Vocabulary help from those Down Under?

I've just finished a book (Bloodstain) about a disappearance/probable homicide in the Outback, and can't figure out a word. The police searched a suspect's "ute" (obviously SUV/pickup truck) and found camping equipment, including an "eska". What's that? There's an Eska outboard motor, but would a guy without a boat need that in the Alice Springs area? There's also an Eska snowblower and Eska spring water from Canada, but they seem even more improbable.

I know a lot of Aussie terms, but I cannot remember an 'eska'

I do know of Esky, which is a portable cooler/ice chest

Arlyn said:

I know a lot of Aussie terms, but I cannot remember an 'eska'
I do know of Esky, which is a portable cooler/ice chest

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I wonder if it was a typo? A portable cooler would make sense.

In the context of what you posted, I would say it's a good bet that esky was what they meant, yes.

Thanks! That was really bugging me, and it didn't occur to me that the word might be misspelled. So much for proofreading nowadays.

lol

I had to learn Aussie slang and terms back in the early 90s as a lot of my friends on the internet back then were Aussies.

One actually sent me a dictionary of English and Aussie slang, but you can probably find those all over the net these days.

Could it be they're talking about an eska outboard boat motor? (Since they mention camping equipment that's the only thing that would make sense to me.)

PS: I'm curious, was this suspect the same guy who was eventually convicted of Falconio's murder?

I'm quite sure it was an Esky, I have lived in Australia all my life and have never heard of an Eska.

Violet said:

PS: I'm curious, was this suspect the same guy who was eventually convicted of Falconio's murder?

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Yeah, it was.The book ends before the trial, which was a huge disappointment. I had to Google to see whether Murdoch had been convicted.

I suppose "esky" comes from "Eskimo" if it's a cooler, perhaps the brand name? I had to explain what a trojan was in the U.S. the other day, because the guy who asked me after reading it in a book correctly figured malicious software or an inhabitant of Troy made no sense at all in the context (Trojan = brand of condoms).

Thank you!

This was such a complicated, incredible case. Nothing simple or clear cut about it. And it seems many people feel there still are a number of unanswered questions that should be, should have been, answered. And the fact that the victim's body has never been found isn't helping either. People have doubts and reading about the case seems to make those doubts justified.

Anyway, I'm wondering what we would find if we looked in the available paperback additions - esky or eska.........

PS:

Just found out that in the printed versions the word is spelled correctly: esky for a cooling box. And that e-books seem to be prone to such mistakes.

It's not uncommon for Amazon to send updated versions of e-books because of typos, duplicate or missing sentences. Sometimes I delete and download again. At least you can do it with e-books. I've lost count of the number of times pages or even chapters are missing from paperbacks.

I was going to say they probably meant Esky too That was definitely an interesting case, and I don't think we'll ever hear the full story.