Voss describes an epic journey, both physical and spiritual. The eponymous hero, Johann Voss, is based on Ludwig Leichhardt, the nineteenth-century German explorer and naturalist who had already conducted several major expeditions into the Australian outback before making an ambitious attempt to cross the entire continent from east to west in 1848. He never returned.

White re-imagines his story with visionary intensity. Voss's last journey across the desert and the waterlogged plains of central Australia is a true `venture to the interior'. But Voss is also a love story, for the explorer has become inextricably bound up with Laura Trevellyn, whose inner life, like his own, is at odds with the world.

In language poetic and passionate, yet at the same time grounded by shrewd, often comic, social observations and naturalistic portrayals of a wide variety of characters - farmers, convicts, aborigines, the colonial middle class and their servants.

Why You Should Read?

• Offers a re-imagining of a historical expedition with visionary intensity.
• Presents a love story interwoven with the explorer's journey, adding emotional depth.
• Features poetic and passionate language, enriching the reading experience.
• Provides shrewd social observations and naturalistic portrayals of diverse characters.

About the Author

WHITE Patrick is the author of the novel 'Voss'. He is recognized for his visionary intensity and poetic language, as demonstrated in his re-imagining of Johann Voss's journey. White's writing combines passionate prose with shrewd social observations, offering readers a multi-layered narrative. He is a prominent figure in Australian literature.