Review by naomisorge -- Skills of the Warramunga
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naomisorge
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Review by naomisorge -- Skills of the Warramunga
[Following is a volunteer review of "Skills of the Warramunga" by Greg Kater.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Set just after the Second World War, Skills of the Warramunga by Greg Kater is the third book in the Warramunga series. The Warramunga are a group of Indigenous Australians whose lands are located around the town of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory of Australia. Two of the main characters of the series, Jacko and Sarah, are either half or fully descended from the Warramunga. Although this book is part of a series, I think it can easily be read as a standalone book. This review is just for this book, not the whole series.
The story opens with the kidnapping of Johnny Cook, an important member of MI6. The year is 1946, and Peninsular Malaysia, although still under British colonial rule, is about to become unified as the Malayan Union. However, not everyone is enthusiastic about unification. There are still several German and Japanese bandits lurking in the jungle, hoping to disrupt the unification celebrations and cause a populist rebellion. This would pave the way for Fascists or Communists to take control of Malaysia. Luckily, Jacko and Sarah are able to use their expert tracking skills to find him. They then lead a campaign to ensure the bandits don’t achieve their nefarious goals.
The historical detail in this book is fascinating. Kater has researched every make and model of car, gun, and airplane used in this period, and written them into the novel. This will enrich the story for readers who are enthusiasts of cars, planes, or guns or the period. The political context is also well described. The first chapter alternates descriptions of Johnny’s journey through the jungle with explanations of the political situation in Malaysia at the time. I was not at all familiar with the post-war history of this part of the world but was able to understand it using only the explanations in the book.
I also liked the wide variety of ethnicities and backgrounds portrayed in Skills of the Warramunga. Malaysia is a multicultural country, but it would have been easy for Kater just to make most of the characters British or European and leave it at that. Instead, we also have Malay, Indian, and Chinese characters playing a wide variety of major and minor roles. This is much more reflective of the reality of Malaysian society around this time.
This brings me to my main issue with this book. Sarah, the Indigenous Australian tracking expert, plays a major role in the plot of the novel. The men in the story have great respect for her skills. However, Sarah seems like a caricature instead of a real person. She has no inner dialogue at all until she is socializing at the very end of the story, although we read plenty of inner dialogue from the male characters as they are tracking bandits and sabotaging attacks. Sarah also doesn’t speak English very well, so her outer dialogue is limited to just a few words, mainly to agree with the men or to point out trails in the jungle. While the men “say” things during scenes of dialogue, Sarah “insists,” “giggles,” “cries,” or “squeals” when she has something to say, making her seem childlike when she is actually a young woman. More input from Sarah would have given the book a depth of perspective which is otherwise lacking. After all, this whole novel is about Sarah and her tracking skills.
Because of this, I think the book deserves a 3 out of 4. The story is interesting, the level of historical detail is fascinating, and the wide variety of characters makes the book a great read. But I would have loved to know what Sarah was thinking at certain points in the story, and the lack of her perspective makes the whole novel fall flat for me. This book would be great for readers who are interested in post-war historical fiction, adventure stories, and stories set in southeast Asia. If you’re not a fan of complex dialogue and detailed descriptions of minor characters, you might find this book confusing.
******
Skills of the Warramunga
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
3 out of 4 stars
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Set just after the Second World War, Skills of the Warramunga by Greg Kater is the third book in the Warramunga series. The Warramunga are a group of Indigenous Australians whose lands are located around the town of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory of Australia. Two of the main characters of the series, Jacko and Sarah, are either half or fully descended from the Warramunga. Although this book is part of a series, I think it can easily be read as a standalone book. This review is just for this book, not the whole series.
The story opens with the kidnapping of Johnny Cook, an important member of MI6. The year is 1946, and Peninsular Malaysia, although still under British colonial rule, is about to become unified as the Malayan Union. However, not everyone is enthusiastic about unification. There are still several German and Japanese bandits lurking in the jungle, hoping to disrupt the unification celebrations and cause a populist rebellion. This would pave the way for Fascists or Communists to take control of Malaysia. Luckily, Jacko and Sarah are able to use their expert tracking skills to find him. They then lead a campaign to ensure the bandits don’t achieve their nefarious goals.
The historical detail in this book is fascinating. Kater has researched every make and model of car, gun, and airplane used in this period, and written them into the novel. This will enrich the story for readers who are enthusiasts of cars, planes, or guns or the period. The political context is also well described. The first chapter alternates descriptions of Johnny’s journey through the jungle with explanations of the political situation in Malaysia at the time. I was not at all familiar with the post-war history of this part of the world but was able to understand it using only the explanations in the book.
I also liked the wide variety of ethnicities and backgrounds portrayed in Skills of the Warramunga. Malaysia is a multicultural country, but it would have been easy for Kater just to make most of the characters British or European and leave it at that. Instead, we also have Malay, Indian, and Chinese characters playing a wide variety of major and minor roles. This is much more reflective of the reality of Malaysian society around this time.
This brings me to my main issue with this book. Sarah, the Indigenous Australian tracking expert, plays a major role in the plot of the novel. The men in the story have great respect for her skills. However, Sarah seems like a caricature instead of a real person. She has no inner dialogue at all until she is socializing at the very end of the story, although we read plenty of inner dialogue from the male characters as they are tracking bandits and sabotaging attacks. Sarah also doesn’t speak English very well, so her outer dialogue is limited to just a few words, mainly to agree with the men or to point out trails in the jungle. While the men “say” things during scenes of dialogue, Sarah “insists,” “giggles,” “cries,” or “squeals” when she has something to say, making her seem childlike when she is actually a young woman. More input from Sarah would have given the book a depth of perspective which is otherwise lacking. After all, this whole novel is about Sarah and her tracking skills.
Because of this, I think the book deserves a 3 out of 4. The story is interesting, the level of historical detail is fascinating, and the wide variety of characters makes the book a great read. But I would have loved to know what Sarah was thinking at certain points in the story, and the lack of her perspective makes the whole novel fall flat for me. This book would be great for readers who are interested in post-war historical fiction, adventure stories, and stories set in southeast Asia. If you’re not a fan of complex dialogue and detailed descriptions of minor characters, you might find this book confusing.
******
Skills of the Warramunga
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: The MISOGI Method by Jody B. Miller
