Curriculum

In this last book in the trilogy about Gabrielle Allan, the reader finds Gay and her Great-Aunt Belle about to start a new life in a setting far different from their much-loved Drovers Road. The sheep station of Cape Lost is now Gay’s responsibility and, despite her three years’ study at the Massey Agricultural College, both the isolation and tasks ahead seem alarming. For such a remote and nearly inaccessible spot, however, surprising arrays of new and old characters meet on its windswept, sea-edged expanse. First, the shearing crew turns up, without their cook, just as Gay’s manager quits. As soon as that dilemma is faced, and Gay and her aunt are again alone, there’s a knock on the door—coming immediately after a radio warning about an escaped prisoner! At the Christmas gathering of the entire Allan clan, Gay’s enjoyment is severely hampered by something she’s got hidden in the shed. And when a new manager is finally found, Gay unexpectedly gains his unhappy daughter and romantic-minded son. While she is glad for the love and support of her family—and friends, such as Simon Ware and Clive Scott—Gay grows as she learns to bear the responsibility for her own decisions, the bad as well as the good. The landscape of Gay’s world has altered in more ways than one, but facing its varied challenges promises to bring to her all the belonging and stability her home-loving heart desires. In this final book of the Drover's Road Collection, Joyce West deftly brings her colorful tapestry of New Zealand country life, of a time now past, to a satisfying finish.