Rare Book banned and burnt by police … Upsurge by J. M. Harcourt. Introduction by Richard A. Nile. Facsimile edition. University of Western Australia Press, 1986.

Description

Facsimile of first edition of the very first book to be banned in Australia and prosecuted by the police for revolutionary politics and sexual 0bscenity.

John Harcourt led an interesting life. Born to missionaries in Katanning, WA he ran away from boarding school when he was a small boy and spent the rest of his childhood working as a sundowner, jackaroo, labourer and railway builder eventually becoming captain of a pearling lugger. Sick of physical work he moved to Perth and educated himself at the State Library of Western Australia. He began sending articles to newspapers.

Eventually, he was offered a job writing for Truth and so moved to Melbourne, Harcourt became a member of the Australian Communist Party and began working on Upsurge. When it was banned most of the copies were burned, but Harcourt managed to rescue three.

Publisher: University of Western Australia Press, 1986.

ISBN: 0 85564 244 0