A Voyage Around My Pipe and Other Fictions

These short fictions by renowned Australian author James Cowan, winner of the Australian Gold Medal for Fiction, offer the reader a remarkable flight to places that defy time. They deal with circumstances and events that lie beyond the scope of norma... Read more

These short fictions by renowned Australian author James Cowan, winner of the Australian Gold Medal for Fiction, offer the reader a remarkable flight to places that defy time. They deal with circumstances and events that lie beyond the scope of normal events. Is there a relationship between the fantastic and the real? Whether one is taking a voyage around the bowl of a pipe, or engaging with the magical properties of an elephant, the reader is encouraged to project himself into a state of mind where his own objectivity is questioned. A letter from Abelard to his true love Heloise, a man who becomes a fish, a journey among lost souls, or an encounter with headhunters in the jungle, these are but a few of the incidents that the author asks us to experience. In doing so, omen birds and anchorites appear to participate in a reality filled with portents and wonders. _A Voyage Around My Pipe_ is more than a match for how we see things. The reader is about to take an unforgettable ride to a place where the imagination is released from the constraints of established forms. In so doing, each story becomes a perfect antidote to what he or she considers to be real.

"Find yourself a secluded garden alcove, a bottle of red and some crusty bread, and become engrossed." -Diana Ward

"A writer to rival Eco..." -Mary Ryan Less