The Secret River in Aussie Readers

Dec 04, 2012 Kathryn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: reading-list-2014, 4-stars, fiction, australian-authors, added-because-of-abc-s-book-club

This was a very interesting read. I have, naturally, heard stories of violence between the early settlers from Britain and the the native Aboriginal people and deplored it from both sides, but after reading this, I can certainly see how it came about. There were such different attitudes between the British and the Aboriginal people - from one group who work hard for possessions that appear to offer security and comfort to another group who tread gently on the earth, leaving little, if any, footp This was a very interesting read. I have, naturally, heard stories of violence between the early settlers from Britain and the the native Aboriginal people and deplored it from both sides, but after reading this, I can certainly see how it came about. There were such different attitudes between the British and the Aboriginal people - from one group who work hard for possessions that appear to offer security and comfort to another group who tread gently on the earth, leaving little, if any, footprint, hunting and gathering as necessary and living in harmony with the land, rather than trying to exploit it.

As a member of the former group (sitting in a lounge chair, under a fan powered by electricity [probably generated by a non-renewable energy source] while drinking a glass of cold water from the fridge [also powered by non-renewable energy] and which only had to be collected from the tap in the kitchen in the first place rather than from a spring welling up somewhere), I can understand the early settlers wanting to create something that resembles normality for them and although I can't really fully comprehend the Aboriginal way of life, this book has helped a little and I do feel that I have a bit of understanding about their feeling of fear and desolation when they saw the land upon which they live being taken over by these strange white people. And yet the white people arrived to see a land that looked desolate - no permanent structures and belonging to nobody, at least it appeared that way initially.

I can understand how the Aboriginal people - hunters and gatherers - could possibly not have seen any distinction between collecting sticks that they could make into weapons or tools and "collecting" items from some of the early settlers' homes, such as spades, axes etc. Or how, if they did see a distinction, might have thought that this would annoy the British and make them go away. I can feel their concern as they see people come in to take over the land on which they find sustenance - when the main character, William, arrives on the patch of land he's decided will be "his", there is a little area growing some small radish-like bulbs. He notices this, but still ploughs it up in order to plant his crop of corn.

I also don't know how the two groups could have co-existed more peacefully when their attitudes to life were so different, especially given the fact that there was no effective common language. And especially when there are disputes regarding territory all over the world, even when there is a common language, and/or interpreters available.

I read the sequel to this, The Lieutenant, last year, before I realised that I should have read this one first... I enjoyed it, although I don't remember how it connected in with the Thornhill family from this one - I had a skim through it just after I finished this one and was still none the wiser... However, I just looked at Kate Grenville's website and see that the two are connected not by the characters in each, but by the opposite attitudes and actions described - with The Lieutenant showing a more positive side to the British/Aboriginal relationship. It kind of answers my thoughts about other ways the two groups could have gone about interacting - however it still involved violence on both sides...

Overall, this was definitely a good read and a valuable insight into the history of Australia in the early 1800's. ...more

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Nov 03, 2011 Zoë rated it did not like it

Shelves: don-t-recommend-for-anyone

This is the worst book I have ever read.
For year 12 English I had to read this book and I thought I would never hate a book as much as I hate Fallen and City of Bones but Kate Grenville proved me wrong.
I actually enjoy reading and I couldn't finish this book.
My whole school didn't like it and even some of the teachers so thank god it isn't on the booklist next year so no one else has to suffer reading this.
Using italics instead of talking marks for when a character spoke was very confusing, I t ...more

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May 22, 2012 Tracy rated it liked it

I recommend this as an idealised look at the white settler/indigenous people's relationship.

Read the full review at OurBookClub ...more

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Feb 04, 2012 Lauren added it

Shelves: 2012, library

Have to read this for book club next week. Really trying to get into in but it is not co-operating with me ...

Update

I acknowledge that it could quite rightly be considered an important title in Australian history - though fictionalised - but it just wasn't working for me. To be fair, it might have just been bad timing, but it still didn't pull me in. And it didn't lead to much lively discussion among the group.

Might return to it later, but for the moment am going to mark it as 'read' - read a l ...more

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Jun 30, 2018 Tanya rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Really not my kinda book. A friend was adamant I had to read it because she found it life changing, and it's on those '100 books you must read' lists, so I figured I'd give it a go even though it was outside of my usual reading fare.

I wasn't a fan of the writing style, and that made it hard for me to engage with the story. The premise and the storyline was interesting, and it is definitely a story worth telling, but yeah. Just large chunks of text with description and dialogue within the blocks. ...more

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Mar 30, 2010 Anne_MB rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-from-library, australian-fiction, 2010

A great book to read, satisfying and complex and tragic. The story of an English convict transported to NSW, how he works to provide a safe secure life in what he comes to regard as his new home, and the choices he has to make meeting the challenges of the native inhabitants, other settlers, and his own growing family. What I liked the most about this book was the way vastly differing viewpoints and reactions were portrayed through the characters. A great Australian historical novel.

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