We Come With This Place

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We Come With This Place
We Come With This Place book cover.jpg
Author Debra Dank
GenreMemoir
PublisherEcho Publishing
Publication date
5 July 2022
Publication placeAustralia
Pages272
Awards New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Book of the Year
ISBN 9781760687403

We Come With This Place is a 2022 memoir by Aboriginal author and academic Debra Dank. The book pays tribute to Dank's family and Gudanji Country, and criticises Australia's history of ingrained racism against its First Nations people. [1] The book won multiple awards, including the 2023 ALS Gold Medal and a record-breaking four awards at the 2023 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards. [2]

Contents

Summary

We Come With This Place is composed of multiple non-linear and interweaved stories. Dank discusses the story of her father, known as "Soda", who was falsely accused of stealing cattle and was chased out of the Northern Territory as a result, as well as the story of the sexual violence inflicted on her paternal grandmother. The book also discusses Australia's frontier wars and First Nations Dreaming stories. [3]

Publication history

Dank wrote We Come With This Place as part of her PhD in narrative theory and semiotics at Deakin University. The book was published by Echo Publishing in July 2022. Dank has expressed hope that the book will draw attention to the threat that fracking poses to her people's country in the Beetaloo Basin. [4]

Reception

The book was positively received by reviewers. In a review published in The Saturday Paper , Tony Birch described Dank's journey as "courageous and inspirational" and wrote that "the manner in which Dank weaves her story, delivered with subtlety, is mesmerising". [5] Writing in The Guardian , Tara June Winch described the book as "a jewel to rival Australia’s great desert memoirs". [3] A review in The Australian described the book as "truly groundbreaking writing" and "a profound expression of culture". [6] The book was described by Melissa Lucashenko, chair of the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards judging panel, as "all that First Nations writing can and should be". [7]

Awards

Awards for We Come With This Place
YearAwardCategoryResultRef.
2023 Prime Minister's Literary Awards Non-FictionShortlisted [8]
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Book of the YearWon [4] [9]
UTS Glenda Adams Award for New WritingWon [4] [9]
Indigenous Writers’ PrizeWon [4] [9]
Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-FictionWon [4] [9]
ALS Gold Medal —Won [10]
Queensland Literary Awards The University of Queensland Non-Fiction Book AwardWon [11]
Queensland Premier’s Award for a Work of State SignificanceShortlisted [11]
The Courier-Mail People's Choice Queensland Book of the Year AwardShortlisted [11]
Stella Prize —Shortlisted [12]

References

  1. ↑ "We Come with This Place". Echo Publishing. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  2. ↑ Dow, Steve (22 May 2023). "Debut author Debra Dank breaks records at NSW premier's literary awards". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  3. 1 2 Winch, Tara June (28 July 2022). "We Come With This Place by Debra Dank review – a jewel to rival Australia's great desert memoirs". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Story, Hannah (22 May 2023). "Debut author scoops $85,000 in literary prizes with memoir". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  5. ↑ Birch, Tony (22 July 2023). "We Come with This Place". The Saturday Paper. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  6. ↑ Williams, Victoria Grieves (28 July 2023). "What does it mean to be on country? Indigenous writer Debra Dank explains". The Australian. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  7. ↑ Knowles, Rachael (23 May 2023). "Debra Dank uses history-making literary win to call out fracking on her Country". NITV. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  8. ↑ "Prime Minister's Literary Awards". Creative Australia. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Winners announced for the 2023 NSW Premier's Literary Awards". State Library of New South Wales. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  10. ↑ "ALS Gold Medal". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 "2023 Queensland Literary Awards winners". State Library of Queensland. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  12. ↑ "Debra Dank – We Come with this Place". Stella Prize. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
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