Stranded Nation

David Walker's Stranded Nation is a recommended read for anyone, politicians and students alike, seeking to know the history of Australia's agonising over Asia; how it began, how it evolved and the passionate and colourful characters involved. Stranded Nation is told with authority, insight and wit, and the satisfying readability of a good novel, and that makes it great history.' — Stephen FitzGerald, writer, sinologist and Australia's first Ambassador to the People's Republic of ChinaFor well over a century Australia's place in Asia has been at the forefront of public discussion and controversy. Stranded Nation is a searching examination of how a 'white' nation, harbouring deep anxieties about rising Asia, sought to convince both itself and its neighbours that it belonged within the Asian region. This is the strange story of Australia's momentous turn to the East.Stranded Nation draws on a wide range of sources — from archival records in Australia, the US, the UK,...