Rhiannon Williams, Dusty in the Outwilds, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, October 2022, 292 pp., RRP $22.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760509507
There was a door in Gran’s house that no-one ever opened. Who can resist an unopened door in a story? This enticing sentence is the beginning of a mystery that unfolds for Dusty and her family.
Dusty’s dad tries to make the room sound boring, full of old boxes and nothing of interest, but Dusty has a feeling that isn’t true and when she opens the door and finds a photo of a young girl with a small monkey on her shoulder, she knows this must be her Aunt Meg who disappeared before she was born. None of her family talk about Meg, but there are whispers she went to live ‘out wild’ and never came back.
Dusty wants to know who she was, why she left and why just mentioning her name can cause her family to clam up. When Dusty discovers her beloved family bushland property is being sold, she goes on a quest to find Meg, having a hunch she can save it. Venturing into the Outwilds, she meets creatures from stories she remembers her Gran whispering and discovers it is equal parts fascinating but also dangerous.
Reviewed by Deb Abela
