The authors of this book, Roger Cross, a senior fellow at Melbourne University, and Avon Hudson, a campaigner for victims of British atomic tests in Australia, argue that because Australia was such an eagerly subservient ally, it was kept in the dark about the real extent of the 12 atomic tests carried out at Maralinga in the years 1952–1957, and the minor trials that continued until 1962.
Beyond Belief (Roger Cross, Wakefield, $27.95 pb, ISBN 1862546606, August) ***
The authors of this book, Roger Cross, a senior fellow at Melbourne University, and Avon Hudson, a campaigner for victims of British atomic tests in Australia, argue that because Australia was such an eagerly subservient ally, it was kept in the dark about the real extent of the 12 atomic tests carried out at Maralinga in the years 1952–1957, and the minor trials that continued until 1962. The prevailing Cold War paranoia lead to a climate of extreme secrecy which still continues today. As the subtitle indicates, a large part of the book is devoted to interviews and first-hand accounts of some of the 16,000 people directly involved. These personal histories make depressing reading. They are litany of ignorance about the effects of radioactivity, the lack of proper protective clothing, and inadequate security. Mysterious illnesses are dismissed as neuroses and unexplained deaths are met with callous indifference by successive overnments. The tone is undeniably, defiantly polemic, but to consign this passionate book to the ‘conspiracy theory’ section is to shelve important, uncomfortable questions such as: were civilians and armed forces personnel deliberately exposed to atomic radiation? Chilling but necessary reading.
Graeme Moore is a bookseller at Dymocks Melbourne, and a writer and reviewer
This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2005, Thorpe-Bowker