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The Unknown Industrial Prisoner

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( 81 ratings, 13 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
The Unknown Industrial Prisoner by David Ireland is an incisive exploration of life in an industrial town dominated by a large petrochemical plant. The narrative focuses on the lives of various characters who work there, revealing a world of routine and disenchantment. As the story unfolds, it paints a vivid picture of human endurance amidst industrial monotony, highlighting the struggles and small victories of the workers.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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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?

If you appreciate vivid storytelling that delves into the complexities of human nature and societal structures, you might enjoy the immersive exploration found in this book. The narrative offers a compelling examination of life within a microcosm that mirrors broader societal issues, blending dark humour with poignant insights.

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Winner of the Miles Franklin Award in 1971, this is a ruthless and comic portrait of working class Australia.

* An extract from Peter Pierce's introduction to be placed in a major Australian newspaper * Significant budget for print advertising including literary magazines and bookseller catalogues * Banner advertising on bookseller websites * Online promotions, including advertising and giveaways, on Facebook and Twitter * Promotions and giveaways with targeted subscriber groups, including book lovers, AFL members * Featured in Text newsletters and website

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

On the shores of Botany Bay lies an oil refinery where workers are free to come and go, but they are also part of an unrelenting, alienating economy from which there is no escape.

In the first of his three Miles Franklin Award-winning novels, originally published in 1971, David Ireland offers a fiercely brilliant comic portrait of Australia in the grip of a dehumanising labour system.

Ireland states: 'It has been my aim to take apart, then build up piece by piece, this mosaic of one kind of human life, to remind my present age of its industrial adolescence.'

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?

The Unknown Industrial Prisoner by David Ireland is praised for its harsh and remarkable depiction of a dehumanising labour system in Australia. Critics acknowledge its prophetic and fiercely comic portrayal of industrial life, suggesting it leaves a deep impact on readers shaped by their life experiences. The novel is frequently highlighted as a standout work in Australian literature, often compared favourably with Ireland's other celebrated book, The Glass Canoe.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781922147066

Publisher: Text Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 June 2013

Country: Australia

Imprint: The Text Publishing Company

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 326g

Pages: 452

About the Author

Authors Bio, not available

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    A Woman of the Future, first published in 1979, was David Ireland's best-selling sixth novel and his third to win the Miles Franklin Award. An imaginative tour de force, it is the story of the young life of Anthea Hunt - from conception to sexual awakening. It is controversial and brilliant, and unlike anything else in Australian literature. Now published...
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    The Chantic Bird is the confession of a teenage anarchist, who combines contempt for contemporary society with a great tenderness and warmth for his younger siblings and for Bee, the girl who looks after them. The first of David Ireland's masterful novels, The Chantic Bird contains the same characteristic indictment of the bovine mindlessness of collective humanity, and the home-owning...
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    The Glass Canoe The Glass Canoe by David Ireland is a classic work of Australian literature. It centres around the pubβ€”a refuge where male workers aggressively shelter from their wives, their work, and their everyday lives. This 1976 novel offers a graphic illustration of the alienation of labour under modern industrial capitalism, providing insights into the suburbs surrounding Australian cities....
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    'Playwright David Ireland challenges people to draw lines between what they find funny and what they find outrageous' (Sydney Morning Herald). This first collection of plays by David Ireland brings together three of his most successful hits that have enjoyed numerous productions around the world, alongside two previously unpublished plays: Half a Glass of Water: 'The dialogue is brutal and...
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