Wonders of a Godless World

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Wonders of a Godless World
McGahan - Wonders of a Godless World Coverart.png
First edition cover
Author Andrew McGahan
LanguageEnglish
GenreScience fiction
Publisher Allen & Unwin
Publication date
October 2009
Publication placeAustralia
Media typePrint (Paperback)
Pages260 (first edition)
ISBN 978-1-74175-809-2

Wonders of a Godless World is a 2009 novel by Andrew McGahan. [1] Described as "a kind of modern fable" that "verges on fantasy", it won the 2010 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel. [2]

Contents

It follows the story of an orphan girl who is working in the wards of the insane and incapable, but the inhabitants are thrown into turmoil after a series of strange murders following the arrival of a new patient. [3]

Background

Wonders of a Godless World was first published in Australia in October 2009 by Allen & Unwin in trade paperback format. [3] It was released in the United Kingdom in May 2010 by Blue Door. [4] Wonders of a Godless World won the 2010 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel.Ref name=sfadb /> [5]

Synopsis

Set on an unnamed island in the near present, it is told from the perspective of a simple young woman, an orphan, mute, reared in a mental hospital and an orderly there, who forms a bond with a mysterious coma patient, a man with telepathic powers who claims to be immortal... [6]

Throughout the book the reader can never be sure that the mute orphan narrator is a reliable narrator. The possibility that her telepathic bond with the patient is in fact a figment of her imagination is always left open. So rather than science fiction, the book could instead be read as an insight into delusion. [7]

References

  1. ↑ "Wonders of a Godless World by Andrew McGahan". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  2. ↑ ""Aurealis Awards 2010"". SFADB. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Wonders of a Godless World". Allen & Unwin . Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  4. ↑ "Wonders of a Godless World by Andrew McGahan". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  5. ↑ "Aurealis Awards 2009: Science Fiction Novel Judges' Report" (PDF). Aurealis Awards . Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  6. ↑ Geordie Williamson, chief literary critic, The Australian
  7. ↑ Andrew McGahan, Interviewed by Jo Case, Readings


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