Narrative
We of the Never Never
Jeannie Gunn · 1908
Synopsis
A young bride, the narrator leaves her home in Melbourne to follow her husband, appointed manager of Elsey, a large cattle station in the Northern Territory. As one of the few white women in the region, she is at first poorly received, then gradually wins the affection and respect of those around her; the head stockman did not want a white woman on the station. She recounts daily life, isolation and loneliness, camaraderie and kindness. The names of real people are changed in it.
Context
The book was published in London by Hutchinson in 1907, after being rejected by six publishers. The Gunns had left Melbourne on 2 January 1902 to join Elsey, on the Roper, near present-day Mataranka. A history of Australian literature published in 1988 calls it a little masterpiece. It was translated into German in the twenties, and made into a film in 1982, in the Northern Territory.
Who it is for
A narrative in English drawn from lived experience, translated into German but not into French.
Prizes and reception
An Australian classic, long read in schools; its sales before 1945 are given as 32,000 or 320,000 copies.
Sources for this page 6
The pages consulted to check this page.