I have written this book Me and Matilda and set it against a backdrop of the rivers which I have lived on and traversed. The Diamantina and the Murray being my Favorites. I do love the mighty Murrumbidgee River and some of the family in Mary of the Shanty share blood with me. Tom in the Overlanders is a relative of mine to and Jack the ringer is close to me, or he was up until his death. These people in my books are very dear to me and I present them to you with pride. Wally is back from the war and living on the farm on the Murrumbidgee. He is unable to settle down and grows more restless as time goes by. He finally decides he must go on a journey to find Jack and follow the rivers and waterways of the great Australian basins. He packs a swag and goes on the road to take on the life of a swaggy. He loves the freedom and the peace he finds on the road traveling beside the great Aussy rivers. Wally finds love and an inner peace that he could not have imagined. But, as ever, there are hidden perils out in the wide world which Wally had never dreamed of. He finds he must fight for those he loves, but Wally is no stranger to this and takes it in his stride.