Other People’s Words

Hilary McPhee

$34.99

Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY PRES
02 February 2026

The Arts: General & Reference; Biography: business & industry; Press & journalism; Publishing industry; Biography - Australian

We started out with an ethos rather than a profit-motive, an idea rather than a money-making venture ... in order to publish the books we wanted.

It was a way of working as remote now as the moon.

Other People's Words is the story of fifteen years in which a small independent company was a force in Australian publishing. From McPhee Gribble came many new writers, including Helen Garner, Tim Winton, Drusilla Modjeska and Kaz Cooke, fresh perspectives on Australian life and history - and, fleetingly, hope that an Australian company could become a fully fledged player in the international publishing industry.

This is the story of a friendship between Hilary McPhee and Diana Gribble and the company they built, with its unique way of working that at once mirrored the times and changed them, how it thrived and how it fell.

It is also a portrait of a woman who accidentally became a legendary editor and publisher. Hilary McPhee grew up surrounded by books and stories, and also by some of the silences and gaps in the record that defined Australia until recent years. Her belief in publishing not just as a process but as a means of transmission of ideas and imagination had its origins in every corner of her life.

Other People's Words is a rare and often moving insight into the transforming power of words. This updated edition contains a new chapter on technology and its likely effects on literature and the creative arts.

'Written with great control and clarity ... an indispensable document for anyone interested in Australian literary and cultural history.' Kerryn Goldsworthy, Australian Book Review

By: Hilary McPhee
Imprint: MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY PRES
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 128mm,
ISBN: 9780522882049
ISBN 10: 0522882048
Pages: 328
Publication Date: 02 February 2026
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Hilary McPhee is a writer and editor. She founded McPhee Gribble Publishers with Diana Gribble in 1975, was Chair of the Australia Council for the Arts 1994-97, and inaugural Vice-Chancellor's Fellow at the University of Melbourne until 2004. Her books include Other People's Houses, Wordlines and Memoirs of a Young Bastard: The Diaries of Tim Burstall.

Reviews for Other People’s Words

""Written with great control and clarity ... an indispensable document for anyone interested in Australian literary and cultural history."" - Kerryn Goldsworthy, Australian Book Review