The Young Desire It by Kenneth Mackenzie
15-year-old Charles Fox is sent away to boarding school, innocent, alone and afraid. There, one of his masters develops an intense attachment to him. But when Charles meets Margaret, a girl staying at a nearby farm for the holidays, he is besotted, and a passionate, unforgettable romance begins. Published in London in 1937 to wide acclaim, The Young Desire It is a stunning debut novel about coming of age: an intimate and lyrical account of first love, and a rich evocation of rural Western Australia.
Kenneth Mackenzie was born in 1913 in South Perth. His parents divorced in 1919, and
thereafter he lived with his mother and maternal grandfather. A sensitive child, he developed a
love of nature and dislike of noise during time spent at Pinjarra, in rural Western Australia. Unhappy years boarding at Guildford Grammar School were the basis for his highly acclaimed
first novel, The Young Desire It, which was published in London in 1937. By that time Mackenzie had studied law, worked as a journalist and moved from Perth to Sydney, where he was employed as a reviewer, met the leading lights of the literary scene and married. Mackenzie's subsequent novels were The Chosen (1938), Dead Men Rising (1951), based partly on his experience of the Cowra breakout -- he was deemed unfit for active service in the war -- and The Refuge (1954); he also produced two volumes of poetry. He received a number of grants and awards, including the Australian Literary Society Gold Medal. His last years were spent alone, in declining health and succumbing to drink, at Kurrajong, near
the Blue Mountains. In 1955 he died accidentally while bathing in a creek.
thereafter he lived with his mother and maternal grandfather. A sensitive child, he developed a
love of nature and dislike of noise during time spent at Pinjarra, in rural Western Australia. Unhappy years boarding at Guildford Grammar School were the basis for his highly acclaimed
first novel, The Young Desire It, which was published in London in 1937. By that time Mackenzie had studied law, worked as a journalist and moved from Perth to Sydney, where he was employed as a reviewer, met the leading lights of the literary scene and married. Mackenzie's subsequent novels were The Chosen (1938), Dead Men Rising (1951), based partly on his experience of the Cowra breakout -- he was deemed unfit for active service in the war -- and The Refuge (1954); he also produced two volumes of poetry. He received a number of grants and awards, including the Australian Literary Society Gold Medal. His last years were spent alone, in declining health and succumbing to drink, at Kurrajong, near
the Blue Mountains. In 1955 he died accidentally while bathing in a creek.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781922147509 |
| ISBN 10 | 1922147508 |
| Title | The Young Desire It |
| Author | Kenneth Mackenzie |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Text Publishing |
| Year published | 2013-08-21 |
| Number of pages | 350 |
| Prizes | Winner of Australian Literature Society Gold Medal 1937 (Australia) |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |