Reference Reviews

Reference for Students

Dictionary of Literary Biography: Volume Three Hundred Twenty Five, Australian Writers, 1975-2000. Edited by Selina Samuels. Detroit, Mich.: Thomson Gale, 2006. 1 vol. 484 p. $225.00. ISBN 0-7876-8143-1.

It will be the unusual high school literature class that will have time to study many of these 57 Australian authors who have published their first major work after 1975 and before 2000. The starting date reflects the failed movement to convert Australia from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. One interesting point is that many of the authors included are women. Entries begin with the name and birth dates followed by the name and affiliation of the author of the article. A bibliography of the books, scripts, and other literary works are given. Brief biographical information is given interspersed with introductions to some of the works. Black and white photographs of the authors and copies of their dust jackets illustrate the text. At the end of each article interviews are cited as well as references and papers written. The book ends with a 4-page bibliography and a 95-page cumulative index to the first volumes of this series. If teachers can move from studying the great authors of the U.S. and Great Britain, they would appreciate this introduction to authors on another English-speaking continent. You would need to work with teachers to make sure you have copies of the authors’ works.