An Intruder's Guide to East Arnhem Land

by Andrew McMillan

ISBN 1 875989 81 1

$22.00

Publication date: July 2001

"Having the patience to sit quietly in the sand and listen, Andrew has been adopted into my family and has been welcomed into our homes and our camps. This book is one of the results of that contact. Andrew has written a refreshingly lively account of events – good and bad – that have helped shape the nation's story. It's a tale that should be read by everyone with an interest in Australia's true history."
From the introduction by Mandawuy Yunupingu - Australian of the Year in 1992

This is a fascinating account of black-white encounters in the Northern Territory, on Groote Eylandt and the nearby mainland, from the beginning. Andrew McMillan has lived in the Territory since 1988 and through Aboriginal friends has learnt about a region little known to outsiders. Drawing on his own first-hand experiences and numerous historical sources, this story of contact covers the Indonesian trepang fishermen of the past, the incursions by pearlers, prospectors, cattlemen and punitive expeditions early in the twentieth century, the impact of missionaries, the killing of Japanese fishermen in the 1930s, the flying boat bases of World War II, and the rise of mining, land rights and the land councils.

Despite these incursions, the Aboriginal inhabitants of east Arnhem Land have been less affected by white society than those in most other parts of Australia. This is a moving and exciting story of warfare, loss, social and cultural struggle, and renewal.

Andrew McMillan's latest book, Catalina Dreaming, was published in April 2002.