Something for the Pain: A Memoir of the Turf

Author(s): Gerald Murnane

Sport

I never met anyone whose interest in racing matched my own. Both on and off the course, so to speak, I've enjoyed the company of many a racing acquaintance...I've read books, or parts of books, by persons who might have come close to being true racing friends of mine if ever we had met. For most of my long life, however, my enjoyment of racing has been a solitary thing: something I could never wholly explain to anyone else. As a boy, Gerald Murnane became obsessed with horse racing. He had never ridden a horse, nor seen a race. Yet he was fascinated by photos of horse races in the Sporting Globe, and by the incantation of horses' names in radio broadcasts of races. Murnane discovered in these races more than he could find in religion or philosophy: they were the gateway to a world of imagination. Gerald Murnane is like no other writer, and Something for the Pain is like no other Murnane book. In this unique and spellbinding memoir, he tells the story of his life through the lens of horse racing. It is candid, droll and moving - a treat for lovers of literature and of the turf. 'A treat - a rare glimpse into the mythology of a grand sport.' Gerard Whateley


Product Information

* Major press interview in The Australian Magazine * Radio interviews on Radio National's Books & Arts and ABC Melbourne Jon Faine * Press reviews across all major broadsheet and online newspapers * Reviews in all major literary journals, including Australian Book Review and Sydney Review of Books * Wide talk-up mailing to be sent to major racing identities and journalists * Advertisements in literary and current affairs publications such as ABR, Griffith Review, The Monthly and on their associated websites * Promotions and giveaways with targeted subscriber groups, including book lovers such as the CAE and writing groups * Early reading copies available to the trade * Significant budget for bookseller catalogues * Advertisements in bookseller newsletters * Author video available for hosting on bookseller websites and available on Text's website, YouTube and the author's website

'Murnane, a genius, is a worthy heir to Beckett.' Teju Cole 'Murnane is a careful stylist and a slyly comic writer with large ideas.' Robyn Cresswell, Paris Review 'Murnane is quite simply one of the finest writers we have produced.' Peter Craven '[The Plains] is a distinguished, distinctive and unforgettable novel.' Shirley Hazzard, author of The Transit of Venus 'Unquestionably one of the most original writers working in Australia today.' Australian

Gerald Murnane was born in Melbourne in 1939. He has been a primary teacher, an editor and a university lecturer. His debut novel, Tamarisk Row (1974), was followed by nine other works of fiction, including The Plains now available as a Text Classic, and most recently A Million Windows. In 1999 Murnane won the Patrick White Award and in 2009 he won the Melbourne Prize for Literature. He lives in western Victoria.

General Fields

  • : 9781925240375
  • : Text Publishing Co
  • : The Text Publishing Company
  • : 0.366
  • : May 2015
  • : 234mm X 153mm
  • : Australia
  • : September 2015
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Gerald Murnane
  • : Paperback
  • : 1015
  • : 798.40092
  • : 288