A Few From Afar is an absorbing look at the role of a number of Jewish immigrants in the life of Van Diemen’s Land and Tasmania.
The book was published by the Hobart Hebrew Congregation in 2003 to mark the bicentenary of European settlement, and includes material from a wide range of contributors. The highly readable narrative gives valuable insights into the cultural interactions between Jews—the most prominent minority in 19th-century Tasmania—and the Anglo-Celtic majority.
In every period of Tasmanian history, the small numbers of Jews who travelled to this farthest shore found safety, tolerance, and equal opportunities to advance themselves. In return, as A View From Afar shows, the newcomers invested their talents in the general community to its immediate benefit.