{"product_id":"9780143790839","title":"The Commonwealth Of Thieves","description":"Author: Keneally, Tom\u003cbr\u003eISBN: 9780143790839\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Penguin Australia Pty Ltd\u003cbr\u003eYear first published: 19 Mar 2018\u003cbr\u003ePages: 528 \u003cbr\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA brilliant recreation of the first four years of white settlement in Australia by Booker Prize-winning author Tom Keneally.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA brilliant recreation of the first four years of white settlement in Australia by Booker Prize-winning author Tom Keneally.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn 1787, Britain banished its unwanted citizens - uneducated petty thieves, streetwalkers, orphan chimneysweeps and dashing highwaymen - to the fringes of the known world. So remote was Botany Bay - the destination to which the overcrowded, disease-ridden convict ships were bound - that only one European expedition had ever before anchored there. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYet the rejects of Britain, accompanied only by a flimsy complement of soldiers, marines and officers, were expected to start a settlement and flourish. It was an audacious social experiment, unparalleled before or since. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTo the indigenous inhabitants, the white men came as ghosts through cracks in the cosmos, rudely seizing the bounty of land and sea. On the swampy shores of Botany Bay, and by the sandstone coves of Sydney Harbour, the clash of civilisations was ineviteable, intense and often tragic. From this improbable beginning, through famine, drought, escapes and floggings, the glory of modern Sydney was born. Britain's penal experiment succeeded against all odds. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eImpeccably researched and told in the inimitable Keneally style, \u003ci\u003eThe Commonwealth of Thieves\u003c\/i\u003e is the compelling tale of a nation's beginning, its unforgettable people and their quest for identity.","brand":"Ships in 10 to 15 days","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48178262835358,"sku":"UBD-9780143790839","price":24.78,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0400\/9043\/5742\/files\/9780143790839.jpg?v=1787311353","url":"https:\/\/classicbargains.com.au\/products\/9780143790839","provider":"Classic Bargains Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}