Australian Fiction

[GOLLUM]

@Diggler: I'm with you when it comes to the fact that the era these anthologies cover is not so important. It's the quality of the writing that matters but having said that I now have anthologies for Horror, SF and Fantasy that span the development of those Genres in Australia, which is both rather nice and practical when it comes to posting specific reviews/details in this thread. You won't have any troubles tracking down the 50 year anniversary edn. The Van Ikin I'm not as sure on as I discovered my HB copy in a second hand shop one day, as if often the way with these things.
Correction: I just noticed that the Van Ikin covers 1845 - 1979, published at it was in 1984 (ominous year huh?)

@Teresa: I'm glad you tracked Mr. Westerfield's book down. I guess this could be considered a cross-cultural novel with Scott having a foot in both countries as it were. Certainly sounds like an interesting storyline.

 

[Heather Myst]

Gollum,
Here are a couple of Australian writers that I really enjoy.

Jennifer Fallon- I recommend her Second Sons trilogy that begins with The Lion of Senet and her Tide Lords series.

Fiona McIntosh- She has three series that I would suggest. They are The Quickening that begins with Myrren's Gift. Book one of the Percheron series is Odalisque. Her current series is Vasilar and book one is Royal Exile.

 

[Diggler]

Damn I love the internet! I've managed to find the Van Ikin one you mentioned online, which I'll snap up in a few days.

Also you ever heard of The MUP Encyclopedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy, which was edited by Paul Collins? The last edition was 1998.

I have to say, your Aussie sci-fi thread has really peaked my interest and I'm very much looking forward to any new information that's posted.

 

[Omphalos]

I've always been a fan of Greg Egan's work. I think I've seen a bunch of his older stuff come back into print lately, and IIRC he has some new stuff too. Have not remembered to pick any of it up when Im surfing or shopping, but soon...

 

[GOLLUM]

@Heather Myst: Those two predominantly fantasy authors as I recall are good suggestions. Jennifer Fallon is especially well regarded as you are probably already aware. Macintosh I am well aware of but have not read yet. Thanks for posting those...

@Diggler: Glad you are getting the Van Ikin anthology. I know Paul Collins but am not familiar with The MUP Encyclopedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy. When it comes to encyclopedias I've tended to just stick with the global" ones edited by Clute & Grant. OH and it's actually a fiction thread, so it includes SF, Horror, Fantasy and General Literature. At least that's the intention. Something tells me I'm going to be busy here......

 

[Hypnos164]

What do you think the author’s Australian background brings to SFF?

I've read some SF by Greg Egan, Scott Westerfield and Sean Williams and I don't recall detecting anything that made me think "oh Australian!"

I could imagine it being more apparent in fantasy (where the landscape itself or the local mythology could be more incorporated).

 

[Connavar]

Really whats Australian in SFF ? Culture,history wise its like the Swiss, there are other countries that have dominated that place.

I mean you see even famous Australian authors born in UK or live there. I read the wiki Australian SF article that even said there wasnt anything really australian about the big writers from there.

I just wonder for those who have read the authors mentioned in this thread.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Maybe Gollum or Culhwch will tell us what we should be looking for in Australian fiction that makes it different from British or Canadian or American. It's easier to find things if you are already looking for them.

 

[Culhwch]

I guess it depends on the author and how much they want to incorporate into the novel. From a personal stand-point, I don't think there is anything about my own writing that screams 'Australian'. That's largely down to the genre that I've chosen to write in, predominantly secondary-world fantasy, and my influences are from the European tradition. The same could be said of Feist and Martin and other American authors writing in the same tradition - it's difficult to pin down anything specifically 'American' in their work. I guess that comes from sharing the same largely European heritage.

I couldn't readily identify any specific themes or archetypes or what not that are distinctly Australian. That said I know there are examples of Australian SFF that are firmly set in the Australian milieu. Kim Wilkins' early paranormal novels were set in Brisbane, for instance, and I recall reading a truly terrible SF novel called Funnelweb (I think) set in Sydney and Canberra. I've seen the odd urban fantasy set in Sydney or Melbourne as well.

 

[Diggler]

I always thought sci-fi is more of a universal thing. It will use locations, such as the US/UK as a backdrop, though the actual subject matter is science fiction, rather than geography.

Though I feel that most Australian SF and Horror novels are (or were) set in overseas locales due to Australia being so small population wise. An Australian setting their novel, in say America, would open their novel up to a global audience.

 

[Renya]

I really enjoyed Trudi Canavan's 'Dark Magician Trilogy', she's a melbourne writer, am not great with giving detailed reviews, but I highly recommend this series, you'l just have to take my word for it

 

[Nesacat]

Thank you starting this thread Sir. I've been developing a growing interest in the books that come out of Down Under recently. I'll go home and see what I have. The books in the stores here are predominantly American followed by those from the UK. Very few books come in from other regions so this thread is very informative indeed.

 

[Connavar]

I always thought sci-fi is more of a universal thing. It will use locations, such as the US/UK as a backdrop, though the actual subject matter is science fiction, rather than geography.

Though I feel that most Australian SF and Horror novels are (or were) set in overseas locales due to Australia being so small population wise. An Australian setting their novel, in say America, would open their novel up to a global audience.

Science fiction bieng global is for sure but if you as an OZ set all your books in America only for the big audience what makes it different ? If you dont bring issues,themes,setting that is your own.

Its like Russian lit that set in NYC you dont see that.

You can tell the same old SF story, a fresh setting can make it interesting. SF has been going for so long some stories are very old when they come out.

 

[Quokka]

I think particularly because I read so little of it, it's a nice change to read anything set in contempory Australia. A definite plus to the local audience and if done right it shouldn't take anything away from an overseas market. Like connavar says don't under-estimate the value of a new setting for a familiar story.

I've read a few of Robert Barret's Les Norton stories (they're not great literature but the earlier ones were a bit of a laugh and easy reading) and it was a real novelty to read about a character driving out of sydney and down the coast in a ford ute and definitely added to my enjoyment of the books.

 

[Lioness]

Hmmm. Let me think

Bryce Courtney - writes a number of books set in Australia and/or South Africa. Pretty much entirely a historical fiction writer. Some really really good books, a couple of titles that come to mind are Sylvia, The Power of One, The Potato Factory (And the rest in the series).

Markus Zusak - Amazing. I've read The Messenger and The Book Thief. Both are excellent, though the Book Thief is without a doubt the best book I've ever read. It's about a young girl in WWII who hides a Jew in her basement, and is just written so beautifully. The Messenger is also written really well and is much better than some other books I've read, but it can't hold a candle to Te Book Thief.

Tony Shillitoe - First writer I've read that writes Australian fantasy. It's filled with gum trees, and country farms, and distinctly Australian qualities. And he writes it well]. I can almost hear the koalas rustling through the gum trees, and the magpies calling out across the countryside. Then he goes and puts some big cities, medieval stuff, and wars in the middle of it. It's a bit strange, but it works really well. Having said all that, I've only read the Dreaming in Amber series. The other books might not be as Aussie.

Fiona McIntosh - I think I've read all but her latest series. The Quickening trilogy is my favourite. It's humourous, well-written, and, while semi-stereotypical, it's good.

 

[GOLLUM]

OK, I'll post something in the next day or so on some of the differences between Australian and o/s fiction in speculative fiction mainly, not that I'm any sort of expert... In fact, part of the reason I posted this thread was to try to help me read most of my Australian collection this year and therefore post some hopefully useful details for others members here. A slight ulterior motive but hopefully it will be of some benefit for all interested parties.......

What I would like to post briefly here now is just a list of some of the essential Australian writers you would want to keep an eye out for if you were wanting to have a solid understanding of the development of settlement literature to the current day...and not specifically speculative fiction either... the latter part of the list includes some better known Aussie SFF authors.

Quickly off the top of my head, so not a comprehensive list...

Marcus Clarke *classic and great Australian Gothic novel Term of his Natural life.
Banjo Patterson + Henry Lawson *probably our 2 most famous poets and Lawson one of our greatest short story writers.
C.J. Dennis *Probably not far behind Lawson and Patterson in stature. Primarily a poet incl. the iconic Sentimental Bloke.
Mary Gilmore and Adam Lindsay Norman - 2 more of our celebrated poets. Gilmore and Banjo Patterson feature on our $10 dollar note, whilst Norman is the only Australian to have a bust in Poet's Corner, West Minster Abbey, London.
Norman Lindsay + May Gibbs *authors of 2 of our most famous and wonderfully magic children's tales.
Rolf Bolderwood *Author of the great goldfields and bushrangers novel Robbery Under Arms.
C. K. Stead *A great and underrated writer...author of The Man Who Loved Children and featured in the NYRB series....
Patrick White - Our controversial but often celebrated Nobel laureate (literature).
Ruth Park - Great Australian author, novels incl. Harp In The South.
D'arcy Niland * Author of the iconic Australian "Swaggie/tramp" novel The Shiralee later made into the film starring Bryan Brown. Husband of Ruth Park.
Miles Franklin *one of our legendary female writers after which the prestigious Miles Franklin award is named. The film My Brilliant Career was based on her life story.
Henry Handel Richardson *One of our most celebrated novelists incl. The Getting Of Wisdom.
Joan Lindsay *Author of the classic "Horror/Gothic/Mystery" novel and then film Picnic At Hanging Rock...based upon true events.
Frank Hardy *Author of one of the great Australian novels in Power Without Glory.
Les Murray *Probably our most celebrated contemporary poet.
Elizabeth Jolley *One of this country's most celebrated authors.
Tim Winton, David Malouf and Peter Carey *probably 3 of our most celebrated contemporary writers.
Kate Grenville *Well known contemporary author.
Clive James *Famous ex-pat writer.
Helen Garner *One of our most celebrated and controversial contemporary authors inc.l Monkey Grip and The Children's Bach.
Morris West *Includes Shoes Of The Fisherman.
Nevil Shute *Includes On The Beach.
Morris Gleitzman and Paul Jennings * Two of the contemporary superstars of children's fantasy fiction/story books here. Generally younger audiences...
Mem Fox *One of our most famous contemporary female authors for children/YA illustrated books.
Shaun Tan * Major graphic artist and creator of the brilliant silent graphic novel The Arrivals. Basically a world class artist...
Nick Cave *Controversial but much admired cult figure in music moreso but also author of And The Ass Saw The Angel.
Margo Lanagan *One our finest SFF writers and winner of the 2009 World fantasy award.
Greg Egan *As already noted.
Marcus Zusak *As already noted
Sara Douglas * Prominent SFF writer
Cecilla Dart-Thrornton *Well known Fantasy writer.
Jennifer Fallon *Noted SFF writer.
Garth Nix *One of our best SFF writers.
Ian Irvine * Writer of EPIC fantasy.

Not everyone but enough to keep one going for now.......

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I think part of the problem those of us who don't live in Australia have in recognizing what makes Australian literature distinctive is that we don't always realize that authors we are reading/have read are living their lives and writing their stories in the Antipodes.

Certainly several writers have been mentioned whose names are quite familiar, and some whose books I have even read, that I had no idea were Australian.

 

[gully_foyle]

Good list Goll. I am ashamed to say I have not ready many Aussie authors, and none of the SFF writers, although I wouldn't mind picking up a Greg Egan or Sean Williams.

In checking the Wiki I noticed one name that I see alot in the 2nd hand bookshops, but she didn't get a mention here, and that is Marianne de Pierres.

Another one to mention is Adrian Bedford. I have seen Time Machines Repaired While U Wait in the university bookshop and have been meaning to snaffle a copy. Has anyone read it?

 

[GOLLUM]

Certainly several writers have been mentioned whose names are quite familiar, and some whose books I have even read, that I had no idea were Australian.

Which just goes to show that far from the majority of the literary talent pool of the Western World is necessarily reserved to the confines of the US/Canada and Europe incl. speculative fiction.......

So which authors/books from the list(s) have you so far read Teresa including those you didn't realise hailed from the Antipodes? I'm intrigued to say the least!....

OH yes, I should have added the following notable authors/contributors to the above cavalcade....

George Johnston *Author of the iconic novel My Brother Jack, a particular favourite of mine.
Joseph Furphy (tom Collins) *Not as well known by today's audiences but regarded as the father of the Australian novel, his iconic rural work being Such Is Life.
Anna Bunn *Virtually unknown today, she was the first novelist to be published on the mainland and therefore first woman, the story in question being a Gothic romance The Guardian: A Tale. Never read it myself.
Colin Thiele *Wonderful Australian writer, best known for the absolutely iconic children's story Storm Boy.
Germaine Greer *Regarded as a major feminist on the world stage and of course author of The Female Eunuch.
Barry Humphries *One of our greatest wits and best known for playing in character such "luminaries" as Dame Edna Everidge and Sir Les Patterson.
Geoffrey Blainey *Australia's greatest living historian by a country mile (perhaps of all time other than Manning Clark) but also one of the most controversial incl. A Short History Of The World.
Professor Manning Clark *Stands alongside Blainey in prominence as our most famous historian incl. 6 volume History Of Australia.
Thomas Keneally *Author of the Booker prize winner Schindler's Ark (from which Spielberg's Schindler's List was adapted).
Christopher Koch *Best known for his novel The Year Of Living Dangerously, which later made into a film starring Mel Gibson.
Jack Davis *Probably our best known Aboriginal poet.
Fergus Hume *N.Z. by birth who moved to Australia, best known for the story The Mystery Of The Hansom Cab, the seminal colonial crime story and precursor to the crime fiction of the day including Doyle's Sherlock Holmes.
Arthur Upfield *Best known for his Detective Bonaparte novels and the fisrt Australian to be recognized by the Mystery Writer's Guild Of America.
David Williamson *Probably our best known playwright in living memory, plays incl. Don's Party, The Removalists, The Club, Emerald City, Brilliant Lies and Traveling North and screenplays for Gallipoli and Year Of Living Dangerously.
Aneas Gunn *Best known for the Australian classic We Of The Never Never.
Xavier Herbert *Best known for the Australian classic Poor Fellow, My Country.
Dorthy Hewett *One of our best known female poets and playwrights.
Elizabeth Jolley *One of our pioneers of creative writing and mentor and teacher to writers including Tim Winton. Works include Mr Scobie's Riddle, Milk and Honey and The Well.

 

[GOLLUM]

Good list Goll. I am ashamed to say I have not ready many Aussie authors, and none of the SFF writers....

Well I haven't read that many of the ones I've listed but I have a number of the books. As stated earlier, I hope to read several more in 2010 and post here periodically.

In checking the Wiki I noticed one name that I see alot in the 2nd hand bookshops, but she didn't get a mention here, and that is Marianne de Pierres.
Another one to mention is Adrian Bedford. I have seen Time Machines Repaired While U Wait in the university bookshop and have been meaning to snaffle a copy. Has anyone read it?

Di Pierres is known as a strong activist within speculative fiction circles in this country but I've not personally read anything by her. Bedford I've never heard of...sorry.

I've basically listed here the majority of the best known/regarded of Australian authors in General fiction and to a lesser extent SFF, for those members wishing to make more of a study of Australian literature.