Books

Browse or search ANU Press' range of books or find out more about the publications' authors and co-publishers. Download the book for free or buy a print-on-demand copy.

Displaying results 631 to 640 of 777.

The Disaster of the Third Princess »

Essays on The Tale of Genji

Authored by: Royall Tyler
Publication date: June 2009
These seven essays by the most recent English translator of The Tale of Genji emphasize three major interpretive issues. What is the place of the hero (Hikaru Genji) in the work? What story gives the narrative underlying continuity and form? And how does the closing section of the tale (especially the ten “Uji chapters”) relate to what precedes it? Written over a period of nine years, the essays suggest fresh, thought-provoking perspectives on Japan’s greatest…

The Role of Departmental Secretaries »

Personal reflections on the breadth of responsibilities today

Authored by: Andrew Podger
Publication date: June 2009
Andrew Podger’s monograph, The Role of Departmental Secretaries, Personal reflections on the breadth of responsibilities today, is an important contribution to the broader public policy discourse in Australia. Andrew has been, at times, an unflinching commentator on issues of bureaucratic performance, accountability and responsiveness to government. Andrew’s reflections are drawn from his own experiences within the inner circle of Australian…

Critical Reflections on Australian Public Policy »

Selected Essays

Edited by: John Wanna
Publication date: May 2009
This collection of ‘critical reflections’ on Australian public policy offers a valuable contribution to public discussion of important political and policy issues facing our nation and society. These essays are important not only because of the reputation and position of the various contributors, but because they are incredibly ‘content rich’ and brimming with new ideas.

Precedence »

Social Differentiation in the Austronesian World

Edited by: Michael P. Vischer
Publication date: May 2009
This collection of papers is the sixth volume in the Comparative Austronesian series. The papers that comprise this volume examine the concept of precedence as a form of local discourse and as a mechanism for ordering status, at different levels, within specific Austronesian-speaking societies. This is the first volume of its kind to focus entirely on precedence and to provide an explication of its social uses and the way in which it is contested. Each paper is…

Seismic Wave Propagation in Stratified Media »

Authored by: Brian Kennett
Publication date: May 2009
Seismic Wave Propagation in Stratified Media presents a systematic treatment of the interaction of seismic waves with Earth structure. The theoretical development is physically based and is closely tied to the nature of the seismograms observed across a wide range of distance scales – from a few kilometres as in shallow reflection work for geophysical prospecting, to many thousands of kilometres for major earthquakes. A unified framework is presented for all…

Tracking Rural Change »

Community, Policy and Technology in Australia, New Zealand and Europe

Edited by: Francesca Merlan, David Raftery
Publication date: April 2009
A key, intensifying change affecting rural areas in the last few decades has been a decline in the proportion of national populations whose principal livelihood is farming. The corresponding re-distribution of population has typically resulted in a net population loss to rural areas, and diversification of rural activity. The corporatization and technological modification of food production has prompted new policy challenges, and has bound rural and urban populations…

The 2006 Military Takeover in Fiji »

A Coup to End All Coups?

Publication date: April 2009
This book explores the factors behind – and the implications of – the 2006 coup. It brings together contributions from leading scholars, local personalities, civil society activists, union leaders, journalists, lawyers, soldiers and politicians – including deposed Prime Ministers Laisenia Qarase and Mahendra Chaudhry. The 2006 Military Takeover in Fiji: A Coup to End All Coups? is essential reading for those with an interest in the contemporary history of Fiji, politics in deeply…

Howard's Long March »

The Strategic Depiction of China in Howard Government Policy, 1996–2006

Authored by: Roy Campbell McDowall
Publication date: March 2009
Australia’s strategic depiction of China has assumed increased importance as it attempts to harmonise economic interests (focusing on China) with security interests (primarily the United States). In this period of strategic transition, how Australia incorporates the rise of China into its existing security commitment under ANZUS has become a delicate issue. This investigation follows the intriguing evolution of the Howard Government’s depictions of China, and reveals a…

The Land is a Map »

Placenames of Indigenous Origin in Australia

Edited by: Luise Hercus, Flavia Hodges, Jane Simpson
Publication date: March 2009
The entire Australian continent was once covered with networks of Indigenous placenames. These names often evoke important information about features of the environment and their place in Indigenous systems of knowledge. On the other hand, placenames assigned by European settlers and officials are largely arbitrary, except for occasional descriptive labels such as ‘river, lake, mountain’. They typically commemorate people, or unrelated places in the…

Rising China »

Power and Reassurance

Edited by: Ron Huisken
Publication date: March 2009
Asia looks and feels very different now compared to the days of the Cold War. The sense that Asia now works differently can be traced to a single source – the re-emergence of China. China was the dominant power in greater Asia for most of recorded history. This historical norm was interrupted from the early 19th century, too far into the past to be recognisable and readily accommodated by the actors in today’s international arena. A powerful China feels new…