Deadly unna
Book Review on ‘Deadly Unna?’ by Phillip Gwynne - Review By Denbeigh - Age 14, TAS
'Deadly Unna?' By Phillip Gwynne
‘Deadly Unna?’ was the first novel of the famous Australian author, Phillip Gwynne, published in 1998. The fascinating drama novel expresses the inter-racial friendship between two teenage boys, Gary “Blacky” Black and “Dumby” Red. The book focuses on many complications the adolescence face, for example racism, favouritism, relationships, families, exclusion and more.
'Deadly Unna?' is set in the Port and Peninsula of South Australia, the ‘Goonyas’ (white Australians) are based in the Port and the ‘Nungas’ (the Aboriginals) are located on the Peninsula. The reason for this separation is to emphasise the racial tension between the white Australians and the Aboriginals that the author is trying to present.
The story is told from the perspective of the main character, ‘Blacky’. As the story is being told by a white Australian you would be led to believe that it is going to be a very biased story but in this case it is quite the opposite situation. Gary Black is one of the few, if not the only, characters from the Port that truly understands the similarity that the two races acquire which enables the readr to see Aboriginals in a different light from the generalised/sterotypical image common in Australia.
Gary “Blacky” Black is the major character in this novel, as the basis of the book revolves around him and his experiences and complications he faces in his youthful life. Blacky is more academic then he is sport orientated, though saying this he does play football. Blacky has a rather large family consisting of eight children, a stay-at-home mother and a hindering father. Blacky gets along with his siblings though they do have the occasional conflict, he is proud of his mother but unfortunately has a weak relationship with his father because of a previous controversy.
Though Dumby Red did not physically appear very often throughout
'Deadly Unna?' By Phillip Gwynne
‘Deadly Unna?’ was the first novel of the famous Australian author, Phillip Gwynne, published in 1998. The fascinating drama novel expresses the inter-racial friendship between two teenage boys, Gary “Blacky” Black and “Dumby” Red. The book focuses on many complications the adolescence face, for example racism, favouritism, relationships, families, exclusion and more.
'Deadly Unna?' is set in the Port and Peninsula of South Australia, the ‘Goonyas’ (white Australians) are based in the Port and the ‘Nungas’ (the Aboriginals) are located on the Peninsula. The reason for this separation is to emphasise the racial tension between the white Australians and the Aboriginals that the author is trying to present.
The story is told from the perspective of the main character, ‘Blacky’. As the story is being told by a white Australian you would be led to believe that it is going to be a very biased story but in this case it is quite the opposite situation. Gary Black is one of the few, if not the only, characters from the Port that truly understands the similarity that the two races acquire which enables the readr to see Aboriginals in a different light from the generalised/sterotypical image common in Australia.
Gary “Blacky” Black is the major character in this novel, as the basis of the book revolves around him and his experiences and complications he faces in his youthful life. Blacky is more academic then he is sport orientated, though saying this he does play football. Blacky has a rather large family consisting of eight children, a stay-at-home mother and a hindering father. Blacky gets along with his siblings though they do have the occasional conflict, he is proud of his mother but unfortunately has a weak relationship with his father because of a previous controversy.
Though Dumby Red did not physically appear very often throughout