Such Is Life
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Read this for a richly ironic, philosophically layered portrait of colonial Australia that challenges conventional storytelling and offers a profound meditation on fate, class, and the art of observation.
Edition details
Book Summary
Tom Collins, a philosophical bullock driver, chronicles a year in the Australian bush through nine sampled days, blending misadventures, campfire debates, and reflections on fate, class, and identity. His narrative, claiming 'limpid veracity,' explores the tension between determinism and free will in a rugged colonial landscape.
The novel follows Tom Collins, a self-styled 'chronicler' of the Riverina, as he recounts nine days from March to September 1883. Through encounters with swagmen, station owners, and fellow travelers, Collins explores the harsh realities of bush life: the plight of reduced gentlemen, the eviction of nomadic families from Mia-mia Paddock, and the tragic death of Mary O'Halloran. Key episodes include a debate over the Garden of Eden, a dust storm at Patagonia Tank, and a philosophical argument about social inequality. Collins repeatedly returns to Runnymede station, where he observes the rigid class hierarchy and the hypocrisy of station owners. His narrative method—sampling one day per month—allows him to meditate on fate, coincidence, and the 'Original Impress' that shapes human lives. The book culminates in reflections on loss, masculinity, and the search for meaning in a world governed by chance and social constraints.
Reading guide
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Character guides, themes, chapter companions — plus Character Web, narrative arc, and theme heatmap teasers that unlock fully beside the text in BetterReads.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This excerpt marks the narrative climax because it presents the emotional and psychological peak of the narrat…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingTom Collins
A bullock driver who narrates his own wandering life with philosophical irony, forever balancing hard labour against the luxury of a quiet mind.
Steve Thompson
Tom's trusted mate on the road, a bullock driver whose practical errands and easy camaraderie keep the narrator tethered to the working world.
Mosey Price
An eccentric boundary rider whose philosophical bent and odd habits make him one of the Riverina's most memorable roadside characters.
Warrigal Alf
A rough-hewn bushman and bullock driver whose good heart shows through the grit of a life spent on the track.
Rory O'Halloran
An old Irishman whose warmth and sorrow, bound up with his daughter Mary, make him one of the novel's most affecting figures.
Moriarty
A local squatter and magistrate whose authority and class position make him a natural counterweight to the bullock drivers' world.
Social Class and Hierarchy
The book extensively examines the rigid social stratification of Australian station life, from the manager's house to the men's hut, and the tensions between wage-slaves, squatters, and officials, often using biblical and feudal analogies.
Determinism vs. Free Will
The narrator repeatedly contrasts theories of cosmic determinism (Original Impress) with individual agency, framing his own unemployment and life events as either predestined or the result of personal choice and 'hitches.'
The Nature of Truth and Narrative
Collins insists on being a 'chronicler' rather than a 'romancer,' claiming 'limpid veracity' and a memory that stereotypes impressions, while self-consciously breaking narrative conventions and mocking literary propriety.
Masculinity and Labor
The book portrays a rugged, homosocial world of bullock drivers, drovers, and boundary riders, where physical endurance, practical knowledge, and a stoic acceptance of hardship define manhood, contrasted with effete 'whalers' or gentlemen.
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