Arthur Upfield

Compiled by Ross Burnet
Burnet's Books, Uralla, NSW, 2358

Arthur William Upfield was born in Gosport, near Portsmouth, England, the eldest of five boys, on 1 September 1890. He spent much of his childhood with his grandparents. At the age of 22 he was sent to Australia by his father who thought he would come to no good. He arrived in Adelaide, and subsequently worked as a station hand, boundary rider, cook, station manager, opal gouger, and numerous other occupations in the outback.

In 1924 he was persuaded to take up writing. His first published book (The House of Cain) was a thriller. His second (The Barrakee Mystery) introduced his famous half aboriginal Detective-Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte. This was followed by a romance (The Beach of Atonement), another Bony (The Sands of Windee), a non-Bony mystery (A Royal Abduction), a mainstream novel (Gripped by Drought), and The Murchison Murders describing a bizarre case in Western Australia. A further 27 Bony books followed.

Signed copies of Upfield's books are scarce. A signature would add at least 100% to the value of any book.

"Part of the appeal of Arthur Upfield's stories lies in their authentic portrayal of manu aspects of outback Australian life in the 1930s and through into the 1950s. The dialogue, especially, is a faithful evocation of how people spoke. Hence, these books reflect and depict the attitudes and ways of speech, particularly with regard to Aborigines and to women, which were then commonplace. In reprinting these books the publisher does not endorse the attitudes or opinions they express." From the 1991 Angus & Robertson edition of The M

A checklist of major works with the year of first publication.

1. The House of Cain. UK 1928, USA 1929

2. The Barrakee Mystery. UK 1929
= The Lure of the Bush. USA 1965

3. The Beach of Atonement. UK 1930

4. The Sands of Windee. UK 1931, Australia 1958

5. A Royal Abduction. UK 1932, USA 1984

6. Gripped by Drought. UK 1932, USA 1990

7. The Murchison Murders. Australia 1934, USA 1987

8. Wings above the Diamantina. Australia 1936
= Winged Mystery. UK 1937
= Wings above the Claypan. USA 1943

9. Mr Jelly's Business. Australia 1937
= Murder Down Under.. USA 1943

10. Winds of Evil. Australia 1937, UK 1938, USA 1944

11. The Bone Is Pointed. Australia 1938, UK 1939, USA 1947

12. The Mystery of Swordfish Reef. Australia 1939, USA 1943, UK 1960

13. Bushranger of the Skies. Australia 1940
= No Footprints in the Bush. USA 1944, UK 1950

14. Death of a Swagman. USA 1945, UK 1946, Australia 1947

15. The Devil's Steps. USA 1946, UK 1948, Australia 1965

16. An Author Bites the Dust. USA 1948, Australia 1948

17. The Mountains Have a Secret. USA 1948, UK 1952, Australia 1991

18. The Widows of Broome. USA 1949, UK 1951, Australia 1972

19. The Bachelors of Broken Hill. USA 1950, Australia 1950, UK 1958

20. The New Shoe. USA 1951
= The Clue of the New Shoe. UK 1952

21. Venom House. USA 1952, UK 1953, Australia 1994

22. Murder Must Wait. USA 1953, UK 1953

23. Death of a Lake. USA 1954, UK 1954, Australia 1991

24. Sinister Stones. USA 1954
= Cake in the Hat Box . UK 1955, Australia 1991

25. The Battling Prophet. UK 1956, Australia 1972

26. The Man of Two Tribes. USA 1956
= Man of Two Tribes. UK 1956, Australia 1972

27. The Bushman Who Came Back. USA 1957
= Bony Buys a Woman. UK 1957, Australia 1991

28. Journey to the Hangman. USA 1959
= Bony and the Mouse. UK 1959, Australia 1991

29. Bony and the Black Virgin. UK 1959, Australia 1991
= The Torn Branch. USA 1986?

30. Valley of the Smugglers. USA 1960
= Bony and the Kelly Gang. UK 1960, Australia 1991

31. The White Savage. USA 1961
= Bony and the White Savage. UK 1961

32. The Will of the Tribe. USA 1962, UK 1962

33. Madman's Bend. UK 1963
= The Body at Madman's Bend. USA 1963

34. The Lake Frome Monster. UK 1966, Australia 1994

35. Breakaway House. Australia 1987

36. The Great Melbourne Cup Mystery. Australia 1996

 

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