In this collection of 15 essays, Australian and other historians examine Friendly Mission: the Tasmanian Journals and Papers of George Augustus Robinson 1829-1834, which was edited by N.J.B.
Plomley and republished in 2008. Robinson’s work, which offers a firsthand account of Tasmanian Aboriginal genocide, is examined not only in the local context of Van Dieman’s Land, but also
within the context of colonial settlers’ narratives of their encounters with indigenous peoples. The book opens with an essay on reading Friendly Mission in the 21st century, then deals with
issues such as Robinson and imperial networks, race and religion in Van Dieman’s Land, and colonial knowledge production in 19th-century Tasmania. Three brief ’community voices’ chapters offer
perspectives by Tasmanian Aboriginals. The book includes a few b&w photos and maps. Johnston is affiliated with the University of Tasmania’s Center for Colonialism and Its Aftermath. Rolls
is affiliated with the Center for Aboriginal Studies at the University of Tasmania. The book is distributed in the US by ISBS. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
