Man Alone is one of the foundation stones of New Zealand literature. Almost all copies of the first edition, published in England in 1939, were destroyed in the Blitz. When it was republished in New Zealand in 1949, after the author’s suicide in Cairo in 1945, the publisher Paul’s Book Arcade made a number of changes for unknown reasons. This edition restores John Mulgan’s original text for the first time. Johnson, an English WWI veteran, comes to New Zealand to find a new life. In Auckland he is caught up in the Great Depression riots, and heads south to the central North Island, where he work as a farm hand. An affair with his boss’s wife and the accidental killing of his boss cause him to flee across rough hill country, and by the end of the novel he is contemplating leaving the country to fight in the Spanish Civil War. Man Alone is a portrait of an existential loner, and a testament to the necessity of comradeship in times of hardship. Selwyn & Blount dustjacket, 1939 (private collection)
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Seller: Grand Eagle Retail, Bensenville, IL, U.S.A.
Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. This classic has been released in the Popular Penguin format to mark 50 years of publishing in New Zealand. The format reaches further back to 1935, when Allen Lane founded Penguin Books with a clear vision: 'We believed in the existence of a vast reading public for intelligent books at a low price, and staked everything on it.' Man Alone is a literary landmark that has haunted our writing for decades. Set during the Great Depression, with vivid depictions of the Waterfront dispute, John Mulgan's vision of New Zealand society is as detached and unsentimental, with the power to reject and alienate. A Popular Penguin NZ classic. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781776950652
Seller: AussieBookSeller, Truganina, VIC, Australia
Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. This classic has been released in the Popular Penguin format to mark 50 years of publishing in New Zealand. The format reaches further back to 1935, when Allen Lane founded Penguin Books with a clear vision: 'We believed in the existence of a vast reading public for intelligent books at a low price, and staked everything on it.' Man Alone is a literary landmark that has haunted our writing for decades. Set during the Great Depression, with vivid depictions of the Waterfront dispute, John Mulgan's vision of New Zealand society is as detached and unsentimental, with the power to reject and alienate. A Popular Penguin NZ classic. Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781776950652
Seller: CitiRetail, Stevenage, United Kingdom
Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. This classic has been released in the Popular Penguin format to mark 50 years of publishing in New Zealand. The format reaches further back to 1935, when Allen Lane founded Penguin Books with a clear vision: 'We believed in the existence of a vast reading public for intelligent books at a low price, and staked everything on it.' Man Alone is a literary landmark that has haunted our writing for decades. Set during the Great Depression, with vivid depictions of the Waterfront dispute, John Mulgan's vision of New Zealand society is as detached and unsentimental, with the power to reject and alienate. A Popular Penguin NZ classic. Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781776950652
Quantity: 1 available