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"Stunningly written. . . . A satire of exquisite poise and confidence."—The Age
A black comedy set in a new housing estate on the outskirts of a city, Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe, Wayne Macauley's first novel, is a biting take on the great Australian dream of owning your own home.
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About the Author:
Wayne Macauley: Wayne Macauley lives in Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of three highly acclaimed novels, Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe, Caravan Story and The Cook, and a short-fiction collection, Other Stories.
www.waynemacauley.com
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www.waynemacauley.com
It had rained for three days solid, in some places the creek had already burst its banks; she'd waited for nightfall, a night with no moon. No-one can say how spectacularly unsuccessful the launching was, no-one was there on that dark night to bear witness. Though the remnants of the canoe were found the following day wrapped crazily around an overhanging branch almost a kilometre downstream, there is little point speculating on how much of the journey was made on the surface as hoped and how much of it tumbling in the putrid waters beneath. The body itself outdistanced the canoe by a kilometre and a half and was recovered two days later wedged between the root of a tree and the grey mud of the bank. It wore, ridiculously, the uniform prescribed; the rabbit skin hat still held in place by a chin-strap, the jacket still neatly buttoned.
I was asked into town to sign some papers and I drove there dazed and shaken. Patterson himself seemed genuinely upset. It was, we both knew, a strange and futile end to a strange and futile saga. Little was said, little could be said; I saw the body, identified her as Jodie and drove back home with the image of her blood-drained face and quiet closed-forever eyes before me.
The rain wouldn't stop, it came down in endless thin silver ropes, pelting the roof and bursting out of the gutters; it was washing everything, washing everything clean, the whole sad sorry story, across the paddocks and ruins, from trickles to rivulets to the creek into the far-off sea. That night, as I sat down at my table and prepared to break the news to Michael, I knew, at last, that my days here were done.
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- PublisherText Publishing Company
- Publication date2013
- ISBN 10 1922079111
- ISBN 13 9781922079114
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages208
- Rating
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Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe (Paperback)
Published by
Text Publishing, Melbourne
(2012)
ISBN 10: 1922079111
ISBN 13: 9781922079114
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. A black comedy set in a new housing estate on the outskirts of Melbourne.Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is leftincluding Bram, One-eyed Michael, and Michaels self-possessed daughter Jodie. As the disused houses crumble around them they barricade themselves in. They have a gun, a bulldozer, and a hellbent determination to stay till the end, whatever, whenever, that is. But the authorities have other ideas. Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe, Wayne Macauleys first novel, is a bitingly dark take on the great Australian dream. Fable-like, effortlessly readable and ultimately moving, it shows us in full measure the depth of Macauleys talent. Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is left Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781922079114
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Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe (Paperback)
Published by
Text Publishing, Melbourne
(2012)
ISBN 10: 1922079111
ISBN 13: 9781922079114
New
Paperback
Quantity: 1
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Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. A black comedy set in a new housing estate on the outskirts of Melbourne.Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is leftincluding Bram, One-eyed Michael, and Michaels self-possessed daughter Jodie. As the disused houses crumble around them they barricade themselves in. They have a gun, a bulldozer, and a hellbent determination to stay till the end, whatever, whenever, that is. But the authorities have other ideas. Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe, Wayne Macauleys first novel, is a bitingly dark take on the great Australian dream. Fable-like, effortlessly readable and ultimately moving, it shows us in full measure the depth of Macauleys talent. Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is left Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781922079114
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Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe (Paperback)
Published by
Text Publishing, Melbourne
(2012)
ISBN 10: 1922079111
ISBN 13: 9781922079114
New
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. A black comedy set in a new housing estate on the outskirts of Melbourne.Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is leftincluding Bram, One-eyed Michael, and Michaels self-possessed daughter Jodie. As the disused houses crumble around them they barricade themselves in. They have a gun, a bulldozer, and a hellbent determination to stay till the end, whatever, whenever, that is. But the authorities have other ideas. Blueprints for a Barbed-Wire Canoe, Wayne Macauleys first novel, is a bitingly dark take on the great Australian dream. Fable-like, effortlessly readable and ultimately moving, it shows us in full measure the depth of Macauleys talent. Bram and his fellow residents are drawn by a dream: the promise of a freeway leading to a new suburb north of the city. The houses are built, but the freeway never comes. One by one, the dreamers leave, until only a small, hardcore group is left Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781922079114
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