The Heart of the Continent

by Nancy Cato

Set in the Australian outback in the early part of the 20th century, this novel tells of the life of a young woman struggling against her privileged background to become a nurse and to cope with the harsh life that the bush and World War I have inflicted upon her.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Australia, Fiction

480 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Nancy Fotheringham Cato AM (11 March 1917 – 3 July 2000) was an Australian writer who published more than twenty historical novels, biographies and volumes of poetry. Cato is also known for her work campaigning on environmental and conservation issues.

Cato was born in Glen Osmond in South Australia, and was a fifth-generation Australian. She studied English Literature and Italian at the University of Adelaide, graduating in 1939, then completed a two-year course at the South Australian School of Arts. She was a cadet journalist on The News from 1935 to 1941, and as an art critic from 1957 to 1958.[2]
Cato married Eldred De Bracton Norman, and travelled extensively overseas with him. They had one daughter and two sons.[1] Dr Nancy Cato Norman died at Noosa Heads on 3 July 2000.
Cato's cousin was also named Nancy Cato and was host of children's TV show the Magic Circle Club in the mid 1960s.

Reviews

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Australia anyway, and some of this was so vivid of places I've been, which was quite neat. It was well written--absolutely riveting as she wove the story and handled personal drama and commentaries on racism, sexism, morality, and environmental issues of the times with subtlety and geography and history without being boring. Historical fiction that felt rather timeless. Absolutely fascinating!

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading about places I have traveled through but otherwise this was a pretty lackluster book.

[Trish G · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is set against the unforgiving landscape of Central Australia in the early 20th century. It weaves the story of a young & privileged Adelaide woman who trains to be a nurse & accepts work in the harsh & isolated Red Centre. After meeting & marrying a Queensland cattleman, she embraces the outback, the lifestyle & continues to care for those around her especially the Aboriginals living on the property. Despite her pleading, Jim (her husband) enlists as a pilot in WW1 & is killed. Taking her baby back to Adelaide, Alix starts to rebuild her life. Missing the solace the country gives her she returns to nursing & the outback. Her daughter Caro studies nursing but in tandem learns to fly. On graduating in both, she defies conventions to start flying across the deserts & soon becomes an invaluable part of communication & medical assistance.
Woven into the heroics of ordinary people with compassion are the stories of the beginning of the Flying Doctor Service, the injustices meted out to Australian Aboriginals & the rise of feminism in a predominately man’s world.
The descriptions of the outback, the people, their everyday lives & their ability to cope with all situations was not only a lesson in history, geography but also the perseverance of human nature.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Woven around the various beautiful yet harsh living conditons of the Australian outback is a parallel story of a young woman and her daughter, who each rebels against the norms of society to pursue their respective careers in nursing and flying airplanes. As the story line progresses from the early 1900's to the beginning of WW2, so does the life of Alix, who trains to be a nurse in the remote center of the continent, and her fearless daughter, Caro, who defies convention and not only becomes a nurse, but also a woman pilot. She saves her nursing earnings to buy a plane and takes classes on how to fly and maintain the craft. There are parallel love interests, also.

The descriptions of the different geography of the Australian territories are very fluid and lyrical.
I learned so much about Australia and look forward to reading Nancy Cato's other works about Australia.

[OhSuzanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love non-religious historical fiction, and am especially drawn to Australian stories (I'm an American). This was also a good story about strong women making their way in a male-dominated world, with some lovely and some somewhat heartbreaking romances within. It's a book I'd gladly read again and again.

[I'm not deaf · Rating 4 out of 5]

J'ai lu ce livre car c'était le dernier que ma grande-tante Roseline a lu avant de décéder. Elle était infirmière et elle vivait la moitié de l'année en Australie chez son fils. Bref, étrangement similaire aux livres. Le récit de ces deux deux femmes est très inspirant et très bien écrit. Un beau livre que je recommande <

[Sonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good historical fiction about the Flying Doctor Service in Australia during the World Wars. I like books that lead me to do more research (including definitions of some Australian words) and I learned quite a bit about some places I would like to see someday.

[Bronwyn Muggleston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was a wonderful insight into the beginnings of the Flying Doctor Service and brief insight into the WW2 in the SthPacific

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her writing is beautiful, and captures the harshness and beauty of the the Australian continent.

[Barb Wisniewski · Rating 3 out of 5]

A novel of Australia; enjoyable read but a bit too much detail of the physical aspects of the country that I did not understand.

[Sue B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid 3.5
Enjoyed it.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book even more this time. It is the beautifully written story of two women, Alix and her daughter Caro. Alix was the daughter of well-to-do landowners who studied nursing and worked in a small clinic in the Australian outback. She eventually married a land-owner but was widowed shortly after. Caro was her daughter who became a nurse and a pilot.Some of the book's setting was in places that I had actually visited, Maree, Adelaide, Darwin. I could picture once more the spiniflex and the Australian outback. This book had so many positive attributes, history, interesting plot, strong characters and vivid descriptions. As a nurse I found the medical aspect of the book fascinating. It will always be oneof my favorite books.


28 Dec 2006
An absolutely wonderful book with the setting in South Australia and Northern Territory – many familiar places and names that made me feel very nostalgic – enjoyed the medical aspect as well. I must try to buy this book.

[Trish McCormack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spent this afternoon absorbed in this great book not wanting it to end - and when you look at titles in bookshops today you'll see nothing this long & detailed which makes me wonder what has changed since 1989 when this was published. This is a long book which gives characters the space to grow and this is a really great thing! No cliched romance this - it's real and ornery and thought provoking. The Australian outback, both world wars & the flying doctor back story is interesting & the heroines Alix and Caro are the kind of people you'd love to know. Perfect storytelling.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alix MacFarlane defies her family and refuses to live a proper life in one of the big cities in Aus¬tralia in the 1920's or so becomes a registered nurse and goes to work in the Australian bush in a remote medical practice. Years later her daughter follows in her footsteps, except that Caro, in addition to nursing, owns her own plane and can fly herself from one remote station to another. Not great, but a good read. (I read it last winter one weekend when John had the flu.)

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

This could have been a fantastic story - the start of the flying doctor service in Australia and all the difficulties the nurses faced. However, the author just didn't do it for me. Her style didn't quite do justice to the scope of the story and the integrity of her characters.

With another author this could have been brilliant. As it was, it fell flat

[Lise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Le titre décrit bien l'avenue des pilotes au début du siècle en Australie qui avaient à traverser les déserts. J'ai appris beaucoup de choses dans ce livre ne serait-ce que de savoir les conditions de vie à cette époque...Mon intérêt a été soutenu grâce aux deux héroïnes, toutefois la fin m'a déçue car elle était trop prévisible.

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful story, set in Australia, that extends across generations. The book gave a beautiful sense that you were there in place and time, watching a continent and culture grow. It was also a great look at women's history and opportunity as time progresses.

[Siffy Torkildson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic historical fiction book about the outback and the origins of the flying doctors. The story covers the lives of a mother (an outback nurse) and then her daughter (a pilot and nurse) through the two world wars in the outback of Australia.

[The Twins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really, really enjoyed the book - easy reading with interesting facts from Australia.

[Carobe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Australiens hjärta.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book years ago and it is still a vivid memory. A must read

[Analee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writing not great, but an enjoyable read as I looked forward to a trip to Australia.