'A subtle examination of innocence and guilt' (Observer).

Schoolboy narrator Daniel Jordan, growing up in working-class Sydney during the Second World War, is confused by a world in which the religious dogma of his school conflicts with the communism of his family's terrifying neighbour, the 'Comrade'. Refreshingly unsentimental, this is the funny, ultimately tragic story of a boy struggling to understand a world in which concepts like innocence and guilt, good and evil are clearly open to interpretation.

"A subtle examination of innocence and guilt" - Observer

"Reflects on indoctrination and the holy innocence of its victims, while suffusing everyday life with a spirituality of its own" - Scotsman

"If you are inclined to avoid anything written by winners of the Booker Prize, make an exception for Thomas Keneally" - Literary Review

"Reading Keneally's prose is like walking on the sort of turf that puts a spring in your step" - Listener