Sophie Gee

Asked Alan, from Polynesia and before that from Easter Island.

So one of the, you know, she is trying to do this sort of more complex, more nuanced representation of First Nations cultures.

But I suppose one of the ways we could interpret that is that sort of cultures kind of come and go, they get absorbed and reabsorbed.

So

You know, I think what we can safely say about Marsh is that she's doing something very thoughtful, very nuanced.

And I actually want to kind of come back to the Joan Lindsay comparison, who's, you know, by the standards of now, what the way they both handle questions of race, you know, doesn't really hold up, that it seems like cultural appropriation.

But they're both trying to do something unusual and interesting, I think.

Oh, totally.

All right.

So, Jonty, it's time for us to stop prevaricating.

We need to step into our role as the Roderick Allen of the piece.

Who done it?

Is this book overrated or underrated?

Yeah, I'm going to agree with you about it.

There's a lot that's going on that's completely fascinating.

One of the things that I love about this book and about Naomi Marsh's work in general and all these books that we're looking at is that they are women writers sort of taking the reins.

They become the dominant voices in this period.

That, for me, is incredibly important and that they're telling these stories of violence and violence.

horror and murder through the lens of women's voices and women's sensibilities.

I love the way that she's grappling with New Zealand colonial culture and Maori culture.