Cirrus@Austlit

'Robyn Davidson, author of the classic memoir Tracks, has led a remarkable life of writing and nomadic travel. In this crisp, erudite essay, acclaimed critic and journalist Richard Cooke explores Davidson’s relationship with place and freedom, and her singular presence in Australian letters.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

‘'Just for Fun’ is Luna Park’s motto, but to any Sydneysider the phrase sounds more like an entreaty than a declaration. Few cities place their fun-fairs so prominently, but the Park’s position – under the Harbour Bridge, facing the Opera House – is a misdirect in a city with such an uneasy relationship with pleasure. It has been harried throughout its existence, and survives only as a carnival where most of the carnival atmosphere has been removed.' (Introduction)

'Epic of Gilgamesh” is Google’s answer to “what is the oldest known literature”. Unknown scribes in the city of Ur picked the poem out in cuneiform letters some 4500 years ago. These clay tablets preserved an older oral tradition, but that part of the story is usually left out. Instead, the Mesopotamian epic fits easily into that cartoonish diagram of the Ascent of Man, where civilisation means writing, a sequence of metals and a procession of capitals: Memphis, Babylon, Athens, Rome.

'Compare this lineage to the ceremonial songs of Aboriginal Australia. Their absolute vintage is unknowable, but the best estimates run to at least 12,000 years old. At this distance in time, the study of literature needs not just linguists but geologists. There are songlines that accurately describe landscape features (like now-disappeared islands) from the end of the Pleistocene epoch. Their provenance may stretch even further back, all the way into the last ice age. They are also alive. The last person to hear Epic of Gilgamesh declaimed in her native culture died millennia ago. Songlines that may have been born 30,000 years ago are being sung right now.'   (Introduction)

'Despite the demands of successful ventures in stage, screen and their own richly rewarding fantasy lives, the Chaser team have found time to put together a new Annual.

'As always, it will cause controversy. Critics will certainly wonder how grown men can continue to churn out offensive undergraduate claptrap at their age. But, as millions have discovered over the years, no one can really understand current events, politics, popular culture or indeed anything else without a Chaser Annual at hand to help them appreciate its inherent stupidity.

'The Chaser Annual is not just a good laugh and an essential aid to informed discourse. It's a fantastic way to pass the time during a difficult bowel movement, and makes a perfect gift for someone you don't know.' (From the publisher's website.)

'You've seen them cover the election, you've watched their prime-time TV show, you may even have chanced a ticket to their hugely successful all-singing, all-dancing variety show which recently toured nationally. But you still want more of The Chaser. Which is why you need The Chaser Annual 2008. In these pages, you can delight in the unique comedy which has made The Chaser a national institution. This is where they cut their razor-sharp satirical teeth - in good old-fashined print.

'Relive all the big news stories and hot issues of 2008, as the insightful, outrageous Chaser team walk you through the memories. This fully illustrated bumper annual includes some of the best political cartoons of the year by Andrew Weldon and Fiona Katauskas.' (Publisher's blurb)