The Winter Road: Walkley winning true crime by Kate Holden

Book review: Behind the headlines of murder, land use and green laws

The Winter Road: A Story of Legacy, Land and a Killing at Croppa Creek is a gripping Australian read.

It was written by acclaimed memoirist Kate Holden and tells how in 2014 an elderly New South Wales farmer shoots an environmental officer.

The life story was published by Black Inc last year and won the 2021 Walkley Awards Book Award.

So keep reading to find out more about the book and what it can teach us as we sit down to create our own life-story projects …

What is The Winter Road about?

The 336-page The Winter Road begins when Ian Turnbull starts clearing two properties at Croppa Creek, near Moree.

Next NSW Office of Environment and Heritage’s Glen Turner arrives to investigate and prosecute instances of illegal activity.

However, this cycle continues for a number of years until Turnbull shoots an unarmed Glen multiple times on a country road.

As a result, Turnbull is convicted of murder and Glen’s family confronts life without him.

“Robert Strange had heard the fear in Glen Turner’s voice, there in the shadows, crouched behind the ute. But he also feared the dark because as it rose to hide them, Turnbull’s gun would begin to hurry.”

Your Family Stories System. Father and girl on his shoulders with arms spread wide at the beach.

Why is this book so interesting?

The Winter Road examines philosophical views about land purpose and ownership through the centuries and across continents.

In short, all inherit a bountiful Earth verse earning individual ownership.

Also interesting are the legal and community arguments.

For example, Turnbull the depressed old farmer pushed too far and Glen the state officer just doing his job to protect endangered plants and animals.

Finally, of note is reading how the government once encouraged ringbarking of trees but later switched to protection.

“There were the politics, too. The nation was horrified by this crime. Anger had inexorably mounted among environmentalists and greenies at the events in which a man had died protecting the bush. Then there was the flush of feeling in support for Ian Turnbull, the farmer ‘pushed to the brink’.”

What we can learn from The Winter Road

In The Winter Road we see how including historical research and mindsets can add to a story.

Also how maintaining a balanced and factual account encourages a reader to continue from start to finish.

And that characters don’t have to be individual people.

For example, they can include historical stereotypes (the Settler) and large groups (the Wilderness).

“Somewhere in the papier-mache of this, caught in the gluey enclosure of regulation and terminology and argument, is the real world of animals with warm skin, of trees with rough bark, of the soil that crumbles between the palms.”

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Final say: The Winter Road

The Winter Road by Kate Holden is a home-grown Aussie tragedy about a global dilemma.

In short, who is entitled to benefit from land: humans, plants, animals, or their future generations?

Indeed, read this book to examine your own assumptions and explore different perspectives.

Because countless deaths and destruction warrant our attention.

*Please note: If you are affected by this story and want to seek assistance, contact your doctor or health professional for help that suits your specific circumstances. Further resources: Beyondblue, Lifeline Australia.

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