"Who knows but that England may revive in New South Wales when it has sunk in Europe."

Fish of the Great Barrier Reef, Agincourt Reef, Far North Queensland. April 2021.

Banks by Grantlee Kieza

The strongest elements of this rich and detailed biography are those during the defining period of Banks' life and career: his voyage with James Cook's expedition to the south Pacific Ocean aboard HMS Endeavour from 1768 to 1771.

I particularly enjoyed the section on their visit to far north Queensland (I happened to be visiting while reading the book). The tensions between the young Banks and Cook regarding the latter's brusque approach to the native peoples was enlightening and foretold both Cook's eventual fate and the subsequent treatment of Australia's original inhabitants.

Much like Banks' life after returning to England, the book tends to drift with occasional flashes of colour. I was less interested in the internal politics of the Royal Society or Banks' love life than I was in the exploration of the new world.

While Cooks' latter voyages, the Arthur Phillip-led invasion and John Macarthur's template-setting for cunning and corruption that set the tone for Australia's political development are interesting enough, it is not new ground nor particularly germane to Banks' life (over 17,000 kilometres away).

Nonetheless, it is a well-written and engaging tale with enough colour and anecdote to keep the story ticking along.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Comments

Mad as hell

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This will hurt me...

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