A Spot of Bother

"A Spot of Bother" by Fae le Friz is an Australiana YA (Young Adult) novel. 
 
Warnings: mild cursing, mentions of past minor character death, and references to life on the land in outback Queensland and the associated hardships. Does contain glossary of terms and slang.
 
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When sixteen-year-old Richard “Dick” Dyre is paid for his station work with the pick of the litter, he was expecting the dog in question to be a border collie or a kelpie - not a dalmatian! But Dick has always dreamt of upstaging his older siblings at a dog trial with his own four-legged partner, and what could be more upstaging than to beat them with a breed that hasn’t been a shepherding dog in centuries? On top of that, Dick is still at boarding school, where pets are strictly prohibited.
 
Can Dick and Bother pull it off?