All Roads Lead to Rome

Sadly, I am finding Clune's books very hit and miss in this era - I am hoping he gets past this as a lot of his later books are on interesting topics. If nothing else, I still own a load of his books I haven't read! Why are I reading them? Good question, but I am a completist and as with Ion Idriess books, I am reading them is published order (on the basis of the ones I have been able to source).

I come to dread any visit to Darwin by Clune, as it gets him started on his White Australia Policy rant. I can't believe a man who travels for a living and writes about it can maintain such a divisive view of emigration, although I am sure the war years have an effect on his view. It is unpleasant reading of Clune's objections to Australian and British financial assistance of places like New Guinea and Kenya.

Anyway, after a poor start racially, and wading through a short description of every man and his dog Clune coming into contact with on his trip from Sydney to Darwin, he finally gets underway internationally... but this isn't a book I got a lot of enjoyment from.

He defends the Dutch in educating the Indonesians, and improving their country beyond anything they might have achieved, as he briefly stops in Jakarta. There are other stops and other disparaging comments, but the journey is brief until his arrival in Italy, where we are told how the Italians make poor soldiers. Vatican City, France, Switzerland, Germany are picked over in detail. Denmark, Prague (Czech Republic) and Vienna (Austria) and then a return to Italy before heading homeward via Greece.

Dull, slow and irritating to read.
2 stars!