Tarte's book 'Fiji'

from w

I bought this book some time ago but only browsed through it as it's chockablock with a view of Fiji history over two hundred years and using historical characters often thinly disguised. The main story is of the 'European' planters in Taveuni and often there's an interesting glimpse of life of the earlier times. The writer used historical research to fill out his novel which bogs down the story of the main family. There's not much from the point of view of women and the writing is rather explicit about the treatment of men over women which really puts off female readers I am sure.  It's not a stunning book but a useful book to see points of view e.g. the writer doesn't paint the Fiji Indian community in a very good light which is a pity because there are numerous wonderful people who ought to be included in the story. It was written in 1988, published by a small press in Victoria Australia, and the story goes as far as the 1987 Rabuka coup.