About this book
"[This book] first appeared in 1926. Despite big overseas sales it was banned in New Zealand and later Australia for being disgusting, indecent and communistic - in other words, for promoting revolutionary ideas about the role of women and for a bold portrayal of the brutality of farm life. On one level the novel is a fast-paced account of how passion and jealousy destroy the lives of a rich and cultured farming family; on another it is a fierce polemic for the freedom of women, which in its frankness was years ahead of its time. ..."--Back cover.
Why it was banned
Jean Devanny's 1926 debut novel, banned in New Zealand as objectionable under the Indecent Publications Act 1963. The novel's frank depiction of sexuality and its socialist critique of marriage made it controversial; it was also banned in the UK, Australia, and Germany. The New Zealand-born Devanny went on to become a prominent communist writer in Australia.
Bans
| Country | Year | Reasons | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 1926lifted | SexualMoral | ||
| Classified as objectionable under the New Zealand Indecent Publications Act 1963. The Act was superseded by the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act 1993; classification status treated as historical. | ||||
