Carpentaria

Desperance clings to the coast of Queensland's remote Gulf country. Its life turns on the Phantom family, who lead the Westend Pricklebush mob: Normal Phantom, a seafarer who preserves fish and keeps his own sense of time; Angel Day, his wife, who rules over the town tip; and Will, their son, a campaigner for Aboriginal land rights against the faceless masters of the giant Gurfurrit mine. The Phantoms feud with old Joseph Midnight's splinter group from the Eastend, with the white powers of Uptown, and with a mining company prepared to use violence and break the law. Around them gather Elias Smith, a stranger cast out by the town, the zealous Mozzie Fishman and Stan Bruiser, a mayor capable of murder, while ancient spirits still stir the sky, the sea and the land.

AI-generated summary

About the book

Form

Novel

Genres

Politics (assigned by AI)

Set in

Australia

First published

2006

Author's age

56 when first published

ISBN

9781920882174 (Giramondo, Australia)

9781845297213 (Constable, United Kingdom)

9781416593102 (Atria Books, United States)

9781845299484 (Constable, United Kingdom)

9780811238038 (New Directions, United States)

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Wikidata