Herb Wharton

Writer and poet

A man with light skin tone wearing a hat and using a walking stick, walking down a busy street

Australian writer and poet, Wharton’s work is influenced by his part-indigenous Australian heritage and his early life as a drover. His books Unbranded (1992) and Where you been, mate? (1996) reflect his experiences on the stock routes of Australia. He has published two collections of poetry: Kings with Empty Pockets and Imba (Listen): Tell You a Story (both 2003).

Old man from the dreamtime
tell me a story
of your legends and lores

From ‘Tell me a Story Old Man from the Dreamtime’ in Southerly 64.2 (2004)

Alas only silence
from old man on the wall
his secrets (old dreamtime)
lay hidden in depth of the soil

From ‘Tell me a Story Old Man from the Dreamtime’ in Southerly 64.2 (2004)