Through the pages of this book, Jennifer MacDougall takes us on a fascinating journey into the life of lan Dixon MacDougall and his family, and of those extraordinary people with whom their lives were entwined.
On that journey we come face to face with striking shearers, prison warders, pioneers, and some of Australia's great writers, creative artists, folksingers and intellectuals.
We also get to keep company with the free-living thinkers and bohemians of the Roaring Twenties and the Sydney 'Push', with communist dictators, radical activists and anti-war protesters, and a legion of ASIO agents as they tracked lan's life for 17 years.
The Author includes her own candid memories of the culture shocks she faced as she blended her conservative, religious world with that of lan, a one-time Trotskyist revolutionary, of their times of chaos and heartache, and of the peace they finally found together on the Western Plains of New South Wales.
Drawing on historical family records, lan's uncensored memories, and the stories of comrades who shaped his journey or walked with him, the Author captures the spirit of those who were not prepared to remain silent, to 'cop it sweet' and do nothing. Instead, through action and dissent, they sought to stamp their mark on the cultural, social and political landscape of 20th century Australia.