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y separately published work icon Disreputable People selected work   short story  
Issue Details: First known date: 1998... 1998 Disreputable People
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'From the scandalous, wry and blackly comic, to the reflective and deeply moving, these stories...explore the lives of families, friends and rivals with insight, economy and grace.' (Source: back cover)

Notes

  • With grateful love / to / Great-Aunt Nola who hopes I've written / something happy this time / and / Grand-Aunt Lois who is, quite simply, grand.

Contents

* Contents derived from the Milsons Point, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,:Vintage Australia , 1998 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Faith's Way, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
When Faith's breast cancer metastasises she does all she can to lessen the impact on her family and to die a good death.
 (p. 1-10)
Fish Food, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Five-year-old Melly is determined not to accept her father's girlfriend, Glenda. But when she runs away from her family on the beach it is Glenda who finds her and rescues her from an embarrassing situation.
 (p. 11-21)
The Great Divide, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
The narrator is largely raised by his Aunt Ruby while his parents run the pub. When he goes away to school he quickly forgets all that Aunty Ruby had done for him, but eventually has the opportunity to reunite her with one of her lost children.
 (p. 23-32)
Now Melt into Sorrow, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
A magistrate's compassion brings some comfort to the mother of a mentally ill son.
 (p. 33-41)
Kazinczy Utca, Budapest, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
The narrator tells the story of her mother and her fight for survival in Hungary.
 (p. 43-52)
Pillow Talk, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
In prison after killing her baby, Sue labours to make a gift for her four-year-old son, who has been placed in foster care.
 (p. 53-62)
The Kennedy Family Photo, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
The narrator is summoned for a family photograph, from which her 'unsuitable' husband and children are excluded.
 (p. 63-78)
Eric's Phantom Date, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Eric attempts to escape from his overbearing mother and asks a work colleague to go out with him. The girl accepts, but fails to meet him as arranged.
 (p. 79-99)
Fortune, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Charles Fortune has carried a secret for thirty years. The burden of deception is becoming unbearable.
 (p. 101-111)
God's Little Tadpole, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Anneliese and Roger have been married for twelve years, but the marriage has grown stale. In an attempt to revive it Roger persuades Anneliese to go away for a weekend.
 (p. 113-132)
The Birthday Party, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Aunty Con is full of disapproval when she attends the birthday party her niece, Suellen, puts on for her five-year-old son.
 (p. 133-145)
The Feminist, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Eighty-one-year-old Aunty Min asks Alix to teach her about feminism. Aunt Min embraces her enlightenment with irrepressible enthusiasm.
 (p. 147-165)
The Crafty Women's Association, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Despite her protests, Belle Bergin's friend, Marj Poropat, enters Belle in the Housewife of the Year award. When Belle's house wins the Bergin-Poropat hoax is born.
 (p. 167-179)
Colonel Clint's Campaign, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Colonel Clint goes to extreme lengths to attempt to impress others and avoid the sad realities of his life.
 (p. 181-200)
Old Dixie, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
When the narrator returns to his home town forty-five years after he left it he discovers that the idiosyncratic former postmistress, Dixie, is still alive. He befriends her, but when she is taken away to hospital he makes an odd discovery.
 (p. 201-210)
Means to an End, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Lawyer and parole board member, Aurelia, struggles with the moral dilemmas posed by a particularly abhorrent crime.
 (p. 211-222)
Miss Pewsey Gets a Hard-On, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Miss Pewsey, ex-nun and dedicated music teacher, is bemused by a strange experience at the hairdresser.
 (p. 223-237)
Disreputable People, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
The narrator describes her experiences with a dysfunctional jury.
 (p. 239-258)
One More, for the Road, Penelope Rowe , single work short story
Cathy is on holiday in Portugal, where her patient husband, Robin, has taken her as a respite from her illness. Eventually she achieves a degree of resolution.
 (p. 259-281)
VIEW ENTIRE CONTENTS ( works)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Milsons Point, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,: Vintage Australia , 1998 .
      Extent: 281p.
      Note/s:
      • 'Every family has them...' (appears on the cover).
      ISBN: 0091839297 (pbk), 9780091839291
VIEW PUBLICATION DETAILS FOR ALL VERSIONS ()

Works about this Work

Stories About the Big Things in Life Lesley Lebkowicz , 1999 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 16 January 1999; (p. 24)
— Review of Songs of the Suitcase Anna Maria Dell'Oso , 1998 selected work novel short story prose biography ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story
Narrative Infirmities Debra Adelaide , 1998 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 17-18 October 1998; (p. 15)
— Review of Between the Ceiling and the Sky Eugenia Tsoulis , 1998 single work novel ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story
Gestures of Love that Celebrate Life Thuy On , 1998 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 31 October 1998; (p. 9)
— Review of Silences Long Gone Anson Cameron , 1998 single work novel ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story ; The Breadmaker's Carnival Andrew Lindsay , 1998 single work novel ; Between the Ceiling and the Sky Eugenia Tsoulis , 1998 single work novel
Stories About the Big Things in Life Lesley Lebkowicz , 1999 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 16 January 1999; (p. 24)
— Review of Songs of the Suitcase Anna Maria Dell'Oso , 1998 selected work novel short story prose biography ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story
Gestures of Love that Celebrate Life Thuy On , 1998 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 31 October 1998; (p. 9)
— Review of Silences Long Gone Anson Cameron , 1998 single work novel ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story ; The Breadmaker's Carnival Andrew Lindsay , 1998 single work novel ; Between the Ceiling and the Sky Eugenia Tsoulis , 1998 single work novel
Narrative Infirmities Debra Adelaide , 1998 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 17-18 October 1998; (p. 15)
— Review of Between the Ceiling and the Sky Eugenia Tsoulis , 1998 single work novel ; Disreputable People Penelope Rowe , 1998 selected work short story
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (3)
Last amended 11 Jun 2020 14:55:11
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