I feel traumatised, again, having read about WW1. Recently I finished reading "Birds without Wings" and experienced this war from the Turkish perspective. This time, from the Australian. And it is the same from both views - the horror, the horror. And both authors expressed so well the futility of war, the senseless killing. And I am left with a sense of despair, because it all just continues. We are incapable of learning from history. I feel, like one of the soldiers in this story, that I need to cleanse my soul.

Another good chapter in this series. I didn't know anything about Gallipoli or Australia's involvement in it. If all of my history classes had been this interesting, I probably would have remembered a lot more of it.

I'm not good at writing reviews but I must say that the three books of The Potato Factory trilogy made a lasting impression on me. They were so atmospheric and full of character, information and fantastic plots. I highly recommend them if you haven't already read them.

I've just finished the last page of this trilogy and find myself in tears. Without doubt Solomon's Song is the best of the three. The first half moves swiftly through the generations of Mary Abacus, her children, grandchildren and finally get great grandchildren Ben and Victoria.
The second half of this book begins as WW1 breaks out, we spend most of the remainder of the book following Ben as he enlists, his training and deploying. As you read through the chapters you get this gnawing in your stomach, you know in the pit where this story is going and when you turn the pages to chapter 13 that word appears, the one you didn't want to see ...... Gallipoli.
From that moment on stopping reading is not an option, it's almost as if you owe it to those brave going soldiers to keep reading no matter what. The horrors of war are so vividly brought to life by Courtenay. The sacrifice and suffering all too real. This may be a fictional book but the reality of it's subject matter is something we all know happened and Ben's story could be the story of 1000s of ANZACS.
I'm left numb, not because of this story but because the truth of what happened is all to easily buried as life goes on but to forget is to dishonour those who died so we could live.

Lest we forget....

The trilogy was fantastic- this third was a disappointing conclusion, although still a good book in its own right.

I enjoyed the final instalment of Courtenay's Australian Trilogy, however, found the first quarter or so spent too much time catching the reader up on characters and events that happened in the past two books.
I liked Ben's storyline and thought the strongest part of the whole book was the section set in Gallipoli in WWI. The powerful language made me feel like I was on the battlefields and in the trenches with the Anzacs and made me really understand how pointless the whole thing was. I can't decide if I'm entirely satisfied with the ending or not, but I understand why it finished when and how it did.
There were a few parts that angered me and, as with The Potato Factory and Tommo and Hawk, there were a few events that happened far too conveniently for my liking, but overall, I enjoyed the story.

This is a beautifully written book by a master storyteller, concluding Bryce Courtenay's amazing trilogy on early Australia. "Solomon's Song" stretches from Sydney in 1861 to the battlefields of France in 1916, detailing the first world war from an Australian perspective while continuing the saga of the divided Solomon family. Courtney perfectly captures the strength of a young nation coming of age, penning characters that any reader will fall in love with.

My only criticism is that Courtenay spent too much time rehashing the characters and events of the first two books. I understand why he chose to do it, but if someone didn't bother reading "The Potato Factory" and "Tommo and Hawk," they don't deserve to get their hands on "Solomon's Song."

Just read it, for goodness sake!

Epic family story starting with The Potato Factory, then Tommo & Hawk, finishing up with Solomon's Song.

Loved the book, hated the ending.

It is incredible that a series of words can be strung together to create something so affecting, so real.

The third and final instalment of an excellent Potato Factory series. This was a very interesting and enjoyable read, some very insightful writing and information around what the period of the First World War was like in Australia. Also some harrowing scenes around the Gallipoli invasions and trench warfare in Europe. Added to that the family saga and politics kept this book moving along. Highly recommended.

The third installment falls short of the other two in my opinion. Too many leaps of time makes Tommo's grand children feel somewhat under developed, and the story rushed compared to the previous two volumes.

Certainly though it has it's moments and how can you not finish the series having read the first two? I did feel the coverage of the Gallipoli campaign from Ben's perspective was particularly well done. It really got you in to the fight to feel both the courage of the men that served and the complete hopelessness and tragedy of the outcome of this battle for Australia's sons.