'Over a fifty-year period, from 1944 to 1994, Thea Astley published a number of critical writings, including essays, newspaper articles and reviews, and short reflections and meditations on her craft. Despite a renewed interest in Astley’s work, however, most critical interrogations of her oeuvre focus on her novels, and more recently her poetry. As a result, Astley’s critical writing has not been afforded the same breadth and depth of investigation as her fiction. This lacuna is troubling, since Astley’s critical works are important not only for their insight, but for what they reveal about Astley’s self-representation, and in particular the dual identity that she embodied as both a teacher and a satirist. This article argues that these dual roles emerge clearly in Astley’s essays and in fact are inextricable from many of her works. Further, the tensions between these two personae — Astley as teacher and Astley as satirist — reveal natural overlaps with her imaginative writing, and reflect her changing ideas about fiction writing, literature, and education.' (Publication abstract)
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'Leverson, the narrator at the centre of these stories, calls himself a 'people freak.' Seduced by north Queensland's sultry beauty and unique strangeness, he is as fascinated by the invading hordes of misfits from the south as by the old established Queenslanders. Leverson's ironical yet compassionate view makes every story, every incident, a pointed example of human weakness – or strength.'
Source: Publisher's blurb (Penguin).
Contents
* Contents derived from the
Ringwood,
Ringwood - Croydon - Kilsyth area,
Melbourne - East,
Melbourne,
Victoria,:Nelson
, 1979 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
- North : Some Compass Readings : Eden, single work short story (p. 1-33)
- Petals from Blown Roses, single work short story (p. 95-110)
- Write Me, Son, Write Me, single work short story (p. 145-158)
* Contents derived from the
Ringwood,
Ringwood - Croydon - Kilsyth area,
Melbourne - East,
Melbourne,
Victoria,:Penguin
, 1981 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
- North : Some Compass Readings : Eden, single work short story (p. 1-33)
-
The Curate Breaker,
single work
short story
The imperiousness with which a Catholic priest treats his aged father is vividly brought to his attention when he recognises aspects of his own behaviour in an Anglican priest's appalling treatment of his wife.
-
Hunting the Wild Pineapple,
single work
short story
A brash and flashy fruit-farmer has a manner of entertaining his guests that fails to favourably impress at least one of them.
-
A Northern Belle,
single work
short story
A young girl's spirited attitude to life seems to contrast that of her conservative mother's. However, many years later, to her chagrin and regret, she finds her long-dead mother's influence asserting itself.
- Petals from Blown Roses, single work short story (p. 95-110)
-
Ladies Need Only Apply,
single work
short story
On extended leave from her teaching job, a woman in her forties accepts an offer as companion for a reclusive music teacher. Their seclusion, compounded by the monsoonal wet, provokes a contest of strength of will and purpose between them.
- Write Me, Son, Write Me, single work short story (p. 145-158)
-
A Man Who is Tired of Swiper's Creek is Tired of Life,
single work
short story
Bored with his routine life in a country town, a motel-owner accepts an offer to stay at an isolated shack. Whilst there, his encounters with a transient young couple prompt him to return home.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
Works about this Work
-
Double Trouble : The Teacher/Satirist Duality in Thea Astley’s Critical Writings
2019
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Queensland Review , December vol. 26 no. 2 2019; (p. 218-231) -
Thea Astley's Failed Eden
2006
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Thea Astley's Fictional Worlds 2006; (p. 153-163) -
Thea Astley : Exploring the Centre
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Subverting the Empire : Explorers and Exploration in Australian Fiction 2004; (p. 97-144) -
'Words Wrenched Out of Amusement and Pain' : Thea Astley's Musical Style
1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: 'And What Books Do You Read?' : New Studies in Australian Literature 1996; (p. 151-163) Thea Astley's Fictional Worlds 2006; (p. 116-125) -
[Review] Hunting the Wild Pineapple
1992
single work
review
— Appears in: World Literature Today , Winter vol. 66 no. 1 1992; (p. 202)
— Review of Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story
-
Various Reviews
1981
single work
review
— Appears in: Kunapipi , vol. 3 no. 2 1981; (p. 148-151)
— Review of The Peach Groves 1979 single work novel ; The Everlasting Secret Family and Other Secrets 1980 selected work short story ; Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story ; War Crimes : Short Stories 1979 selected work short story -
Dropouts' Heaven
1979
single work
review
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Bookseller and Publisher , August 1979; (p. 82)
— Review of Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story -
Thea Astley's True North
1979
single work
review
criticism
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 22 September 1979; (p. 17)
— Review of Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story -
An Emotional Fruit Salad
1979
single work
review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 13 October 1979; (p. 28)
— Review of Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story -
Atmosphere of Moods and Tension
1979
single work
review
criticism
— Appears in: The Age , 24 November 1979; (p. 27)
— Review of Hunting the Wild Pineapple and Other Related Stories 1979 selected work short story -
Queensland Literature : Is It Different?
1987
single work
criticism
— Appears in: LiNQ , vol. 15 no. 3 1987; (p. 45-51) -
Thea Astley : Exploring the Centre
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Subverting the Empire : Explorers and Exploration in Australian Fiction 2004; (p. 97-144) -
Thea Astley's Failed Eden
2006
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Thea Astley's Fictional Worlds 2006; (p. 153-163) -
The Short Story is Alive and Well
1980
single work
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , November no. 26 1980; (p. 3-5) -
Thea Astley : 'Before Feminism... After Femininism'
1987
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Romantics and Mavericks : The Australian Short Story 1987; (p. 16-22) Thea Astley's Fictional Worlds 2006; (p. 72-76)
Awards
- 1980 commended New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Fiction
- 1979 winner Townsville Foundation for Australian Literary Studies Award
Last amended 19 Nov 2019 13:52:02
Settings:
- Far North Queensland, Queensland,
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