4.5 stars. Short story collections are usually a hit or miss to me but I was really blown away by the quality of this collection. Through very varied short stories, Thompson is able to give a very comprehensive look at the lives of Aboriginal Australians in the present day, living under the shadow of centuries of colonialism/genocide and present-day institutional and widespread oppression/racism. There are some really memorable stories (my fav is Descendent) but there isn't one that I found boring or lacking -- which is rare in a short story collection. I highly recommend this book.