y separately published work icon The December Boys single work   novel   young adult  
Issue Details: First known date: 1963... 1963 The December Boys
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'When a group of close friends leave the dusty outback orphanage where they've grown up for a summer holiday together at the coast, their future is full of possibilities. But the chance that one of them, just one, might gain a real family to live with calls everything they thought they knew about themselves and each other into question.' Source: http://www.uqp.uq.edu.au (Sighted: 24/05/2012).

Adaptations

form y separately published work icon December Boys Marc Rosenberg , ( dir. Rod Hardy ) Australia : Becker Films , 2006 Z1226930 2006 single work film/TV

'1960s outback Australia. Four boys in a convent orphanage watch younger kids leave with newly adopted parents, fearing their time may never come. The Reverend Mother sends them to the seaside where they meet a young autocratic couple that would make perfect parents. As men, they remember sabotaging each other’s efforts to be the chosen one, only to discover that the real meaning of what it is to be a family, is to be one of the December Boys.'

Source: Screen Australia.

Notes

  • Dedication: To Ted Willis, under whose baronial roof this story was conceived, for his long years of friendship and encouragement.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • London,
      c
      England,
      c
      c
      United Kingdom (UK),
      c
      Western Europe, Europe,      :       Melbourne, Victoria,: Heinemann ,       1963 .
      Extent: 191p.
VIEW PUBLICATION DETAILS FOR ALL VERSIONS ()

Works about this Work

Orphans at the Beach : Re-visiting Michael Noonan's The December Boys Margot Hillel , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Foreign Literature Studies , June vol. 31 no. 3 2009; (p. 140-146) 'There is renewed interest in The December Boys and other books by Michael Noonan in large part because the former was made into a film.Richard Becker who made the film called The December Boys a compelling and charming story.It suggests that film and indeed book audiences frequently try to reconnect with an idealised childhood,looking to the past as a way of critiquing the present.This paper will explore the way The December Boys explores notions of childhood,of a child's need to belong,of Australia's past and its fascination with its landscape.The interest in the book suggests that there is still a readership for works about a 'childhood past' which resonates for a 'childhood present' and for those who still hanker over their own lost childhood.'
[Review] The December Boys Sally Harding , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , November vol. 22 no. 5 2007; (p. 38)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Jean Yates , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Books from Our Backyard : Must-Read Books from Queensland 2006; (p. 85)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Martin Turner , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Fiction Focus : New Titles for Teenagers , vol. 20 no. 2 2006; (p. 79)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Andrea Hanke , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , March vol. 85 no. 8 2006; (p. 24)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Peg Goode , 1991 single work review
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , vol. 35 no. 3 1991; (p. 30)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Judy Bennett , 1991 single work review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , March vol. 6 no. 1 1991; (p. 32)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
Pick of the Week Cameron Woodhead , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 4 March 2006; (p. 30)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Andrea Hanke , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , March vol. 85 no. 8 2006; (p. 24)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
[Review] The December Boys Sally Harding , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , November vol. 22 no. 5 2007; (p. 38)
— Review of The December Boys Michael Noonan , 1963 single work novel
Novel Bound for Big Screen Gets More Mysterious with Every Chapter Malcolm Knox , 2005 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 2-3 July 2005; (p. 3) With production of a film adaptation of December Boys due to begin in late 2005 no copyright-holder has yet been found for Michael Noonan's estate.
Orphans at the Beach : Re-visiting Michael Noonan's The December Boys Margot Hillel , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Foreign Literature Studies , June vol. 31 no. 3 2009; (p. 140-146) 'There is renewed interest in The December Boys and other books by Michael Noonan in large part because the former was made into a film.Richard Becker who made the film called The December Boys a compelling and charming story.It suggests that film and indeed book audiences frequently try to reconnect with an idealised childhood,looking to the past as a way of critiquing the present.This paper will explore the way The December Boys explores notions of childhood,of a child's need to belong,of Australia's past and its fascination with its landscape.The interest in the book suggests that there is still a readership for works about a 'childhood past' which resonates for a 'childhood present' and for those who still hanker over their own lost childhood.'
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (10)
Last amended 12 Oct 2012 09:39:22
Subjects:
Settings:
  • Australian Outback, Central Australia,
  • Coast,
  • 1930s
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