Customer Reviews

Fireshadow

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To live in Australia is to belong to the land. That is certainly the belief of indigenous Australian peoples, and a dominant ideology within contemporary Australian society. The opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics highlighted the primordial identity of existing at one with the soil, plants, and animals. Only an Australian could have written Fireshadow, an example of young adult fiction from the University of Queensland Press. The paperback novel is teeming with descriptive passages of the Australian bush, portraying its beauty, mystery, and harsh reality. Fireshadow uses the bush as a backdrop for the dramatic narrative. Feeling responsible for the death of his sister, teenager Vinnie escapes from his parents to the bush, and camps at the site of a Second World War Prison Camp. There he encounters Helen and her aging Grandfather, Erich, who are on a pilgrimage to the area. Helen befriends Vinnie, and Erich becomes the mentor who brings him back from his isolation.

Born 1972 in PNG, t'othersider Anthony Eaton grew up around Western Australia and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands of the Indian Ocean. After boating, crabbing, and reading as a child, he became an English teacher at Trinity College in Perth. Following an inspirational encounter with Queensland novelist Gary Crew, Eaton began writing professionally and published his first book The Darkness in 2000. After A New Kind of Dreaming and Nathan Nuttboard Hits the Beach, UQP has published two books of Eaton's so far this year, The Girl in the Cave and Fireshadow. He is currently completing a PhD in Creative Writing at the University of Western Australia.

Eaton is obviously fascinated by the past influencing the present, in particular how this is accomplished within an Australian landscape. This process highlights the internal changes, which are essential for growth in his characters. Eaton's characters transfer from a situation of dispute to a more sympathetic place where racial harmony can be found. Fireshadow communicates to modern readers familiar with the predicament of Australia's role in a multicultural world, and evidently to those troubled by recent migration policies. Eaton masterfully parallels the story of the young Erich as a soldier with Vinnie's story set in the contemporary. Many of the other characters share stories.

Eaton employs fire, birds, water, and the bush as motifs throughout Fireshadow. Fire is used to represent change and destructive suffering. Birds represent the passing on of knowledge and the changing of time. Water symbolises blood and nationality, and the bush denotes the erasing of differences and regeneration. Fireshadow by Anthony Eaton is just one of the latest range of Young Adult fiction from contemporary Australian authors. Although written with that genre in mind, the novel appeals to all ages. It discusses issues that are extremely relevant in our society, and further confirms our relationship with our country.

This is a great read. My favorite Anthony Eaton book yet. The story is fascinating from beginning to end, and I would highly recommend this book to everybody.

I found this a brilliant book, although when i first saw it i was not enticed to pick it up. However, i found the plot excellent, and the characters quite adhering. Especially Erich's character. Vinnie wasn't one of my favourites, But i was really drawn to the character of Erich. Maybe i am biased because i love the 'young troubled teenager' stereotype. The book, however is both predictable and unpredictable, and having read it one night, I still thoroughly enjoyed it.
The language is also quite easy to follow and.... urgh, c'mon, if you want both an enlightening and wonderful read, this is a good book. I just can't believe i just read an 'australian' book... i'm a fantasy addict! So thats telling you something.