 First edition | |
| Author | Ion Idriess |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | novel |
| Publisher | Angus and Robertson |
Publication date | 1933 |
| Publication place | Australia |
Drums of Mer is a 1933 Australian novel by Ion Idriess set in the Torres Strait in present-day Queensland, Australia. [1]
It was based on a true story about the survivors of the wrecked ship the Charles Eaton . The characters were composites of real people. [2] [3]
Idriess later called the book "a blood-thirsty thing, and it's told from the angle of the Torres Strait islanders. There are killings and wars and all sorts of horrible things in it, but it seems to appeal. I was a bit frightened at first, that the womenfolk would not like it. They seem to want it, however." [4] The book was a best seller in Australia. [5]
Idriess later reworked the same material in a children's book, Headhunters of the Coral Sea . [6]
The Daily Telegraph wrote "Mr. Idriess is writing romance, not history, and very good romance, too, if his style were better. But, since he quotes authorities, why not be right about easily-ascertained facts?" [7]
The Newcastle Sun declared "The faults in the book... are almost entirely confined to the fiction part of it. Mr. Idriess has succeeded admirably in his description work." [8]
The Sydney Morning Herald wrote "the book is highly interesting. The information given is valuable, and the author states that in all essentials it is fact, both historically and ethnologically. He tells the incidents with vigour and high dramatic colouring." [9]
The Argus thought "Mr Idriess his seized upon the most colourful aspects of this decayed civilisation before it has been completely lost to livIng memory and has dramatised them with his uncanny gift for realistic narrative writing." [10]
The Sydney Sun argued "this book is different from the author's previous works in all save quality, in that he has dipped far into the past for story and setting; and the result is a work of rugged strength. Literary faults are found, but they are of the kind that seem characteristic of the writer. They are not the faults of a labored search for expressive phrases, but rather the evi dence of an Imagination that hastens enthusiastically ahead of the facts marshalled in long, painstaking historical research." [11]
The Australian Women's Weekly wrote that the book "though excellent reading, just falls short of the high standard one is beginning to expect from this writer and it misses, for lack of careful sub-editing." [12]
Sandy Harbutt planned to make a film version of it in the late 1970s with his then-wife Helen Morse as associate producer. Research trips were undertaken to various locations in 1977. [13] In October 1977 Harbutt was reportedly writing a script in the New Hebridies and hoped to start filming in April 1978. [14] In 1999 Harbutt said he still intended to make the movie. [15] However no film resulted.
In 1996 the Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre presented a theatre production based on the novel. [16]
Angus & Robertson (A&R) is a major Australian bookseller, publisher and printer. As book publishers, A&R has contributed substantially to the promotion and development of Australian literature. The brand currently exists as an online shop owned by online bookseller Booktopia. The Angus & Robertson imprint is still seen in books published by HarperCollins, a News Corporation company.
Elizabeth Andreas Evatt, an eminent Australian reformist lawyer and jurist who sat on numerous national and international tribunals and commissions, was the first Chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia, the first female judge of an Australian federal court, and the first Australian to be elected to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.
Ion Llewellyn Idriess was a prolific and influential Australian author. He wrote more than 50 books over 43 years between 1927 and 1969 – an average of one book every 10 months, and twice published three books in one year. His first book was Madman's Island, published in 1927 at the age of 38, and his last was written at the age of 79. Called Challenge of the North, it told of Idriess's ideas for developing the north of Australia.
Sandy Harbutt was an Australian actor, writer and director, best known for the outlaw biker film, Stone (1974) starring his friend Ken Shorter. Although it was very successful at the box office and became a cult classic, it was the only feature he ever directed. He was once married to actress Helen Morse.
Madman's Island is a 1927 novel by Ion Idriess set in northern Australia.
The Desert Column: Leaves from the Diary of an Australian Trooper in Gallipoli, Sinai and Palestine is a book by Ion Idriess based on a diary he kept of his service during World War I.
Gold Dust and Ashes is a book by Ion Idriess set in Bulolo in the New Guinea goldfields. It covers the history of gold exploration in the region, including occupation by the Germans, transfer to Australian governorship, the efforts of Cecil Levien to pioneer gold mining, and the role of New Guinea Airways in the industry.
Forty Fathoms Deep: Pearldivers and Searovers in Australian Waters is a 1937 book from Ion Idriess about pearl divers.
The Red Chief: As Told By the Last of His Tribe is a 1953 book by Ion Idriess about Gambu Ganuurru or Red Kangaroo, a tribal leader in the Gunnedah region in the 18th century prior to European settlement.
The Australian Guerilla series was a series of 6 handbooks published in World War II by Ion Idriess. Idriess had been a sniper during World War I. The books were written when Australia was under threat of invasion during World War II.
Men of the Jungle is a 1932 book by Ion Idriess. It covered three years in the life of Idriess and his three companions as they worked in north-east Queensland.
Man Tracks, with the mounted police in the Australian Wilds is a 1935 book by Australian author Ion Idriess about the mounted police in north west Western Australia.
The Tin Scratchers: The Story of Tin Mining in the Far North is a 1959 autobiographical book by Ion Idriess.
Outlaws of the Leopolds is a 1952 non-fiction history book by Ion Idriess. It concerned the aboriginal resistance leader Sandamara in the 1890s.
Nemarluk: King of the Wilds is a book by Ion Idriess about aboriginal warrior Nemarluk.
The Wild White Man of Badu is a 1950 novel by Ion Idriess. It was his 33rd book. The novel is allegedly based on a true story.
Horrie the Wog Dog is a 1945 book by Ion Idriess about the adventures of Horrie the Wog Dog, the Australian war mascot.
Prospecting for Gold is a 1931 non fiction book by Ion Idriess. It is a guide on how to prospect for gold.
Charles Eaton was a barque, launched in 1833 for use as a merchant ship. Whilst under the command of Captain Fowle, she was wrecked in 1834 among the Torres Strait Islands, off the northern coast of Queensland, Australia, and her passengers and crew attacked and nearly all killed by Torres Strait Islanders on Mer Island. A cabin boy and small child survived and lived with the islanders until being rescued by Captain Lewis and crew on Isabella in June 1836, who also found skulls of some of the murdered people on a nearby island and took them back to Sydney for burial.
Joseph Lui was one of the first two Torres Strait Islanders to be ordained a priest in the Anglican Church of Australia in 1925.
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