Ironic Contradictions

I honestly hope that my response to this was not simply born out of two simple facts. 1) That I studied this novel in year 12 (and as such had not reviewed it until now) and 2) that I'm honestly irritated by the repetitive nature of Australian literature centred around these themes. I've read too many stories that take a simplistic approach to the Indigenous/settler relations and come up with a 'the settlers were bad cuz they killed all them natives' mentality. I don't think things are that simple. Or rather I do not think things should be canvassed that simply in this case. It is history after all. I prefer a text such as the film The Tracker which deals with the issue in a way that shows the great complexity to the issues.

Simply put, aside from the bland writing and the frustrating lack of quotation marks (don't authors get that it makes it difficult to see when people are talking or thinking? I don't care that it makes a book 'different.'), the topic has been done much better elsewhere. And that is why this is one of those books I just would never really go back and re-read. It simply isn't one I think is worth my time.

It's not the worst written book. It's not the worst ever book I've seen. It simply is not remarkable. It rehashes the same moralistic 'one side is bad' routine. It refuses to look at all perspectives. And that in my eyes is wrong!