“Unprecedented in the breadth of what it offers from both the ancient and the recent literature of my country.”―Thomas Keneally, from the foreword

 

The result of a collaboration between Sydney’s Macquarie University and International PEN Sydney Centre, and funded by the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australian Research Council, The Literature of Australia gathers the most distinctive and most significant of the nation’s writing. Highlights include:

• Coverage of over two hundred years of literature in all genres, from the 1700s to the present, and over 500 entries from 307 different authors, including writing by Aboriginal authors from the early colonial period to the present.

• Work from contemporary authors of international renown, including Shirley Hazzard, Peter Carey, David Malouf, Les Murray, Alexis Wright, and Kate Grenville.

• Biographical details about the authors of the works selected, an introductory essay, major essays setting the works in their historical context, and suggestions for further reading.