Edenglassie (novel)
| Author | Melissa Lucashenko |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | University of Queensland Press |
Publication date | 3 October 2023 |
| Publication place | Australia |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 320 pp. |
| Awards | 2024 ARA Historical Novel Prize, 2024 Victorian Premier's Literary Award |
| ISBN | 9780702266126 |
| Preceded by | Too Much Lip |
| Followed by | - |
Edenglassie is a 2023 novel by the Australian author Melissa Lucashenko.[1]
Synopsis
The novel is set in Queensland in the short period of time between when the transportation of convicts ended, and Queensland became an independent colony in 1859, and also in the present day. In the 21st century, after she has tripped over a tree root and finds herself in hospital, Granny Eddie talks to a white journalist and tells him that the whitefella-concocted history of the land is wrong, that she has the true story from the Old People.
Critical reception
Writing in Australian Book Review, critic Jeanine Leane noted that the novel "moves in a great concentric arc with many ripples, like those in the river that is central to the action; and which is an ancient, unbroken vein that pulses life from past to present to future in a continuous cycle." She went on to say that the novel "is an accumulation of all times – a testimony to the continuation of Aboriginal storytelling, value systems, intellectualism, scientific and technological literacy, and understandings of time, non-human agency, and Country."[2]
In The Newtown Review of Books Michael Jongen called it "an ambitious novel" and "an astounding read".[3]
Publishing history
After the novel's initial publication in Australia by University of Queensland Press in 2023,[1] it was reprinted by the same publisher in 2024.[4]
Awards
- 2024 ARA Historical Novel Prize, winner[5]
- 2024 Australian Book Industry Awards, Small Publishers' Adult Book of the Year, winner[6]
- 2024 Barbara Jefferis Award, shortlisted|[7]
- 2024 Indie Book Awards Fiction, winner[8]
- 2024 Miles Franklin Award, longlisted}[9]
- 2024 Nib Literary Award, shortlisted[10]
- 2024 Prime Minister's Literary Awards, Fiction, shortlisted[11]
- 2024 Queensland Literary Awards, Queensland Premier's Award, winner[12]
- 2024 Queensland Literary Awards, Fiction Book Award, shortlisted[13]
- 2024 Stella Prize, Longlisted[14]
- 2024 Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Fiction, winner[15]
See also
Notes
- Epigraph: 'You fool', she said, 'this is England.'/'I don't believe it,' I said, 'and I will never believe it.' - Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea
- The author spoke to Susan Chenery of The Guardian about her experience writing the book[16]
References
- ^ a b "Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko (UQP 2023)". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ ""Where to now?"". Australian Book Review, October 2023. 24 September 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ ""MELISSA LUCASHENKO Edenglassie. Reviewed by Michael Jongen"". The Newtown Review of Books, 5 March 2024. 4 March 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko (UQP 2024)". Austlit. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ Burke, Kelly (23 October 2024). ""Melissa Lucashenko's novel Edenglassie wins $150,000 in book prizes in just 24 hours"". The Guardian. The Guardian, 23 October 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ ABIA (9 May 2024). "Australian Book Industry Award Winners 2024". ABIA. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Barbara Jefferis Award 2024 Shortlist Announced". Whispering Gums. 18 September 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Winners announced for the Indie Book Awards 2024". Indie Book Awards. 24 March 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Miles Franklin 2024 longlist announced". Books+Publishing. 16 May 2024. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "Nib Literary Award 2024 finalists announced". Books+Publishing. 18 September 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
- ^ "Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2024 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 15 August 2024. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
- ^ "Queensland Literary Awards 2024 winners announced". Books+Publishing. 6 September 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Queensland Literary Awards 2024 shortlist announced". Books+Publishing. 2 August 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Stella Prize 2024 longlist announced". Books+Publishing. 4 March 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ Heath, Nicola (1 February 2024). "Debut poet takes home $125,000 in prize money for a verse novel that almost wasn't published". ABC News. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ Chenery, Susan (7 October 2023). ""Melissa Lucashenko on turning herself inside out"". The Guardian. The Guardian, 8 October 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2024.