Crocodile Country - Barry Crump
First published as 'Gulf', in 1964.
Most of Barry Crump's books are set in rural New Zealand; this one, as the title might suggest, is set in rural Australia. We follow our nameless protagonist and his wife Fiff, who, bored of their current lives, decide to travel north and become crocodile hunters. They encounter various characters, eventually joining up with renounced crocodile hunter Darcy (and his dog Pruszkowic), from whom they learn the trade.
As with most Crump books, there is not much more to the plot as a whole than what I have already described. We get all kinds of yarns based around this theme, with trips to pubs, encounters with eccentric locals, and numerous stories of individual crocodile hunts to pad out the run time, until it is time for the book to end with an event that gives a vague sense of closure to at least one part of the plot. Yet, as is also the case with most Crump books, the stories are interesting and keep you reading.
The fact that Crump had lived as a crocodile hunter himself for a few years shows in the detailed accounts of crocodile hunting, and Crump's own demons (particularly his strained romantic relationships) also shine through in the dysfunctional relationship the protagonist has with Fiff.
Maybe not my favourite Crump book, but still an interesting look at a very different type of lifestyle to mine!
Completed 30 August 2024.
Comments
Post a Comment