Blackbirding

This compelling and well-researched audiobook sheds light on a lesser-known chapter of Australian history—the blackbirding slave trade—where over 60,000 Pacific Islanders were forcibly brought to work in Queensland's sugarcane fields between 1860 and 1906. Through detailed narrative nonfiction, Ryan Butta uncovers the coerced and often brutal realities faced by these individuals, part of a history that has largely been kept out of the national consciousness. The book invites listeners to confront this dark legacy and consider its enduring impact on Australian society.