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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'A lonely yowie emerges from the bush to attend the Desperate and Dateless Ball. Mysterious creatures descend from the sky to place a ban on footy. A shark named Bruce turns up in the local swimming pool. A fisherman enjoying a boys’ weekend on the Murray River finds perspective where he least expects it.
'In Shirl, Wayne Marshall takes a range of what-if scenarios to their fabulist and comedic extremes. Superbly inventive and powerful, these fourteen stories skewer contemporary Australian society – particularly the crises of masculinity and national identity – in insightful and yet hilarious ways, blurring the line between fantasy and reality. This astounding collection will make you rethink what it means to be Australian.' (Publication summary)
Notes
-
Dedication: For my girls: Fleur, Matilda and Lizzy.
And to Jen, for everything.
Contents
- Cod Opening, single work short story (p. 1-25)
- Gibson's Bat 'n' Ball, single work short story (p. 26-53)
- Bruce, single work short story (p. 53-54)
- A Night Out, single work short story (p. 55-74)
- The Phoenix Rising, single work short story (p. 75-95)
- Warrentopia, single work short story (p. 96-117)
- The Magpie Game, single work short story (p. 118-125)
- The Telexican Brides, single work short story (p. 126-146)
- The Hearing, single work short story (p. 147-167)
- Levitation, single work short story (p. 168-186)
- Our Year Without Footy, single work short story (p. 187-197)
- The Yowie's Visit, single work short story (p. 198-221)
- The Magicians, single work short story (p. 222-249)
- Weekend in Albury, single work short story (p. 250)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Large print.
Works about this Work
-
Short but Far from Sweet
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 13 June 2020; (p. 19)
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; Wild Fearless Chests 2020 selected work short story ; No Neat Endings : Stories 2020 selected work short story -
Four Auspicious Début Collections by Mandy Beaumont, Dominic Carew, Wayne Marshall, and Sean O'Beirne
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 420 2020;
— Review of Wild Fearless Chests 2020 selected work short story ; No Neat Endings : Stories 2020 selected work short story ; Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; A Couple of Things Before the End : Stories 2020 selected work short story'The American writer Jack Matthews had no time for what he called ‘a discontent’ with the brevity of the short story. ‘Ask a coral snake,’ he declared, ‘which is as deadly as it is small.’ The claim for ‘deadliness’ certainly applies to four recent début collections; in the tight spaces of the short story, each one presents confronting ideas about contemporary Australia.' (Introduction)
-
Books Roundup : Shirl, Blueberries, The Wandering
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Kill Your Darlings [Online] , March 2020;
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; Blueberries 2020 selected work prose -
Wayne : Marshall Shirl
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paeper , 8-14 February 2020;
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story'Wayne Marshall’s debut collection of short stories is a book that can be wholly judged by its cover. On it, a burly bloke embraces a kangaroo who wears a Carlton footy vest – a queer romantic scene that is backlit by the gentle glow of a telly. Marshall’s schtick is injecting Australian tropes with fabulist twists: everything is not what it first seems.' (Introduction)
-
Wayne : Marshall Shirl
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paeper , 8-14 February 2020;
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story'Wayne Marshall’s debut collection of short stories is a book that can be wholly judged by its cover. On it, a burly bloke embraces a kangaroo who wears a Carlton footy vest – a queer romantic scene that is backlit by the gentle glow of a telly. Marshall’s schtick is injecting Australian tropes with fabulist twists: everything is not what it first seems.' (Introduction)
-
Books Roundup : Shirl, Blueberries, The Wandering
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Kill Your Darlings [Online] , March 2020;
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; Blueberries 2020 selected work prose -
Four Auspicious Début Collections by Mandy Beaumont, Dominic Carew, Wayne Marshall, and Sean O'Beirne
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 420 2020;
— Review of Wild Fearless Chests 2020 selected work short story ; No Neat Endings : Stories 2020 selected work short story ; Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; A Couple of Things Before the End : Stories 2020 selected work short story'The American writer Jack Matthews had no time for what he called ‘a discontent’ with the brevity of the short story. ‘Ask a coral snake,’ he declared, ‘which is as deadly as it is small.’ The claim for ‘deadliness’ certainly applies to four recent début collections; in the tight spaces of the short story, each one presents confronting ideas about contemporary Australia.' (Introduction)
-
Short but Far from Sweet
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 13 June 2020; (p. 19)
— Review of Shirl 2020 selected work short story ; Wild Fearless Chests 2020 selected work short story ; No Neat Endings : Stories 2020 selected work short story
Awards
- 2019 shortlisted Victorian Premier's Literary Awards — Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript by an Emerging Victorian Writer As 'Frontier Sport'.
