Frank H. (perryfran) reviewed on 7/26/2017 + 1178 more book reviews

Excellent novel about early colonial Australia. This is the story of William Thornhill who was sentenced to hang in London for a theft of some wood but is instead deported to the penal colony in Australia along with his wife, Sal, and their young son. William is soon able to get his sentence commuted and then decides to settle on the "Secret River" where he wants to make a home for his family even though Sal is set on returning to London after 5 years. But William finds out that it is not that easy to make a settlement there where he either must peacefully coexist with the native aborigines or find a way to forcibly remove them. Some of the other settlers there are more inclined to kill the blacks rather than try to make friends with them. This leads to an ultimate bloody conflict that is very reminiscent of the American West and the brutality that was waged against the Native Americans in the 1800's. The book contains many instances of the atrocities committed against the natives including enslavery, rape, and murder. In the end, Thornhill is not sure it was worth the cost of his success...

This was a very heartrending and powerful story that was eloquently written by Grenvillle. It was also a good history lesson. Being from the U.S., I was somewhat unfamiliar with Australia's history and some of the language used. I had to look up several words including damper, an Australian soda bread, and humpy, a small shelter like a lean-to used by the aborigines. I found out that this is also the first in a trilogy so I will be looking for the subsequent two novels. High recommendation for this one!

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