Whether you enjoy this novel really all depends on your taste of books. If you're the one for sci-fi or adventure, this book is a little slow moving. However, if you like crime mysteries, this one is for you. Set in the small country town of Jericho, the Marriot family's life in fairly uneventful. That is, until a gold-miner who was recently seen around the area dies by mysterious means. The concern of the town is that, there are claims that he had two children around with him at the time. Their whereabouts is unknown. The story's ability to mix trivial events along with the highlights is extremely clever.

The Race to the Wild Children
By Aubry Jones

A boy named Kimmy lives in Jericho, Australia with his sister, Julia, his mother, and his father. His father is a doctor whose office is at his house. Once, a man named Flannagan had come to his father's office because his arm needed stitches. A few weeks later, Flannagan was murdered. Flannagan had two children who had been missing ever since their father's death. They were "wild children" who went to people's houses at night and stole chicken eggs. While stealing chicken eggs once, the girl, Leena, was caught. She stayed at Kimmy's house while everyone tried to figure out what to do with her. During this time, Kimmy got to know and talk to Leena. She told him where her brother was. One day, Kimmy and his friend decided to go and look for Leena's brother. He lived up at the North Arm in bat caves. They went searching in the blackness of the night and found something very important. I really enjoyed reading this book. It was very exciting and suspenseful. This book had many intricate details that gave lots of feeling to the story. Though this book got confusing at times, it is one of the best books I've ever read.

Lost Found and Murdered
Who killed Flannagan and where are his two kids? Flannagan, a guy that not many people know is murdered one night but when the scene of the crime (his campsite) is searched there are no signs of his kids. After many complaints from farmers, of eggs and milk being stolen, the girl is found and captured but her brother gets away. After a long time of searching her brother is found, but they would not tell who the murder was. However, after an argument between three adults he cannot hold it in any longer and tells them who killed his father, who could it be? I enjoyed reading this book, I don't think there was one minute that I was bored, it kept you guessing and wondering what could be next. Then the murder is thrown in and all thoughts of who the murder is are crushed. You will not be able to put the book. It is truly the most interesting book I have read all year.

My only criticism of Flannery's book is that it ends. I found myself wanting to read more of each story. But within a moment of turning to a new chapter, I was engrossed in another adventure. The Explorers is an outstanding selection of historical pieces and a fine example of the editor's art. First-person accounts like this truly offer a window into the minds and times of the people and places involved. (I recommend "Eyewitness to History" for those who enjoy this book.)

This book consists of brief excerpts from journals, letters and diaries of those foolish or brave enough to push beyond the known world along Australia's seaboards.

These explorers demonstrated unfathomable foolishness, unquenchable curiosity, bullheaded ethnocentricity, and, in too few cases, a passion for discovery for its own sake. As a reader you will be horrified, entertained, and enlightened by their adventures and misadventures.

I just returned from a trip to Australia and took this book along with me to read. It was perfect for a visitor with little knowledge of Australian history beyond Hughes' "Fatal Shore" (another great read).

What possesses a person to set off into the trackless wastes of Australia, with the almost certain knowledge that death lies waiting to welcome them into his scrawny arms?
Reading this book gives you some of the answers and some of the idea of the pain and suffering undergone by these explorers (and in some cases the hapless Aborigines coerced into seeking water).
There are some amazingly good writers within these pages, quite unexpected when you consider that many of them were ex-convicts or self-taught (and comparing them to some contemporary American explorers); there are some delightful descriptive passages and the occasional bout of whimsy, especially the anecdote of how 'Rocket' got his name - I was in hoots!
An excellent read, which encouraged me to order several old copies of explorers' accounts.
Thoroughly recommended!

I had to read this book for 8th grade summer reading. I couldn't believe what a dumb story it was. It made no sense but was quite funny. Maybe I just don't get it.

Having read this book when I was in year 10, it was a great eye openeer for me, with the revelation of the significance of how we perceive 'normaility'.

At a time in every teenager's life where they are struggling to find meaning, udnerstanding, this was a useful read...

4 years later, it still remains as a book that turned me into a bit of a rebel, yet allowed me to realise that we can try to be normal, or we can try ot be different...just be yourself....that's the beauty of life...........

This is a very dry account of a teenage boy's struggle to get by in his teenage years and his quest for normalcy. It is hilarious! This is a very interesting book, it isn't just funny, it is also a complex look at teen angst, what it means to be normal, there are parts of it that I laugh about when I just think about them. Al Capsella Takes a Vacation was also really funny.

Before I describe what this book is, I should describe what it is NOT, because I feel that it is definitely (and perhaps deliberately) mistitled, and if I had known was it was, I probably would never have chosen to read it.

When I bought this book (without bothering to riffle through it,... I was under the impression that it was an investigation into whatever facts lay behind the Moby Dick legend upon which Melville based his well-known novel. Although Severin partially covers this angle in the last (and definitely most engrossing) chapter, this is certainly NOT what this book is about on the whole.

Severin himself touches on this [p. 52]: "The animal Melville had in mind was probably inspired by reading a short story in an American magazine, The Knickerbocker, in 1839. The piece was called 'Mocha Dick or the White Whale of the Pacific' and it was a yarn about a big bull sperm whale regularly encountered off the coat of Chile. The animal was said to be 'as white as wool', though whether because it was an albino or from old age was not known."

But this is virtually the only mention Severin makes of this mysterious beast.

So what is it about? For a period of about a year and a half the author roamed through Oceania staying and talking with various whale-hunting communities, for the most part learning about their lifestyles but occasionally exploring the subject of a white sperm whale, which, as Severin is eager to demonstrate, is not limited to Western literature, but makes an appearance in the myths and legends of societies far different from our own.

Unfortunately, the lifestyles of these primitive whaling communities, for the most part, do not make for interesting reading (the section on Lamalera is especially yawn-inducing), and several times during my reading I wondered why I was even bothering to finish it.

Other sections leave you with a bad taste in your mouth, such as when Severin digs up and exposes Melville's many exaggerations. Every author's worst nightmare! Here's a sample:

"[In Typee], Melville describes how the natives of Taipivai were very keen to tattoo their sailor visitor. They point out that his white skin would make such a perfect canvas for their art. Mehevi also wants him to be tattooed, and suggests suitable patterns. The tattooer-in-chief pursues Melville about the village waving his instruments, the sharp-toothed combs and tapping mallet. Yet somehow Melville avoids the operation, and he does not explicitly state how. It is another example of Melville building up suitably colourful ordeals while 'living among the cannibals', but then sidling away from any clear explanation of how he emerged intact. Certainly Melville had no tattoos to display when he returned to new England and told an intrigued audience about his 'four months' on the Marquesas, though tattoos were already common enough among Western sailors of his day."

Just what every writer needs. A good deal of the book consists of ill-spirited detective work of this kind, most of which is not even germane to Severin's stated purposes.

Conclusion: if you are looking for extra information on the facts behind white whale legends of the mid 1800's, don't look here. The closest book I know of that addresses the question of whether a white whale actually existed (an actual white whale, not just an ordinary black, though perhaps unusually aggressive, sperm whale-like the one that famously smashed up the Essex) would be Norton's "Moby Dick as Doubloon," and even that book only touches on the matter.

Having said that, the book is far from awful. The writing style is brisk and deft, and what Severin has learned on his travels/studies can on occasion be absorbing. It's just that you should know what you're getting into.

Moreover, the soft cover edition is handsomely printed, though it could really have used some maps.

I should also note that this book can boast a top-notch first paragraph. Don't let that fool you, though.

I enjoyed the book, and would recommend it. It has been well reviewed by others here on this page.

I was disappointed to find that the still pictures the author took and the drawings by Patturson mentioned in the credits were not found in the paperback De Capo Press book. I guess one has to buy the hardback. I found it a bit odd that the author often referred to Melville's copying (plagurizing) passages of other texts in the production of his book Moby Dick, but did not mention that in the times of its publication it was not uncommon to plagurize other books. Maybe he just didn't know.

Severin's varied accounts of South Pacific whaling compliment Melville's novel wonderfully. His book provides excellent supplemental reading to support Melville's classic AND add to the lore of the sea. Like the novel, Severin concludes his searching by recording a whale hunt that has incredible action and danger.
What fascinated me in this short book was his description of the whiteness of the whale. Nature allows white for only a few examples of whiteness and they are esteemed highly; their significance has spiritual and metaphysical associations. Severin states that whiteness and the sea are common, but in the whale, the shark, the manta ray and in other species, the contrast in seeing a white member "contradicts" our assumptions. I endorse this book for several reasons: Severin's anthropological recording is astute; he carefully respects Melville's accounts; and he is an excellent writer in his own right.

Glyn Parry is a Western Australian author who writes mainly for young adults. His book "Monster Man' is a psychological thriller that successfully challenges the imagination by never revealing more than necessary, yet somehow manages to be chillingly realistic in its portrayal of modern issues such as abduction, child abuse and the relationships between teenagers and their parents, males and females. Samuel Levine (the character's name in the original WA version, with no anti-Semitic intent whatsoever) is a man who we can choose to either detest or empathise with. Coming from a horrific, yet shady past, he attempts to recreate his destroyed family in his own twisted way by abducting two young girls and heading off up north , pursued by the police. But the real heroine of this novel is Melanie Spence, the teenage girl he abducts from her quiet suburban home. Melanie is portrayed not as a victim, as the cover of the American edition would have you believe, but as a strong character and a survivor. We realise that while Samuel Levine cannot escape from the horrors of his past, Melanie can, and does, from hers. Parry uses an interesting and challenging narrative technique - by playing 'director' instead of 'author' he switches the novel between scenes, so that we follow the story through a variety of points of view. This may be confusing for younger readers, but ultimately it is successful in revealing the perspectives of the characters, including the eponymous 'Monster'. This novel proved to be a hit with my Year 11 English class (ages 15-17) who found that it was a book that did not patronise them and had a lot to offer in its positive portrayal of young adults, through the character of Melanie. The story is located in Western Australia, which American readers may find confusing, but as Parry himself says, "I love WA and will never write for anywhere else'. It offers Australian teenagers a great alternative to the American settings found in so many other books for young adults that have traditionally been used in our high schools. Recommended.

This book was given to me to read for an assignment.I this book was one of the most thought provoking books i have every read.In writing this book Glyn Parry challenged the sterotyping of teenage girls and also of mental illness.I strongly recommend to teenager every where.But this book deals with too many teenage themes to be understood.

This book is one of the best books I have ever read! I have given it to so many peopl to read and their opiniion is the same.....GREAT! It is well worth reading! It is soooooooo realistic! In some parts of the book you get a tad jumpy but you just gotta keep reminding yourself that it isn't true! If I can say one thing, that would be to read it!!!

As a patient and understanding reader, this was a good story. However, I don't feel that the book was easy to read and was slightly boring. By saying this, I'm not saying I did not enjoy learning about the expedition of brave men traversing the Australian continent. In many ways, this is a devastating story. It's sad and true. Unless you are an avid Australian history researcher, it will be very difficult to utilize any of the information from this story. Keep that in mind before attempting to purchase this book.

This account of the first south-north crossing in Victorian times is incredible. A film of this story several years ago did little to change that situation. The story recounts the key attempts and the elaborate expeditions involved. The crux of the story really revolves around a series of many mishaps and oh so near misses. Tragedy was almost avoided numerous times but ultimately...well read the book. The fact that the story is known and accurately recorded is in itself an incredible sub-plot. It is hard to believe sometimes that this is a true story -- yet this is a case of real life being more amazing than one would dare write as fiction! The story is quite detailed but hang in there, the threads all come together in an incredible finale.

When I was about 11 my uncle who had spent 40 years in the Royal Canadian Navy, handed me slender volume called Cooper's Creek. Since I had no idea where Cooper's Creek was at that age I left in on my shelf where it gathered dust for the next 25 years, and was lost in one of my many house moves.

Over the course of the years I kept coming across some of Alan Moorhead's books, on bookshelves in Canada, the UK, India, Hong Kong and Egypt and even the United States. I happened to read another book of his "Gallipoli." He is a superb writer.

Cooper's Creek is exactly the same. After reading more of Moorehead's work (including a history of the North Africa Campaign) I resolved to find this book and read it. But even in Australia it had been out of print. I found it in London, England and hand carried it to Canada. The tale of imperial adventure warmed me over a few long, cold Canadian nights.

In the 50s and 60s narrative history was at its pre-postmodern highpoint. Moorehead's narrative flows like a novel, there is plenty to get your teeth into and also interesting tidbits. Also, unlike a lot of 60s historians Moorehead is not afraid to pass judgment on anyone.

The folley and bravery of the Burke-Wills expedition is recouted for all those unfamiliar with Australian history. Attempting to map the interior of Australia was a dauting proceedure, and was the equivalent of travelling twice the distance Lewis and Clark covered overland in their American Odyssey.

Those unfamiliar with 60s narrative may find the contemporary account of the aborigines to be paternal and patronising, but that is projecting our values backward.

It is one of the greatest true tales of adventure written, and ranks alongside the Scott, Shackelton explorations in Antarctica and the first land traverse of the North American Continent by Alexander Mackenzie.

A ripping good read and well worth the effort to track it down.

Moorehead by the way was a very popular narrative historian of the 50s and 60s (a bit like a contemporary John Keegan). He was also one of the foremost war correspondents in WWII and worked for Newspapers in Australia, the UK and Canada. An autobiography of his life has just been re-published but I forget the title.

It was very helpful and easy to follow. Not having travelled to Fiji before. This book prepared me in so many ways, from accomodation to places to visit and also giving me some idea on how much money I should take there. I would have been totally lost without this book. I recommend that you get it if you're planning to visit Fiji.

I loved this book, and it came in handy for me. I just recently went to Fiji and this book covered what I needed to know for my trip. Fiji is a wonderful paradise, but you need to do your research before you go...and this is the book to do it with.

Get this guide if you're goin' 2 Fiji! If you're thinking of the Mamanucas go to Tokoriki!

Pure determination was the only reason I finished this book. I just cannot stand to not finish a book. It is not that this book is poorly written, it just isn't my tast I guess.

The story is about an Austrailian boy named Peter who enjoys riding dirt bikes. When Peter meets his brother's gay friend David, Peter starts wondering if he is gay. Unlike most books in this genre, it is not a coming out or coming of age story. This fact is the most refreshing aspect of the book.

Despite my mediocre rating, this book is still ok. I'm just not Austrailian or a dirt biker. You will probably find this book more interesting than me if you like dirt bikes or cars.

Peter was an excellent read. I couldn't stop reading it once I picked it up. David and Peter are both well defined characters and by adding Peter's biking peers in, Kate Walker really shows how real life is.

Although I am a frequent Amazon.com shopper, I actually bought this book from a vendor at the Anchorage PrideFest gay pride festival. I was absolutely riveted by the book and finished it in one day. The book tells the story of Peter Dawson, who is in the early stages of coming out. Peter just wants what most young men his age want, to fit in with his friends and ride his motorcycle. Young and naive, he is quick to dismiss some people prematurely, including his brother Vince, some of whom turn out to be ok. (He is right about others) Peter's life becomes more complicated when he meets David, a gay friend of his straight brother - a unique twist for a book - and has his stereotypes of gays shattered. At the same time he comes to realize that his own assumptions about "who he is supposed to be," while right for many of his friends and his brother, isn't his reality. When Peter finally acknowledges his own destiny, it is David who ultimately comes through for him, but not in the overly sexual, "Cinderella" fashion that many other books take. The story was moving and is not only a must read, but also a must have for any P-FLAG or GLSEN library. Hopefully Kate Walker will keep herself busy writing many more books. It once again proves, as with Patricia Nell Warren, that many of the best books about gay men are written by women. Hit the "Add To Shopping Cart" button for this one - you'll be glad you did!

This book is a travesty. I'm a history student researching the death of Captain Cook. My prof. who gained his PhD from Yale suggested I read this book as a counterpoint for how historical research should be done, and presented. Obeyesekere is way out of his league in this book. First he claims to be an islander so he can relate to the natives (in fact he is 1/2 sri lankan and the other half is european). From taht point it goes down hill. The man's arguments while compelling on the surface are completely unfounded. If you actually read the footnotes of his arguments they site often his own articles and essays, or take comments from European acounts out of context that when read do not state at all what Obeyesekere says they do. Do not get taken in by the popular denial of the truth of Cook's death. This book represents an obvious vendeta against historians who know what they are talking and have true expertise in the field such as Sahlins.Who knows ancient Hawwian traditions, is an expert in ancient polynesean language and culture, and studied in many places in the south pacific. Unlike Obyesekere who has no background in any of these things. This is another great example of a man who is way out of his league atempting to make a name for himself by rocking the boat.

You have to give Obeyesekere credit for looking beyond the Makahiki festival, which dominates Marshall Sahlins' study of the apotheosis of James Cook. Obeyesekere sparked a minor maelstrom when he challenged the renown scholar's thesis that Cook was personified as a god by the Hawaiians. Obeyesekere looks beyond bicameral minds, and insists that the Hawaiians were fully conscious of their actions.

Cook was not the great god Lono, nor did he pretend to be. While his second arrival at the Sandwich Islands did coincide with the Makahiki festival, the Hawaiians did not deify him, but rather invited the Captain and his crew to take part in the ritual. Unfortunately for the Captain things seem to devolve afterward, and the Hawaiians killed him and several members of his crew.

Many have tried to piece together the tattered remnants of this story. Several of his crew kept journals and attempts were made after the fact to collect oral history from Hawaiians who were part of the cannibalistic ritual. Unfortunately, few of these accounts jive. Marshall Sahlins has done the most to try to piece together the events, but he seems to discount the Hawaiians ability for cognitive thinking, which tarnishes his work.

Obeyesekere attempted to draw Sahlins out, which he did with this book. Sahlins responded with the more scholarly but overbearing "How Natives Think," which he hoped would settle the issue once and for all. Unfortunately, Obeyeskere is not an anthropologist and his arguments tend to be a bit thin, but he does shoot plenty of holes into Sahlins' thesis.

I bought this book because of a general interest in Hawaiian history and Captain Cook. I'm not a professional historian and don't have any comment on such matters as quality of footnotes. However, I thought this was an excellent, very readable book. Mr. Obeyesekere takes historical fragments - diaries, letters, and so forth, and re-constucts the last few days of Cook's life. It's done so cleverly, in such a readable style, that it reminds one of the end of a mystery novel, where Sherlock Holmes explains his reasoning to Dr. Watson. However, there's the similar suspicion that it's being too clever, and that the author is taking evidence to fit the conclusion, rather than the other way around.

Also of interest was the repeated theme of cultural imperialism, explaining how modern historians project their own cultural predjudices (in this case, the simple savage, and a view of religion that is decidedly rational and rooted in monotheism) onto foreign cultures, and the misunderstandings that naturally arise. There's a number of similar cases I can think of, where the common knowledge is so influenced - best example is the view that Cortez conquered Mexico as an unimpeded God, when a simple reading of Bernal Diaz shows that's not the case.

I do have to complain, though, that a overly large portion of the book is given to the academic refutation of fellow scholar Mr. Sahlins. The author is challenging common thought, and I appreciate being able to read the debate with a prestigious scholar who represents the status quo. However, I thought it should have been made more distinct from the rest of the book - much interesting information is revealed in the argument, but it's comparatively dry reading.

Still, overall, this book makes for a very interesting read, and encourages one to re-examine their historical and cultural assumptions. I definitely think it's worth reading.

To compare this book to any of these: OLIVER TWIST, LORD OF THE FLIES, THE CHANT OF JIMMIE BLACKSMITH, A FRINGE OF LEAVES, as the publisher's review (below) does, is purely ridiculous. All of these books have thoughtful and interesting characterization, while The Company, by Arabella Edge, does not. They are all studies of the individual within society, and of the way society operates, but The Company is not.

The Company is a fictional recreation of a gruesome historical event. It merely dresses up the event with setting and description, never seeking to explore Cornelisz's psychopathology, and growing very tedious after the first few gruesome murders. Edge seems content to merely tell us Cornelisz is insane - not to explain that insanity or plumb its depths. Cornelisz is insane and he kills people. This is the sum total of the book.

If you want to read something interesting and gripping, something which shows the true depths to which humans can sink, read one of the books so thoughtfully mentioned by Simon and Schuster in their review. Don't waste your money on this one.

This is not really a 'likeable' book, but it is certainly an impressive one. Set in the 17th century, it seeks to chronicle the true events of the final fateful voyage of the merchant ship, the Batavia. The level of research and the imaginative translation of a huge amount of period detail into a vibrant, credible and textured landscape is extraordinary. Tonally and atmospherically it feels like a cross between the moribund amoral worlds of 'Perfume' and 'Lord of The Flies'. It doesn't quite work as an explanation of why the main character did what he did. The psychological analysis is the least persuasive aspect of the novel, not because it is unbelievable, but because it is slightly too knowing in its exposition. The language, however, is a delight. It has a seductive rhythmic quality, often using alliterative lists of unfamiliar things as a sort of literary underbelly to its world. It also balances the old and the modern to create just the right feeling of unease without being over-stilted. Definitely worth reading, but more for its craft than any great illumination of the human condition.

Arabella Edge's The Company (The Story of a Murderer) is a fictionalized account of the wreck of the Batavia in 1629 off the coast of Western Australia told from the point of view of the leader of the mutineers, Jeronimus Cornelisz. It is a well written book that becomes very difficult to read as it progresses and the endless horrors and atrocities continue unabated. As it is narrated by such a powerful character who is presented from the first as evil (mixed with cowardice, a dealy combination) and without any moral compass, the novel does not develop the horrors slowly but simply presents them one after another after another leaving the reader numb. The author is skilled at this piling on of horrors and creates moments of surprise throughout although finding a meaning to all of this terror seems rather futile. This book never reaches the level of Lord of the Flies but is nastily effective, in its own right, at relentlessly showing man's baser nature.