Short Stories. Up and Down Australia is the first published collection of Arthur W Upfield's short works. Kees de Hoog has selected 33 fiction stories written by Upfield from 1926 to 1940, including the only known Bony short story, and has added the unfinished first chapter for another Bony novel. There are also comedies, crime fiction, adventure stories and dire tales about the dangers of living and working in the bush.
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Oct 15, 2009
"Up and Down Australia, by Arthur Upfield; edited by Kees de Hoog" I am grateful to Kees de Hoog for his service to Arthur Upfield enthusiasts in collecting thirty-three of Upfield's short stories (and one novel fragment) in the new volume called "Up and Down Australia." The stories included vividly demonstrate Upfield's experimentation in the "local color" genre as a prelude to his mastery of cross-cultural detective fiction. My favorite is "Why Markham Bought a Radio Set," in which an aboriginal rain-maker coordinates his ceremonial work with the aid of a battery-powered wireless, of the sort that was shunned by Markham, the local stockman, in the mid-1920s. I hope a similarly worthwhile sample of Upfield's non-fiction works will be forthcoming.
