Great Australian Stories Legends, Yarns and Tall Tales

From pioneer tales to urban myths, folklore expert Graham Seal has gathered some of the best Australian stories from around the country, and this new edition contains 10 extra stories. Australia has a rich tradition of story telling that reflects a unique history and experience. Great Australian Stories gathers some of the best of those stories from colonial times to the present, with bush yarns, tall stories, urban myths, and tales of the mysterious and downright weird. This is an Australia of down-to-earth realism, tragedy and heroism, dry humor, an unexpectedly wide supernatural streak, and a strong sense of place. Stories feature cocky farmers, numbskulls like the drongo, bunyips, famous tricksters like Jacky Bindi-I, and the world's greatest whinger, as well as larger than life real characters like the sad Eliza Donnithorne.With favorite yarns from around the country, Great Australian Stories is the most representative collection available of the stories Aussies tell about themselves. Graham Seal explains where the stories come from, and why even the outright lies reveal a truth of sorts.

Graham Seal is a professor of folklore and a leading expert on traditional Australian culture.