Will Traverse

Will Traverse is a war baby, a Brisbane boy, and in later life a taciturn and solitary retired engineer. But there is another side to Will — romantic, lyrical, and deeply sensitive to the culture of the original inhabitants of this part of South-East Queensland.

His work on a novel about the impact of the arrival of the Europeans coincides with the unexpected re-kindling of a lost love. As he and Mary Wright hesitantly rediscover their mutual affection, the long arc of their own story becomes interwoven with Will's emerging novel.

Together, the two stories reveal layers of history of the Brisbane region — a metropolis radically transformed again within Will's lifetime. Meanjin Crossing ends enigmatically, a mix of sadness and hope, and certainty that the story is not over.