Cirrus@Austlit

'Among the vast number of books on the history of the Black War, there are virtually no biographies of the guerrilla leaders on the other side of the frontier. Instead, historians have relied on convict artist Thomas Bock’s compelling portraits of these men and women, to gain insights into their bravery and humanity. The biographies that do exist of Truganini, Woorraddy and Pevay tend to foreground their experiences as part of G.A. Robinson’s friendly mission on the settler side of the frontier. Apart from a short study of Walyer, the woman guerrilla leader in northern Tasmania, there have been no major studies of the guerrilla leaders who led the resistance at the height of the Black War.' (Introduction)

'The 1838 Myall Creek Massacre is remembered for the brutality of the crime committed by white settlers against innocent Aboriginal men, women and children, but also because eleven of the twelve assassins were arrested and brought to trial. Amid tremendous controversy, seven were hanged. Myall Creek was not the last time the colonial administration sought to apply the law equally to Aboriginal people and settlers, but it was the last time perpetrators of a massacre were convicted and hanged.

'Marking its 180th anniversary, this book explores the significance of one of the most horrifying events of Australian colonialism. Thoughtful and fearless, it challenges us to look at our history without flinching as an act of remembrance and reconciliation.' (Summary)

'Expelled from the Communist Party for not toeing the line, Lyndall Ryan's parents were faced with a dilemma when Robert Menzies’s government tried to ban the party'

'Tasmanian Aborigines were driven off their land so white settlers could produce fine wool for the English textile mills. By the time Truganini died in 1876, they were considered to be extinct. Yet like so many other claims about them, this was wrong.'

'Far from disappearing, the Tasmanian Aborigines actively resisted settler colonialism from the outset and have consistently campaigned for their rights and recognition as a distinct people through to the present.'

'The author tells the story of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania, from before the arrival of the first whites to current political agendas. Tasmania has been the cradle of race relations in Australia, and their struggle for a place in their own country offers insights into the experiences of Aboriginal people nation-wide.' (Source: Publishers website)