Bushman and Bookworm: Letters of Joseph Furphy

This collection of 250 letters, written by Joseph Furphy over the last 30 years of his life, who once described himself as 'half-bushman and half-bookworm'. Through these letters the reader can trace the life of the bullocky-cum-foundry worker who, against the odds, wrote a national classic. They reveal this unusual man in the most important relationships of his life: with his mother who outlived him; with Kate Baker, the schoolteacher twenty years his junior, who loved him and believed in his genius; with William Cathels, the fellow-blacksmith and autodidact to whose learning he always deferred; with A. G. Stephens, the imperious critic, who recognized the worth of Such is Life and supervised its publication; and, most interesting of all, with Miles Franklin, the young author of My Brilliant Career towards whom he was deeply attracted. Readers familiar with Such is Life will find that their understanding and enjoyment of that idiosyncratic book will be extended and deepened by a reading of these letters. Readers unfamiliar with Such is Life will find these letters a fascinating introduction to a remarkable man and his writing.

John Barnes is Professor of English at La Trobe University and holds masters degrees from the Universities of Melbourne and Cambridge. He is the author and editor of several books on Australian writers.