Derek Parker Derek Parker i(A129245 works by)
Gender: Male
The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.

Works By

Preview all
1 Literary Bridges to Asia Derek Parker , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 20-21 August 2016; (p. 26)

— Review of The Near and the Far : New Stories from the Asia-Pacific Region 2016 anthology short story
1 Turkish Horizons Derek Parker , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: Quadrant , December vol. 59 no. 12 2015; (p. 82-84)

— Review of The Secret Son Jenny Ackland , 2015 single work novel
1 Mall King’s Mission to Enrich the Nation Derek Parker , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 14-15 November 2015; (p. 22)

— Review of Frank Lowy : A Second Life Jill Margo , 2015 single work biography
1 y separately published work icon Children of Zone Derek Parker , Ballarat : The Publisher's Apprentice , 2015 14705354 2015 single work novel science fiction

'In 1986 there was a nuclear disaster at Chernobyl, in what was then the Soviet Union. The area, over two thousand square kilometres, was evacuated and sealed, closed off from the world by a massive wall. But 149 schoolkids are left behind, forgotten. Over time, they learn how to survive, and slowly they build a society for themselves despite the dangers - radiation, wolves, and winter - of the Zone. Twenty years after the Evacuation, a helicopter from the other side of the Wall appears, with a mysterious woman at the controls. That encounter sparks a chain of events which takes one of the Children, the hunter Isaak, back to the past, to the day of the Evacuation - and towards a confrontation which threatens the future of the Zone itself.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

1 Colonial Architect More Trouble Than He Was Worth Derek Parker , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 13-14 December 2014; (p. 21)

— Review of A Forger's Progress : The Life of Francis Greenway Alasdair McGregor , 2014 single work biography
1 2 y separately published work icon This Tattooed Land Derek Parker , Ballarat : The Publisher's Apprentice , 2014 7923530 2014 single work novel thriller science fiction

'In a not-too-distant Australia, an authoritarian Green government has taken power, and has ruled for a decade on the premise of dealing with “the emergency”. Turner, former cop, former convict, sets out for Canberra with a radical mission: assassinate the Prime Minister. Travelling through the ruined landscape, drawn onwards by a growing obsession, he pieces together the story of the country and the people. And what he finds is startling, incredible ... and frightening.' (Publication summary)

1 Say It's So, Joe Derek Parker , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 9-10 August 2014; (p. 16-17)

— Review of Hockey : Not Your Average Joe Madonna King , 2014 single work biography
'It took him a long time to work out what he stood for, and even now the federal Treasurer remains a work-in-progress, writes Derek Parker.'
1 y separately published work icon Governor Macquarie : His Life, Times and Revolutionary Vision for Australia Derek Parker , Warriewood : Woodslane Press , 2010 Z1733746 2010 single work biography 'The first new biography of Lachlan Macquarie in decades, this book draws on a wealth of sources to paint a picture of the man and his times. It must be seen as one of the great ironies of Australian history that as far as the British Government was concerned he failed in his duty as Governor of New South Wales. Macquarie had in fact had a vision shared by few others that New Holland had the potential to become 'one of the greatest and most flourishing colonies belonging to the British Empire' - and became determined to do his part in steering the fledgling community in that direction.' (Trove record)
1 y separately published work icon Arthur Phillip : Australia's First Governor Derek Parker , Warriewood : Woodslane Press , 2009 Z1680082 2009 single work biography

'Over the two centuries since his appointment, commentators have been as surprised at the choice of Arthur Phillip as some were at the time (the First Lord of the Admiralty, to mention only the most distinguished critic). But was it really so surprising? What did the Home Office and the Admiralty expect of a man who was to navigate a fleet to the antipodes, and when he got it there unload its cargo of unregenerate criminals and forge them into some sort of a working colony? Apart from the necessary seamanship, they needed a man with a cool head who understood men and how to control them, a man capable of governing himself, possessed of calm and understanding and a thorough grasp of reality, with complete loyalty to the Crown and Government and a determination to plan and carry through an enterprise unlike any other within living memory. Fortunately, there were one or two men at the Admiralty who understood that Arthur Phillip possessed all these credentials. This new biography covers Phillip's whole life, but has a particular focus on his selection for the role of Governor, the preparation of the first fleet, the journey from England, the establishment of the colony and Phillip's governorship. Covers Phillip's whole life, but has a particular focus on his selection of the role of Governor, the preparation of the first fleet, the journey from England, the establishment of the colony and Phillip's governorship.'(Publication summary)

1 1 y separately published work icon Banjo Paterson : The Man Who Wrote Waltzing Matilda Derek Parker , Warriewood : Woodslane Press , 2009 Z1647168 2009 single work biography ' A. B. 'Banjo' Paterson was not simply the author of the words of Waltzing Matilda, Australia's unofficial national anthem, and many other classic ballads such as The Man from Snowy River and Clancy of the Overflow. Though it is now almost forgotten, he was a first-rate war correspondent for the Sydney Morning Herald. His dispatches from the Boer War are as vivid and exciting to read today as when they were frantically scribbled under the guns of Boer sharp-shooters, and delivered on daring rides from the front to the nearest telephone office. He was a friend of 'Breaker' Morant, whose notorious trial and execution was one of the sensations of that war. He was also an expert horseman, a man who knew everything there was to be known about horses and horse-racing, winning prizes at polo matches and race meetings. Returning from South Africa, The Banjo (as he always signed himself) worked for Sydney newspapers, and travelled to China and England (where he stayed with his friend, the poet Rudyard Kipling), and for a while led a relatively sedentary life as editor of the Sydney Evening News. At the outbreak of World War One, he failed to get accreditation as a war correspondent, and served as an ambulance driver in France, and finally to Egypt where he headed a team of rough-riders and trained horses. Major Paterson came back to Sydney to edit The Sportsman and the earliest collection of traditional bush songs, and to become a popular and well-known broadcaster in the early days of radio. By the time he died everyone in Australia knew the verses of Waltzing Matilda but scarcely anyone could have told you they had been written by 'Banjo' Paterson as he had sold the copyright outright for five pounds!' Source: Dust jacket.
X