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Reviewed by:
  • Terra Nullius by Claire G. Coleman
  • Wesley Jacques
Coleman, Claire G. Terra Nullius. Small Beer,
2018 [304p]
Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-61873-151-7 $17.00
E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-61873-152-4 $9.95
Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 8-12

This Australian import takes the familiar historical conflict between natives and settlers and sets it in a not so distant future, where amphibian humanoid aliens have invaded Earth and enslaved its people. Coleman's twist is an ambitious one, and it draws the parallels clearly between the way all humans are being treated in the future and the ways Aborigines have been treated to this day on the same terrain. As runaway Jacky tries to evade the alien troopers, varied interstitial documents at the start of each chapter demonstrate how little regard the aliens have for human life. Jacky eventually finds other refugees and outlaws, and that disregard for human life contrasts with the human capacity for compassion; historical precedents are offered for both. The unforgiving Australian terrain provides this import's gunfights and long treks with an old Western feel even as future technology is explored, but as good doesn't ultimately triumph over evil, the novel's striking realism is productively complicated by its science fiction. WJ

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