image of person or book cover 593274051198050973.jpg
Cover image courtesy of publisher.
y separately published work icon The Daughters of Mars single work   novel   historical fiction  
Issue Details: First known date: 2012... 2012 The Daughters of Mars
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'In 1915 sisters Naomi and Sally Durance answer a call for nurses to join the war effort. They are escaping the family dairy farm in the Macleay Valley, and they carry a secret with them. Soon they are in Egypt, where they are put to work on the Red Cross hospital ship Archimedes as it patrols the Dardanelles. On Archimedes they witness Mars in all his ferocity, as he pummels soldiers in the massive, brutal metal brawl that is Gallipoli. Yet the sisters and their newfound nursing friends, with whom they will witness undreamt-of carnage and take care of unspeakably blighted men, find themselves courageous in the face of the horror.

'Naomi, Sally and their gang are then sent to northern Europe, where Naomi nurses in the visionary Australian Voluntary Hospital run by the committed and eccentric Lady Tarlton, and Sally in a casualty clearing station next to the Western Front. Here, again, they must face the inhumanity of war in its many terrible guises - where trench warfare and gas abound. But it is here, too, that the sisters meet the remarkable men with whom they wish to spend the rest of their lives.

'Inspired by journals of Australian nursing sisters who gave their all to the Great War effort and the men they nursed, The Daughters Of Mars is vast in scope yet extraordinarily intimate. This is Keneally at the height of his storytelling powers; a stunning tour de force to join the best of First World War literature, and one that casts a fresh light on the challenges faced by the Australian men and women who voluntarily risked their lives for peace.' (From the publisher's website.)

Notes

  • Dedication:
    To the two nurses,
    Judith and Jane
  • This title was selected in the December 2013 Library Journal Top 5 : Best Books - Historical Fiction

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • North Sydney, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,: Vintage Australia , 2012 .
      image of person or book cover 593274051198050973.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 592p.
      Note/s:
      • Publication date: 1 June 2012.
      ISBN: 9781864712254 (pbk.)
    • London,
      c
      England,
      c
      c
      United Kingdom (UK),
      c
      Western Europe, Europe,
      :
      Sceptre ,
      2012 .
      image of person or book cover 8279746790221411065.jpg
      Image courtesy of publisher's website.
      Extent: 520p.p.
      Reprinted: 23 May 2013 Paperback ed.
      Note/s:
      • Published 25th October 2012.
      ISBN: 9781444716085 (ebk), 9780340951880 (pbk)
    • New York (State),
      c
      United States of America (USA),
      c
      Americas,
      :
      Atria Books ,
      2013 .
      image of person or book cover 8608486116365194998.jpg
      This image has been sourced from online.
      Extent: 517p.
      Description: map
      ISBN: 9781476734613 (hbk), 1476734615 (hbk), 9781476734637 (ebook), 1476734631 (ebook)
    • North Sydney, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,: Vintage Australia , 2013 .
      image of person or book cover 3201396734389213414.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 592p.
      Note/s:
      • Published 3 June 2013
      ISBN: 9781864712261
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Penguin , 2018 .
      image of person or book cover 1886318724534924670.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 608p.
      Note/s:
      • Published 19 March 2018

      ISBN: 9780143790822
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Penguin , 2024 .
      image of person or book cover 2960882496929592341.jpg
      This image has been sourced from Amazon
      Extent: 608p.
      Note/s:
      • Published February 2024
      ISBN: 9781761341434
Alternative title: Дочери Марса
Transliterated title: Docheri Marsa
Language: Russian

Other Formats

  • Sound recording.
  • Large print.

Works about this Work

The Art in Fiction : Thomas Keneally Paul Sharrad , 2023 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Journal of Commonwealth Literature , June vol. 58 no. 2 2023; (p. 280–292)

'The article picks up references to novelist Thomas Keneally’s interest in painting and tracks his uses of artists and painting in selected fiction. Visual art supplies style and thematic depth to Bring Larks and Heroes, is integral to the complexity underpinning the murder-mystery of A Victim of the Aurora, allows narrative perspective and structural coherence in Confederates, and connects with elements in The Daughters of Mars that echo the novelist’s positioning of his work across both Europe and Australia, and between commercial and literary fiction.' (Publication abstract)

History Writ Large Jane Sullivan , 2013 single work column
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 23 March 2013; (p. 34)
Review : The Daughters of Mars Richard Scott Carr , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: Antipodes , December vol. 27 no. 2 2013; (p. 220-221)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
Witness to War Alan Riding , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: The New York Times Book Review , 18 August 2013; (p. BR15)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
A Year of Experimentation: Australian Fiction Moving On Nigel Krauth , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: Editor's Desk - 2013 2013; Westerly , June vol. 58 no. 1 2013; (p. 92-108)
Sisters in War Peter Pierce , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 2 June 2012; (p. 19)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
Where Angels Fear to Tread A. P. Riemer , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 2-3 June 2012; (p. 37)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
Endurance Phil Brown , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , June no. 342 2012; (p. 22)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
Books Phil Brown , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Brisbane News , 6 - 12 June no. 885 2012; (p. 26)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel ; My Hundred Lovers Susan Johnson , 2012 single work novel
[Review] The Daughters of Mars Julie Thomson , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 9 June 2012; (p. 22)

— Review of The Daughters of Mars Thomas Keneally , 2012 single work novel
History Writ Large Jane Sullivan , 2013 single work column
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 23 March 2013; (p. 34)
A Year of Experimentation: Australian Fiction Moving On Nigel Krauth , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: Editor's Desk - 2013 2013; Westerly , June vol. 58 no. 1 2013; (p. 92-108)
The Art in Fiction : Thomas Keneally Paul Sharrad , 2023 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Journal of Commonwealth Literature , June vol. 58 no. 2 2023; (p. 280–292)

'The article picks up references to novelist Thomas Keneally’s interest in painting and tracks his uses of artists and painting in selected fiction. Visual art supplies style and thematic depth to Bring Larks and Heroes, is integral to the complexity underpinning the murder-mystery of A Victim of the Aurora, allows narrative perspective and structural coherence in Confederates, and connects with elements in The Daughters of Mars that echo the novelist’s positioning of his work across both Europe and Australia, and between commercial and literary fiction.' (Publication abstract)

Last amended 24 Oct 2023 10:45:06
Settings:
  • c
    Egypt,
    c
    North Africa, Africa,
  • Gallipoli,
    c
    Turkey,
    c
    Middle East, Asia,
  • Western Europe, Europe,
  • London,
    c
    England,
    c
    c
    United Kingdom (UK),
    c
    Western Europe, Europe,
  • Kempsey area, Mid North Coast, New South Wales,
  • 1910s
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