Book excerpt: In North America he's a cowboy, In Australia a ringer. With humour and insight the author has captured the atmoshpere of the Australian outback in this absorbing tale. We meet a young man newly arrived on a north Queensland cattle station, completely out of his depth. We leave him head stockman on a vast Gulf Country station. Readers of all ages will identify with him as he learns the requiered skills, faces the dangers and assumes the responsibilities that bring about the transformation. The interesting characters he meets along the way are well drawn. The experienced men who guide him in the early years. His mates in the mustering camps. The violent types he is obliged to confront during off season labouring jobs. The cattle thieves he encounters. The young ladies who share his life from time to time. Set in the years when it was possible to ride for days on end without seeing a fence and when droving trips that lasted for months were commonplace, this is a book that is hard to put down.