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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Montebello continues where Robert Drewe's much-loved memoir The Shark Net left off, taking us into his mature years. In the aftermath of events, both man-made and natural, that have left a permanent mark on the landscape and psyche of Western Australia - the British nuclear tests in the Montebello Islands, the mining boom, and shark attacks along the coast - Drewe examines how comfortable and familiar terrain can quickly become a site of danger, and how regeneration and renewal can emerge from chaos and loss.
'With humility, wit and a clear-eyed view of himself, he intertwines these stories with the events of his own life. His passion for islands - which began with Rottnest Island in his youth and continues to this day - frames the narrative; in the near-solitude of these remote places, he is free to reflect. This is a moving story of what it means to see and survive destruction, to love and to grow old.' (From the publisher's website.)
Notes
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Dedication:
To Anna, Sam, Laura, Jack, Amy, Ben and Jim
Madie and Corey, Leea and Andy
and for Tray -
Author's note: In Memoriam: Bruce Bennett 1941-2012
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Epigraphs:
I see it always from a small boat - not a light, not a stir, not a sound... It is all in that moment when I opened my young eyes on it. I cam upon it from a tussle with the sea. - Joseph Conrad, Youth
But the islanders, seeing I was really adrift, took pity on me. - H. G. Wells, The Island of Dr Moreau
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Review of Montebello by Robert Drewe
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: Transnational Literature , November vol. 7 no. 1 2014;
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Author's ocean of inspiration
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 6 March 2013; (p. 15) -
The Assignments of Robert Drewe
2013-
single work
review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , February 2014;
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Drewe Tipped for Biography Prize
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 9 July 2013; (p. 7) -
Best in Print
2012
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 15 December 2012; (p. 30)
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[Review] Montebello : A Memoir
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , October no. 83 2012; (p. 87)
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Living in the Shadow of the Atom Bomb
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 21 October 2012; (p. 15) The Sunday Age , 21 October 2012; (p. 14-15)
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Fallout of Nuclear Blast from the Past
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 20 October 2012; (p. 25) The Sydney Morning Herald , 20-21 October 2012; (p. 33)
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Carrying the Reader Away
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 20 October 2012; (p. 22)
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
[Review] Montebello : A Memoir
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , August/September vol. 92 no. 1 2012; (p. 23)
— Review of Montebello : A Memoir 2012 single work autobiography -
Lunch Booking
2012
single work
autobiography
— Appears in: The West Australian , 1 September 2012; (p. 22) -
The Other Side
2012
single work
column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 1 September 2012; (p. 22) -
One Man's Island
2012
single work
biography
— Appears in: Good Weekend , 22 September 2012; (p. 27-28, 30-31) -
Best in Print
2012
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 15 December 2012; (p. 30) -
Author's ocean of inspiration
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 6 March 2013; (p. 15)
Awards
- 2013 longlisted Mark and Evette Moran Nib Award for Literature
- 2013 shortlisted National Biography Award
- 2013 shortlisted ASAL Awards — ALS Gold Medal
- 2012 shortlisted Western Australian Premier's Book Awards — Non-Fiction