The Great Emu War

Book excerpt: In 1932 in the wheat country of Western Australia there was a plague of emus. The plague was so great that the Federal Government was convinced to send a squad of soldiers equipped with machine guns mounted on trucks. They were ordered to shoot the emus - a tactic that had been tried before and failed miserably. Still, consistency often prevails while unrequited success weeps quietly in the corner. There is a lot going on - farmers who want to secede from the Commonwealth, a State election and referendum, soldiers more interested in what is under the soil, a commander with questionable mental health, Aboriginal farmhands once again bemused by the white fellas and the usual line up of conspirators, wannabees, politicians and ordinary folks. Oh, and many thousands of emus.There is nothing more interesting or more comical - tragic - or emotional than human beings and when they live in interesting times and collide with great wealth and power, there's a lot to explore.