Beneath the Southern Cross

by Judy Nunn

In 1783, Thomas Kendall, a naive nineteen-year-old sentenced to transportation for burglary, finds himself in Sydney Town and a new life in the wild and lawless land...

So begins this story which is as much that of the city of Sydney as it is a family chronicle. With her uncanny ability to bring history to life in Technicolor, Judy Nunn traces the fortunes of Thomas Kendall's descendents through the booms and the crashes, two devastating wars and several social revolutions up to the present, vividly drawing the events, the ideas and issues that have made have made Sydneysiders what they are today.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Australia, Fiction, Audiobook, Historical, Contemporary, Family

520 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Judy Nunn (born 13 April 1945) is an Australian actress and author.

Judy Nunn's career has been long, illustrious and multifaceted. After combining her internationally successful acting career with scriptwriting for television and radio, Judy decided in the 80s to turn her hand to prose. The result was two adventure novels for children, EYE IN THE STORM and EYE IN THE CITY, which remain extremely popular, not only in Australia but in Europe. Embarking on adult fiction in the early 90s, Judy's three novels, THE GLITTER GAME, CENTRE STAGE and ARALUEN, set respectively in the worlds of television, theatre and film, became instant bestsellers. Her subsequent bestsellers, KAL, BENEATH THE SOUTHERN CROSS, TERRITORY, PACIFIC, HERITAGE and FLOODTIDE confirm her position as one of Australia’s leading popular novelists.

Reviews

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars


Listened to the audiobook via BorrowBox
Published by Bolinda audio
Read by Richard Aspel
Duration: 20 hrs, 40 min. 1.25x Speed

[Sharon Metcalf · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Judy Nunn is a household name in Australia. Not only was she an actress, her most famous role being a twelve year stint in popular soap opera Home and Away, but she's written for radio and tv, has written a couple of children's books and is a prolific author of adult fiction. I hadn't read her before but have some book buddies who simply rave about her. The vast majority (if not all) of her books are Australia themed and if for no other reason I expected to enjoy Beneath The Southern Cross. At this stage I must admit I was disappointed and doubt I'll be fronting up for more. Mind you, I have read reviews from readers who typically love her work and didn't really like this one so perhaps it was just an unfortunate choice on my part.

The story starts out in the UK in 1783. An attempted burglary, considered a capital offence, committed by Thomas Kendall, his father Jonathan and another man see them all convicted and sentenced to death by public hanging. Because of his age, Thomas was given a last minute reprieve and was instead transported to Australia as a convict. Part One covered the years from the 1820's -1840's when Thomas is an old man looking back on his life in New South Wales. He's been successful and ended up becoming a wealthy man. He started a family, earnt his freedom, and became a close friend to an aboriginal man and his family. I was quite absorbed in this part of the story, enjoying the Australian history lesson and to a lesser extent getting caught up in the family drama.

Unfortunately by 27% of the way through my spark of interest had faded and it never really rekindled. If we'd stayed with Thomas looking back on his life I'm fairly sure I'd have enjoyed this more. Instead the story covered generations and generations of two distinct branches of Thomas's family. Two hundred or more years of his family tree actually and that's a lot of people. I couldn't keep tabs on who the people were and worse, I found I didn't really care that I didn't know. Each time a new section of the book started we'd leap several decades ahead and for several pages I'd be floundering trying to work out how this bunch of people fit with the previous lot. I thought the historical elements were good but would have preferred if the story hadn't tried to cover so much territory and so many of this nations defining events. That wasn't the book she wrote however so I'll just chalk this down to experience and move on.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the alternating stories told down throughout the generations from 1788 until 1999! As I was listening on audiobook, I sometimes found it a bit difficult to keep track of who was who in the family tree, and would have liked to be able to flip back to check things, but overall I enjoyed it as an audiobook. Richard Aspel did a great job with a large cast of characters with varied accents!

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book just leaves me feeling disappointed. It started so strongly, with a brilliant convict-turned-good story that was a joy to read, and then tried to involve in all of the Australian history, and worse, did so by injecting a family either adjacent to or directly involved in famous (or infamous) events, which got very grating after a time. It took a long time for the story to come to a close, and there wasn't really a build up or a climax, and the resolution was far too short. I enjoy this author's work, but this is not her best work by far.

[David Midson]

There are few pleasures greater in life than discovering a new author whose work you are unfamiliar with, and which you thoroughly enjoy when you do start reading. This has definitely proven to be the case with Judy Nunn. This is the first book of hers that I've read. It was recommended to me by a co-worker. She herself has devoured all of her work. Beneath The Southern Cross is a magnificent read. An Australian family saga filled with dysfunction, scandal, betrayal, and dynasty-building. Who would have thought that Home And Away's Ailsa Stewart would be such a superb storyteller.

[Jasmine's · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written in the same vein as Bryce Courtney. Following the history of two families ❤

[Jülie ☼♄  · Rating 4 out of 5]

My copy has a different cover, is a William Heinemann edition and was published in 2012.

This is a family saga spanning many generations of the one family tree.
I love that this hefty tome has no wasted paper...even the margins are narrow! It's all book, and great value as it is very easy to read and flows nicely between generations without losing it's thread or becoming boring.
Fascinating family dynamics are described with just enough detail to give it credibility, but not so much as to lose your interest, and you can well imagine the scenes as they are described. You almost feel like one of the family as you get to know all of the relatives intimately. This helps the reader to follow the story easily between families and understand their relationships and personalities.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a multi-generational saga about the original emigrants from England who were brought to Australia to build the colony among indigenous peoples, and their descendants and familial ties, from the early 1800's to 1998.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel, my first by Judy Nunn. It's a very easy read as she has the knack for expressing the conversations of real people and how they really speak to one another. And while the original story concerning the land gift from one white settler to a specific Aboriginal tribe gets a bit lost amidst the ensuing family developments, she ties the story into a neat tidy bow at the end.

Some characters are easy to love and others to sneer at. My kind of book. I'll remember it for a long time.

It's certainly not a literary book, but it is a very enjoyable read.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beneath the Southern Cross by Judy Nunn was an interesting read. This book starts so well, but gradually devolves into having the characters participate in every major historical event in Australia. It became a bit tokenistic and paint-by-numbers. Characters are introduced and then dropped, some are well-developed (especially the villains of the piece), some are not. I found the ending rather unsatisfying, considering how the novel was described by the blurb. It felt rather tacked on and although linked to the main story was not fully explained.
I am in two minds about a rating, because I did enjoy it, but the fundamental nature of the story was not clearly defined and the scope of the novel was probably too expansive to do it justice. 3.25 stars.

[Robyn Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1783 Thomas Kendall was 19 when he saw his father and his father's friend hang in Norwich Castle Gaol. At the last minute Thomas was given a reprieve because of his age and sent to Sydney Town. Thomas was the first of many generations in this story. Years later Thomas built a house in Rushcutters Bay close to where an aborigine family lives. Judy Nunn covers just about every historical event in Australia so it's an interesting history lesson as well as a great story.
The story goes through generations of the Kendall family and tells how the aborigines were badly treated. There are a lot of characters in the story so it takes concentration to keep up with them, but once again Judy Nunn has written an amazing tale. Loved it!

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beneath the Southern Cross is an incredible tale spanning multiple generations of the Kendall family. Thomas Kendall was sentenced to transportation to Australia as punishment for theft. The novel not only chronicles his life and that of his descendants, but also of pivotal moments in Australia's history. Love and losses, births and deaths, wars and depressions, this has it all. The standards of the characters and their generations are woven together seamlessly.

This is only my second Judy Nunn book, and I am rapidly becoming a fan. Her way of storytelling is addictive, and I can't wait to discover more.

[Odette · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did enjoy reading this book, but not as much as i enjoyed the more recent Tiger Men. I felt that Beneath the Southern Cross attempted to cover too many historical events and too many generations. The significance of earlier events were lost amidst the succeeding events, though the more recent events seemed to be more superficially covered. Also on the Kindle it was hard to keep track of the family tree and how the characters were related. Also was disappointed that some of the characters seemed one dimensional - perhaps not enough space for them to develop more fully.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My very first Judy Nunn book, and wow! It was amazing!!!
From the first chapter I was hooked, to the point that by the last page I was a sobbing slobbering mess.....thanks Judy, my family thinks I'm insane ;) about time they found out anyway! lol.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another thoroughly researched and detailed novel from one of my favourite authors.
A family saga with many interesting characters from multiple generations living in Sydney from 1788 until 2000. Most are well meaning and considerate of others, but there are also those who are greedy and power hungry, and cause the family name to be blackened. There are so many characters over the 200 plus years, that there is a need to concentrate or reread to check how they might link to the family.
As is common with present day writers, there is a growing awareness and sympathy for the terrible manner in which Aborigines were treated.
As well as the story of the Kendall family , this could also be viewed as the story of the development of Sydney, with many important milestones incorporated, right up to the Olympic Games in 2000. There are ample references to the social and political issues of the times.
Highly recommended for lovers of Australian history and Historical fiction .


A riveting novel that tells the story of Sydney and the people who shaped its character, its skyline and its heart.
In 1788, Thomas Kendall, a naïve nineteen-year-old sentenced to transportation for burglary, finds himself bound for Sydney Town and a new life in the wild and lawless land beneath the Southern Cross.
Thomas fathers a dynasty that will last more than two hundred years. His descendants play their part in the forging of a nation, but greed and prejudice see an irreparable rift in the family which will echo through the generations.
It is only at the dawn of the new Millennium - as an old journal lays bear a terrible secret - that the family can finally reclaim its honour.
Beneath the Southern Cross is as much a story of a city as it is a family chronicle. Bringing history to life, Judy Nunn traces the fortunes of Kendall's descendants through good times and bad, wars and social revolutions to the present day, vividly drawing the events, characters and issues that have made the city of Sydney and the nation of Australia what they are today.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been an all-time great book. Don't get me wrong – I really enjoyed it. It took me from the 1700s all the way through to 2000 running through all sorts of generations. Very, very impressive writing. I began to get a little lost with some of the connections between generations then suddenly realised there was a generational family tree at the front of the book… Problem was I was reading it on Kindle and I could not enlarge it! The book is nearly 600 pages so it is easy to lose track at times. Anyway, I managed without the tree but a couple of imperfections stop it getting five stars from me. Firstly, the author would have done well to mention the date/period/era the characters were in more often. I did not know whether I was in the 1700s at one stage or the 1800s and if she had reminded me it would have been really helpful.

Great character development. Loved the people (mostly). But the thing that put me off giving it four or even five stars was the fact that Ms Nunn could not stop introducing blaspheming. Sure, it may not worry some people but it puts others off. The author goes to great lengths to respect all sorts of cultures but she fails to take into consideration her offending of Christian people by the introduction of copious amounts of blaspheming. It was also quite unwholesome in several parts of the book. It's not easy for me to put all that aside, but it is a good read. However, her imperfections put me off rushing to the bookshelf to purchase one of hers again in the near future.

[Lee McKerracher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I have read by Judy Nunn and I simply loved her writing.

An incredibly well research book about the development of Sydney since the late 1700s focusing on the Kendall / Kendle families.

There is rivalry, intrigue, greed, love, power struggles, wealth, poverty and shame. All of these make for an intriguing tale of how the family split (hence the two spellings). the attitude of those in the early colony to those of convict ancestry, to highlighting the horrific treatment of First Nations peoples and the damning of those who befriended them.

A fascinating part of the story is the comparison of attitudes towards sending people away to World War I versus in World War II - the 'war to end all wars' obviously did not work and the devastation and horror was entrenched in society which started to change mindsets as the country struggled through war in the 1940s. Then came Korea and Vietnam which left those service personnel with huge mental health issues and absolutely no support (actually that goes for all previous conflicts).

The family rivalries carry on over decades and this makes for fascinating reading.

A detailed and informative historical fiction piece.

[Yahya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had heard considerable acclaim for Beneath the Southern Cross, but I was unprepared for the sheer length of the narrative. What a sprawling epic it turned out to be!

Beginning in the 1700s with the story of a young teenager transported to Australia, it weaves a complex tale that stretches into the modern day. The book is masterfully crafted, reminding me of the historical drama of Bryce Courtenay’s The Potato Factory trilogy.

However, I found myself wishing that Beneath the Southern Cross had been presented as a trilogy rather than a single, lengthy volume. The intricate family tree, spanning numerous generations, became challenging to follow as the story progressed.

[Sandy Sexton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This family saga follows the history of Australia from early settlement to the Vietnam War. The large cast of characters made it sensible for the author to include a family tree, but unfortunately in the Kindle edition the print was so small I couldn't read it. Perhaps if I'd transferred the book to my lap top, or used a magnifying glass, I could have found success, but who wants to cart a lap top around? Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book and appreciate the effort of research such a novel requires. This was the first book of Ms Nunn I've read, and already I have another on my shelf.

[Enid Cavallaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read many books by this author and they have all been of very high quality, unfortunately I cannot say the same about this book.
There are too many characters, some who stay and are integral to the plot and some who just walk through a door and then disappear. When I read a book I like to connect with a character, in this book that was impossible, just as you got to know them they were gone.
The story flits from generation to generation with no apparent rhyme or reason. Perhaps it was to match up with some significant happening in time but it did not make the story flow for me.

[Kat Ashworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly an Australian epic. From the beginning of the colony through to 2000, the year of the Sydney Olympics. Judy Nunn effortlessly weaves and winds through countless characters bound through generations of blood and marriage. The variety of topics and historical events covered provide the perfect platform for the diversity of characters which provide a realistic and tangible history of the now city of Sydney in all its colour and diversity.

[Maria Magdalena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not one of my favorite Judy Nunn books. The first half, with the history of the convicts then land settlers and the connection with the local aboriginal family is really interesting. But the second half of the story tries too hard to explain world history and Sydney's history thru the eyes of the third, fourth etc generation and honestly I lost track of who belonged to which family. Having the e-book version did not help, cause the inserted family tree was too small to read.

[Dianna Applebaum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Judy Nunn conducted a veritable orchestra of characters in this tome, sometimes too many to keep track of, but praiseworthy, nonetheless.
I enjoyed the history, but again, it felt like too many events, famous people and artists were used to verify a period in time.
The ending did a full circle on history, which was good to read because I felt like the earlier history devolved amidst the family drama.
All in all another interesting read by Judy Nunn.

[LIsa Partridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first Judy Nunn book I read a few years ago and I loved it. She has become my favourite Australian author and I have since read several of her other books. Reading about the history of Australia with fiction and fact interwoven makes for incredibly good story lines. A must read for all Australians.

[Patricia Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A history of Australia from the British transfer of criminals in the late 1700s to the year 2000.

It follows a family deported to Sydney through the generations.

I often read MS Nunn's novels but this is not one of her best. Interesting storyline but at times it was hard to follow the characters.

[Alana Clough · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story spanning the generations from the colony of Botany Bay's beginnings up until the 20th century this story is a goodun! Thoroughly enjoyed the history in this one as well as the stories of each generation. Judy, you've done it again!

[Peta Whelan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first Judy Nunn book. I really loved the opening story of the family. Fell in love with the characters, and although some chapters were hard to get through, i really enjoyed following this family through their history. Really enjoy this saga.
Highly recommend to anyone.

[Kate M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another great Judy Nunn read. Found it a bit at hard picking up the previous generation into the next generation at the changes of sections, a great read nevertheless. The novel told the atory of immigrants, but a shame the aboriginal side of the story didn't feature in the generations

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Jean Nicholson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It kept me rading for days and finished it in hospital.The breadth of its sssssssssssstory ove such a long period was fascinaating

[Lyaine Munro]

thoroughly enjoyable.