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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Collection of short stories by the author of To Ride a Cock Horse', winner of the 1989 South East Asian and South Pacific First Book Award in the British Commonwealth Writers Prize. The stories are linked together by the river Fineflour and its place in the lives of the characters through successive generations.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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Dedication: For Sheila, my mother
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This book was banned from the HSC reading list in 1997.
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A selection of interrelated short stories.
Contents
- The Burial and the Busker, single work short story (p. 1-14)
- Ferryman, single work short story (p. 15-24)
- Fineflour, single work short story (p. 25-30)
- The Hundredth Island, single work short story (p. 31-38)
- Mothers and Old Lovers, single work short story (p. 39-50)
- From the Footbridge, single work short story (p. 51-62)
- Afterthoughts, single work short story (p. 63-78)
- Cold Hands, Warm Heart, single work short story (p. 79-86)
- Welcome Home, single work short story (p. 87-104)
- Another Country, single work short story (p. 105-113)
- Kiss the Moon, single work short story (p. 114-131)
- Pipedream, single work short story (p. 132-144)
- Cousins, single work short story (p. 145-156)
- Aeroplane Jelly, single work short story (p. 157-166)
- Downriver, single work short story (p. 167-174)
- A Bitter Joy, single work short story (p. 175-190)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also sound recording.
Works about this Work
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Should We Ban Books in Schools? Arguments from the Public History of Australian School Text Censorship
2018
single work
criticism
— Appears in: English in Australia , vol. 53 no. 3 2018; (p. 23-36)'The sensitive question of whether censorship is permissible in the classroom has not been effectively explored, nor has there been an exhaustive survey of all occurrences of public censorship in schools. Through tracking all public occurrences, this article seeks to understand whether censorship is ever justified in both the English classroom and the school beyond. The language surrounding occurrences revealed three different social discourses about the agency of the child: purity and danger, the pedagogy of the oppressed, and liberal consensus. Whether text censorship is justified is ultimately a nuanced ethical issue concerning what constitutes the good society and the free agency of its children. From a social utilitarian position, I conclude that the liberal consensus model is most constructive for the Australian social contract, and argue for a rare case for censorship when a consensus model is undermined.' (Publication abstract)
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Sarah Armstrong : Books That Changed Me
2016
single work
column
— Appears in: Brisbane Times , 9 September 2016; 'Sarah Armstrong has been a journalist and producer for ABC radio and Foreign Correspondent on ABC TV. Her first novel, Salt Rain, was shortlisted for the 2005 Miles Franklin Award. Her third novel, Promise (Macmillan), is about a woman who runs away with her neighbour's son after she suspects he is being abused. She lives in northern NSW with her husband, the writer Alan Close. ...' -
A Map of Mears
Emma Sorensen
(interviewer),
2002
single work
interview
— Appears in: Meanjin , vol. 61 no. 3 2002; (p. 72-80) -
The Unflinching Gaze: In Conversation with Gillian Mears
Emma Sorensen
(interviewer),
1999
single work
interview
— Appears in: Antipodes , December vol. 16 no. 2 2002; (p. 125-131) -
Read It? No, I Don't Even Like It
1997
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19 April 1997; (p. 11s)
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Sadness and Old Angers
1992
single work
review
— Appears in: Island , Autumn no. 50 1992; (p. 65-69)
— Review of The Mint Lawn 1991 single work novel ; Fineflour 1990 selected work short story -
Unresolve and Outrageous Talent
1990
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 24 November 1990; (p. 8)
— Review of Homing 1990 selected work short story ; Fineflour 1990 selected work short story -
Obsession More Wearisome than Grand
1990
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 1-2 December 1990; (p. rev 6)
— Review of Homing 1990 selected work short story ; The Hour of Disguise 1990 single work novel ; Fineflour 1990 selected work short story -
Short Stories Best Read Over Time
1990
single work
review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 1 December 1990; (p. 15)
— Review of Homing 1990 selected work short story ; Fineflour 1990 selected work short story ; Stars in Nights to Come and Other Stories 1990 selected work short story -
How Women Go Wrong
1990
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Bookseller & Publisher , August vol. 70 no. 1007 1990; (p. 18-20)
— Review of Fineflour 1990 selected work short story -
The Unflinching Gaze: In Conversation with Gillian Mears
Emma Sorensen
(interviewer),
1999
single work
interview
— Appears in: Antipodes , December vol. 16 no. 2 2002; (p. 125-131) -
Our Best Fiction
1990
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The Independent Monthly , December-January vol. 2 no. 6 1990-1991; (p. 44-45) -
Read It? No, I Don't Even Like It
1997
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19 April 1997; (p. 11s) -
The Reluctant Voyeur: The Spectator and the `Abject' in Gillean Mears' `Fineflour'
1995-1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Sydney Studies in English , vol. 21 no. 1995-1996; (p. 103-116) -
Cringing Bunyip Stalks Littoral
1991
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18 May 1991; (p. 48) Real Opinions : Polemical and Popular Writings 1992; (p. 142-144)
Awards
- 1991 shortlisted NBC Banjo Awards — NBC Qantas New Writers' Award