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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
In the Australian Nullabor Desert, the men of Relay Gang No. 1 are laying rails for the largest stretch of straight railway track in the world. One day two men arrive at the camp, set in the center of the vast desert. One of them, Lofty, a tall card shark down on his luck, has the "ulterior motive" of supplementing his wages with card earnings. The other, the man from Canberra, dies of heat exhaustion a few days after arrival. Neither the gang nor the reader really knows the Canberran, but his death becomes symbolic. As each man in this isolated microcosm tries to avoid confronting his own primitive nature through elaborate fantasies or madness, the death of the Canberran takes on greater magnitude. In the remembering his death offers opportunity for guilt, blame, bravado, and a fearsome sense of mortality.(Library Journal, 1987).
Notes
-
Dedication: To Anne and Emma
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This was the first novel by Parsons.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also sound recording.
Works about this Work
-
Untitled
1989
single work
review
— Appears in: The Good Reading Guide 1989; (p. 223-224)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Spirit of the Nullarbor
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The CRNLE Reviews Journal , no. 1 1986; (p. 89-91)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
An Epic Story of Man's Search for a Way Out
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 7 June 1986; (p. 43)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Lost in the Nullabor
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 22 June 1986; (p. 15)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Deranged Fancies of Outback Life
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 26 July 1986; (p. 10)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel
-
Spirit of the Nullarbor
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The CRNLE Reviews Journal , no. 1 1986; (p. 89-91)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Deranged Fancies of Outback Life
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 26 July 1986; (p. 10)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Lost in the Nullabor
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 22 June 1986; (p. 15)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
An Epic Story of Man's Search for a Way Out
1986
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 7 June 1986; (p. 43)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel -
Untitled
1989
single work
review
— Appears in: The Good Reading Guide 1989; (p. 223-224)
— Review of The Canberran 1986 single work novel
Last amended 19 Apr 2007 15:41:45
Subjects:
- Bush,
- Nullarbor area (Western Australia), Southeast Western Australia, Western Australia,
-
cVietnam,cSoutheast Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
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