowledge of the flora and fauna that they find themselves surrounded by and are very much in jeopardy. A young Aborigine finds them, and helps them learn how to survive and thus they begin their journey back to civilization.

An excellent story, but there are some very important moral questions raised. The white children just naturally seem to have a sense of superiority over the young black boy and call him “Darkie” or ‘Boy”. The young white girl, Mary, is actually very afraid of the black boy, thinking he may mean them harm when all he is doing is showing them how to find food and water. As the young boy looks at Mary and sees her fear, he believes it foreshadows his own death. I suspect the author was trying to highlight the difficulties that the Aborigines were facing as the freedom of their isolated, wandering lifestyle was coming to an end.

The author’s simple survival story is entwined with descriptions of the landscape of the Outback. His knowledge of plants and animals are excellent and these descriptions allow the reader to experience the story through the eyes of the children. Walkabout is a wonderfully haunting children’s story and one that deserves it’s place on the classic shelf. ( )

First of all, I wish I didn't read the introduction for this edition (NYRB Classics), because it gave away some major plot points, so warning to all those who have that same edition!

This short novel was interesting; two young American children crashed in the desolate Australian outback on their way to Adelaide and must somehow survive a long journey to the nearest civilized place. They eventually come across an Aboriginal boy, who feels a sense of obligation to help the children survive in this (to them) harsh and unfamiliar environment. I couldn't help but wonder how much research, if any, the author did into the culture and customs of the Aboriginal boy he depicts. He certainly knows the landscape of the Australian desert; his descriptions of the flora and fauna are quite lovely.

It's also interesting to note the time period in which this was written; originally published in 1959, and with the American children hailing from South Carolina, they (especially the older sister) are hindered by their learned prejudices and biases against anyone with skin darker than theirs.

In all, I did enjoy this book, and it did elicit some deeper thoughts and questions about colliding worlds, life, and death. ( )