'My mother died with her eyes wide open in 1947, near Maude in the Riverina. No doctor was called, her body was not prepared. I still wonder what he was thinking as he dropped her in the ground without a word or a coffin or the whole of her name, as he kneeled and scooped red dirt to cover her with the chub of his pale Scottish hands.'
At twelve years old, Day is not prepared for his mother' death - strapped to a bed in a locked bedroom then buried rough-shod in the sand. Stunned and in fear of his father, Day rides out of their remote New South Wales farm, sure of nothing but that he isn't coming back.
Day finds work as a stable-boy, transforms himself into an expert groom and escapes Australia with a racehorse called Unusual. In the alien landscape of Maryland, his undiminished, painful love for his mother is challenged by the arrival of Callie, her heart set on becoming the world's first female jockey. As Day's passion for Callie takes hold, he is forced to confront his past - and to accept that the only way forward is to go back. The results of his unfaltering journey home are more shocking than even he could have imagined.
David Francis's debut novel is an extraordinary achievement: a haunting evocation of a devastated boy and his valiant efforts to forge connections with the world around him. Written with exceptional subtlety, grace and compassion, it marks Francis out as a talented and stirring new voice.
