Dancing with Strangers: Text Classics

In Dancing With Strangers, Inga Clendinnen eloquently portrays the experiences of British settlers in colonial Australia from the very first moment. She gives an account of the relations with the aboriginal people , the treatment of the convicts, the struggles of the free settlers and the difficulties of distance from the mother country . The book traces beliefs, attitudes , morals and values of some of the people from the First Fleet to give an historical view of those founding years. The book is very well sourced from the letters, journals, and diaries of prominent British authorities providing evidence for the view that at the beginning relations with the aboriginals were quite friendly but overtime deteriorated due to cultural difference and a contrary view of ownership.
Clendinnen also gives a stark vision into the life of the convicts and the penal code of law enforced by magistrates ,police and the British government.
Overall the book is very well written and historically enlightening, each view and attitude and story has primary evidence to relate the experiences of our first settlers.