The Great Emu War

by Gordon Cope

The Great Emu War is a faction that will make you laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again.The 'war' was a mad attempt in Western Australia to use the army against a plague of emus. History becomes the background for a cast of fictional characters whose lives are changed forever by the events. Their forty year journey is a sardonic view of Australia in microcosm. All of the most unbelievable aspects are probably completely authentic.

328 pages, Paperback

Published October 19, 2018

About the author

Gordon Cope has been a professional writer for over 30 years, working as a report at the Calgary Herald and as an international correspondent for major journals in Canada, the US and the UK. He was a finalist for the W.O. Mitchell Award for his debut travel memoir, A Paris Moment, and a silver medal IPPY award winner for his debut mystery novel, Secret Combinations. He currently lives in southern Mexico, and loves to travel the world with his wife Linda. His latest mystery novel, Triple Cross, features much-acclaimed FBI agent Jack Kenyon and the thrilling exploits that take him from San Francisco to Paris and London.

Reviews

[Ilona Ciller · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Great Emu War was an Australian historical fiction about a lot of different groups of people, which made it harder to get into initially (as a start and stop reader). This book also covered a lot of time, but we only get snippets of the peoples lives at different times. It highlighted a lot of government issues (reminiscent of now with self-interest always coming first), as well as the terrible treatment endured by Indigenous Australians. Credit to the author for this. The plight of women, homosexuality and domestic violence were also featured well. There were a few laugh out moments, really some funny ones, but emotional attachment was not high for the characters and I nearly phased out in some sections…. until the Rock that is. Resurrection - I loved those times about and around the dreaming rock.
The accounts of the war were from an Australian perspective and not always factual as I perceive it. Eg. The atom bombing of Japan was just a wicked experiment, it did not ‘end the war’, the war was just about over already. Also while Nazis did have terrible concentration camps, Nazi German soldiers also ended up in hideous concentration camps but of course we don’t hear about that. (it is fiction however, so maybe that’s not so important). I do find reading details about the many wars quiet, …well, big, big yawn.
If you are into war this might actually be interesting. This book started off in novel tone, switched to a memoir-like finish, and would probably make a great screen write for a play, for which the author is known.