Kate Grenville's latest novel, The Secret River, has now been published in the UK and is starting to garner reviews.
"The Guardian" calls it "...an outstanding study of cultures in collision".
"The Observer" acknowledges that "Following The Idea of Perfection was always going to be a tough call", and finds that "Grenville writes exactingly and with passion about the Australian landscape: the bright light, the skinny, grey-green trees that refuse to shed their leaves, the cliffs that tumble into the river through snaking mangroves...The Secret River is a sad book, beautifully written and, at times, almost unbearable with the weight of loss, competing distresses and the impossibility of making amends."
"The Times" combines its review with some comments on the perception of Australian fiction in Britain: "With some exceptions, Australian fiction can be overlooked here, perhaps because the British feel it is alien or parochial. This is a pity. It has much to teach us, not least about the shadow side of 'civilisation' and 'the things not spoken of' that flow in the lives of those who made, and were made by, it. Splendidly paced, passionate and disturbing, The Secret River is just such a novel."
Doubtless others will follow in the coming weeks.
