The Colonial Journals: And the Emergence of Australian Literary Culture

Colonial Australia produced a vast number of journals and magazines that helped to create an exuberant literary landscape. They were filled with lively contributions by many of the key writers and provocateurs of the day (and of the future). Writers such as Marcus Clarke, Rolf Boldrewood, Ethel Turner, and Katharine Susannah Prichard published for the first time in these journals. This book offers a fascinating selection of material; a miscellany of content that enabled the 'free play of intellect' to thrive and, matched with wry visual design, made attractive artifacts that demonstrate the role this period played in the growth of an Australian literary culture. *** "Gelder and Weaver arrange this anthology of excerpts from the journals of Australia in the later 19th century to show off the rich contents of these journals. The excerpts refute the stereotype that Australia in this era was rousingly nationalist. The book features color illustrations of magazine covers, which show how accomplished the pre-1900 publishing industry in Australia was. Recommended." - Choice, Vol 52, No. 4, December 2014