BOOK REVIEWS
Three Wondering Poms
Títle: Three Wondering Poms
Writer: Linda Botherstone;
Jacqueline Griffth; Angela
Griffith
Year: 2014
R
Títle: The Biggest Mistake of
Our LIves
Writer: Michael McDonald
Year: 2010
It was a different time back in the
early 1970's and Three Wondering
Poms reflects that. The three British
girls, all Ten Pound Poms, exploiting
a loop hole in the immigration policy
of 1970's Australia set out on a 'holi-
day' of a lifetime, to travel by motor-
cycles.
Two of the 'Poms' have never rid-
den before and are suddenly thrown
into the chaos of riding the many un-
sealed outback roads, including the
notorious Nullarbor Plain.
The memoir is told from the as-
pect of all three girls and in places
it gives very different perspectives
while always remaining true to the
adventure. It's interesting to read
how many of the regions travelled
have changed so much and while
unlike many more recent memoirs
that include Australia, the three girls
seem to have found the core of what
it means to be Australian; they don't
judge, they embrace.
Three Wondering Poms is a re-
flection of a bygone era; things were
easier, things were much tougher.
Regardless this book will prove to
be great inspiration to anyone who
wishes to travel Australia, especially
by motorcycle.
There is one thing you can count
on now: almost all of the roads men-
tioned in this book are now sealed.
Three Wondering Poms; a great
memoir, a great read.
E
The Biggest Mistake Of Our Lives
It was just purely by coincidence
that this review came up in the same
issue as a Compass Expeditions piece,
you see Michael McDonald created
Compass after the experience that
lead to The Biggest Mistake of Our
Lives.
Michael set out to do a charity fund-
raising ride after meeting a young
lady suffering a terrible disease. With
his tour leading and overland truck
driving experience it seemed fitting
that it should be something similar.
The ride, from London to Magadan,
took four mates across the world on a
route that was very rarely completed.
The Biggest Mistake of Our Lives
tells the story of these four mates
and their epic ride. A ride into the
unknown for four riders with limit-
TRAVERSE
80
V
ed experience and understanding of
what they were getting themselves
into.
The tale is an interesting read, to a
time, not that long ago when things
were very different - travelling by
motorcycle to remote areas wasn't
mainstream.
The Biggest Mistake ... is an honest
account of a great adventure, packed
with laughs and tears, joy and frus-
tration, yet one question rang out
throughout the whole book ... Was
it really the biggest mistake of their
lives?