''The Mango Tree'' is a Miles Franklin Award-winning novel by Australian author

Ronald McKie Ronald Cecil Hamlyn McKie (11 December 1909 – 8 May 1991) was an Australian novelist. He was born on 11 May 1909 in Toowoomba, Queensland. After receiving his education at the Brisbane Grammar School and the University of Queensland, he ...

Synopsis

The story follows the childhood of a young man, named Jamie, growing up in a country town in Australia during the early 20th century.

Critical reception

Hope Hewitt in ''The Canberra Times'' found the author to be "an excellent reporter, quickly setting scene and then swiftly changing gear and catching the cxcitement of events moving too quickly for words. The climax of this book when the fanatic Preacher Jones goes round the bend and rampages off with a gun is a gripping piece of narrative. But good documentary and good reportage are not the same as good imaginative fiction. Their purposes are different; and in trying to concentrate as we clearly are meant to, on Jamie's development to whatever sort of person he is going to be, there needs to be a much greater selection and a different scale of proportions among the too rich material Mr McKie has to draw upon."

Awards

Miles Franklin Award The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize awarded to "a novel which is of the highest literary merit and presents Australian life in any of its phases". The award was set up according to the Will (law), will of Miles Franklin ...

, 1974 *

Barbara Ramsden Award The Barbara Ramsden Award was administered by Fellowship of Australian Writers and awarded annually to an author and editor in recognition of the efforts of both parties to produce a quality fiction or non-fiction book. The winners receive a memo ...

, 1974

Film Adaptation

In 1977, it was adapted into a film of the same name, directed by

Kevin James Dobson Kevin James Dobson (born 1952)page 140 is an Australian director who worked extensively in film and television. His full name is used in order to avoid confusion with the actor Kevin Dobson. He started as a film editor for Crawford Productions, t ...

, from a script by

Michael Pate Michael Pate Order of Australia, OAM (born Edward John Pate; 26 February 1920 – 1 September 2008) was an Australian actor, writer, director, and producer, who also worked prolifically as a supporting actor in Hollywood films and Ameri ...

, and featuring Gerald Fitzgerald,

Robert Helpmann Sir Robert Murray Helpmann (né Helpman) (9 April 1909 – 28 September 1986) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor, director, and choreographer. After early work in Australia he moved to Britain in 1932, where he joined the Vic-Wells Ballet (no ...

and

Christopher Pate Christopher Pate is an Australian actor. He was nominated for the 1977 AFI Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in '' Raw Deal''. In 1966, he starred in the television Western ''Gunsmoke'' as Curtis in S12E8 "The Whispering ...

in the lead roles.

Synopsis

Critical reception

Awards

Film Adaptation

References

See also