The Hands: An Australian Pastoral

He didn't look like he could jump a bull, but she knew he could. It was all in the hands, he'd often explain. The will. The bloody mindedness. On a cattle station that stretches beyond the horizon, seven people are trapped by their history and the need to make a living. Trevor Wilkie, the good father, holds it all together, promising his sons a future he no longer believes in himself. The boys, free to roam the world's biggest backyard, have nowhere to go. Trevor's father, Murray, is the keeper of stories and the holder of the deed. Murray has no intention of giving up what his forefathers created. But the drought is winning. The cattle are ribs. The bills keep coming. And one day, on the way to town, an accident changes everything.

About the Author :
Stephen Orr was born in Adelaide in 1967, studied science and education and taught in a range of country and metropolitan schools. One of his early plays, Attempts to Draw Jesus, became his first novel, shortlisted for the Australian/Vogel's Literary Award. Since then he has published ten novels (most recently, Sincerely, Ethel Malley) and two volumes of short stories (Datsunland and The Boy in Time). He has been nominated for awards such as the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, the Miles Franklin Award and the International Dublin Literary Award.

Review :
'"The Hands" has the scope of a Greek tragedy - not only in its focus on the violence underlying familial relationships. Ineluctable fate seems to press on a family forced into painful reflection. The encroaching desert is, like the Greek Moirai, remorseless: "It didn't like him, it didn't hate him; it refused to know anyone or anything." Catharsis is evoked, but its form is not predictable. Orr is a restrained writer when it counts.' - Josephine Taylor, "Australian Book Review" '"The Hands" is a raw, honest and absorbing portrait of pastoral life from Orr ... he eloquently captures the practical trials and emotional angst experienced by farmers torn between a generations-long connection to country and the reality of a fragile future dependent on nature's whims. The pastoral portrait he paints is so vivid you can almost taste the suffocating dust ... A true Australian story - and one well worth reading.' - Suzie Keen, "InDaily" 'The triumphant culmination of a five-book fascination with the dynamics of (family) groups as they function in extreme and often liminal situations ... Orr slides seamlessly in and out of his different characters' heads ... always moving the story efficiently along ... and always making the reader effortlessly, endlessly, insistently aware of the breadth and rigour of the landscape, the dominance and dryness.' - Katharine England, "Advertiser" 'There are many threads to this novel: the lasting impact of WW1 on ensuing generations; secrets and sacrifices; shame and unspoken grief. But the loneliness of a man in despair makes him very vulnerable in a place where just walking out into nothingness is a perilous option, and "The Hands" makes real the plight of many farming families today ... This is my fourth novel by Stephen Orr, and I think it's the best one yet.' - Lisa Hill, "ANZLitlovers LitBlog" 'Orr creates great atmosphere in the setting and portrays each character beautifully.' - Fotini Dangiris, "Good Reading" 'This is a realistic portrayal of family life and the events which befall this group are entirely authentic in the sense that they happen with similar measure and frequency to everyday people. Orr's depiction of rural life and farming practices is refreshing as he avoids romantic and lazy stereotypes, instead drawing recognisable people who express credible opinions with familiar dialogue.' - Rob Welsh, "ReadPlus" '"The Hands" cuts to the core of life on the parched land of Australia's interior ... A novel that will have readers in awe of how anyone can survive "out there", let alone make a living.' - "The Senior" 'This is at times a heartbreaking read, but the story is told with elegant, beautiful prose ... It is hard not to be drawn into this family's life.' - Fiona Myers, "Weekly Times" 'The book is far from a rural romance, harking back to an older fiercer Australian tradition of depicting the unforgiving nature of life on the land ... Within the narrative is of no-nonsense prose is a carefully constructed tension between tradition and the need to move on, between the hopes of varying generations, and between differing ideas of where home and happiness can be found.' - Nick Mattiske, "Signs of the Times"