A Cartload of Clay by George Johnston review
A mellow, often melancholy autographical essay completes Johnston’s trilogy. The narrator Meredith, dying and reflective, contemplates life’s lack of ultimate meaning while a brief walk amid a house aftermath and memories reveals fatigue and truth. The piece weighs Johnston’s Australian identity against broader literary ambitions.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
George Johnston
Colins
Brother Jack
Johnston
David Meredith
Mrs Fraser's perilous voyage near Fraser Island saga
A review of Michael Alexander and Joseph’s account of the Stirling Castle wreck on the Great Barrier Reef in May 1836. It follows Captain James Fraser and his wife Eliza, eight months pregnant, through shipwreck, separation, survival, captivity, and eventual rescues and public fascination in Australia and Britain. The piece notes sources, biases, and a vivid blend of adventure, Aboriginal life, and Victorian reportage.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
James Fraser
Great Barrier Reef
Eliza
Fraser
Queenslara
Cook
Great Sandy
Brisbane
Sydney
Queensland
Sidney Nolan
Alexander
Stirling Castle
Pinnace
Jong Hoat
Moreton Bay
England
The Bushrangers relic in Australian theatre history
A dramatic relic by David Burt, The Bushrangers examines an early Australian melodrama. It traces writing between 1826 and 1829, notes embellishments for sensational effect, and discusses its colonial reception, eroding setting, and later rescue by Mitchell Library before Heinemann’s edition.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
David Burn
van Diemen’s Land
Edinburgh
Burn
Mitchell
Heinemann
Australian Theatre Workshop
Views in Australia facsimile edition reviewed
A lengthy notice promotes a two copy $30 facsimile of Lycett's Views in Australia noting 50 colour etchings of Sydney and Van Diemen's Land. It traces Lycett's forgery convictions, travels to Sydney, later pardon, and the possible circumstances of his death, with commentary on the work's accuracy and propaganda potential.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lycett
Australia
Sydney
van Diemen’s Land
Lycete
Francis Greenway
Newcastle
James Wallis
Seonets
Cenmmastan
Wallis
Macquarie
Greenway
Col Jes
Lord Bathurst
England
Baron Field
Clutha
Lycerts
Hughie by David Martin portrays an Aboriginal boy and a white friend in Australia
A first novel by David Martin, Hughie follows Hughie and Clancy Folger in a bush town. The story tracks friendship, race barriers, a drowning accident, and a town debate over opening the pool to Aborigines. Themes of courage, change, and hope emerge as the boys confront prejudice and envision a future.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
David Martin
Hughie
Clancy Folger
Merringee
Rabbies
Clancy
Olympic Pool
Chrissy
Folgers
Harriet
Kaufman
Bush
Martin
Australia
Review of Massola Aborigines of Soliptelastern Aus
A critical look at Massola’s Aborigines of Soliptelastern Aus for school use. The piece notes thorough research and strong detail on customs, art, and daily life, yet argues the work’s flattening simplifications and persistent cultural bias hinder its educational value despite evident empathy and scholarly care.
Publishers' Week critique flags gaps in Aboriginal social detail
The Australian Book Week note that Sydney and Melbourne are no longer the sole publishing centers is followed by praise for publishers in other states. Critics argue Massola's work on Aboriginal society is out of date and overly simplistic, omitting complex social organization and civilizational status, reflecting older anthropological biases.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
John O'Grady
Dre Smith
Benier
Australian Book Publishers Association
Sydney
Melbourne
Genoedes
Australia
Augus and and Robertson
Rigby
Adelaide
Jacaranda Press
National University Press
Canberra
University of Queensland Press
Queensland
A. H
A. W. Reed
Artarmon
Nsw
Cheshire Group
Hawthorn Press
Law Book Companyinary CIA
Note Melbourne
Oxford University Press
Muassola
Claude Levi- Strauss
Massola
Also Mentioned on This Page
John Lleonart
Meredith
Camus
Jack
Idas
Ockers
Johnston “Ockers
Ginger Mick
Mavis Bramston
Michael Alexander
Joseph
Geoffrey Sawer
Scotland
New Zealand
THE
David Burt
Hetenrinns Educational Australia
Arthur
Hobart
Beady
Tasmania
Paragon Mall
Fyshwick
Queanbeyan
Crawford Street
Joseph Lycett
Nelson
SAU
By Humphrey McQueen
Nelsons
Wingeecarrabee River
New South Wales
London
J. Souter
David Meartim
By Gwen Hutchings
By Geoff Wells
Soliptelastern
Aus
Alda
Hemenanu
Musola
Ich
Sep Massola
Massala
Publishers
Norman Lindsay
Monaro
Dairy Book OF Home Management
Craig McGregor
Michael Parer
Ernest Revnsh
Daltons
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!