Reviews

Lies, Damned Lies: A personal exploration of the impact of colonisation by Claire G. Coleman

veronica_strachan's review against another edition

5.0

Having read Coleman's fiction and heard her speak at workshops and festivals, it was no surprise to find the power of her non-fiction voice persuasive and engaging. This set of essays is a pull no punches debunking of many of the settler colonial myths through the eyes of Coleman's own experience as a Noongar woman. Her generous sharing of many aspects of her relationship with Noongar Boodja is educational and enlightening.
It should be required reading for anyone interested in exploring the personal impact of colonisation and supporting truth telling with our First Nations people. The parts that make us uncomfortable are doing their job of opening our minds and challenging us to thinking differently.
An excellent read.

ellaellaellaetc's review

4.25

 this is a very confrontational book! I read this for class and I'm very glad that I did. not that I thought I was super knowledgeable on aboriginal australia but I didn't realise how much misinformation I had in my brain! as the title would suggest, this book deconstructs some of the lies that non-aboriginal australians tend to believe due the lack of information or the intentional twisting of the truth about australia's history. if you were educated in australia I would highly recommend picking this up! my only gripe is that it got a little repetitive and also that this is meant to be a little subjective. the author inserts herself into the book quite a lot; this makes sense for the type of book she wrote (title is literally called "lies, damned lies: a personal exploration of the impact of colonisation") but if you're looking for something that is just the facts, I would recommend finding another resource! 4.25 stars 

meganshallx's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This should be a required read for all Australians no scratch that for everyone worldwide.

lottie1803's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

tiffabell's review against another edition

5.0

Such a powerful book. Coleman is a brilliant writer and this book is no exception. Required reading for the colony regardless of how much you think you know about colonialism and raceism within Australia I can almost guarantee this book will still teach you alot.

whatcourtneyreads's review against another edition

4.0

In Lies, Damned Lies, proud Noongar woman Claire Coleman meticulously debunks many of the lies Australia has been told about its dark and violent history. From ‘Terra Nullius’, to the fact that colonisation still continues (despite what some may think), and more personally, that for many years Coleman had no idea she or her family were Aboriginal.

Like Dark Emu, which I read earlier in the year, Lies, Damned Lies should be prescribed reading for all Australians. Some of what Coleman presents was already familiar to me, but this is only because I have made an effort as an adult to look beyond our whitewashed history in a way that was not taught to me at school between 1994-2006 (the Apology by Kevin Rudd on behalf of the Australian Government didn’t even happen until 2008). We should never stop seeking out the voices and histories of First Nations’ people, and I found so much value in Coleman’s research, writing, and story.

Safe to say, I highly recommend this book and think you should all get your hands on a copy.

lennimk's review against another edition

5.0

" History is trying to speak to you ... can you hear it" (Coleman, p 1)

I fricking love this book ...
I found myself reading sections out loud because I felt like I wanted to hear the words- in all their glorious, undisguised openness and truth... not just silently read them.

I was enthusiastically reading sections out loud to anyone in the room who who heard me take a deep breath, or gasp,"oh " or whisper "farrrk" or almost shout ... "so true" ... " shit... that is right"... and who were either curious or polite enough to ask "What is (so true/right) ?"

So by the time I got to Claire G. Coleman's Outro I wanted to punch the air when I read her insight and reminder that decolonising Australia is not something to be done by "one person or group of people alone" but "the first step , learning the truth, telling the truth that can start now... Truth is viral. Stories are viral. You have been infected with viral truth. Pass it on".( Coleman, p 268)

F@#k yes ... will do!

bitesizebooks's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

amydotreads's review

challenging informative inspiring fast-paced

4.5

astrofeldy's review against another edition

Returned to library!