Wonders of a Godless World
Encyclopedia
Wonders of a Godless World is a 2009 novel by Andrew McGahan
. Described as "a kind of modern fable" that "verges on fantasy", it won the 2009 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
.
It follows the story of an orphan girl who is working in the wards of the insane and incapable, but the inhabitants are thrown into turmoil after a series of strange murders following the arrival of a new patient.
in trade paperback format. It was released in the United Kingdom in May 2010 by Blue Door. Wonders of a Godless World won the 2009 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
.
Throughout the book the reader can never be sure that the mute orphan narrator is a reliable narrator
. The possibility that her telepathic bond with the patient is in fact a figment of her imagination is always left open. So rather than science fiction, the book could instead be read as an insight into delusion.
Andrew McGahan
Andrew McGahan is a bestselling Australian novelist, best known for his cult first novel Praise, and for his Miles Franklin Award-winning novel The White Earth.-Early life and education:...
. Described as "a kind of modern fable" that "verges on fantasy", it won the 2009 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
The Aurealis Awards are presented annually by the Australia-based Chimaera Publications and SpecFaction NSW to published works in order to "recognise the achievements of Australian science fiction, fantasy, horror writers"...
.
It follows the story of an orphan girl who is working in the wards of the insane and incapable, but the inhabitants are thrown into turmoil after a series of strange murders following the arrival of a new patient.
Background
Wonders of a Godless World was first published in Australia in October 2009 by Allen & UnwinAllen & Unwin
Allen & Unwin, formerly a major British publishing house, is now an independent book publisher and distributor based in Australia. The Australian directors have been the sole owners of the Allen & Unwin name since effecting a management buy out at the time the UK parent company, Unwin Hyman, was...
in trade paperback format. It was released in the United Kingdom in May 2010 by Blue Door. Wonders of a Godless World won the 2009 Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
The Aurealis Awards are presented annually by the Australia-based Chimaera Publications and SpecFaction NSW to published works in order to "recognise the achievements of Australian science fiction, fantasy, horror writers"...
.
Synopsis
"Set on an unnamed island in the near present, it is told from the perspective of a simple young woman, an orphan, mute, reared in a mental hospital and an orderly there, who forms a bond with a mysterious coma patient, a man with telepathic powers who claims to be immortal..."
Throughout the book the reader can never be sure that the mute orphan narrator is a reliable narrator
Unreliable narrator
An unreliable narrator is a narrator, whether in literature, film, or theatre, whose credibility has been seriously compromised. The term was coined in 1961 by Wayne C. Booth in The Rhetoric of Fiction. This narrative mode is one that can be developed by an author for a number of reasons, usually...
. The possibility that her telepathic bond with the patient is in fact a figment of her imagination is always left open. So rather than science fiction, the book could instead be read as an insight into delusion.