{"title":"Thea Astley","description":"\u003cp\u003eThea Astley was a remarkable Australian author whose literary legacy continues to captivate readers with her keen insight into human nature and society. Astley’s works are celebrated for their rich expression and deep exploration of the Australian experience, making her an indispensable voice in contemporary literature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eA Kindness Cup\u003c\/em\u003e, Astley delves into the darkness beneath small-town civility, weaving a narrative that is both haunting and compelling. \u003cem\u003eDrylands\u003c\/em\u003e paints a vivid portrait of life in a desolate town, capturing the hopes and despairs of its inhabitants. Meanwhile, \u003cem\u003eIt's Raining in Mango: Popular Penguins\u003c\/em\u003e offers a multi-generational tale that integrates history, culture, and personal stories, underlining the profound connection between people and their environment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eReaching Tin River\u003c\/em\u003e presents an engaging journey through memory and time, while \u003cem\u003eThe Multiple Effects of Rainshadow\u003c\/em\u003e explores themes of conflict and reconciliation, set against the backdrop of Australia’s natural landscapes. Each of these works showcases Astley’s signature style—her wit, lyricism, and sharply observant eye.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis collection of Thea Astley’s novels not only provides an immersive exploration of Australian life but also invites readers to reflect on universal themes of community, identity, and human resilience. Astley’s contributions to general fiction continue to be treasured by readers seeking profound narratives and thoughtful prose.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"drylands-by-thea-astley-9781925603576","title":"Drylands","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst published in 1999, \u003cem\u003eDrylands\u003c\/em\u003e was Thea Astley's fourth and final Miles Franklin winner.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the dying town of Drylands, Janet Deakin sells papers to lonely locals. At night, in her flat above the newsagency, she attempts to write a novel for a world in which no one reads - 'full of people, she envisaged, glaring at a screen that glared glassily back.'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDrylands\u003c\/em\u003e is the story of the townsfolk's harsh, violent lives. Trenchant and brilliant, Thea Astley's final novel is a dark portrait of outback Australia in decline.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46549381120236,"sku":"9781925603576","price":17.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/16361093482873.jpg?v=1749899505"},{"product_id":"its-raining-in-mango-popular-penguins-by-thea-astley-9780143204749","title":"It's Raining in Mango: Popular Penguins","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWresting his family from the easy living of 19th-century Sydney, Cornelius Laffey takes them to northern Queensland where thousands of hopefuls are digging for gold in the mud. They confront the horror of Aboriginal dispossession, and Cornelius is sacked for reporting the slaughter.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eIt's Raining in Mango: Popular Penguins\u003c\/i\u003e is an unforgettable tale of the other side of Australia's heritage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46549562949868,"sku":"9780143204749","price":15.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/26849473482238.jpg?v=1749908026"},{"product_id":"a-kindness-cup-by-thea-astley-9781925603545","title":"A Kindness Cup","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eI told them to go into the scrub and disperse the tribe.\u003cbr\u003e\nDisperse? That is a strange word. What do you mean by dispersing?\u003cbr\u003e\nFiring at them.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTwo decades after a massacre of local Aboriginal people, the former residents of a Queensland town have reunited to celebrate the progress and prosperity of their community. Tom Dorahy, returning to his hometown, is having none of it: he wants those responsible to own up to their actions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA reckoning with oppression, guilt, and the weight of the past, \u003cem\u003eA Kindness Cup\u003c\/em\u003e is one of Thea Astley’s greatest achievements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46608686055660,"sku":"9781925603545","price":17.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/16360783482873.jpg?v=1751518778"},{"product_id":"reaching-tin-river-by-jennifer-down-9781925603552","title":"Reaching Tin River","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA woman becomes obsessed with the story of a long-dead colonial pioneer, and her research becomes a way of coming to terms with her own past.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eResearching in the archives, Belle discovers the long-dead Gaden Lockyer, a colonial pioneer in Jericho Flats, and soon becomes obsessed. Belle's quest for Lockyer is her way of coming to terms with the past—her mother, 'a drummer in her own all-women's group'; her absent American father; and her ineffectual husband, Seb.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eReaching Tin River\u003c\/em\u003e, Thea Astley's satire is at its sharpest and most entertaining.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46671260680428,"sku":"9781925603552","price":17.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/16360853482873.jpg?v=1752808482"},{"product_id":"the-multiple-effects-of-rainshadow-by-thea-astley-9781925603569","title":"The Multiple Effects of Rainshadow","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere are distant shouts, rifle shots, the pounding of feet across the bridge, the sound of running. A woman’s scream carves the night then bubbles away.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1930, the superintendent of a mission on a Queensland island, driven mad by his wife’s death, goes on a murderous rampage. Fearing for their lives, the other whites arm a young Indigenous man and order him to shoot Uncle Boss dead. \u003cem\u003eThe Multiple Effects of Rainshadow\u003c\/em\u003e traces the lead-up to this bloody showdown and the repercussions in the years after—for Aboriginal people and the colonial overseers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46672286613740,"sku":"9781925603569","price":17.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/16361023482873.jpg?v=1752839132"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.live\/collections\/thea-astley.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}