Australia & New Zealand, Essays, Australia & Oceania 

Hope is at the heart of South Australia. More than any other state it has shaped its own destiny with large doses of vision and optimism. It has been less frightened of ‘the vision thing’ and demonstrated willingness to challenge prevailing sentiments, experiment, boldly innovate and take a national lead. As a result, the state has produced a disproportionate number of leaders in business, sciences, arts and public policy. This spirit is needed more than ever. The state faces profound challenges as the industrial model that shaped twentieth century South Australia is replaced by an uncertain future. State of Hope explores the economic, social, environmental and cultural challenges facing South Australia, and the possibilities of renewal that draw on the strength of the past. It celebrates the unselfconscious willingness that hope enables. State of Hope features leading South Australian writers and others with a connection to or deep knowledge of this unique place, with the distinctive Griffith Review mix of essays, reportage, memoir, fiction and poetry. Julianne Schultz AM FAHA is the founding editor of Griffith Review, the award-winning literary and public affairs quarterly journal. Patrick Allington is a lecturer in English and Creative Writing at Flinders University. He is a widely published essayist, critic, and fiction writer. ‘A most interesting miscellany…This collection is permeated by an awareness of South Australia’s economic problems in the wake of the collapse of its manufacturing industry, but also by an optimistic faith in its future.’ ANZ LitLovers ‘As this rich and distinctive collection of essays and stories shows, despite its relative isolation, small population, entrenched social and economic problems, and troubling post-industrial malaise—nicely summarised in John Spoehr’s opening essay—South Australia is an unusual, extremely diverse, and persistently innovative sort of place.’ Australian Book Review   - from Amzon