ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- When the Text Classics range was first announced, this was the book that really got me excited! I consider David Ireland to be one of THE best writers and it has always staggered me that the works of this three-time winner of the Miles Franklin Award have been allowed to go out of print. So you can be forgiven if you don't know them - and more so if you read this novel, the 1976 Miles Franklin winner. Lance, better known as Meat Man, is chronicling his 'tribe' - the habitues of the Southern Cross Hotel, somewhere in bluecollar Northmead. Theirs is a life of casual attitudes to sex, work and violence, centred around alcohol and their own particular watering hole, but there is also loyalty (no matter how misplaced) and inarticulate tolerance towards each other (unless they transgress - as one character does). Meat Man is capable of appreciating nature with an almost pagan and poetic sensibility, but it is the colourful tales of the characters that makes an unforgettable, impressionistic portrait of working class life. The story is in the glimpses, and the power of it is in the reading. See for yourself! Lindy
By:
David Ireland Introduction by:
Nicolas Rothwell [intro] Imprint: Text Publishing Company Country of Publication: Australia Dimensions:
Height: 198mm,
Width: 128mm,
Spine: 25mm
Weight: 274g ISBN:9781921922411 ISBN 10: 1921922419 Publication Date:26 April 2012 Audience:
General/trade
,
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
,
ELT Advanced
Format:Paperback Publisher's Status: Active
Winner of Miles Franklin Award 1976 (Australia)
Winner of Miles Franklin Literary Award 1976 (Australia)
