Real stories can touch our humanity and move us to understand ourselves, as well as the person we are reading about. The adventurers here provide a mosaic of Australia over the past century, a priceless legacy. Here, 15 fiercely independent men and women who have lived life exuberantly cast a revealing light on a fast vanishing Australia. These subjects share their unique experiences with a cocky modern world often focused more on youth. What's it like to hunt wild buffalo on horseback, or to hover calmly underwater to avoid the bends while being circled by bronze whaler sharks? What's it like to escape twice from Nazi SS camps, or to capture rogue saltwater crocodiles, or to walk in the footsteps of Burke and Wills, totally alone apart from four camels? What's it like to raise 14 children in a one-room house, to really make a difference in the fraught world of aboriginal education, or to inspire as an innovator or artist? While there are adventures aplenty, a deep wisdom lies at the core of this book. A wisdom born from action not theory, a wisdom that can come from following the road less traveled, a wisdom that will resonate with the reader. **

真实的故事可以触动我们的人性，让我们感动，了解自己，也了解我们所阅读的人。这里的冒险家们为澳大利亚在过去一个世纪里提供了一个马赛克，这是一笔无价的遗产。在这里，15位激烈独立的男人和女人，他们以旺盛的生命力，为迅速消失的澳大利亚投下了一道亮丽的光芒。这些受访者分享了他们对狂妄的现代世界的独特体验，而这个世界往往更关注年轻人。在马背上猎杀野生水牛是什么感觉，或者在被青铜捕鲸船的鲨鱼盘旋时平静地在水下盘旋以避免弯腰？两次从纳粹党卫军集中营逃出，或捕捉无赖的咸水鳄，或踏着伯克和威尔斯的脚步，除了四头骆驼之外，完全独自行走，这是什么感觉？在一室一厅的房子里养育14个孩子，在充满矛盾的原住民教育世界中真正有所作为，或者作为创新者或艺术家激发灵感是什么感觉？虽然有大量的冒险，但这本书的核心是一种深刻的智慧。一种源于行动而非理论的智慧，一种来自于少有人走的路的智慧，一种能与读者产生共鸣的智慧。**