Minnie
Van Velzen, MarianneCoober Pedy's opal fields were not for the faint-hearted: flies, dust, next to no water, and a hole in the ground for a house. But English-born Millie Berrington thrives in this harsh outback world. Casting aside life as a typist in London in the 1920s, Millie and her brother Victor were ready for adventure and it was outback South Australia that beckoned.
Enthralling and a pleasure to read, this is the fascinating story of one of Australia's first woman opal miners and the outback world in which she flourished.
Pages
261
261
Year
2023
2023
Reviews
30-04-2025
This book was enjoyed by us all. Maybe a little slow at times.
08-04-2025
We admired the fortitude and perseverance of the character but felt the book was a bit drawn out. Fascinating description of the life and conditions in the opal mines.
10-03-2025
We were all totally entertained with this book. No war, no crime but very hard living - gave the reader much information about opal digging and a strange and difficult way to live. What a determined woman. Full marks.
27-02-2025
We unanimously agreed that this book was mundane, pedestrian, basically a quick read. It was a 'book about a book', following Minnie's own story of her life on the opal fields and the people she met up with. We all expected Minnie to have 'made it big' in opal mining, hence the reason for this book, but that wasn't the case. Our discussion centered around the harshness of life in the fields, some members looked at opals with new respect, some have seen the TV program 'Aussie Opal Hunters' and have seen the conditions above and below ground especially at Coober Pedy.