y separately published work icon Sydney Review of Books website   periodical   review  
Date: 2023-
Date: 2015-2023
Date: 2013-2015
Issue Details: First known date: 2013... 2013 Sydney Review of Books
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The Sydney Review of Books is an online journal devoted to long-form literary criticism. It is motivated by the belief that in-depth analysis and robust critical discussion are crucial to the development of Australia's literary culture. We decided to embark on this project because of our concerns about the reduced space for serious literary criticism in the mainstream media, and the newspapers in particular, given their uncertain future. We intend the Sydney Review of Books to be a venue in which Australian writers and critics can engage with books at length, a venue in which to rediscover the intimate connection between the art of criticism and the art of the essay. The Review's focus is Australian writing, but it will also consider the work of overseas authors.' (Source: sydneyreviewofbooks.com/about/ )

Notes

  • Editorial board (2013) : Chris Andrews, Kerryn Goldsworthy, Ivor Indyk, Gail Jones, David Malouf, Nicholas Jose, Hazel Smith, Anthony Uhlmann

Contents

* Contents derived from the Sydney, New South Wales,:Sydney Review of Books , 2013- version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Writing NSW, series - publisher essay

A Sydney Review of Books series devoted to place.

New Nature, series - publisher essay

In this series 'critics, essayists, poets, artists and scholars to reflect on nature in the twenty-first century and to grapple with the literary conventions of writing nature. ' 

Coming in from the Cold, Katie Dobbs , review
— Review of There Was Still Love Favel Parrett , 2019 single work novel ;

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

First known date: 2013

Works about this Work

A Decade of Complaints Catriona Menzies-Pike , 2023 single work criticism
— Appears in: Australian Literary Studies , 31 October vol. 38 no. 2 2023;

'This paper presents the Sydney Review of Books, which I edited, as a case study in the intersecting conflicts about value in contemporary Australian literature. It is a patchy and highly partial account of negative feedback and complaints that I have received about the SRB, especially those that bear on the question of what criticism should do, a topic that is never far from the question of what literature is for. Some generic complaints that fall within the scope of this paper: the publication of negative reviews, the failure to publish enough negative reviews; the deliberate scuttling the sales of authors by way of negative reviews; infelicitous pairings of critics and books; writing that is too scholarly or theoretical, writing that is insufficiently scholarly; too many reviews of Australian books, not enough reviews of Australian books, the failure to review certain books; the publication of critical writing that is insufficiently analytical, critical writing that shirks evaluation; the capitulation to identity politics/cancel culture/political correctness, the failure to represent the diversity of Australian literary culture. A journal of criticism that did not field highly critical feedback would be a dull enterprise. What these complaints reveal is a set of conflicts between audiences and, dare I say, stakeholders, around the economic, social and aesthetic value of literature. I am sorry to say that it will all be anonymised – and that reflects the great breach between what Australian critics, writers and readers are willing to say in public about the value of literature, and what gets said in private channels. As ceaseless proclamations about the value of contemporary Australian literature bolster an increasingly hyperbolic public discourse about Australian literature, narratives of crisis and decline circulate in the backchannels.' (Publication abstract)

Sydney Review of Books’ Catriona Menzies-Pike on What Makes a Great Critic Alan Vaarwerk (interviewer), 2023 single work interview
— Appears in: Kill Your Darlings [Online] , March 2023;
y separately published work icon The Australian Face : Essays from the Sydney Review of Books James Ley (editor), Catriona Menzies-Pike (editor), Artarmon : Sydney Review of Books Giramondo Publishing , 2017 12141177 2017 anthology essay

'The Sydney Review of Books is Australia’s leading space for longform literary criticism. Now celebrating five years online, the SRB has published more than five hundred essays by almost two hundred writers. To mark this occasion, The Australian Face collects some of the best essays published in the SRB on Australian fiction, poetry and non-fiction. The essays in this anthology are contributions to the ongoing argument about the condition and purpose and evolving shape of Australian literature. They reflect the ways in which discussions about the state of the literary culture are constantly reaching beyond themselves to consider wider cultural and political issues.

'The Sydney Review of Books was established in 2013 out of frustration at the diminishing public space for Australian criticism on literature. There’s even less space for literature in our newspapers and broadcast media now. The Sydney Review of Books, however, is thriving, as the essays in The Australian Face show. Here, you’ll read essays on well-known figures such as Christos Tsiolkas, Alexis Wright, Michelle de Kretser and Helen Garner, alongside considerations of the work of writers who less frequently receive mainstream attention, such as Lesbia Harford and Moya Costello.' (Publication summary)

The Future of Magazines 2014 single work column
— Appears in: Overland , Spring no. 216 2014; (p. 19-24)
Venue Appears to Fill Vacancy in Critical Life Luke Slattery , 2013 single work column
— Appears in: The Australian , 8 February 2013; (p. 3)
Venue Appears to Fill Vacancy in Critical Life Luke Slattery , 2013 single work column
— Appears in: The Australian , 8 February 2013; (p. 3)
The Future of Magazines 2014 single work column
— Appears in: Overland , Spring no. 216 2014; (p. 19-24)
y separately published work icon The Australian Face : Essays from the Sydney Review of Books James Ley (editor), Catriona Menzies-Pike (editor), Artarmon : Sydney Review of Books Giramondo Publishing , 2017 12141177 2017 anthology essay

'The Sydney Review of Books is Australia’s leading space for longform literary criticism. Now celebrating five years online, the SRB has published more than five hundred essays by almost two hundred writers. To mark this occasion, The Australian Face collects some of the best essays published in the SRB on Australian fiction, poetry and non-fiction. The essays in this anthology are contributions to the ongoing argument about the condition and purpose and evolving shape of Australian literature. They reflect the ways in which discussions about the state of the literary culture are constantly reaching beyond themselves to consider wider cultural and political issues.

'The Sydney Review of Books was established in 2013 out of frustration at the diminishing public space for Australian criticism on literature. There’s even less space for literature in our newspapers and broadcast media now. The Sydney Review of Books, however, is thriving, as the essays in The Australian Face show. Here, you’ll read essays on well-known figures such as Christos Tsiolkas, Alexis Wright, Michelle de Kretser and Helen Garner, alongside considerations of the work of writers who less frequently receive mainstream attention, such as Lesbia Harford and Moya Costello.' (Publication summary)

Good Books Can Die from Neglect : Interview with James Ley 2013 single work interview
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2013;
Sydney Review of Books’ Catriona Menzies-Pike on What Makes a Great Critic Alan Vaarwerk (interviewer), 2023 single work interview
— Appears in: Kill Your Darlings [Online] , March 2023;

Awards

2024 recipient The Copyright Agency Cultural Fund Cultural Fund Grants for Organisations CA-SRB Emerging Critics Fellowships 2025-26
2021 recipient Australia Council Grants, Awards and Fellowships Re-imagine: Sector Recovery Initiatives for a weekly newletter aggregating non-fiction published in other literary journals.
2020 recipient The Copyright Agency Cultural Fund Cultural Fund Grants for Organisations Two grants, one in July (Commission 20 writers each year to write substantial review essays on new works of Australian literature) and one in November (Sydney Review of Books, expand the review coverage of Australian non-fiction).
2020 recipient Create NSW $50,000: To support its delivery of ‘a vibrant program of review and feature essays authored by the best writers in Australia and NSW in 2021–2024’. SRB said, ‘We will continue to support local writers through fellowships and residencies, and we will broaden our audience engagement through increased public programming and regional outreach.’
2019 recipient The Copyright Agency Cultural Fund Emerging Critics $49,500 for its Emerging Critics Fellowships over three years
Last amended 14 Apr 2023 14:31:26
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