On the Edge: 30 Modern Australian Short Stories

Includes thirty stories from some of Australia's finest writers that take the reader right to the edge.

Every one of these brilliant narratives focuses upon people living on life's edge in some way or another. All are facing a form of danger, whether it be physical, emotional, psychological or from beyond the world we understand.

Acclaimed author and editor Barry Oakley has chosen each tale not only for its entertainment value but for the deep insights it offers into the minds of people coping with the greatest challenges their lives can produce.

The result is a collection of work by some of Australia's foremost writers whose gifts, in many cases, are also recognised far beyond our shores.

In this collection we can experience edginess in all its disturbing forms,' Oakley writes. Some of those who have to confront it pull back, others go over, others teeter on the brink. The more stories I read, the more I was convinced that it was a subject the modern short story was made for, and the best I could find are here."