Author | Arthur Upfield |
---|---|
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Series | Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte |
Genre | Fiction |
Publisher | Hutchinson |
Publication date | 1931 |
Media type | |
Pages | 291 pp |
Preceded by | The Beach of Atonement |
Followed by | A Royal Abduction |
The Sands of Windee (1931) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the fourth of the author's novels and the second to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the UK by Hutchinson in 1931, and subsequently serialised in The Herald in Melbourne in 42 daily instalments between 23 January and 11 March 1932. [1]
"At Windee Station, in the far west of New South Wales, a man named Luke Marks had disappeared. He had been visiting the owner, Jeff Stanton, and his car was found six days after he left the homestead. Detective-Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte, of the Queensland police, who is an educated half-caste, goes to Windee to take up the case." [2]
The action of the novel takes place about 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of Broken Hill.
Following the book's initial publication by Hutchinson in 1931 it was subsequently published as follows: [1]
and subsequent paperback, ebook and audio book editions.
This novel was adapted for television as Boney and the Powder Trail (1973), from a screenplay by Tony Morphett, and directed by Peter Maxwell : Fauna Productions.
A reviewer in The Telegraph from Brisbane noted: "Mr. Upfield is making for himself a niche among the elect of mystery-story writers and Australia may be proud of the fact that he is making such picturesque and unexaggerated use of the backgrounds provided by bush, seashore, and mountain in this country. And his stories themselves are more transcripts of life than the excited figments of imagination so often found in the crime book. In his latest novel we see him again the faithful portrayer of local colour and life, and again using his gifts in the construction, of a yarn which is typical of bush conditions." [8]
The Herald reviewer "Touchstone" wrote that the character of "Bony" is "a truly original and entertaining character, one who reflects great credit on his creator. Mr Upfield is to be congratulated on giving a local color and setting to the ever-popular detective story. "Bony." as he is familiarly called by his friends, is a lineal descendant of Sherlock Holmes, a true character in his eccentricities, and his own peculiar methods of handling his cases." [9]
The book achieved some degree of notoriety when it was discovered that "Snowy" Rowles, an acquaintance of Upfield's, had used Upfield's then unpublished novel's method of body disposal to destroy evidence of a murder. [10] Rowles was charged, convicted and later executed for the murder of a New Zealander, Louis Carron, although he was also suspected of being involved in the disappearance and deaths of two others, James Ryan and George Lloyd. These deaths came to be referred to as the Murchison Murders.
Anthony Grove Hillerman was an American author of detective novels and nonfiction works, best known for his mystery novels featuring Navajo Nation Police officers Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. Several of his works have been adapted as theatrical and television movies.
The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia, formerly known as the Rabbit-Proof Fence, the State Vermin Fence, and the Emu Fence, is a pest-exclusion fence constructed between 1901 and 1907 to keep rabbits, and other agricultural pests from the east, out of Western Australian pastoral areas.
Arthur William Upfield was an English-Australian writer, best known for his works of detective fiction featuring Detective Inspector Napoleon "Bony" Bonaparte of the Queensland Police Force, a mixed-race Indigenous Australian. His books were the basis for a 1970s Australian television series entitled Boney, as well as a 1990 telemovie and a 1992 spin-off TV series.
The Murchison Murders were a series of three murders, committed by an itinerant stockman known as "Snowy" Rowles, near the rabbit-proof fence in Western Australia during the early 1930s. Rowles used the murder method that had been suggested by author Arthur Upfield in his then unpublished book The Sands of Windee, in which he described a foolproof way to dispose of a body and thus commit the perfect murder.
Detective Inspector Napoleon "Bony" Bonaparte is a fictional character created by Australian novelist Arthur Upfield (1890–1964). Bony is a biracial Aboriginal Australian detective with a reputation for solving difficult cases by finding subtle clues. Upfield introduced the character in his 1929 novel The Barrakee Mystery. 29 novels featuring the character were published.
Bernard Cronin was an Australian author and journalist. With Gertrude Hart, he founded the Old Derelicts' Club in 1920 which later became the Society of Australian Authors.
Boney is an Australian television series produced by Fauna Productions during 1971 and 1972, featuring James Laurenson in the title role of Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte. Two series, each of thirteen episodes, were filmed.
Bony is an Australian television series made in 1992. The series of 13 episodes followed on from a telemovie made in 1990. The series was criticised for casting a white man as the title character Detective David John "Bony" Bonaparte, under the tutelage of "Uncle Albert", an elderly Aborigine played by Burnum Burnum. Bony was supposed to be a descendant of the Bony character created by Arthur Upfield in dozens of novels from the late 1920s until his death in 1964.
Youanmi is an abandoned town in the Murchison region of Western Australia.
3 Acts of Murder is a 2009 Australian television film directed by Rowan Woods. It is based on the true-life story of how author Arthur Upfield inadvertently inspired The Murchison Murders.
This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1931.
Napoléon is the French form of the Italian given name Napoleone. Notable people with the name include:
The Barrakee Mystery (1929) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the second of the author's novels, his first crime novel and the first to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the UK by Hutchinson in 1929, and subsequently serialised in The Herald in Melbourne in 42 daily instalments between 23 July and 9 September 1932.
Wings Above the Diamantina (1936) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the third to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1936, and subsequently serialised in The Australian Journal between January and September 1936.
Mr. Jelly's Business (1937) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the fourth to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1937, after being serialised in the Daily News between December 1932 and January 1933.
Winds of Evil (1937) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the fifth of the author's novels to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1937, and subsequently serialised in The Australian Journal in Melbourne between March and October 1937.
The Bone is Pointed (1938) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the sixth of the author's novels to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1938, and subsequently serialised in The Herald newspaper in Melbourne between September and November 1938, under the title Murder on the Station.
The Mystery of Swordfish Reef (1939) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It was the seventh of the author's novels to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1939.
Bushranger of the Skies (1940) is a novel by Australian writer Arthur Upfield. It is the eighth of the author's novels to feature his recurring character Detective Inspector Napoleon 'Bony' Bonaparte. It was originally published in the Australia by Angus & Robertson in 1940.
Man of Two Tribes is a 1953 Australia radio serial based on the stories of Arthur Upfield about Detective Inspector Napoleon "Bony" Bonaparte. Morris West adapted several of Upfield's stories.