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Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Somewhere between Fiction and Non-fiction: New Approaches to Writing Crime Histories
2015
single work
criticism
— Appears in: TEXT Special Issue Website Series , April no. 28 2015; 'This paper explores innovative ways of writing across the borders between fiction and non-fiction in crime histories and examines how crime sources can actively encourage writing that is imaginative, subjective and ambiguous. Drawing on recent historiographic critiques of the archive, the paper argues that the constructedness of archival crime sources and close responsive reading and interpretation of these sources can validate, even demand, of historians the use of nuanced fictive writing practices that eloquently express the complexity of the crimes, the killers, the victims, the societies that created them and the intricacies and truths of the sources that contained them. As well as iconic examples from the literature, the paper examines my own research and writing about two very different murder trials from Perth, Western Australia, one already published, the other a work in progress. The trials of Martha Rendell and Audrey Jacob bookend sixteen years of Perth history from 1909 to 1925 when expectations and representations of women’s gender roles in Perth changed dramatically, producing very different outcomes for the women. The archival sources for each case determine the contrastive structures and styles for developing the resulting works of scholarly crime prose fiction.' (Publication abstract) -
Inheriting the World : German Exiles, Napoleon's Campaign in Egypt, and Australia's Multicultural National Identity
2013
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Scenes of Reading : Is Australian Literature a World Literature? 2013; (p. 156-167)Lynda Ng reads three Australian works (two historical novels and a fictional biography) to demonstrate 'how contemporary Australian authors reflect the rise of global culture by deepening and broadening Australia's historical timeline. The willingness of these authors to show the indebtedness of Australian culture to that of other nations echoes Wai Chee Dimock's attempts to move American literature beyond its national confines by repositioning it on the scale of a planetary "deep time". Paradoxically, however, in these novels the incorporation of historical events that would not traditionally be regarded as Australian does not diminish the preponderance of Australian nationalism. Rather, it enhances the prestige of the Australian nation by representing it as an active participant in a network of cosmopolitan and transnational cultural flows' [pp. 165-166].
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Blue Angels
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The New York Times Book Review , 19 June 2011; (p. 20)
— Review of House of Exile : The Life and Times of Heinrich Mann and Nelly Kroeger-Mann 2008 single work biography -
A Different Kind of Romance : Or Reading Romance in Robert Gray's The Land I Came Through Last and Evelyn Juer's House of Exiles [sic]
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Southerly , vol. 70 no. 2 2010; (p. 180-192) Offers an alternative reading of Gray's autobiography and Juer's biography of Heinrich and Nelly Mann. -
Many Layers Add Extra Depth to Double Biography
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 2 February 2010; (p. 6-7)
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Blue Angels
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The New York Times Book Review , 19 June 2011; (p. 20)
— Review of House of Exile : The Life and Times of Heinrich Mann and Nelly Kroeger-Mann 2008 single work biography -
Trouble in the House
2009
single work
autobiography
— Appears in: Heat , no. 20 (New Series) 2009; (p. 151-168) -
Tales of Refugees Sweep PM Book Awards
2009
single work
column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 3 November 2009; (p. 3) -
Many Layers Add Extra Depth to Double Biography
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 2 February 2010; (p. 6-7) -
A Different Kind of Romance : Or Reading Romance in Robert Gray's The Land I Came Through Last and Evelyn Juer's House of Exiles [sic]
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Southerly , vol. 70 no. 2 2010; (p. 180-192) Offers an alternative reading of Gray's autobiography and Juer's biography of Heinrich and Nelly Mann. -
Inheriting the World : German Exiles, Napoleon's Campaign in Egypt, and Australia's Multicultural National Identity
2013
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Scenes of Reading : Is Australian Literature a World Literature? 2013; (p. 156-167)Lynda Ng reads three Australian works (two historical novels and a fictional biography) to demonstrate 'how contemporary Australian authors reflect the rise of global culture by deepening and broadening Australia's historical timeline. The willingness of these authors to show the indebtedness of Australian culture to that of other nations echoes Wai Chee Dimock's attempts to move American literature beyond its national confines by repositioning it on the scale of a planetary "deep time". Paradoxically, however, in these novels the incorporation of historical events that would not traditionally be regarded as Australian does not diminish the preponderance of Australian nationalism. Rather, it enhances the prestige of the Australian nation by representing it as an active participant in a network of cosmopolitan and transnational cultural flows' [pp. 165-166].
Awards
- 2010 shortlisted National Biography Award
- 2009 joint winner Prime Minister's Literary Awards — Non-Fiction
- 2009 shortlisted Victorian Premier's Literary Awards — The Nettie Palmer Prize for Non-Fiction
- 2009 shortlisted ASAL Awards — ALS Gold Medal
- 2008 shortlisted Western Australian Premier's Book Awards — Non-Fiction