{"product_id":"personal-best-2-stories-and-statements-by-australian-writers-edited-by-garry-disher","title":"'Personal Best 2: Stories and Statements by Australian Writers' edited by Garry Disher","description":"\u003ch4 data-start=\"92\" data-end=\"706\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA rare snapshot of a literary culture thinking aloud: authors discussing process, influence and intention before allowing the fiction to speak for itself.\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"92\" data-end=\"706\"\u003ePublished at a moment when Australian literature was shedding the lingering expectation that it explain or mythologise the nation, \u003cem data-start=\"223\" data-end=\"240\"\u003ePersonal Best 2\u003c\/em\u003e brings together thirty-five writers reflecting on their own work before presenting a single story. Read together, the pieces form an informal map of Australian writing at the beginning of the 1990s, revealing an extraordinary range of styles, preoccupations and regional voices.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"708\" data-end=\"1282\"\u003eThe list of contributors is remarkable. Peter Carey, Bruce Pascoe, Marion Halligan, Kris Hemensley, Peter Corris, Vasso Kalamaras, Damian Broderick, Ania Walwicz, Brian Dibble and many others appear alongside writers who deserve far wider recognition today. The accompanying statements are often as compelling as the stories themselves, offering concise reflections on craft, memory, politics and the strange business of making fiction. Rather than retrospective essays, they feel immediate and provisional, capturing writers mid-career before later reputations had settled.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1284\" data-end=\"1504\"\u003eAn engaging document of Australian literary history, and a rewarding collection for readers interested in contemporary fiction, creative practice, or the diverse landscape of Australian writing beyond the familiar canon.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1531\" data-end=\"1631\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst edition, first printing. Angus \u0026amp; Robertson \/ Imprint, 1991. Paperback, edited by Garry Disher. Very good condition. Clean, bright copy with only light shelf wear to the covers. Binding firm and pages crisp throughout.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"bower books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45812709916755,"sku":null,"price":14.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0689\/0268\/2707\/files\/Yourparagraphtext-2026-07-12T162741.482.png?v=1783907164","url":"https:\/\/bowerbooks.com\/products\/personal-best-2-stories-and-statements-by-australian-writers-edited-by-garry-disher","provider":"bower books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}