Black Inc. Black Inc. i(A51512 works by) (Organisation) assertion
Born: Established: 2000 Melbourne, Victoria, ;
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1 y separately published work icon Little World: A Novel Josephine Rowe , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2025 29341138 2025 single work novel

'A mesmerising tale from one of Australia’s literary stars

'‘He has no notion of how to care for a saint. Even a small one. Does not even believe … Still. Catholic or not. You don't turn away a saint.’

'In the north-western corner of 1950s Australia, a saint arrives at the home of a retired engineer, who unwittingly becomes her custodian. A girl of indeterminate age, her body remains as it was when she died, incorruptible. And though no one knows it, she is conscious, reflecting on past and present.

'Little World stretches across continents and eras – from the Canal Zone in Panama and the island of Nauru all the way to the onset of Covid in contemporary Victoria. Beautiful, rich and strange, it weaves a tale of interconnected fates as characters grapple with the unknowable, and in this way come face to face with their deepest needs.' (Publication summary)
1 y separately published work icon Unsettled : A Journey Through Time and Place Kate Grenville , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2025 29326172 2025 single work autobiography

'What does it mean to be on land taken from others?

''What does it mean to be on land that was taken from other people? Now that we know how the taking was done, what do we do with that knowledge?'

'Kate Grenville is no stranger to the past. Her success and fame as a writer exploded when she published The Secret River in 2005, a bestseller based on the story of her convict ancestor, an early settler on the Hawkesbury River.

'More than two decades on, and following the defeat of the Voice referendum, Grenville is still grappling with what it means to descend from people who were, as she puts it, "on the sharp edge of the moving blade that was colonisation".

'So she decides to go on a kind of pilgrimage, back through the places her family stories happened, and put the stories and the First People back into the same frame, on the same country, to try to think about those questions. This gripping book is the result of that journey.' (Publication summary)
2 7 y separately published work icon Australian Gospel : A Family Saga Lech Blaine , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 28602632 2024 single work autobiography

'From one of Australia's most brilliant writers, a gripping true story about the tangled fates of two couples and the foster children trapped between them

'Michael and Mary Shelley are Christian fanatics who loathe their fellow Australians – especially their 'foul language, reckless indulgence of alcohol and obsession with idiotic ball sports'.

'Lenore and Tom Blaine are working-class Queensland publicans raising a large family in a raucous, loving, rugby-league-obsessed home.

'There's just one problem. The Blaines are foster parents to three of the Shelleys' children, who were removed from Michael and Mary as infants. And the Shelleys are prepared to do anything to get them back. Anything.

'Australian Gospel is a family saga like no other – heartbreaking, hilarious and altogether astonishing.' (Publication summary)
2 1 y separately published work icon Bad Cop : Peter Dutton's Strongman Politics Lech Blaine , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2024 28196379 2024 single work biography

'Who is Peter Dutton, and what happened to the Liberal Party? In Bad Cop, Lech Blaine traces the making of a hardman – from Queensland detective to leader of the Opposition, from property investor to minister for Home Affairs. This is a story of ambition, race and power, and a politician with a plan.

'Dutton became Liberal leader with a strategy to win outer-suburban and regional seats from Labor. Since then we have seen his demolition of the Voice and a rolling campaign of culture wars. What does Peter Dutton know about the Australian electorate? Has he updated Menzies' Forgotten People pitch for the age of anxiety, or will he collapse the Liberals' broad church? This revelatory portrait is sardonic, perceptive and altogether compelling.' (Publication summary)


 
1 y separately published work icon Bina : First Nations Languages, Old and New Gari Tudor-Smith , Paul Williams , Felicity Meakins , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 27904718 2024 multi chapter work criticism

'The incredible story of the resilience and recovery of Australia's First Nations languages 

'Australia's language diversity is truly breathtaking. This continent lays claim to the world's longest continuous collection of cultures, including over 440 unique languages and many more dialects. Sadly, European invasion has had severe consequences for the vitality of these languages. 

'Amid devastating loss, there has also been the birth of new languages such as Kriol and Yumplatok, both English-based Creoles. Aboriginal English dialects are spoken widely, and recently there has been an inspiring renaissance of First Nations languages, as communities reclaim and renew them.

'Bina: First Nations Languages Old and New tells this story, from the earliest exchange of words between colonists and First Nations people to today's reclamations. It is a creative and exciting introduction to a vital and dynamic world of language.

'With a foreword by Nardi Simpson, author of Song of the Crocodile.' (Publication summary)
2 2 y separately published work icon Growing Up Indian in Australia Aarti Betigeri (editor), Carlton : Black Inc. , 2024 27849569 2024 anthology autobiography

'Vibrant, moving and diverse stories of shape-shifting between cultures.

‘To be Indian growing up in Australia is to tread the narrow line between here and there, to constantly code-switch and navigate between filling the needs and aspirations of your family, your community – and yourself.’

‘Indian-Australian’ is not a one-size-fits-all descriptor. Given the depth and richness of diversity of the Indian subcontinent, it is fitting that its diaspora is similarly varied.

'Growing Up Indian in Australia reflects and celebrates this vibrant diversity. It features contributions from Australian-Indian writers, both established and emerging, who hail from a wide range of backgrounds, religions and experiences. This colourful, energetic anthology offers reflections on identity, culture, family, food and expectations, ultimately revealing deep truths about both Australian and Indian life.' (Publication summary)
1 3 y separately published work icon Excitable Boy : Essays on Risk Dominic Gordon , Carlton : Black Inc. , 2024 27371635 2024 selected work essay autobiography

'A wild ride through a disaffected youth by a gifted writer. Dominic Gordon explores his memories in tight prose bursting with insight, audacious ideas and dark humour.

'What happens to the adolescent spirit when all vestiges of innocence about the world are foregone, replaced within the grinding sounds of concrete and metal of the CBD of Melbourne? A place where train tunnels become nesting sites, carpark stairwells spots to refuel on methamphetamine and hide from predators; where agility leads you across nightclub rooftops, yielding cash in tight spaces with a quick reflex. For a rest, why not ride on the back of a train as it speeds through the night? The dangers of a decades-long exploration of risk in the streets of his city is exhilarating.

'In these original essays, Dominic Gordon, explores his memories in tight prose bursting with insight, audacious ideas and dark humour. Excitable Boy is an immersive experience of what it was like growing up in and around criminal-class and working-class culture in the inner city of Melbourne at the turn of the twentieth century.' (Publication summary)
1 8 y separately published work icon Fragile Creatures : A Memoir Khin Myint , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 27219070 2024 single work autobiography

'A powerful debut from an extraordinary voice, gentle in the face of extremity

'Khin's sister Theda has a strange illness. Her doctor thinks it's purely physical, and so does she, but Khin is not so sure. He knows what they both went through growing up in Perth – it wasn't welcoming back then for a Burmese-Australian family.

'With Theda's condition getting worse, Khin heads off to the United States. He needs to sort things out with his ex-partner. Once there, events take a very odd turn, and he finds himself in court.

'Fragile Creatures is a family story told with humour, wonderment and complete honesty. This is a book about what happens when realities clash – it's about care, truth and the hardest choices. It will sweep you up and leave you stunned at its power.' (Publication summary)
2 2 y separately published work icon Because I'm Not Myself, You See : A Memoir of Motherhood, Madness and Coming Back From the Brink Ariane Beeston , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 27218992 2024 single work autobiography

'A frank, hopeful and darkly funny memoir of postpartum psychosis and recovery

'How strange to be the observed and not the observer.

'Ariane Beeston is a child protection worker and newly registered psychologist when she gives birth to her first child – and very quickly begins to experience scary breaks with reality. Out of fear and shame, she keeps her delusions and hallucinations secret, but as the months pass Ariane gets worse. Much worse. Finally admitted to a mother and baby psychiatric unit, the psychologist is forced to learn how to be the patient.

'With medication, the support of her husband, psychotherapy and, ultimately, time, Ariane rebuilds herself. And she also begins a new chapter working in perinatal mental health, developing resources to support other new mothers.

'Because I’m Not Myself, You See is a candid, often humorous memoir of motherhood and madness, interwoven with research and expert commentary. It’s the story of the impossible pressures placed on new mothers and how quickly things can go wrong during ‘the happiest time of your life’. It’s also about life on the other side of serious illness, trying to make sense of what doesn't make sense, and finding humour, beauty and joy when things don't go according to plan.' (Publication summary)
1 5 y separately published work icon On Kim Scott Writers on Writers : On Kim Scott Tony Birch , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 27218722 2024 single work essay

'An illuminating essay on the bestselling Noongar writer and author of the Miles Franklin Award–winning novels Benang and That Deadman Dance

''I value Kim Scott's fiction so highly because I feel that his approach is to put the flags aside. That Deadman Dance asks us not to consider who we were so much as who we could be, collectively, in the future.'

'Noongar writer Kim Scott has won the Miles Franklin Award twice for his novels. In this moving essay, Tony Birch shows how Scott uses fiction as a pathway to truth. We meet a writer who 'inhabits a range of guises, faces he wears to interrogate the complex and messy frontier history of colonial encounters'. The result is 'new stories' for the nation. This, says Birch, is the work that Kim Scott has been doing for many years.' (Publication summary)
2 y separately published work icon Growing Up Torres Strait Islander in Australia Samantha Faulkner (editor), Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2024 27218681 2024 anthology poetry short story prose

'A journey through Torres Strait Islander culture and identity, past and present

'"My people are expert navigators, adventurers, innovators, ambassadors, teachers, storytellers, performers, strategists, chefs and advocates for change. The blood runs deep when I reflect on the past and the present and imagine what our future might look like." —Leilani Bin-Juda

'What makes Zenadth Kes/Torres Strait unique? And what is it like to be a Torres Strait Islander in contemporary Australia? Growing Up Torres Strait Islander in Australia, compiled by poet and author Samantha Faulkner, showcases the distinct identity of Torres Strait Islanders through their diverse voices and journeys.

'Hear from emerging and established writers from both today and the recent past, including Eddie Mabo, Thomas Mayo, Aaron Fa'Aoso, Jimi Bani, Ellie Gaffney, Jillian Boyd-Bowie and Lenora Thaker. These and many more storytellers, mentors, traditional owners, doctors and teachers from the Torres Strait share their joy, culture, good eating, lessons learned and love of family, language and Country.

'Discover stories of going dugong hunting and eating mango marinated in soy sauce. The smell of sugar cane and frangipani-scented sea breeze. Family, grandmothers and canoe time. Dancing, singing, weaving hats and making furniture from bamboo. Training as a doctor and advocating for healthcare for the Torres Strait. The loneliness of being caught between two cultures. Mission life, disconnection and being evacuated to the mainland during World War II. "Is that really your mum? Why is she black?". Not being Islander enough. Working hard to reconnect to your roots, and claiming back land and culture.

'A book to treasure and share, this groundbreaking collection provides a unique perspective on the Torres Strait Islander experience.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.
2 y separately published work icon Voice of Reason : On Recognition and Renewal Megan Davis , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2023 28246258 2023 single work criticism

'Why a First Nations Voice to Parliament is a ‘constitutional moment’ that offers a new vision of Australia

'At Uluru, an invitation was issued to the Australian people. With the upcoming referendum, the nation will decide whether to accept that invitation. In this compelling, fresh and imaginative essay, Megan Davis draws out the significance and the promise of this “constitutional moment” – what it could mean for recognition and justice.

'Davis presents the Voice to Parliament as an Australian solution to an Australian problem. For Indigenous people, it is a practical response to “the torment of powerlessness.” She highlights the failure of past policies, in areas from child protection to closing the gap, and the urgent need for change. She also brings out the creative and imaginative dimensions of the Voice. Fundamental to her account is the importance of truly listening. In explaining why the Voice is needed from the ground up, she evokes a new vision of Country and community.

'“When people say this is about changing Australian identity, it’s not. It’s about location; we are located here together, we are born here, we arrive here, we die here and we must coexist in a peaceful way. The fundamental message that many elders planted in the Uluru Statement is that the country needs peace, and the country cannot be at peace until we meet; the Uluru Statement is the beginning of that.” Megan Davis, Voice of Reason'  (Publication summary)
1 16 y separately published work icon Killing for Country : A Family Story David Marr , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2023 26928458 2023 multi chapter work criticism

'A gripping reckoning with the bloody history of Australia's frontier wars

'David Marr was shocked to discover forebears who served with the brutal Native Police in the bloodiest years on the frontier. Killing for Country is the result – a soul-searching Australian history.

'This is a richly detailed saga of politics and power in the colonial world – of land seized, fortunes made and lost, and the violence let loose as squatters and their allies fought for possession of the country – a war still unresolved in today's Australia.' (Publication summary)
1 y separately published work icon Quaint Deeds : Unlikely Adventures in Teaching and Treasure-hunting A. J. Mackinnon , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2023 26663934 2023 single work autobiography 'From the bestselling author of The Unlikely Voyage of Jack de Crow, a hilarious and heart-warming memoir of teaching, treasure hunts and finding your own way in life. A.J. 'Sandy' Mackinnon is best known to readers as a much-loved travel writer. But between eccentric voyages, he has for almost forty years taught at schools in Australia and the UK. In Quaint Deeds he brings his trademark wit and warmth to the classroom, recalling the ups, downs and unexpected detours of a teaching life. Along the way, he shares the lessons his students have taught him, often in the most unlikely moments. Uproarious and insightful in equal measure, Quaint Deeds is an irresistible ode to the magic and mystery of youth.' 

(Publication summary)
1 y separately published work icon Wellmania : Misadventures in the Search for Wellness Brigid Delaney , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2023 26160610 2023 single work autobiography

'The inspiration for a Netflix series starring Celeste Barber, Wellmania is an in-depth, entertaining, laugh-out-loud-funny exploration of wellness culture.

'Now with a new preface by the author.

'Cold-pressed juices, quitting sugar, Paleo, hot yoga, mindfulness … if you embrace these things you will be happy, you will be well – just ask Instagram. Wellness has become a global mega-industry. But does any of this stuff actually work?

'Feeling exhausted, anxious and a bit flabby, journalist Brigid Delaney decides to find out – using herself as the guinea pig. Starting with a brutal 101-day fast, Brigid tests things that are meant to make us clean, lean and serene. Travelling the world, she tries colonics, meditation, silent retreats, group psychotherapy and oodles of yoga, working out what is helpful and what is just expensive hype.

'In monasteries and health farms, on hiking trails and massage tables, she asks, she asks, why do so many of us swing from indulgence to detox and back again? Is it possible to integrate good habits into your daily life? What does our obsession with wellness say about us? And why do you smell so bad when you haven’t eaten in seven days?

'Wellmania is the highly entertaining and occasionally dangerous exploration of one of the most fascinating trends in our culture.'(Publication summary)
1 3 y separately published work icon Thaw Dennis Glover , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2023 26054559 2023 single work novel

'Some secrets won’t stay buried.

'‘Scott's lost expedition was still here, she thought – frozen, preserved, waiting to be rescued from the thaw. The truth lay beneath the surface, and she was going to bring it up.’

'In 1912, five British explorers struggle across the freezing Antarctic landscape, through howling winds and plummeting temperatures, seeking the safety of their camp.

'Today, as the world’s ice sheets begin to melt and surrender their secrets, renowned glacial archaeologist Missy Simpson works to discover the true cause of the explorers’ deaths – a subject that has intrigued researchers for more than a century.

'Her colleague, Cambridge professor Jim Hunter, is working on his own scientific mysteries – and is willing to risk everything to solve them.

'In hallowed halls of learning and on the icy polar plateau, these risk-takers must grapple with the unfathomable power of the natural world and the dramatically changing weather – while navigating their own complicated relationships.

'Drawn from the pages of history and cutting-edge science, Thaw is a gripping read that will forever change how you see the frozen continent – and those who seek to conquer it.' (Publication summary)
1 1 y separately published work icon New York City Glow Rachel Coad , Perth : Black Inc. , 2023 26031767 2023 single work graphic novel

'A snake, an octopus and the near death of Johnny Ramone. The almost true account of the 1977 New York City blackout. Set in the 1970s, the story's capstone is the 1977 New York City blackout. Ray the snake is a sad, lonely, middle aged insurance salesman from Midway Kentucky, looking for a better life. Strawberry is a Glow Octopus (Stauroteuthis syrtensis) with an inability to control her glow. Strawberry finds herself in constant trouble; she has a prison record and an FBI file to prove it. The unlikely pair embark on a road trip to New York City, where they rub shoulders with rock royalty, things get electric - in more ways than one. A tribute to all kinds of music, from elevator to opera.' (Publication summary)
1 2 y separately published work icon Helena Rubinstein : The Australian Years Angus Trumble , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2023 26030147 2023 single work biography

'The captivating story of the first global cosmetics empire, the fascinating woman who built it, and the past she preferred to leave behind

'This meticulously researched and wryly entertaining portrait of Helena Rubinstein (1872-1965) focuses on the years she spent in Australia as a young woman, recovering a 'lost' chapter in the grand narrative of the woman who created one of the first global cosmetics corporations. At its height, Rubinstein's brand was synonymous with elegance and employed 30,000 women around the world.

'Rubinstein arrived in Australia from Poland when she was twenty-three years old. She lived in Australia for the next eleven years, working first as a governess and then as a waitress, before opening her first beauty salon in Melbourne.

'In later years, owing to the degree of control she exercised over her glamorous image, many details of her early life in Australia were suppressed. But the events she airbrushed out of her own myth reveal the surprising origins of her extraordinary rise. In this absorbing book, we see her laying the foundations for a global empire.

'With a foreword by Sarah Krasnostein' (Publication summary)
1 4 y separately published work icon I'd Rather Not Robert Skinner , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2023 26029928 2023 single work autobiography

'From one of Australia's most wryly funny writers comes an original and utterly hilarious memoir of reaching for the stars while lying in a ditch.

'I was sleeping in what might reasonably be described as a ditch, though I tried not to think of it in those terms for morale reasons . . .

'Robert Skinner arrives in the city, searching for a richer life. Things begin badly and then, surprisingly, get slightly worse. Pretty soon he's sleeping rough and trying to run a literary magazine out of a dog park. His quest for meaning keeps being thwarted, by endless jobs, beagles, house parties, ill-advised love affairs, camel trips and bureaucratic entanglements.

'Sometimes a book catches the spirit of the times. I'd Rather Not is about work, escape and that something more we all need.' (Publication summary)
1 4 y separately published work icon On Peter Carey : Writers on Writers Sarah Krasnostein , Collingwood : Black Inc. , 2023 25775533 2023 single work biography

'Exploring dislocation and longing, Sarah Krasnostein dives into Peter Carey's literary tour de force, True History of the Kelly Gang, in this latest offering from the stunning Writers on Writers essay series.

'Award-winning writer Sarah Krasnostein shines new light on the impossibly vulnerable Ned Kelly of Peter Carey's True History of the Kelly Gang. Carey, who moved from Australia to America, conjured Kelly after seeing Sidney Nolan's paintings of the bushranger at the Met. In this moving essay Krasnostein, who moved from America to Australia, interrogates notions of home, history, distance and identity in Peter Carey's Booker Prize-winning novel.

'In the Writers on Writers series, leading writers reflect on another Australian writer who has inspired and fascinated them. Provocative and crisp, these books start a fresh conversation between past and present, shed new light on the craft of writing, and introduce some intriguing and talented authors and their work.

'Published by Black Inc. in association with the University of Melbourne and State Library Victoria.' (Publication summary)
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