 First edition (UK) | |
| Author | Randolph Stow |
|---|---|
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Literary fiction |
| Publisher | MacDonald, London |
Publication date | 1965 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 224 pp |
| Preceded by | To the Islands |
| Followed by | The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea |
Tourmaline (1963) is the fourth novel by Australian writer Randolph Stow. [1] [2] [3]
Set in the fictional town of Tourmaline in outback Western Australia, the novel follows the arrival of Michael Random and the impact he has on the community. The town is slowly dying as a result of a combination of drought and the abandonment of its mines. Random preaches the word of God to the town's inhabitants and promises to find water, which stirs the townsfolk to life.
Reviewing the re-issue of the book by Text Publishing, Nicholas Rothwell in The Australian noted: "Alone among Stow’s books, Tourmaline gained a certain reputation with the European intelligentsia: its author was briefly seen as a pioneer of modern storytelling, alongside figures such as Lawrence Durrell and John Fowles. It depicted the same Australia that was becoming known from the paintings of Sidney Nolan and Russell Drysdale: a visual, sensory space." [4]
The critic David Fonteyn saw the work in allegorical terms: "Tourmaline is an ecological allegory in which cultural revitalisation is posited due to an acceptance of, and engagement with, the natural environment despite the death drive that is contained within it. In the novel, the natural environment is figured as a living entity that is feared by the people in the town of Tourmaline." [5]
Julian Randolph Stow was an Australian-born writer, novelist and poet.
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Serpent in the Rainbow is an Australian mini series which first screened on the ABC in 1973. It was set in the late 19th century.
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The Bulletin Reciter : A Collection of Verses for Recitation 1880-1901 (1901) is an anthology of poems by Australian poets originally published in The Bulletin. It was published in hardback by The Bulletin in 1901, and was followed the same year by a similar collection of stories and literary sketches from the magazine.
We Find the Bunyip is a 1955 Australian play by Ray Mathew. It is a comedy set in an Australian country pub.
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When the Gravediggers Come is an Australian play by Robert Amos. It won the 1961 Australian Journalists Award for Best Play along with The Tower by Hal Porter. Amos had lived in China before arriving in Australia in 1949.
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Cornerstone is a 1956 Australian play by Gwen Meredith.
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