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Awards
OverviewA gripping literary crime novel about Australian masculinity, talent, fame and family, in the vein of Peter Temple's Truth. It starts in a suburban backyard with Darren Keefe and his older brother, sons of a fierce and gutsy single mother. The endless glow of summer, the bottomless fury of contest. All the love and hatred in two small bodies poured into the rules of a made-up game. Darren has two big talents- cricket and trouble. No surprise that he becomes an Australian sporting star of the bad-boy variety - one of those men who's always got away with things and just keeps getting. Until the day we meet him, middle aged, in the boot of a car. Gagged, cable-tied, a bullet in his knee. Everything pointing towards a shallow grave. The Rules of Backyard Cricket is a novel of suspense in the tradition of Peter Temple's Truth. With glorious writing harnessed to a gripping narrative, it observes celebrity, masculinity - humanity - with clear-eyed lyricism and exhilarating narrative drive. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Jock SerongPublisher: Text Publishing Imprint: The Text Publishing Company Dimensions: Width: 15.60cm , Height: 2.60cm , Length: 23.40cm Weight: 0.414kg ISBN: 9781925355215ISBN 10: 1925355217 Pages: 304 Publication Date: 29 August 2016 Audience: General/trade , General Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: In stock  We have confirmation that this item is in stock with the supplier. It will be ordered in for you and dispatched immediately. Table of ContentsReviews'I loved this book. Jock Serong is a natural. He engages you with a vivid recreation of boyhood in 1970s Australian suburbia, while letting the darkness seep in page by page until you find yourself in the grip of an intense thriller.' -- Malcolm Knox 'Serong's writing displays wit, insight and occasionally, splendour, particularly during its atmospheric, heart-in-mouth final chapter.' Books & Publishing 'Three pages in, I was sure Jock Serong had written this book just for me. Thoughts I'd had since childhood. Then, a story of the love and hate within families, of the failures of masculinity, in a cricket context rendered with technical precision. Brutal, perceptive, uncomfortably funny, occasionally breaking into poetry.' -- Geoff Lemon 'What happens in the backyard doesn't stay in the backyard. Wally and Darren Keefe are the Australian cricket dream gone sour.' -- Gideon Haigh 'Everything in The Rules of Backyard Cricket is brilliant...nearly as good as 5 nil whitewash, home series defeat of the old enemy' Australian Crime Fiction '[A] gripping suspense novel tackling the macho world of sport, toxic masculinity and out-of-control celebrity.' Executive Style 'Fans of Serong's work will not be disappointed; readers new to his work will want to seek out his first novel, Quota. This is literary crime at its best. Both funny and tragic, this is a brilliant read.' BookMooch ‘Funny, sad and oddly touching…Beautifully written and acutely observed, The Rules of Backyard Cricket is a noir tour de force…Original Australian crime fiction of the first order. -- Sue Turnbull * Sydney Morning Herald * ‘Serong writes pithy, pin-sharp dialogue…The book is expertly plotted, and its noirish climax with its dark drama and its final twists, is devastating. Get out and buy this book; it is the best new novel I've read this year.’ * Crime Time * ‘A novel of suspense, I heartily recommend it.’ * Shots * ‘The Rules of Backyard Cricket hits all other cricket books I’ve read to date for six. This tale is not just about cricket, it’s about the good, the bad and the ugly and a timely story, too, with sporting integrity often in question.’ * Weekly Times * ‘Serong is an elegant writer who can move effortlessly from laugh out-loud funny to elegiac to downright touching…Those of us who played back garden cricket and remember how seriously it was taken by all concerned will lap up every single run and wicket in this book.’ * Crime Review * ‘The writing is sharp and the flawed characters compelling...Serong bowls with a wry eye.’ * Otago Daily Times * ‘Suffice it to say the back cover blurb that draws a parallel between The Rules of Backyard Cricket and Peter Temple’s best work is no exaggeration. Serong pulls off what I consider an Australian crime writer’s most sought-after Quinella (to use a metaphor from another sport): a literary crime novel that qualifies as genuine Australian noir.’ -- Angela Savage ‘[A] gripping tale of sibling rivalry as two Aussie brothers battle in cricket and in life.’ -- Best Books of 2016 * New Zealand Listener * ‘Jock Serong returns with this bitterly, beautifully nostalgic look at a seventies childhood gone awry’ -- Best Crime Books of 2016 * Readings * ‘Jock Serong’s gripping narrative is a compassionate exploration of masculinity and humanity as he chillingly questions whether we truly know those who are closest to us.’ * Good Reading * ‘The Rules of Backyard Cricket by Jock Serong, while classified as ‘crime’, is a compelling literary novel dissecting toxic sporting culture and its fallout.’ -- Paddy O'Reilly * Australian Book Review, 2016 Books of the Year * ‘The Rules of Backyard Cricket got the thumbs up from everyone.’ * Favourite Fiction for 2016, Avenue Bookstore * ‘Blow me down if I didn’t hang on every word.’ -- Clare Wright * Best Books of 2016, Australian * ‘One of the great novels written about sport…Delicious. It’s the top read of the summer.’ * Stuff.co.nz * ‘A deeply interesting novel about sibling rivalry, family, masculinity, and the game of cricket…Serong is a talented storyteller, and he brings this unusual world to life.’ * Booklist * ‘Merges my childhood dreamscape of hot days and sporting ambition with a page-turning thriller set within rot of professional sport. Beautifully Melbourne. Get on it!’ * Tony Wilson * Author InformationJock Serong lives and works on the far southwest coast of Victoria. Formerly a lawyer, he is now a features writer, and the editor of Great Ocean Quarterly. His first novel, Quota, won the 2015 Ned Kelly Award for Best First Crime Novel. His most recent novel is The Rules of Backyard Cricket. Jock is married with four children and lives in Port Fairy, Victoria. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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