Advances

Vale Jacob Rosenberg (1922 – 2008)

The presence of octogenarians and even nonagenarians on publishers’ lists is one phenomenon of the age. Sybille Bedford gave us her exotic memoir, Quicksands (2005), in her ninety-fourth year. P.D. James, aged eighty-eight, has just published another novel, The Private Patient.

The Melbourne writer Jacob Rosenberg, who died on October 30, was not quite that old, but in some ways he seemed as old as the accursed century that he wrote about so memorably. Rosenberg was born in Poland in 1922. During World War II he was confined in the Lodz Ghetto, then transported to Auschwitz. In 1948 he emigrated to Australia with his wife, Esther.

Jonathon Otis – a true believer

The winner of the 2008 ABR Reviewing Competition is Jonathon Otis for his review of Julian Barnes’s memoir, Nothing to Be Frightened Of. Mr Otis receives $1000 and future commissions in the magazine. Second prize, valued at $250, goes to Elizabeth Campbell for her review of Brook Emery’s poetry collection Uncommon Light. Third prize, a set of Black Inc. books, goes to Alexis Harley for her review of Janet Frame’s novel Towards Another Summer.

The competition attracted 150 entries – a forty per cent increase from 2005. The selection of subjects under review was impressively vast, ranging from national and international fiction to ethics, the economy and even gastronomy. Religion, notably, was a popular subject; we received numerous reviews of Christopher Hitchens. There were multiple reviews of Ian McEwan and J.M. Coetzee. Interestingly, death was a popular subject.

Peter Rose judged the competition with Rebecca Starford. The Editor remarked: ‘This competition gets better and better. I’m pleased we attracted more entries, but the main purpose of this competition is to foster greater interest in the art of reviewing, to encourage new reviewers and to replenish the ranks of Australian critics. The standard this year was markedly higher than in previous years; the long list was extensive. We have identified about two dozen new reviewers for ABR. We’ll certainly present this award again in 2009.’

Jonathan Otis, a Melbourne-based writer with an abiding interest in genre, had this to say on learning of his win: ‘I feel a quiet, comforting elation. I am a true believer in literature’s life-affirming qualities. For me, ABR exemplifies vigilance through art in Australia. I am thrilled to have won the competition and for the opportunity to contribute to such an esteemed literary review.’

Jonathon Otis’s review appears on page 42. He will write for us again in 2009.

Nine years ago Oxford University Press (UK) abandoned its vaunted poetry series, the Oxford Poets. This was a bitter business, much criticised around the world. Among the featured poets were Basil Bunting, Fleur Adcock, D.J. Enright and Gwen Harwood. Much of Peter Porter’s poetry appeared in the series, including his Collected Poems (1999), published just before the controversial sell-off. Some of the original poets, and collections, now appear in Oxford-Poets, an imprint of Carcanet Press. These include Joseph Brodsky’s Collected Poems in English and Elaine Feinstein’s great edition of Marina Tsvetaeva’s Selected Poems. Chris Wallace-Crabbe’s new collection, Telling a Hawk from a Handsaw, appears in Oxford Poets. Readers will recognise several poems which first appeared in ABR. Peter Porter is quoted on the back cover: ‘[Chris Wallace-Crabbe’s] allies are words and he uses them with the care of a surgeon and the flair of a conjuror.’

There is lots of movement in Creative Writing at the University of Adelaide, with the appointment of Brian Castro as Professor of Creative Writing. Castro, whose novels include Birds of Passage (1983) and Shanghai Dancing (2003), becomes the third person to hold this rare chair in Creative Writing. Tom Shapcott held it for many years, and was followed by Nicholas Jose, who has just been appointed to the chair of Australian Studies at Harvard University, which he will take up in 2009. Creative Writing is clearly in vogue at Adelaide: Sydney poet Jill Jones, formerly of the Literature Board of the Australia Council, and a frequent contributor to ABR, has been lured there. Brian Castro, interviewed in the Australian on 30 April, recalled that when he studied English literature at the University of Sydney in the early 1970s, one writer came to talk to the students, only to remark, ‘You should be home writing’. Gone are the days.

Ross Clark Wins The 2008 ABR Poetry Prize

The menace of lantana has not prevented Ross Clark from carrying off the fourth ABR Poetry Prize. Mr Clark wins $3000 for his poem entitled 'Danger: Lantana', which was published in the March issue with the four other shortlisted poems.

Ross Clark is no stranger to the ABR Poetry Prize. His poem 'Full-Bucket Moon' was shortlisted in last year's competition, which was eventually won by Alex Skovron.

After a career as a high-school teacher, Ross Clark now teaches in two Queensland universities. He is the author of seven volumes of poetry and two chapbooks. Janet Upcher reviewed his latest collection, Salt Flung into the Sky (2007), in the March 2008 issue. Reacting to his win, Ross Clark commented: 'Both shortlisted poems created memories within rural settings; the former's fictionality is more obvious, but both poems are songs made from the sweepings of my mind, both begin in the rag-and-bone shop of history and locality. I'm thrilled to have won, and hope the readers of ABR will hear the creek flowing again in these words.'

300 and all that!

Next month marks the 300^th issue of ABR. We’re feeling very generous as we approach this milestone. We invite current subscribers to give away a free six-month subscription to ABR when they renew. This is your chance to introduce a friend or colleague to ABR (recipients of these gifts must not be current or recently lapsed subscribers). All you have to do is to complete the cover sheet accompanying the March issue or contact the Office Manager on (03) 9429 6700 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Any current subscriber can take up this special offer if they renew now: your subscription doesn’t have to lapse this month for you to be eligible.

Two Essayists Share $10,000 Prize

This year’s Calibre Prize for an Outstanding Essay has been won by Rachel Robertson and Mark Tredinnick. This is the first time that the Calibre Prize – a joint initiative of ABR and of the Copyright Agency Limited – has been shared (last year’s winner, in the inaugural year, was Elisabeth Holdsworth).

One hundred and twenty-seven essayists entered the competition, an increase on last year. The judges on this occasion were Kerryn Goldsworthy (a former Editor of ABR), Paul Hetherington (Director, Publications and Events, National Library of Australia) and Peter Rose (Editor of ABR). Their choice was not an easy one. Eighteen essays were long-listed, across a range of essayistic genres, from the personal, the speculative and the journalistic to the political and the historical. More so than last year, ecological and environmental themes were prominent, as if a decisive review of priorities and menaces is under way in the popular imagination.

Three Companions

It is now thirteen years since OUP Australia published the second edition of The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature (nine years after ‘Whitlam, Edward Gough’ launched the first edition). Peter Pierce, generally welcomed OCAL2 in his ABR review (‘A bountiful companion’, December 1994– January 1995): ‘The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature may be a touch too reverential towards its subject, but has enriched its study.’

In its short life the ABR Poetry Prize has become one of the most prestigious poetry competitions in the country. Now it is even more lucrative, with combined prizes of $4000 and a first prize of $3000. Entries are invited for the fourth ABR Poetry Prize. Full details and the entry form appear on page 15 and on our website. Poets have until December 15 to enter. The previous winners were Stephen Edgar, Alex Skovron and Judith Bishop. Advances was pleased to see that the latter’s poem ‘Still Life with Cockles and Shells’, which won the 2006 ABR Poetry Prize, has been included in The Best Australian Poetry 2007 (UQP), edited by John Tranter.