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Praise

By Andrew McGahan
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Check link for latest rating. ( 1,479 ratings, 114 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Praise by Andrew McGahan is a raw and honest exploration of a young man's life in Brisbane, Australia during the late 1980s. The narrative delves into his experiences with love, addiction, and the search for meaning while capturing the gritty and often lonely aspects of his existence. Through introspective prose, the story paints a vivid picture of youth and self-discovery in an urban environment.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you appreciate raw and evocative storytelling that delves into the complexities of youth, relationships, and self-discovery. It offers a vivid exploration of the mundane and extraordinary moments in life, captured with humorous and poignant observations. If character-driven narratives with a gritty edge intrigue you, this could be a compelling choice.

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Bestselling Vogel Award-winning novel about sex, drugs and alcohol - and about being young in Australia.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Winner of the Australian/Vogel's Literary Award 1991.

Praise is an utterly frank and darkly humorous novel about being young in the Australia of the 1990s. A time when the dole was easier to get than a job, when heroin was better known than ecstasy, and when ambition was the dirtiest of words. A time when, for two hopeless souls, sex and dependence were the only lifelines.

"McGahan's book is a bracing slap in the face to conventional platitudes and hypocrisies." - The Australian

"Praise is one of those books that takes a hefty bite out of a piece of subject matter, chews it to a pulp and then spits it out." - Peter Craven

"A tour de force. revelation of life in the slow lane of drugs and sex and alcohol." - The Weekend Australian

Winner of The Australian/Vogel Literary Award and the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book in the Pacific Region. Shortlisted for the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, the Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature and the Canada-Australia Literary Award.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praise by Andrew McGahan offers a raw and honest look into the lives of disaffected youth in Australia. Critics appreciate its gritty depiction of aimlessness and the author's ability to portray complex, flawed characters with authenticity. The novel's minimalist style and unflinching narrative have left a lasting impact, garnering attention for its unvarnished realism and emotional depth.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781741147728

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 September 2005

Country: Australia

Imprint: Allen & Unwin

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 252g

Pages: 288

Collections

Andrew McGahan Fiction General Fiction Literary Fiction

About the Author

Andrew McGahan was born in Dalby, Queensland, and now lives in Victoria. His first novel Praise (1992) won the 1991 The Australian/Vogel Literary Award and the regional prize for best first book in the Commonwealth Writers' Prize. His second novel was the prequel 1988 (1995), and his third novel Last Drinks (2000) was shortlisted for multiple awards, including The Age Book of the Year and the Courier Mail Book of the Year, and won a Ned Kelly award for crime writing. In 2004, The White Earth was published and won the 2005 Miles Franklin Literary Award, the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for the South East Asia and South Pacific region, The Age Book of the Year (Fiction) and the Courier Mail Book of the Year Award. It was also shortlisted for the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards. McGahan's fifth novel, Underground, was published in 2006 and was shortlisted in the Queensland Premier's Prize for fiction and for the Aurealis Award. In 2009, Wonders of a Godless World was published to acclaim and won the Aurealis Award.

McGahan's award-winning writing also includes stage plays and the screenplay for the movie version of Praise.

In 2011, McGahan launched his children's book series, the Ship Kings. The Coming of the Whirlpool was shortlisted for the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year award - older readers, for the Indie Awards, for the WA Premier's Book Award, was a finalist in the Aurealis Awards and was longlisted for the Gold Inky for an Australian YA book. The second novel in the Ship King series - Voyage of the Unquiet Ice was published in 2012.

His final novel, The Rich Man's House, was published in 2019.

Also by Andrew McGahan

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  • The White Earth
    WINNER, Miles Franklin Literary Award WINNER, Commonwealth Writers' Prize for the South East Asia and South Pacific region WINNER, Age Book of the Year WINNER, Courier Mail Book of the Year Award SHORTLISTED, Queensland Premier's Literary Awards One spring day in late 1992, when William was halfway between his eighth birthday and his ninth, he looked out from the back...
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  • The Rich Man's House
    WINNER, Best Horror Novel, Aurealis AwardsSHORTLISTED, Voss Literary Prize In the freezing Antarctic waters south of Tasmania, a mountain was discovered in 1642 by the seafaring explorer Gerrit Jansz. Not just any mountain, but one that Jansz estimated was an unbelievable height of twenty-five thousand metres. In 2016, at the foot of this unearthly mountain, a controversial and ambitious 'dream...
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