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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'1952. Tasmania. The green, rolling hills of the dairy town Mole Creek have a dark underside — a labyrinthine underworld of tunnels that stretch for countless miles, caverns the size of cathedrals and underground rivers that flood after heavy rain. The caves are dangerous places, forbidden to children. But this is Tasmania — an island at the end of the earth. Here, rules are made to be broken.
'For two young brothers, a hidden cave a short walk from the family farm seems the perfect escape from their abusive, shell-shocked father — until the older brother goes missing. Fearful of his father, nine-year-old Kip lies about what happened. It is a decision that will haunt him for the rest of his life.
'Fifty years later, Kip — now an award-winning scientist — has a young son of his own, but cannot look at him without seeing his lost brother, Tommy. On a mission of atonement, he returns to the cave they called Kubla to discover if it’s ever too late to set things right. To have a second chance. To be the father he never had.
'The Better Son is a richly imaginative and universal story about the danger of secrets, the beauty in forgiveness and the enthralling power of Tasmania’s unique natural landscapes.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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The Better Son won two prizes in 2013 as an unpublished manuscript entitled Kubla.
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Dedication: for my parents
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
Works about this Work
-
The Better Son Review : Katherine Johnson's Thriller with a Touch of the Gothic
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: Brisbane Times , 10 November 2016;
— Review of The Better Son 2016 single work novel 'Suggestions of Tasmanian gothic hover over Katherine Johnson's The Better Son, but never quite coalesce into the kind of literary thriller the book promises to be. ...' -
Katherine Johnson, The Better Son
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 8 October 2016;
— Review of The Better Son 2016 single work novel
-
Katherine Johnson, The Better Son
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 8 October 2016;
— Review of The Better Son 2016 single work novel -
The Better Son Review : Katherine Johnson's Thriller with a Touch of the Gothic
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: Brisbane Times , 10 November 2016;
— Review of The Better Son 2016 single work novel 'Suggestions of Tasmanian gothic hover over Katherine Johnson's The Better Son, but never quite coalesce into the kind of literary thriller the book promises to be. ...'
Awards
- 2017 longlisted Tasmania Book Prizes Tasmanian Literary Awards — Tasmania Book Prize
- 2017 longlisted Davitt Award — Best Adult Crime Novel
- 2017 longlisted Indie Awards — Fiction
-
2013
winner
Tasmania Book Prizes
Tasmanian Literary Awards
—
University of Tasmania Prize
(as Kubla)
-
2013
winner
Tasmania Book Prizes
Tasmanian Literary Awards
—
University of Tasmania Prize
—
Peoples Choice Award
(as Kubla)
- Tasmania,
- 1952
- 2002