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'Mel's life is chaotic. At school her ex-friends have ganged up on her, at home her parents have lost touch with her and each other. Pug is the only good thing - loving him, in his untidy room scented and shadowed by frangipani, she finds passionate fulfillment. But his world is so different from hers - can they possibly make it together? And can she let him in on her overwhelming secret? Learning to accept herself and him and the new life growing inside her is painful - but being Mel, she gives it everything she's got.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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Half title page: A sensuous passionate story of first love, first baby
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
- Class Matters in Some Recent Australian Children's Fiction Australasian Children's Literature Association for Research (ACLAR) Conference. (3rd.,: Melbourne 1999) Robin Pope (editor), single work criticism Here Pope looks at representations of social class in two Australian novels, The Best Thing (1995, Lanagan) and Stony Heart Country (1999, Metzenthen). She approaches class as 'performative', drawing on Judith Butler's notion of gender performativity to analyse the codes and conventions which signify social status and argues that both texts 'work towards an acceptance of existing class differences through a humanist and universalizing view of people which ignores the limitations class divisions create' (pp.39, 43). Pope's concern is that as tools of socialisation, 'texts position their readers...to occupy particular subject positions' and as such, 'provide oppurtunities to explore different subjectivities, to reinforce or confirm existing ones, or...to subvert them' (p.39). As social class is a crucial factor in influencing how we exist and how we are seen by others, it is extremely important, says Pope, to critique the ideological assumptions which underpin representations of class in children's fiction as the dominant ideologies 'continue to represent the imaginary relationship of individuals to their real conditions of their existence' and this ensures the ongoing hegemony of hierarchical class divisions (p.43).
-
Class Matters in Some Recent Australian Children's Fiction
2001
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Papers : Explorations into Children's Literature , April vol. 11 no. 1 2001; (p. 38-43) Pope looks at two examples of Australian adolescent literature, The Best Thing by Margo Lanagan and Stony Heart Country by David Metzenthen, to address the infrequent attention given to the representation of social class in Australian children's texts. She posits that the conservative approach of Australian politics, particularly the Liberal Government's attitude towards unions and union labour, means that the Marxist definition of social class still has relevance in terms of understanding the effects of industrial and economic power. As Pope points out, 'Social class contributes markedly to our sense of self , our subjectivity. Literary texts can provide opportunities to explore different subjectivites, to reinforce or confirm existing ones, or alternately to subvert them' (39). Pope's analysis concludes that while both texts offer a 'fair representation of the working classes' they both work towards dismantling class difference through a 'humanist and universalizing view of people' which ultimately 'ignores the limitations that class divisions create' (42-43). She argues that both novels essentailly naturalize the class divisions which underpin Australian economic and social structures which positions the reader to accept rather than challenge the notion that social hierarchies are inevitable. -
Untitled
1999
single work
review
— Appears in: Fiction Focus : New Titles for Teenagers , vol. 13 no. 3 1999; (p. 47)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
Subversion and Survival: Australian Children's Novels in Postmodernity
1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Papers : Explorations into Children's Literature , August vol. 6 no. 2 1996; (p. 21-30) Kneale examines three Australian novels, To the Dark Tower (Victor Kelleher), The Best Thing (Margo Lanagan) and Ariel, Ted and the Secret of Life, and argues that they all 'contain strands of subversion consistent with contemporary critical and literary theories and the spirit of postmodernist discourse' (21). Drawing attention to the significance of the physical environment in Australian narratives, he claims that all three texts venture 'beyond the issues of survival against a challenging physical terrain or a specifically Australian cultural terrain to the question of survival against an uncertain conceptual terrain' (29). He concludes that while these narratives are not concerned with 'constructing a distinctively Australian setting they do not completely abandon the traditional Australian motif of survival' (29). -
Untitled
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , November vol. 39 no. 4 1995; (p. 34)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel
-
Untitled
1999
single work
review
— Appears in: Fiction Focus : New Titles for Teenagers , vol. 13 no. 3 1999; (p. 47)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
The Unhappiest Person in the World
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , October no. 175 1995; (p. 58-59)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
Traps for Young Players
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 4-5 November 1995; (p. rev 7)
— Review of Know Life 1995 single work novel ; The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
Three Favourite Books
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Women's Book Review , November vol. 7 no. 3-4 1995; (p. 34)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
The Best Thing
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Summer vol. 3 no. 4 1995; (p. 17-18)
— Review of The Best Thing 1995 single work novel -
Class Matters in Some Recent Australian Children's Fiction
2001
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Papers : Explorations into Children's Literature , April vol. 11 no. 1 2001; (p. 38-43) Pope looks at two examples of Australian adolescent literature, The Best Thing by Margo Lanagan and Stony Heart Country by David Metzenthen, to address the infrequent attention given to the representation of social class in Australian children's texts. She posits that the conservative approach of Australian politics, particularly the Liberal Government's attitude towards unions and union labour, means that the Marxist definition of social class still has relevance in terms of understanding the effects of industrial and economic power. As Pope points out, 'Social class contributes markedly to our sense of self , our subjectivity. Literary texts can provide opportunities to explore different subjectivites, to reinforce or confirm existing ones, or alternately to subvert them' (39). Pope's analysis concludes that while both texts offer a 'fair representation of the working classes' they both work towards dismantling class difference through a 'humanist and universalizing view of people' which ultimately 'ignores the limitations that class divisions create' (42-43). She argues that both novels essentailly naturalize the class divisions which underpin Australian economic and social structures which positions the reader to accept rather than challenge the notion that social hierarchies are inevitable. -
Subversion and Survival: Australian Children's Novels in Postmodernity
1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Papers : Explorations into Children's Literature , August vol. 6 no. 2 1996; (p. 21-30) Kneale examines three Australian novels, To the Dark Tower (Victor Kelleher), The Best Thing (Margo Lanagan) and Ariel, Ted and the Secret of Life, and argues that they all 'contain strands of subversion consistent with contemporary critical and literary theories and the spirit of postmodernist discourse' (21). Drawing attention to the significance of the physical environment in Australian narratives, he claims that all three texts venture 'beyond the issues of survival against a challenging physical terrain or a specifically Australian cultural terrain to the question of survival against an uncertain conceptual terrain' (29). He concludes that while these narratives are not concerned with 'constructing a distinctively Australian setting they do not completely abandon the traditional Australian motif of survival' (29). - Class Matters in Some Recent Australian Children's Fiction Australasian Children's Literature Association for Research (ACLAR) Conference. (3rd.,: Melbourne 1999) Robin Pope (editor), single work criticism Here Pope looks at representations of social class in two Australian novels, The Best Thing (1995, Lanagan) and Stony Heart Country (1999, Metzenthen). She approaches class as 'performative', drawing on Judith Butler's notion of gender performativity to analyse the codes and conventions which signify social status and argues that both texts 'work towards an acceptance of existing class differences through a humanist and universalizing view of people which ignores the limitations class divisions create' (pp.39, 43). Pope's concern is that as tools of socialisation, 'texts position their readers...to occupy particular subject positions' and as such, 'provide oppurtunities to explore different subjectivities, to reinforce or confirm existing ones, or...to subvert them' (p.39). As social class is a crucial factor in influencing how we exist and how we are seen by others, it is extremely important, says Pope, to critique the ideological assumptions which underpin representations of class in children's fiction as the dominant ideologies 'continue to represent the imaginary relationship of individuals to their real conditions of their existence' and this ensures the ongoing hegemony of hierarchical class divisions (p.43).
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Last amended 17 Jun 2021 16:01:37
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