Racism is evident in Boort in the 1933 and 2014 setting. Racism can be overt or subtle. The novel shows how damaging it can be, even between people who were friends.

1. When Sadie and Ellie enter the pub with David and Walter, it goes quiet. Is this racism? What other examples do you notice in Boort?

2. Explain what Sarah means when she says that "there was no one else in town , in the whole district, would bring the best china to serve a black stockman a cup of tea." What racism is evident?

Initially, Sadie doesn’t feel like she belongs in her new town. She feels angry because she left her friends and her father. But the experience of slipping in time to her ancestors, coming to understand Indigenous connections to place and her new friendships all build to change her mind.

1. At what point in the novel do you sense that Sadie feels a sense of belonging?

2. Why does Ellie love Boort?

The dark history involving three families in the town threatens to repeat itself in the present, when tensions once again erupt between the families. As the conflict unfolds, the novel ultimately suggests that violence begets violence, and that such a vicious cycle can only be broken when one acts out of integrity rather than self-interest.

1. How do Sadie and Walter make different choices from their ancestors?

2. How do Sadie's just decisions create positive consequences?

Despite the immense control that white Australians wield over the land, the novel affirms that the power of the Aboriginal heritage is so great that it cannot easily be contained or mastered. Boort and its surroundings are “Crow Country”—they belong to the ancient ancestral spirit of Waa the Crow, one of the important spirits for the Dja Dja Warrung people.

1. What does Sadie learn about the country she lives in?

2. What is Waa's lesson to the reader?