250 and all that!
Welcome to the 250th issue of ABR – or, rather, to the 250th issue of the magazine in its present guise. Some readers may be unfamiliar with the first series, which appeared between 1961 and 1973. It came out of Adelaide under the editorship of Max Harris, Rosemary Wighton and, for a time, Geoffrey Dutton. Kerryn Goldsworthy – herself an Editor for two years in the mid-1980s ... (read more)
Australian Book Review
Designing Australian Bush Gardens
By Maloney, Betty & Walker, Jean
A.H. & A. W. Reed Pty. Ltd., 1966, 127 pp
This book is a work of both propaganda and advice. Its underlying philosophy is that it is destruction of the native landscape and not so much bad individual design that makes our suburbs such a mess.
The book extends design principles, through practical advice about gardening ... (read more)
Allen & Unwin tells us that David Marr and Marian Wilkinson’s much-anticipated book about the Tampa Affair has been postponed until February 2003. The title is now Dark Victory: The Military campaign to re-elect the Prime Minister.
Amanda Lohrey is also in the news. Her study of the Greens and their leader, Bob Brown, has just appeared as the latest ‘Quarterly Essay’ (Groundswell: The R ... (read more)
Sir,
Further to Michele Field’s discussion of the defamation problem for the publisher in your last issue, may I amplify, and correct one or two points, her account of Currency’s brush with Mr Lloyd Davies, the former husband of Dorothy Hewett, over our publication of The Chapel Perilous and The Tatry Hollow Story.
While I make no question of Mr Davies’ sincerity in taking action, I am fir ... (read more)
Dear Editor,
I have often wished that more of the letters to the editor would comprise interesting debate or comment on literary matters. Sadly, about ninety-five percent of them are responses by furious authors to what they perceive as an unfavourable review of their book. While boring, such letters are at least understandable as being the output of wounded childish egos. Not understandable, and ... (read more)
A new series called Interpretations, published by Melbourne University Press, aims to provide up-to-date introductions to recent theories and critical practices in the humanities and social sciences. Series Editor, Ken Ruthven, answers some questions about the role and reception of critical writing.
Does the brief introduction to the series, which says it is ‘clearly written and up-to ... (read more)
Full-Bucket Moonby Ross Clark
for Ted Kooser
Dawn and dusk I milkmy herd of nine cowsby hand, the best part ofan hour and a half takensquirting warm milkinto the bucket straddledbetween my knees, whileeach beast chews grassand ignores my husbandry,
... (read more)