Stone Country

In this book, Nicole Alexander has written a family saga about the Grant family during the first forty years of the twentieth century.

The main character in the story is Ross who we initially meet as a young boy largely being manipulated by his older brother Alastair. They live with their parents and grandmother in Adelaide. The family owns large land holdings in South Australia and the Northern Territory and it is Ross' wish that, when they grow up, he and Alastair should visit the northern property, Waybell. However World War I intervenes and Alastair joins the army. The family will not allow Ross to go too, a decision he comes to regret. When Alastair is wounded and then disappears he is eventually presumed dead.

Then a woman arrives at the house from England claiming to be Alastair's fiancee and the family decides that the right thing for Ross to do is to marry Alastair's promised bride, even though he does not know her. Ross eventually agrees but only if he can go north as he originally planned.

The book is therefore about family relationships, relationships between Darcey and Ross and also between Ross and Maria, a young girl he meets in the Northern Territory. Themes revolve around the effects of the First World War on men who served and on their families as well as on men who did not join the army. The major theme, however, is the outback and its affect on individuals. Nicole Anderson describes vividly the countryside and life on the property, Waybel, isolated from other properties in the region. She also provides vivid descriptions of the harsh landscape through which Ross wanders when he is trying to rediscover himself.