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Looking for a good book to read while you're traveling in Australia? Check out my list of books about Australia and by Australian authors.
Cloudstreet
From the A Year of Reading the World: “Against the backdrop of the [Second World War] and its fallout, Winton unfolds the tribulations, rivalries, and neuroses of the debt-ridden Pickles family and their tenants the Lambs, who move into town after a shrimping accident leaves their eldest brain-damaged and strips them of their faith. These he… tests the boundaries of conventional wisdom on fate, personhood, evil and luck, charting the gradual coming-together of the two clans as each of their members seeks some sort of peace with his or her lot.”
(Recommended by Ann Morgan, author and TED speaker)
True History of the Kelly Gang
Although this is a fictionalized version of the legendary real-life Australian outlaw Ned Kelly, there are nuggets of truth sprinkled throughout. Kelly is a pervasive figure in Australian culture, having evolved from bushranger (outlaw) to national hero. Carey’s novel raked in literary awards, including the Booker Prize and the Commonwealth Writers Prize, and was ranked 53rd on The Guardian‘s list of the 100 best books of the 21st century. The 2020 film adaptation featured Russell Crowe as Kelly’s partner-in-crime, Harry Power.
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