Monkey Grip
Melbourne
:
McPhee Gribble
,
1977
Z115661
1977
single work
novel
(taught in 12 units)
Set in inner suburban 1970s Melbourne, Monkey Grip describes the fluid relationships of a community of friends who are living and loving in new ways. Single parent Nora falls in love with Javo, a heroin addict, and together they try to make sense of their lives and the choices they have made.
Candy
St Leonards
:
Allen and Unwin
,
1997
Z253307
1997
single work
novel
(taught in 4 units)
He met Candy during a lush Sydney summer. Gorgeous, sexy, free-spirited Candy. They fell in love fast, lots of laughter and lust, the days melting warmly into each other. He never planned to give her a habit. But she wanted a taste. And wasn't love, after all, about sharing lives? But when the money ran out, the craving remained, and the days ceased their luxurious stretch. But there was still love. Only now, it was a threesome. Heroin had its own demands, its own timetable, and thoughts of nabbing the next fix hurled them into each day. Then, when desperation set in, Candy would stop at nothing to secure a blast, as she and her love became hostage to the nightmarish world of addiction. (Source: Trove)
This subject introduces students to a range of fiction and poetry that alludes significantly to the use of drugs and alcohol. The set texts are chosen from the classical Greek, Romantic, Modernist and Contemporary periods. The subject places each work in its historical and social context, analysing the significance of drugs and alcohol as an on-going literary subject and questioning the validity of enduring Romantic concepts that link drug and alcohol use with literary creativity.
