A creative reimagining of the life of Alexander Pearce (1790?-1824), the 'cannibal convict' of Van Diemen's Land, seeking a more historically accurate portrayal than the narrow stereotypes seen in literature, such as the brutish character Gabbett in Marcus Clarke's 1874 novel "For the term of his natural life." The critical exegesis surveys the literary tradition of the convict novel in Australia. -- Libraries Australia.