Obscenity, Blasphemy, Sedition

by Peter Coleman

ISBN 1 875989 72 2

$17.95

Publication date: September 2000

The rise and fall of literary censorship in Australia.

This is a rerelease of Peter Coleman's classic account of the various efforts throughout history to censor the written word in Australia. It runs from 1788 to the early 1960s, when the fight against censorship was largely won. It focuses on a series of fascinating characters and exciting fights over publications dealing with sex, religion and politics.

Duffy & Snellgrove are reissuing this book because of its entertainment value (due to Coleman's wonderfully light but effective style, and the intrinsic interest of its subject matter), its importance as a work of popular history, and its new relevance at a time when there are increasing attempts to censor the Internet. The book contains a new introduction by the author, and a cover illustration from George Molnar.

'Australia used to be as famous for her book-banning as her cricket. Her achievements in that field deserve to be recorded, and Peter Coleman has done so in this notable book. It is a Wisden of banning.'
Ross Campbell, Daily Telegraph

'A cautionary tale of human and, particularly, Australian folly… richly comic.'
Stuart Sayers, The Age