Donald Horne on How I Came to Write The Lucky Country
MUP Masterworks #4
The publication in 1964 of The Lucky Country changed the way that Australians thought about themselves.
Opinion
'Donald Horne [is] one of Australia's most influential and enduring public intellectuals."
"Kim Beazley called him 'one of our guardians of a tolerant and compassionate Australia'."
(Michael Gordon, The Age, 9/9/05)
"For many Australians the phrase 'the lucky country' has a particular resonance. Donald Horne's famous words have been used in numerous ways to describe everything that is great about our nation."
(cultureandrecreation.gov.au 20/9/05)
About this Title
Donald Horne (1921-2005) was perhaps the best known Australian intellectual of his era, after Manning Clark. He made his name as editor of The Bulletin magazine, and confirmed his reputation with his book The Lucky Country, an ironic and influential critique of the Australian way of life first published in 1964.
In his memoir Into The Open (2000), Horne recalled experiences, people, books and ideas that shaped his career as a journalist, writer and thinker. The extract published here focuses on the formative years leading up to the writing of The Lucky Country.
The MUP Masterworks series celebrates distinguished Australian writers and ideas. Other writers in the series include Manning Clark, A.A. Phillips, Janet McCalman, Ray Parkin and Brenda Niall.
About the Author
Donald Horne AO was born in 1921 in Sydney and was educated at the University of Sydney. He worked as a journalist and editor before writing his breakthrough book The Lucky Country.
In 1974 he began an academic career at the University of New South Wales. In his long career he was an influential force in debates about Australian literature, culture, society and government. He was a passionate republican.
Horne's other books include Death of the Lucky Country, Time of Hope, The Next Australia and The Education of Young Donald.
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