Issue Details: First known date: 2011... 2011 Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Written over a period of fifteen years, the essays in this collection showcase the adult non-fiction work of Sophie Masson, an author mostly for her novels for young people. A warmly human mosaic of stories, a sharp eye for nature, an eclectic love of literature, a clarity of expression, a deep immersion in myth and legend and a taste for the curious, unexpected and strange: these are some of the characteristics of the essays. Ranging freely over time, place, and themes as diverse as Melbourne ganglands, tyrants and sorcery, Russian history, French country life, children's books and the nature of faith, they offer imaginative and intriguing glimpses into worlds mostly out of the mainstream.' (Publisher's blurb)

Notes

  • Essays outside the Scope of AustLit include:

    • Agatha Christie and the French (135-140)
    • Russia By the Book (176-180)
    • Harry Potter: The Literary Phenomenon of a Generation (186-197)
    • Vale, Lloyd Alexander (204-208)
    • Wicked Sheriff and Outlaw Lord (224-232)
    • Fatherless Sons : Arthurian Heroes (233-245)
    • Captive in Fairyland (246-259)
    • The Narrow and the Numinous (260-275)
    • Tyrants and Sorcery (276-296)

Contents

* Contents derived from the Sydney, New South Wales,:Quadrant Books , 2011 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Glimpses of a French Village Childhood, Sophie Masson , single work autobiography (p. 5-23)
Du Cote de Chez Irma, Sophie Masson , single work prose (p. 24-31)
The Haunting, Sophie Masson , single work autobiography (p. 32-39)
The Eyes of the Icon, Sophie Masson , single work autobiography
'Three icons hung on my parents' bedroom walls when I was a child. Two were Russian, one Greek. The Greek one was my favourite. It depicted St George and the Dragon, the painting on the wood overlaid by a sheet of beaten, carved silver metal, so that George was clothed in armour, and the dragon in shining scales. Saints' stories, in general, didn't attract me; the romantic, thrillseeking, dreamy child that I was vastly preferred stories of knights and ladies, wizards and fairies. I found many of the saints either dull or weird; but St George, as he was represented on the icon, was different. He was like a knight, slaying a monstrous beast; he could be tied in to the stories I loved, of Arthur fighting monsters, of Perseus slaying the dragon. This icon appealed to my father, too, though my mother thought it overdone and veering dangerously close to the fantasy she rejected.' (Author's abstract)
(p. 40-58)
Becoming a Writer, Sophie Masson , single work prose (p. 59-69)
Learning Gaelic, Sophie Masson , single work biography (p. 70-77)
Coda, Sophie Masson , extract prose (p. 78-83)
Other Peoples 's Photographs, Sophie Masson , single work prose (p. 84-91)
Two New England Pieces, Sophie Masson , selected work autobiography biography (p. 92-99)
Postcards from Paris, Sophie Masson , single work prose travel (p. 120)
School of the Globe, Sophie Masson , single work essay (p. 123-134)
Writers' Festivals, Now and Then, Sophie Masson , single work essay
'Writers' festival have mushroomed in Australia in the last 20 years or so, with festivals big small and in between, general or themed, held in every state and territory and in city and regional areas. It seems the public appetite for these events only grows; and speaking at festivals is an inescapable part of any writer's calendar these days. Internationally, writers' festivals are also growing, and not only in the 'usual suspect' areas; from Bali to Slovenia, all kinds of places are getting in on the act.' (Author's introduction, 141)
(p. 141-144)
A Grand Passion, Sophie Masson , selected work essay biography prose (p. 145-151)
A True Crime Writer of the Golden Age, Sophie Masson , single work essay
'Some of my favourite book finds have come into my hands not by word of mouth or reviews or prior knowledge but by cheer chance: the eccentric jewel suddenly spotted amongst the lucky-dip gimcrack of junk shop and school fete, car boot sale and charity shop shelf. And these days, very often in that virtual combination of all those venues, the Internet.' (Author's introduction, 152)
(p. 152-157)
Adrift in a Perilous Kingdom : Christopher Koch's The Memory Room, Sophie Masson , single work review
— Review of The Memory Room Christopher Koch , 2007 single work novel ;
(p. 158-168)
The Enchanted Female Realm Enchanted Tale Casts Its Spell, Sophie Masson , single work review
— Review of The Lake Woman : A Romance Alan Gould , 2009 single work novel ;
(p. 169-171)
Note: With title: The Enchanted Female Realm
Russia by the Book, Sophie Masson , single work prose travel (p. 176-180)
Why Do You Write for Children?, Sophie Masson , single work column (p. 181-185)
A Cat's Life, Sophie Masson , single work essay
'If you were a bookwork as a child, your memories are measured not only in family or school or public events, but in stories you read. You remember vividly the smell, the touch, the sight of certain books. You clearly remember picking them up from the shelf - an ordinary act - and thenthe extraordinary happening as you open the book and fall straight into another world. The pure pleasure of it, the immediate liberation. For me, who loved fairytales and fantasy, who longed to go through looking-glass, the wardrobe, stepping through the borders into another world, where anything might happen, it was also a blessed escape from the confusing, disturbing and tumultuous family dramas that dominated my childhood. In those stories of another worlds, I found pleasure and consolation, transformation and possibility. And I found my own calling as a writer.' (Author's introduction, 198)
(p. 198-203)
Angels, Fairies and Aliens, Sophie Masson , single work essay
An essay on the strange kinship of three vivid myths
(p. 211-223)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Works about this Work

[Untitled] Colin Steele , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: Biblionews and Australian Notes and Queries , March - June no. 377/378 2013;

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
In Defence of Libraries Colin Steele , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 16 June 2012; (p. 26)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
Coming out of the Wardrobe to Real and Imagined Worlds Gillian Wills , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 9-10 June 2012; (p. 24-25)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
Non-Fiction Fiona Capp , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 14 April 2012; (p. 30)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay ; Letter from My Father Dasia Black-Gutman , 2012 single work autobiography
Non-Fiction Fiona Capp , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 14 April 2012; (p. 30)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay ; Letter from My Father Dasia Black-Gutman , 2012 single work autobiography
Coming out of the Wardrobe to Real and Imagined Worlds Gillian Wills , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 9-10 June 2012; (p. 24-25)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
In Defence of Libraries Colin Steele , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 16 June 2012; (p. 26)

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
[Untitled] Colin Steele , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: Biblionews and Australian Notes and Queries , March - June no. 377/378 2013;

— Review of Life, Literature, Legends : Collected Essays 1996-2011 Sophie Masson , 2011 selected work essay
Last amended 16 Apr 2012 14:53:59
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