Stepping Off: Rewilding and Belonging in the South-West

by Thomas M Wilson

Stepping Off is a book for locals and travellers alike. It is the story of the south-western corner of Western Australia: an environmental history, a social history, an invitation to reconnect with the land – and in doing so, to reconnect with ourselves.

Genres: Nonfiction

292 pages, Paperback

Published February 1, 2017

Reviews

[Rosemary Atwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an essential read for those who call Perth, Fremantle and the South-West corner of Western Australia ‘home,’ and powerfully explores the beauty and fragility of our ecological landscape and its recent turbulent history of misunderstanding and destruction.
Wilson’s deep knowledge of the area’s environmental diversity is very infectious and the reader is quickly drawn in to a narrative which is intensely personal but, at times, deeply distressing. However, the ultimate message of ‘Stepping Off’ is one of hope and his suggestions for reintegrating or ‘rewilding’ with the natural world are positive and engaging.

[Stella Budrikis · Rating 5 out of 5]

My family's first home in Perth was on a third-of-an-acre block in what was then an outer suburb. Half the block was left uncultivated, and in spring cowslip orchids and hibbertias "(buttercups" to my Perth-born friends) appeared beneath the sheoaks. To my English immigrant eyes, they were new and strange and I wanted to know what they were. Neighbours and friends provided the answers.
Later we moved to Albany on the south coast and on weekends my sisters and I spent hours wandering through the remnant bushland on Mount Clarence close to our home. Natural curiosity again led me to want to find names for all the plants, birds, insects and lizards we came across.
Thomas Wilson's book made me thankful to have had such a childhood. It was a little disconcerting to realise how little knowledge many in Wilson's generation have of either the natural history or the human history of the places in which they have lived all their lives. It made me wonder if I'd passed on what I knew to my own children, or did I just assume they were learning it elsewhere? (I discovered the book through my daughter.)
Wilson describes his work as a "single volume primer to introduce the traveller or curious local to the identity of this place, to quickly acquaint them with the contours of both its environmental and human history." He covers the landscape, the biosphere prior to colonisation, the way of life of the First Australians who lived here, and the response of European (mainly British) colonisers to the unfamiliar environment in which they found themselves. I learned a lot that was new to me, for instance, the way in which early British settlers assessed the fertility of a tract of land by looking at what types of trees were growing on it. I also learned how compulsively they cleared the trees to grow crops. Much of the book is a eulogy for what has been lost, a reflection on the destruction wrought by "progress".
But it also offers hope, and suggestions for what Wilson calls "rewilding". While the book is about a very specific part of the world, and is fascinating and informative reading for anyone who lives here in Australia's south west corner, it also explores ideas that are relevant to anyone who feels disconnected from the location in which they live. How do those of us who live in identical-looking cities rediscover the unique characteristics and story of the land on which we spend our lives? How do we reconnect to our history and the environment that is ours?
Wilson's project with this book was ambitious, covering everything from geology to sociology, and at times I felt the writing lacked the gravitas required for such an attempt. Rather than describe it as a primer, it might better be described as the record of the author's own journey of discovery and awakening.
But overall I enjoyed reading it and feel a new enthusiasm for becoming better acquainted with the place I call home.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What a fabulous read about the South west of Western Australia. Totally engrossing and throws more questions at you as you read. One of those 'must read' books if you live around the area or have visited or even thought about visiting.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any West Australian.

[Saskia · Rating 2 out of 5]

* I got a lot out of reading this book and would recommend it *

Very important and accessibly delivered information about Noongar Boodja and the history of this place, as well as good overviews of the conceptual and practical changes needed. Really interesting primary sources and well integrated Noongar language and world views.

Some major language/ conceptual stumbles around what it means to be from a place/ native/ coloniser/ who belongs here etc. eg ‘in some ways I’m a colonial, speaking English in the heat of an island in a southern hemisphere. And yet I have a deep interest in understanding and loving the wilds of this ‘new’ ancient world…’

The scope of this book is huge and not particularly achieved but I think the author was right to do the huge thing because afaik nothing like this book exists.

Definitely going to be digging in more to some of these sources and entering my 🌱 rewilding era 🌱

Things to remember:

- kwongan = Sandy, arid, lowly vegetated landscape like the Swan Coastal Plain
- heaps of early settlers around the Derbal Yerrigan documented fire stick burning, houses, cultural practices in action, etc
- chuditches used to be kept as pets and lowkey should be again
- reintroducing dingoes in SW aus could be our wolves in Yellowstone moment 😌
- literally all of Boorloo is / was / should be a swamp
- in the 1970s Boorloo had 600,000 inhabitants and was 350 square kilometres of urban development. A lot of the clearing and devastation is very recent
- vegetation at Garden Island is what Walyalup is supposed to look like
- bc this area is millions of years old most plants are incredibly hyper specifically adapted meaning that they are more resilient when fragmented, like literally bits of bush on verges of farms that no one cleared yet could be enough for them to survive # hopeful

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a personal reflection on the southwest region of Western Australia and is filled with knowledge of the region's flora, fauna, and history. The traditional uses of the land gave the indigenous inhabitants a rich bounty. However, tragically, they were impacted by colonists who fenced off the lands for use which was not always suitable for a place far from European climate.  Most often, these new settlers fared poorly for many years, attempting to plant crops not suited to the region and not understanding the value of existing native flora. Thomas weaves his narrative with many accounts of local inhabitants, including those of his ancestors. The book is rich in details I have not encountered before, and his love of the land is evident from the first word to the last.

[Tim Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I completed reading this Brilliant book several nights ago and was absorbed in everything that Mr Wilson wrote. Concerning Thomas' writing, I was stuck from beginning to the end by his ability to meld historical pieces with all he was conveying. Not only did this melding enrich all that he was writing, but it added a further dimension to an already luxurious rendering of Western Australia's southwest corner.
Like the author, I live here and am struck by all that constitutes this marvellous entity in which we live. He brought many aspects of the richness of our environment to life; he wrote extensively about the indigenous people that have cared for this land for seventy thousand years.
Throughout the book, Thomas alluded to the responsibility of Anglos or Invaders. As some Aboriginal people would term us, the second settlers, we must redefine ourselves in this ancient land.