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Daunt Books Children's Short Story Competition 2013

Australasia and South Pacific

• Australia
• New Zealand
• South Pacific Islands
• Papua New Guinea

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  Daughters of Mars by Thomas Keneally

  Price: £18.99    Add to Basket

  Keneally brings the First World War vividly to life in this profound novel of two Australian sisters who join the war effort as nurses and are sent first to the Dardanelles and then on to the Western Front. Whilst the focus of the novel takes in the whole canvas of the First World War, the relationship between the sisters provides an unusually fresh and intimate perspective. A searing novel from an exceptionally eloquent author.

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  The Lost Dog by Michelle de Kretser

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  A novel about a divorcee living in the Australian outback, writing a book on Henry James and losing his dog. Part mystery and part love story, this is a well-written and intricate novel long-listed for the Booker prize.

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  Mimi by Lucy Ellmann

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  This wonderful romp, packed with martinis, plastic surgery, and the most fabulous parties Manhattan has ever seen follows the romance that blooms in the aftermath of a chance encounter with surgeon of note Harrison Hannifan, and the elusive but alluring Mimi. A glorious book, bringing all the best of a New York romance to life. Neurosis, drama, comedy, but most of all, love. A treat!

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  Eucalyptus by Murray Bail

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  This unusual novel set in rural New South Wales tells of a strange courtship. An enchanting, finely written story.

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  The True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey

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  Undoubtedly one of Carey's most dazzling books, this earned him his second Booker Prize in 2001. He brings Ned Kelly, Australia's most famous bushranger, brilliantly to life. A modern Australian classic.

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  Theft: A Love Story by Peter Carey

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  Though 'Theft' lacks some of the poetry and grace of his earlier novels, Carey still manages to succeed in creating unforgettable characters, this time in the form of the Boone brothers: artist Butcher Bones and his 'damaged two-hundred-and-twenty-pound brother' Hugh.

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  Illywhacker by Peter Carey

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  This epic, comic novel recounts the life of 139 year old confidence trickster Herbert Badgery, one of Carey's most vividly realised and inventive characters. Full of hilarious tales and an enormous supporting cast of characters, this is one of Carey's best works.

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  Bliss by Peter Carey

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  One of Carey's earliest novels, "Bliss" recounts the story of advertising excutive Harry Joy, who, following a heart attack, comes back to life only to be convinced he is actually in hell. Sharply comic and satirical.

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  Collected Stories by Peter Carey

  Price: £9.99    Add to Basket

  This collection brings together stories from 'The Fat Man in History' and four previously uncollected stories: 'Joe', 'Concerning the Greek Tyrant', 'A Million Dollars' Worth of Amphetamines' and ' A Letter to Our Son'.

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  Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey

  Price: £8.99    Add to Basket

  This is arguably Carey's best novel and one of our absolute favourites, a sprawling, comedic and epic tale of the untold love between two extraordinary people, set in 19th century England and Australia.

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  The Rehearsal by Eleanor Catton

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  A startling debut from this young New Zealand writer which explores the aftermath of an affair between a student and a teacher. It is superbly written, with an intricate, artful plot, although at times a little too stylised.

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  God Boy by Ian Cross

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  Set in a provincial New Zealand town of the 1950s, 'God Boy' examines the unheavals and traumas of a young boy's life as he tries to understand why his faith in God has not been rewarded.

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  Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

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  The classic story of survival on a desert island. With introduction and notes by John Richetti.

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  The Bodysurfers by Robert Drewe

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  A slender but significant selection of stories detailing the lives of the Lang family across three generations. A fine book finally given the UK publication it deserves.

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  The Unknown Terrorist by Richard Flanagan

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  An engaging thriller about the effects of perceived terrorism on the life of an innocent party who, literally overnight, becomes enemy number one and a suspected 'home-grown' terrorist. Although it can feel a little unrealistic at times, it nevertheless provides an interesting perspective on modern society's fears.

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  Towards Another Summer by Janet Frame

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  Published for the first time since it was completed in 1963, this intensely personal novel is the beautiful and poetic story of a young woman living in England, longing to return to her native New Zealand. Recommended.

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  My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

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  A beautifully written book following the fortunes of the vibrant and wayward Sybylla Melvyn as she struggles to leave behind her harsh life in the bush. Highly recommended.

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  Monkey Grip by Helen Garner

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  With distinctive, staccato prose, Helen Garner brings to life a community of friends and lovers in Melbourne during the 1970s as they experiment with drugs, sex and alcohol.

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  Cleave by Nikki Gemmell

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  The harsh beauty and intense heat of the outback is brought into vivid perspective in this story of loner Skip, who enlists a stranger as her travelling companion as she searches the wilderness for her missing father.

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  As Far As You Can Go by Lesley Glaister

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  In this ruthlessly compelling literary thriller Glaister manages to inject vivid claustrophobia into the vastness of the Outback. A sinister and intense contemporary fable.

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  Potiki by Patricia Grace

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  Interesting publisher of lost classics, this time Capuchin Classics have resuscitated a story about a threatened Maori community on the coast of New Zealand. A natural, well-crafted novel that genuinely reflects the oral style of these people and their ancient social and cultural traditions.

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  The Idea of Perfection by Kate Grenville

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  Winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction in 2001, this amusing novel tells the love story of a most unlikely couple in the tiny town of Karakarook, New South Wales.

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  The Secret River by Kate Grenville

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  Moving between early-19th Century London and the convict colony of New South Wales, this compelling and powerful novel confirms Grenville as one of Australia's great contemporary writers.

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  One Big Damn Puzzler by John Harding

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  This hugely entertaining and darkly comic novel features a wonderful cast of colourful characters and gleefully depicts the chaos that ensues when an unexpected visitor arrives on a remote Pacific island.

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  The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera

  Price: £6.99    Add to Basket

  A beautiful tale of a young Maori girl who overcomes the boundaries set by tradition and gives new hope to her tribe.