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maree_k's review against another edition
4.0
I really like Mandy Sayer's writing and was expecting a lot from this book - perhaps I was expecting a bit too much.
Although interesting, for me this book fell a little flat. While filled with facts and a few insightful interviews, Australian Gypsies: Their Secret History reads more like an an extended anecdote than an in-depth look at this topic. Possibly it is the nature of secrecy, which has held this community safe in Australia for so long, that prevented Sayer from doing much more than scratch the surface. Or perhaps Sayer was being conscious of being an outsider (or Gadje) writing this history, and this made her hold back in her writing. Whatever the reason, the book doesn't fulfill the promise of its enticing title.
I finished the book because it had just enough momentum to keep me reading. Ultimately, however, I was left somewhat disappointed.
Although interesting, for me this book fell a little flat. While filled with facts and a few insightful interviews, Australian Gypsies: Their Secret History reads more like an an extended anecdote than an in-depth look at this topic. Possibly it is the nature of secrecy, which has held this community safe in Australia for so long, that prevented Sayer from doing much more than scratch the surface. Or perhaps Sayer was being conscious of being an outsider (or Gadje) writing this history, and this made her hold back in her writing. Whatever the reason, the book doesn't fulfill the promise of its enticing title.
I finished the book because it had just enough momentum to keep me reading. Ultimately, however, I was left somewhat disappointed.
kali's review
2.5 stars...
I had high expectations of this book as I've enjoyed Mandy Sayer's previous works of memoir and fiction, and the idea of there being a 'secret' history of Australian Gypsies or Romani intrigued me. The structure of the book was interesting -- alternating sections detailing the chronology of the Romani's patsias, their travels, name changes, brushes with the law, etc; quasi-ethnographic information about the food, clothing, employments, etc of the Romani; and case studies drawn from Mandy's conversations with contemporary Romani around Australia. But it just didn't work. There wasn't enough rigour and too much opinion and generalisation in the historical or ethnographic sections, and too much unnecessary detail in the case studies. The information was repetitive throughout and I got to the end not really knowing much more about Romani in Australia as a socio-cultural group, other than the fact they were here. And the title seems a misnomer. The information presented throughout, shows that the Romani have been visible and documented in Australian press since the beginning, if they kept their Romani identity and cultural practices.
I had high expectations of this book as I've enjoyed Mandy Sayer's previous works of memoir and fiction, and the idea of there being a 'secret' history of Australian Gypsies or Romani intrigued me. The structure of the book was interesting -- alternating sections detailing the chronology of the Romani's patsias, their travels, name changes, brushes with the law, etc; quasi-ethnographic information about the food, clothing, employments, etc of the Romani; and case studies drawn from Mandy's conversations with contemporary Romani around Australia. But it just didn't work. There wasn't enough rigour and too much opinion and generalisation in the historical or ethnographic sections, and too much unnecessary detail in the case studies. The information was repetitive throughout and I got to the end not really knowing much more about Romani in Australia as a socio-cultural group, other than the fact they were here. And the title seems a misnomer. The information presented throughout, shows that the Romani have been visible and documented in Australian press since the beginning, if they kept their Romani identity and cultural practices.
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