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© 2021 V&R unipress, Brill Deutschland GmbH ISBN Print: 9783847113232 – ISBN E-Lib: 9783737013239 a continuum from a very personal level of engagement (“what thismeans for me”) toa social level (the implications forAustralian society). Withreflectionsofapersonalnature,readersappreciatedhowthestorygavea “very interesting” account of a particular period and provoked emotional re- actionsandalsoadesire, asone readerput it, to“knowmoreabout your [own] family history, what your heritage is” (FG2).With reflections on amore social level, readers began to appreciate the implications of the story, and display emotions in relation to it. Such engagementmight lead some to articulate the need for injustice to be acknowledged (a key theme in the novel) and the elu- sivenessof recognitionandrestitution.Onan individual level, readinganddis- cussionpromptedpersonal reminiscence.Oneparticipantcommented:“I really lovedtoreadsomethingthatisAustralian.Itisreallynicetoreadyourownhistory orhearyourownstories”(FG2).Readerswouldremembereventsfromtheirown experiences, as the following illustrates: Iwas talkingbeforeabout—mygrandmothergrewuponastation,Ceduna—andhow …[Grenville]wasdescribinglifeonanisolatedfarm,withDaunt.AndIwasjustgetting mixedupinmyheadwithmygrandmother’s stories [youcouldvisualize it]yeah,and really feel it. (FG2) Readers reflecting in thiswayoften expressed adesire to find outmore about their familyhistories, or to reconnectwith relatives acrossAustralia, before the storieswere “lost” (FG2). Active reflection alsohappened in awider sensewith readers engagingwith contemporarysocial issuesaroundracerelations.Forexample,readerswantedto getatthetruthofAustralianhistory;asonecommented:“whydidn’tpeoplewrite about it [Australian history], why is it not on TV, why is our history buried, basically.Apart fromNedKellyandthegoldrushthere isbasicallynothingthere, thereisabsolutelynothingthere”(FG2).Thebroaderreflectionsonthepast,and oncontemporaryrelationswithIndigenousAustralians, includedassertionsthat injustice should be recognized, and yet also that recognition was elusive, and restitution almost irresolvably complex. During a lengthy discussion of In- digenousdisadvantage,onewomanmadeacommentwhichreflectedonhowthe bookappeared toexplicitly invokecontemporary race relations, saying: I amprobably abitwearyandwaryandcautious about indigenous issues.Youknow, andIamveryunconfident thatanyofushaveanyrealsolutionsto it, soIwascautious with thebook,youknow.But thenIwascommentingonit in thediscussionthat Iwas quite satisfied bywhere it went, and impressed with Kate Grenville.…Ok, I’mnot posinganysolutionsbut it is important to talkabout it andkeep the storiesopenand aliveandyoudoneed toknowwhathashappened (FG2). This reflects howbook clubmembers read SarahThornhill as away to engage with current debates around reconciliation, and how the historical novel has MaggieNolan/RobertClarke /RebekahBrown238 Open-Access-Publikation im Sinne der CC-Lizenz BY 4.0