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'Like the author herself, Christina Stead’s novels were challenging and engrossing. Raised by a narcissistic father, Stead left for London at the age of twenty-six and soon met William Blake, a writer, broker, and Marxist political economist who became her life partner. His personal ambitions and their politics resulted in a nomadic existence, with Stead sidestepping the traditional feminine role in exchange for a career. She struggled to find an audience for her work, however, only succeeding late in life with the reissue of The Man Who Loved Children. Hazel Rowley’s richly detailed and even-handed biography spans Stead’s life, expertly blending her encoded personal papers with interviews of her closest confidants. Masterfully written and researched, Christina Stead is a fascinating chronicle of one of the twentieth century’s greatest novelists.'
Source: Publisher's blurb (Open Road ed.)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
Hazel Rowley's Christina Stead : The Biographer's Art
2013
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Magnificent Obsessions : Honouring the Lives of Hazel Rowley 2013; (p. 49-8) -
The Mocking Country
2007
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 25-26 August 2007; (p. 8-9) Hazel Rowley, visiting Australia after a ten-year absence, ponders the question: 'Why aren't Australians proud of the writers and artists who have sprung from our soil?' with particular reference to expatriate writer Christina Stead. -
The Insight of an Exile
2007
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Sunday Canberra Times , 22 July 2007; (p. 20) -
Return Via a Bridge to Stead's Life
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 2 June 2007; (p. 26)
— Review of Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Biography, Narrative and Christina Stead : An Imperfect Match?
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Journal of Australian Studies , no. 83 2004; (p. 119-126, notes 196-197) 'This article argues that Rowley's attempt to narrate Stead's life is hampered by Rowley's choice of narrative form. ... While this form of narrative works well enough for the years in which Stead was a public achiever, it is less well-adapted to describing the life led by Stead as she became frail and elderly' (119).
-
Return Via a Bridge to Stead's Life
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 2 June 2007; (p. 26)
— Review of Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Paperbacks
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 23 July 1994; (p. 9A)
— Review of Hands Up! : Who Enjoyed their Schooldays 1994 anthology short story prose extract biography ; Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Forecasts
1993
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Bookseller & Publisher , April vol. 72 no. 1036 1993; (p. 32)
— Review of Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Lighting Up Her Landscape
1993
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 29 May 1993; (p. 7)
— Review of Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Echoes of Interior Monsters
1993
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 5-6 June 1993; (p. rev 5)
— Review of Christina Stead : A Biography 1993 single work biography -
Money, Sex and Politics
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The CRNLE Reviews Journal , no. 1-2 1995; (p. 193-199) -
Biography, Narrative and Christina Stead : An Imperfect Match?
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Journal of Australian Studies , no. 83 2004; (p. 119-126, notes 196-197) 'This article argues that Rowley's attempt to narrate Stead's life is hampered by Rowley's choice of narrative form. ... While this form of narrative works well enough for the years in which Stead was a public achiever, it is less well-adapted to describing the life led by Stead as she became frail and elderly' (119). -
The Insight of an Exile
2007
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Sunday Canberra Times , 22 July 2007; (p. 20) -
The Mocking Country
2007
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 25-26 August 2007; (p. 8-9) Hazel Rowley, visiting Australia after a ten-year absence, ponders the question: 'Why aren't Australians proud of the writers and artists who have sprung from our soil?' with particular reference to expatriate writer Christina Stead. -
Yes, Go, Chrissie
Rosemary Sorensen
(interviewer),
1993
single work
interview
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , July no. 152 1993; (p. 5-7)
Awards
- Dark Places of the Heart 1966 single work novel
- A Little Tea, a Little Chat 1948 single work novel
- For Love Alone 1944 single work novel
- House of All Nations 1938 single work novel
- I'm Dying Laughing : The Humourist 1986 single work novel
- Letty Fox, Her Luck 1946 single work novel
- Miss Herbert (The Suburban Wife) 1976 single work novel
- The Salzburg Tales 1934 selected work short story
- The Man Who Loved Children 1940 single work novel
- The People with the Dogs 1952 single work novel
- The Beauties and Furies 1936 single work novel
- The Little Hotel : A Novel 1973 single work novel
- The Puzzleheaded Girl : Four Novellas 1967 selected work novella
- Seven Poor Men of Sydney 1934 single work novel