100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock πŸ‡³πŸ‡Ώ

Auckland Bookstore open weekends (8:30am - 5pm) for browsing and Pick Ups! πŸŽ‰

Remembering Babylon

winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize and Dublin Literary Award
3.47 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating.
( 3,716 ratings, 387 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
Remembering Babylon by David Malouf is set in 19th-century Australia and explores the life of a boy named Gemmy Fairley, who is raised by Aboriginal Australians after being shipwrecked as a child. His unexpected encounter with a group of European settlers challenges their perceptions and prejudices, leading to profound effects on their isolated community. The novel explores themes of identity, belonging, and the cultural clash between indigenous and colonial worlds.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2300
Elsewhere:
$2499
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

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?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by themes of identity, culture clash, and the complex relationships between settlers and indigenous peoples. Set in 19th-century Australia, it beautifully explores the impact of one man's intrusion into a small community, sparking not just suspicion, but also insights into human connection and misunderstanding. If you appreciate literary novels that delve into historical settings with rich character development, this story offers a nuanced perspective.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

In the 1840s, a ship's boy cast ashore in northern Australia is taken in by Aborigines. Sixteen years later he steps out of the bush and inadvertently confronts the new white settlers with their unspoken terrors. A picture of Australia at the time of its foundation, focused on the hostility between early British settlers and native Aboriginals.

Winner of the 1996 International Impac Dublin Literary Award.

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

In the 1840s, a ship's boy cast ashore in northern Australia is taken in by Aborigines. Sixteen years later, he steps out of the bush and inadvertently confronts the new white settlers with their unspoken terrors.

Remembering Babylon offers a picture of Australia at the time of its foundation, focusing on the hostility between early British settlers and native Aboriginals. It is essentially the story of a boy caught between two worldsβ€”the 'civilised' and the 'primitive.'

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781741667684

Publisher: Random House Australia

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 April 2009

Country: Australia

Imprint: Vintage (Australia)

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 16.0mm

Width: 127.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 158g

Pages: 192

About the Author

DAVID MALOUF is the author of short story collections THE COMPLETE STORIES (winner of the Australia Asia Literary Award), DREAM STUFF ('These stories are pearls,' - Spectator) and EVERY MOVE YOU MAKE and of acclaimed novels including THE GREAT WORLD (winner of the Commonwealth Writers' and Miles Franklin Prizes) and REMEMBERING BABYLON (shortlisted for the Booker Prize and winner of the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award). His most recent work RANSOM was shortlisted The Age Book of the Year Award and the Qld Premier's Literary Award. He also writes poetry, drama and libretti for operas. Born and brought up in Brisbane, he lives in Sydney.

Also by David Malouf

View all
  • Ransom
    Malouf's fable engraves the epic themes of the Trojan war onto a perfect miniature. Australia's finest writer Miriam Cosic, The Australian ... profound ... subtle and extremely moving. Daniel Mendelsohn, New Yorker a masterpiece Alberto Manguel, Australian Literary Review A work of immediacy, humanity and tenderness. Philip Parker, Financial Times David Malouf shines new light on Homer's Iliad, adding twists...
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Fly Away Peter
    A cast of wildly different characters, united by a love of birds, come together on the coast of Australia in 1914. Their avian idyll is soon disturbed as war rips through Europe, irrevocably changing and challenging their lives. For three very different people brought together by their love for birds, life on the Queensland coast in 1914 is the timeless...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Johnno
    Johnno is a typical Australian who refuses to be typical. Seen through the eyes of the narrator, he is a figure of legendary proportions. His disorderly presence can disturb the staleness of gothic Brisbane or destroy the tranquillity of a Greek landscape. But what is the truth about Johnno? Semi-autobiographical, the novel perfectly captures the ragged modernisation of Brisbane and...
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • An Imaginary Life
    An Imaginary Life is described by the Wall Street Journal as "a brilliantly inventive novel... Malouf puts on a dazzling literary display in this arresting, original, lyrical work." In the first century AD, Publius Ovidius Naso, the most urbane and irreverent poet of imperial Rome, was banished to a remote village on the edge of the Black Sea. From these...
    Paperback
    $2800
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Complete Stories
    Thirty-one epic stories from Australia's award-winning author David Malouf. WINNER OF THE AUSTRALIA-ASIA LITERARY AWARD SHORTLISTED FOR THE PRIME MINISTER'S LITERARY AWARD In these thirty-one stories, David Malouf's imagination inhabits shocking violence, quick humour, appealing warmth, and harsh cruelty with equal intensity. He shares tales of bookish boys, taciturn men, and intimate stories of men and women looking for something...
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • An Open Book
    An Open Book by David Malouf is a modern classic, now released in paperback for the first time, featuring seven new, previously unpublished poems. As one of Australia's finest poets, David Malouf reminds us of the ways poetry, music, and creativity enrich our lives. Like the 'small comfort of light ... as night comes on', this dazzling collection captures the...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • An Open Book
    An Open Book celebrates the power of poetry and reaffirms David Malouf as one of Australia's most celebrated and beloved writers. This is only David Malouf's third new poetry volume in nearly 40 years, so it is a significant publishing event. As one of Australia's greatest living poets, Malouf continues to meditate and reflect on themes of mortality and memory....
    Hardback
    $3700
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Earth Hour
    A Malouf modern classic released in paperback for the first time. In this unforgettable collection, Malouf once again reaffirms himself as one of Australia's most celebrated and beloved poets. Demonstrating an intimate sense of place and language and evoking both the charm and power of the natural world, Earth Hour comes to rest at the perfect, still moment of 'silence,...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Typewriter Music
    David Malouf's brilliant collection of poems begins with a memory of new loveβ€”with 'grace unasked for, urgencies that boom under the pocket of a shirt'β€”and ends in the intimate territory of the long-familiar where there is no need for words. This volume is marked by an astonishing breadth of intelligence and erudition, yet steps lightly among the objects of our...
    Hardback
    $3600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Typewriter Music
    A Malouf modern classic released in paperback for the first time. Typewriter Music begins with a memory of new love β€” with 'grace unasked for, urgencies that boom under the pocket of a shirt' β€” and ends in the intimate territory of the long-familiar relationships that define our lives as we grow old. This volume is marked by a breadth...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Revolving Days: Selected Poems
    From the groundbreaking Bicycle and Other Poems to the best-selling Typewriter Music, Revolving Days: Selected Poems is a resplendent, up-to-the-minute selection by one of Australia's most distinguished poets. Malouf's best poems, with their grace and intelligence, remain among the finest examples of the Australian lyric. This is an essential compendium for all lovers of literature.
    Paperback
    $3100
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Harland's Half Acre
    A revised edition of this seminal Malouf novel, now with an Afterword from the author. Frank Harland's life is centred on his great artistic gift, his passionate love for his father and four brothers, and his desire to regain the Harlands' lost prosperity. Phil Vernon, growing up alone in the midst of a demanding family, is a boy when he...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

More from General Fiction

View all
  • The Wedding People
    'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people β€” but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl
    The apocalypse will be televised! Welcome to the first book in the wildly popular and addictive Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman-now with bonus material exclusive to the print edition! You know what's worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what's worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Pre-order
    Big Little Truths
    Parenting teens is not for the faint of heart but Madeline, Jane and Celeste have been through worse. It's been a decade since the school trivia night that changed their lives forever and now they're living blissfully ordinary suburban lives. But when an anonymous grisly package arrives at the local high school, and a man in a green Volvo is...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    Pre-order
    Out 25 Aug 2026
  • Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
    Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...
    Set
    $12400
    Elsewhere:
    $15500
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • New Release
    The Ballad of Falling Dragons [Special Deluxe edition]
    The No.1 Sunday Times bestselling sensation When the Moon Hatched continues with the second book in The Moonfall Series, The Ballad of Falling Dragons… Raeve’s thirst for vengeance continues to burn, as does her love for Kaan Vaegor – a staunch beacon from a past she’s yet to face. With Rekk’s blood still fresh on her hands, she learns the...
    Hardback
    $5999
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Goal
    Welcome to Briar U!Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy!Read The Goal now for the perfect forced proximity romance! She's good at achieving her goals . . . College senior Sabrina James has her whole future planned out: graduate from college, kick...
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Red Rising
    The first book in the incredible New York Times bestselling series Darrow is a Helldiver, toiling beneath the surface of Mars. As a member of the Red caste, he performs grueling labor in the belief that his sacrifice will enable future generations to one day inhabit the surface of the Red Planet. The Reds are humankind's lowest caste, living in...
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Crescent City Paperback Box Set
    A beautiful box set containing all three paperback instalments of the Crescent City series from #1 bestselling global phenomenon Sarah J. Maas. BOUND BY BLOOD. TEMPTED BY DESIRE. UNLEASHED BY DESTINY. Maas has established herself as a fantasy fiction titan - Time Think Game of Thrones meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a drizzle of E.L. James – Telegraph Spiced...
    Set
    $5499
    Elsewhere:
    $7000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Project Hail Mary
    Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, the SUNDAY TIMES and NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of The Martian, offers a gripping new adventure in hard science fiction. With endorsement from notable figures such as Barack Obama and a slew of five-star reviews, this novel promises a thrilling and intellectually stimulating journey. Ryland Grace, a lone astronaut, finds himself on a...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2400
    (4)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Carl's Doomsday Scenario
    Join Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat Princess Donut as they fight fantastical creatures and deadly mobs in the second book in the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl series -now with bonus material exclusive to the print edition Now on the third floor, Carl and Donut have to fight harder than ever. They've already proven that a Coast Guard vet and once-and-forever...
    Hardback
    $4699
    Elsewhere:
    $6000
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Score
    Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession... Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Score now for the perfect friends with benefits romance! He knows how to score, on and off the ice... Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn't have...
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Golden Son
    ENDER'S GAME meets THE HUNGER GAMES in this, the second in an extraordinary trilogy from an incredible new voice.'I'm still playing games. This is just the deadliest yet.' Darrow is a rebel forged by tragedy. For years he and his fellow Reds worked the mines, toiling to make the surface of Mars inhabitable. They were, they believed, mankind's last hope....
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.