Bücher von Ronald McKie

Jamie watches the Queensland town beneath him from the sheltered branches of the mango tree. Through days of shimmering heat choked with red dust to days of rainstorms bringing mud to the mangroves, everything is as it should be - the sights and sounds and smells are as familiar to him as the everlasting childhood in which they appear. Then everything changes overnight when he falls in love. A tender, fumbling first love that flowed and ebbed just as suddenly. And in its wake came death, the sudden shocking death of someone he loved.Ronald McKie "...is a true professional... a super word-handler... This is a novel which bears the mark of the craftsman who is master of the language." - from the report of judges of the Miles Franklin Award, 1974.

??ell over half of this profile of Malaysia is given to Singapore, although this atypical city will not be the capital of the new federation, nor does it occupy the greatest space, nor does it account for the majority of the population. It seems to be the city the author knows best and finds most intriguing, and intriguing it is. A Malayan city the majority of whose people are Chinese, Singapore confronts imposing political and economic problems. Not the least of these is a strong, active Communist party; but the widespread terrorist secret societies, the almost complete absence of educational facilities for Chinese, the narcotics trade, the wholesale unemployment and hopelessly overcrowded living conditions are also challenging. By contrast, Kuala Lumpur, which will be the capital, is anti-Communist, and has a majority Malayan population, seems something like the ideal state. The states of North Borneo, which will complete the federation and which are primitive but rich, receive but little attention. This is not an excessively well written book, and it suffers from a rather superficial preoccupation with personalities, but the topic is important and, on the whole, this contribution offers some stimulating material. (Kirkus Reviews)