The Athenaeum: More Than Just Another London Club

nature of these life-stories, which touched on many of the same major life-course events that structure the book, could have been situated in multiple chapters, and some were more strongly connected to the overall argument than others. As Watkins acknowledges, the limitations of the sources shape the lives presented: the biographies of repeat offenders are more complete than those who quickly desisted from crime; and women’s work is lost to the state bureaucracy upon their marriage. Though Watkins presents a mix of typical and atypical cases, the exceptional stories draw the readers’ attention the most – whether it is serial recidivist Charles Brewer’s successful mutiny and commandeering of a ship before being lost at sea (pp. 59–61); or Ellen Caley aka Hunt (pp. 113–5), the former sex-worker who was the only female juvenile denied a marriage licence. Once again, the youth of the convicts stand out: unlike their adult counterparts, all of their major life-events occurred in the colony. Their choices over where they lived, worked, or married were all curtailed (at least until gaining their freedom) by the state. Watkins’ prose is clear and coherent in explaining the possibilities and limitations of archival evidence, and the colonial and criminal context that shapes these juveniles’ life outcomes, individually and collectively. This renders it an extremely useful introduction to students or scholars new to the field of crime history, whilst simultaneously having much to offer to those interested in histories of poverty and crime in London, the convict system in Australia, juvenile offending, and youth more generally.