PublishedTransit Lounge, December 2020 |
ISBN9781925760651 |
FormatSoftcover, 268 pages |
Dimensions23.4cm × 15.3cm |
Journalist Aaron Smith's new memoir holds
up a unique mirror to Australia. What he sees is at once amazing, disturbing
and revealing. The Rock explores the failings of our
nation's character, its unresolved past and its uncertain future from the
vantage point of its most northerly outpost, Thursday Island.
Smith was the last editor, fearless
journalist and the paperboy of Australia's most northerly newspaper, the Torres
News, a small independent regional tabloid that, until it folded in late
2019, was the voice of a predominantly Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal
readership for 63 years across some of the most remote and little understood
communities in Australia.
The Rock is a story of self-discovery where Smith grapples to
understand a national identity marred by its racist underbelly, where he is
transplanted from his white-boy privileged suburban life to being a racial and
cultural minority, and an outsider. Peppered with his experiences, Smith
gradually and sensitively becomes embedded in island life while vividly
capturing the endless and often farcical parade of personalities and
politicians including Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott.
Smith pulls no punches while he reflects
on the history of Terra Australis incognita, dissecting what
is truly Australia, and its gaping cultural and moral divide.
'A credit to regional journalism,
Aaron carried on the fine tradition of the Torres News holding governments to
account and telling stories of everyday life in the Straits, never shying away
from controversies, lifting all the rocks and even out foxing prime minister
Tony Abbott on his visit to Mabo's grave.' -
Stefan Armbruster, SBS
'Aaron
Smith makes a huge and extremely valuable contribution to journalism in Australia. With insight and committment he brings issues of national and
international significance to audiences in Australia and beyond.' - Dr
Tess Newton Cain, Griffith Asia Institute
'Aaron's journalism has provided a rare and valuable insight into issues
affecting the Torres Strait Islander community. Navigating cultural protocols
and geographical challenges, he has given a voice to some of Australia's most
marginalised people and shared important stories that would otherwise have gone
unheard.' - Ella Archibald-Binge, Sydney
Morning Herald
