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y separately published work icon The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia single work   novel   science fiction  
Note: 'By Kenneth Mackay, Member of the Legislative Assembly of New South Wales.'
Issue Details: First known date: 1895... 1895 The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'In Kenneth Mackay s 1895 admonitory tale, Britain s attention and military forces are diverted by a Russian attack on India, and Australia is left defenseless. The Russians lead the invasion force, but for readers of the Victorian Age, the real horror is the use of Chinese troops. This sweeping speculative story foreshadows the rapid growth of nationalism in the 20th Century. It also takes remarkable risks with its subject matter and its audience, challenging both literary and moral conventions.'

Source: Publisher's blurb, Wesleyan University Press 2003 edition.

Adaptations

y separately published work icon The Yellow Wave Jane Miller , 2015 2011 Strawberry Hills : Currency Press , 2017 11412983 2015 single work drama

'At last Kenneth Mackay’s 400-page Australian classic of 19th century literature comes to vivid life in 70 action-packed minutes. An epic saga of Love, Heroism and Sacrifice, The Yellow Wave is a prescient tale of War, Passion and Boat Arrivals featuring a huge cast of characters, exciting set pieces, a vast array of questionable accents and just two actors, The Yellow Wave is an invasion like no other.'

Source: Theatre company's website (http://15minutesfromanywhere.com/the-yellow-wave/). (Sighted: 16/11/2015).

Notes

  • Dedication: Inscribed to my friend, the late George Ranken, formerly Commissioner of Crown Lands in Queensland; Member of New South Wales Royal Commission on the Lands Department of 1878, and of the Commission of Inquiry into Public Lands, 1883.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Middletown, Connecticut,
      c
      United States of America (USA),
      c
      Americas,
      :
      Wesleyan University Press ,
      2003 .
      image of person or book cover 5935662734933248768.jpg
      This image has been sourced from online.
      Extent: xxxiv, 350 p.p.
      Description: illus.
      Note/s:
      • Includes bibliographical references (p. 346-349).
      • Edited, with an introduction and notes by Andrew Enstice & Janeen Webb.
      • 'Includes facsimile illustrations from the original text, a new introduction and thorough notations'. Source: publisher's blurb.
      ISBN: 0819566314, 0819566322 (pbk.), 0819566314 (alk. paper), 0819566322 (pbk. : alk. paper)

Works about this Work

Utopia and Utopian Studies in Australia Andrew Milner , Verity Burgmann , 2016 single work criticism
— Appears in: Utopian Studies , vol. 27 no. 2 2016; (p. 200-209)
'There are no independently Australian translations of Thomas More’s Utopia. Nor is there any equivalent in Australia to the Society for Utopian Studies in North America or the Utopian Studies Society in Europe. Nor are there any extant formal research groups or undergraduate or graduate courses in utopian studies. There are, however, distinctively Australian traditions of utopian writing, both eutopian and dystopian, and also a limited field of Australian utopian studies, essentially the work of individual scholars. This article attempts a brief description of both.' (Publication summary)
Invasion and the Politics of Belonging in Pat Grant's Blue Felicity Castagna , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: New Scholar , vol. 3 no. 1 2014;
In this essay, Felicity Castagna notes 'the long history of invasion narratives in Australian literature, and how they served to reify the governmental belonging of White Australians inciting nationalism and encouraging vigilance in relation to migration and national security.' (From introduction)
Surfing the Yellow Wave : Kenneth Mackay Sights the First AIF Peter Pierce , 2013 single work criticism
— Appears in: Telling Stories : Australian Life and Literature 1935–2012 2013; (p. 161-167)
The Fiction of the Future : Australian Science Fiction Russell Blackford , 2012 single work criticism
— Appears in: Sold by the Millions : Australia's Bestsellers 2012; (p. 128-140)
'According to Russell Blackford 'commercial science fiction is the most international of literary forms.' He observes that 'Australian SF continues to flourish, even if it trails heroic fantasy in mass-market appeal.' Australian SF writers although published internationally, with a dedicated fan followings in USA, UK and Europe, were overlooked for a very long time by Australian multinational publishers. The international editions had to be imported and were then distributed in Australia (Congreve and Marquardt 8). Blackford in his chapter throws light on the history of Australian SF and observes how Australian SF writers, with their concern for the future, achieved a powerful synthesis in form and content. The progress of Australian SF, maturity of style in the work of younger writers, and massive worldwide sales make Blackford optimistic as he asserts that 'the best Australian writers in the genre will be prominent players on the world stage.' (Editor's foreword xii-xiii)
The Creativity of War Planners : Armed Forces Professionals and the Pre-1914 British Invasion-Scare Genre A. Michael Matin , 2011 single work criticism
— Appears in: ELH , Winter vol. 78 no. 4 2011; (p. 801-862)
'This essay elucidates fundamental aspects of pre-1914 British invasion narratives. Under investigation are examples of the genre written by armed forces professionals who endeavored to stimulate support for increased military and/or naval expenditures as well as to make their cases for specific approaches to warfare. The essay has several aims: to sketch the debates in which such fictional texts were designed to intervene; to identify the salient characteristics of this literary form (ten motifs are distilled from more than one hundred texts); and to assess how the prognostications of these narratives compare with the battlefield reality of World War One.' (Author's abstract)
Science Fiction Reviews Bill Congreve , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Aurealis : Australian Fantasy and Science Fiction , no. 37 2006; (p. 98-107)

— Review of The Risen Empire Scott Westerfeld , 2003 single work novel ; Eclipse K. A. Bedford , 2005 single work novel ; The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia Kenneth Mackay , 1895 single work novel
Bill Congreve discusses the science fiction genre and reviews several sci-fi novels.
[Untitled] 1895 single work review
— Appears in: The Guardian , 5 December 1895; (p. 9)

— Review of The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia Kenneth Mackay , 1895 single work novel
Miscellaneous Graham Stone , 2001 single work review
— Appears in: Notes on Australian Science Fiction 2001; (p. 101-104)

— Review of The Invasion W. H. Walker , 1877 single work novel ; The Last of Six : Tales of the Austral Tropics Ernest Favenc , 1893 selected work short story ; Ashes : A Tale of Two Spheres Hume Nisbet , 1890 single work novel ; The Harlequin Opal Fergus Hume , 1893 single work novel ; A Son of Perdition : An Occult Romance Fergus Hume , 1912 single work novel ; The Gentleman Who Vanished : A Psychological Phantasy Fergus Hume , 1890 single work novel ; My Weird Wooing David Fowler , 1887 single work novel ; The Clairaudient : A Story of Psychical Research C. Ernest Robin , 1896 single work novel ; Aerial and Terrestrial Transit : An Inquiry Thereinto by a Paid Select Committee of Members of Parliament, Elected by Members of Parliament : Qualifications:- Strictly Non-professional : A Series of Records of Their Distinguished Labours. Varney Parkes , 1895 single work novel ; Recognition : A Mystery of the Coming Colony Sydney H. Wright , 1895 single work novel ; The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia Kenneth Mackay , 1895 single work novel ; Artabanzanus : The Demon of the Great Lake : An Allegorical Romance of Tasmania William M. Ferrar , 1896 single work novel
Australia's Coming War 1896 single work review
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 4 January vol. 16 no. 829 1896; (p. 2)

— Review of The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia Kenneth Mackay , 1895 single work novel
Those Foreign Devils Russell Blackford , 2003 single work review
— Appears in: Science Fiction Studies , November vol. 30 no. 3 2003; (p. 517-520)

— Review of The Yellow Wave : A Romance of the Asiatic Invasion of Australia Kenneth Mackay , 1895 single work novel
Australian Science Fiction : In Search of the 'Feel' Dorotta Guttfeld , 2007-2008 single work criticism
— Appears in: Zeitschrift fur Australienstudien , no. 21-22 2007-2008; (p. 65-72)
The Fiction of the Future : Australian Science Fiction Russell Blackford , 2012 single work criticism
— Appears in: Sold by the Millions : Australia's Bestsellers 2012; (p. 128-140)
'According to Russell Blackford 'commercial science fiction is the most international of literary forms.' He observes that 'Australian SF continues to flourish, even if it trails heroic fantasy in mass-market appeal.' Australian SF writers although published internationally, with a dedicated fan followings in USA, UK and Europe, were overlooked for a very long time by Australian multinational publishers. The international editions had to be imported and were then distributed in Australia (Congreve and Marquardt 8). Blackford in his chapter throws light on the history of Australian SF and observes how Australian SF writers, with their concern for the future, achieved a powerful synthesis in form and content. The progress of Australian SF, maturity of style in the work of younger writers, and massive worldwide sales make Blackford optimistic as he asserts that 'the best Australian writers in the genre will be prominent players on the world stage.' (Editor's foreword xii-xiii)
The Creativity of War Planners : Armed Forces Professionals and the Pre-1914 British Invasion-Scare Genre A. Michael Matin , 2011 single work criticism
— Appears in: ELH , Winter vol. 78 no. 4 2011; (p. 801-862)
'This essay elucidates fundamental aspects of pre-1914 British invasion narratives. Under investigation are examples of the genre written by armed forces professionals who endeavored to stimulate support for increased military and/or naval expenditures as well as to make their cases for specific approaches to warfare. The essay has several aims: to sketch the debates in which such fictional texts were designed to intervene; to identify the salient characteristics of this literary form (ten motifs are distilled from more than one hundred texts); and to assess how the prognostications of these narratives compare with the battlefield reality of World War One.' (Author's abstract)
'The Yellow Peril,' Invasion Scare Novels and Australian Political Culture Neville Meaney , 1996 single work criticism biography
— Appears in: The 1890s : Australian Literature and Literary Culture 1996; (p. 228-263)
Surfing the Yellow Wave : Kenneth Mackay Sights the First AIF Peter Pierce , 2013 single work criticism
— Appears in: Telling Stories : Australian Life and Literature 1935–2012 2013; (p. 161-167)
Last amended 20 Jun 2016 14:29:15
Subjects:
  • c
    Russia,
    c
    c
    Former Soviet Union,
    c
    Eastern Europe, Europe,
  • c
    China,
    c
    East Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
Settings:
  • c
    Australia,
    c
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