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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'A collection of thrilling, original and imaginative stories from the award-winning, bestselling author of The Slap and Barracuda - a showcase all of his immense and unique story-telling talents.
'Love, sex, death, family, friendship, betrayal, tenderness, sacrifice and revelation...
'This incendiary collection of stories from acclaimed bestselling international writer Christos Tsiolkas takes you deep into worlds both strange and familiar, and characters that will never let you go.' (Publication summary)
Adaptations
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Merciless Gods
2017
single work
drama
'From migrant camps to pill-popping hipster dinner parties, from prison cells to gay saunas and porn shoots, Merciless Gods is a vicious and tender portrait of contemporary Australian society, capturing the haunting aspects of the human psyche.
'Multi award-winning Christos Tsiolkas is one of the most significant writers in Australia. This first ever stage adaptation of his short story collection, Merciless Gods, takes you deep into worlds both strange and familiar, introducing you to characters who will never let you go and situations that will haunt you forever.
'Told from diverse cultural perspectives, Merciless Gods by award-winning playwright Dan Giovannoni is urgent, dirty, glorious theatre.' (Production summary)
Notes
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Dedication: For Wayne van der Stelt, who has been there from the beginning
Contents
- Merciless Gods, single work short story
- Tourists, single work short story
- The Hair of the Dog, single work short story
- Petals, single work short story
- Hung Phat, single work short story
- Saturn Return, single work short story
- Genetic Material, single work short story
- Jessica Lange in 'Frances', single work short story
- The Disco at the End of Communism, single work short story
- Sticks, Stones, single work short story
- Civil War, single work short story
- The T-Shirt with a Fist on It, single work short story
- Porn 1, single work short story
- Porn 2, single work short story
- Porn 3, single work short story
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
Works about this Work
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Christos Tsiolkas's Style
2021
single work
criticism
— Appears in: JASAL , vol. 21 no. 1 2021;'This article takes up a specific feature of Christos Tsiolkas's writing, his style. Focusing on Tsiolkas's fourth novel, The Slap, this article argues that Tsiolkas’s style is an inarticulate style: a style that does not always use the right word at the right moment, that employs language for narrative utility rather than its own sake, and that sporadically departs from standard usage and correctness in ways that do not appear artistically motivated. My argument is that The Slap is notable among contemporary fiction in that what I consider to be Tsiolkas’s worst sentences are the most revealing of his inclinations as a novelist. Consequently, I depart from what has become a standard formula in Tsiolkas's reception, that where Tsiolkas succeeds as a writer he succeeds in spite of his style. Finally, this article also contributes to recent debates about the purpose and vocabulary of Australian literary discussion: how critics debate the work of a prize-winning author, how criticism and praise operate in critical judgements, and the significance of style in evaluations of literature.' (Publication abstract)
-
The Controversial 'Gods' of Tsiolkas
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Neos Kosmos , 10 November 2015;
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
Frequent Coarse Language
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , September 2015;
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story ; Christos Tsiolkas and the Fiction of Critique : Politics, Obscenity, Celebrity 2015 selected work criticism -
Shaun Bell, of Christos Tsiolkas, Merciless Gods
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Southerly , vol. 75 no. 1 2015; (p. 195-203)
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
Christos Tsiolkas, Merciless Gods
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Transnational Literature , May vol. 7 no. 2 2015;
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story
-
Review : Merciless Gods
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 18 October 2014;
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
Powerful Rendition of Humanity, Warts and All
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 25-26 October 2014; (p. 16)
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
Horror Finely Poised
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15-16 November 2014; (p. 37)
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
Get Shorty
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-mail , 29 November 2014; (p. 10)
— Review of The Turning 2004 selected work short story ; Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story ; Australia's Best Unknown Stories : And Tales You Thought You Knew 2014 anthology short story ; Springtime : A Ghost Story 2014 single work novel 'Short stories have a long life ahead of them...' -
Review : Merciless Gods
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Adelaide Review , December no. 418 2014; (p. 22)
— Review of Merciless Gods 2014 selected work short story -
A Pair of Ragged Claws
2014
single work
column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 4-5 October 2014; (p. 17) -
Beauty Balances Brutality in Tales with a Greek Twist
2014
single work
column
— Appears in: The Australian , 17 October 2014; (p. 15) -
Short Stories Show Brilliance of Christos Tsiolkas
2014
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15 November 2014; The Age , 15 November 2014; (p. Entertainment/Books) The Canberra Times , 15 November 2014; (p. 23) -
Christos Tsiolkas's Style
2021
single work
criticism
— Appears in: JASAL , vol. 21 no. 1 2021;'This article takes up a specific feature of Christos Tsiolkas's writing, his style. Focusing on Tsiolkas's fourth novel, The Slap, this article argues that Tsiolkas’s style is an inarticulate style: a style that does not always use the right word at the right moment, that employs language for narrative utility rather than its own sake, and that sporadically departs from standard usage and correctness in ways that do not appear artistically motivated. My argument is that The Slap is notable among contemporary fiction in that what I consider to be Tsiolkas’s worst sentences are the most revealing of his inclinations as a novelist. Consequently, I depart from what has become a standard formula in Tsiolkas's reception, that where Tsiolkas succeeds as a writer he succeeds in spite of his style. Finally, this article also contributes to recent debates about the purpose and vocabulary of Australian literary discussion: how critics debate the work of a prize-winning author, how criticism and praise operate in critical judgements, and the significance of style in evaluations of literature.' (Publication abstract)
Awards
- 2015 shortlisted Voss Literary Prize
- 2015 winner Queensland Literary Awards — Australian Short Story Collection - Steele Rudd Award
- 2015 longlisted ASAL Awards — ALS Gold Medal