I finished Dirt Music (Tim Winton) with a sense of loss. I was sorry to see the story end, especially as no clear conclusion was reached. That's okay, I'm a grownup, I can handle there not being a defined ending (I've given up on happy endings). Without giving any spoilers, a few thoughts:

Tim Winton is so detailed and thorough that you get a sense of every detail in the scenes. The weather, the feel of the dust on your skin, the smells of the eucalyptus, as well as the emotions of the character are felt, not simply read. I didn't care for the main female character, I thought she was unsympathetic and apathetic to other characters, even the one she loves. The male lead is great, but of course, it's fiction! He has to be THAT perfect to make it work.

The main themes are overcoming your own personality flaws, and the fear of being left behind. Winton's main character Lu has lost everyone he loves; on this journey he meets several characters that could represent those faces from his past. He also has to face the reality that his own perceptions from the past may have been wrong. Horrifyingly so.

Rumor has it that this will become a film. Rachel Weisz is signed to play Georgia, which sounds fine. But there is a bit of a mystery regarding Russell Crowe and Colin Farrell. IMDB, the movie database, lists Colin as playing Lu. However, another report says Russell would play Lu. The other main male character, Jim, is pretty fascinating: he could be played by Russell but defintely not Colin. So I'm not sure which is accurate. I hope that Russell plays Lu, but he could do the character Jim Buckridge with a bit of a evil streak which might be interesting to see.

I'd be very interested to see how a screenplay could be written to show the amount of time passing as well as do justice to the Australian terrain and the long stretches without dialogue. My first reaction was that it would be compared with Tom Hank's Castaway. I think Russell could carry that, I don't think Colin has that much depth.

Anyway, this book had me take out the atlas, the dictionary, and use Google several times to see the trees and earthforms he describes. I think a geologist would particularly like this book, lots of rock talk.

Lastly, I've noticed that in the three Winton books I've read that Winton seems to idolize children, almost in a mythological way. That's not a bad thing, but it just seems that the children in his books develop almost a fairy like quality of mystery and perfection. ( )

I was really impressed by this book. Winton employs a style that takes a little getting used to - lack of quotations always makes me have to pay a little more attention - but his writing is so brilliant and clear, that I was drawn in very quickly and felt like I was standing right there next to the characters. And what complex, very interesting, real people his characters are! All three of the main characters are going through some personal crisis or are lost in some way. Their interactions are very real and unpredictable - so refreshing! I felt like this book was really a window into three different lives, three different personalities, and how they are all intertwined. I am definitely interested in more from this author after reading this. ( )

One of my favourite reads of 2006 and my first by this author. I don't know if distance lends enchantment but the western Australian coast was so vividly evoked for me that I wanted to fly there straight away.

The prose is seemingly plain but at the same time poetic in an unstrained way.

It's a journey novel with all that sort of novel entails but it certainly felt different to the American type road novels, though no wish to criticise the latter on my part. ( )

Brilliant book with extraordinary stark yet poetic prose. I've never been to Western Australia but I swear I could smell the place - and the people! I loved his flawed and human characters. My only complaint is that a glossary of Aussie slang would not have gone astray. ( )

I first read the novel Breath by Tim Winton and was completely entranced, so I had to try some more of his books. Dirt Music does not disappoint. Tim Winton's writing is magical, and I was transported to Western and Northern Australia, as Lu Fox tries to survive in a world that has taken everyone and everything he loves.
This is a complex book where things are slowly revealed and you feel sympathy for all the characters. Savour it. Highly recommended. ( )