Kangaroo

Writer Richard Somers and his wife Harriet leave exhausted post-war Europe in the hope of rebuilding their marriage in a new and freer world. In Australia, in an idyllic cottage by the sea, they believe they have finally realised their dream - until they meet and become involved with Kangaroo, the influential and charismatic leader of a secret fascist army called the Diggers. Much of the writing in this novel is based on Lawrence's experiences in Australia. One of Lawrence's great novels. A beautiful blend of political outburst and Australian life and landscape. Chapter 10, The Nightmare, describes his war-time confrontations with authority in Cornwall and his humiliating examination for service. The novel's protagonist, like Lawrence, was rejected as "unfit". Kangaroo is one of the best travel books ever written, with "unforgettable vivid and accurate pictures of the Australian continent, in which no other English writer has approached Lawrence." - The Bookseller "..a portrait of D. H. Lawrence and Frieda during their stay in Australia, a segment of his life and work without which the whole man cannot be seen in full proportion." - The Bookseller