Postscript

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

The National Library of Australia holds millions of letters in its collections: love letters, reports on scientific discoveries, impassioned pleas, newsy notes about the week that's just been, responses from politicians to members of the electorate, letters to the editor and so many more.

We've made a selection of remarkable letters from those millions, and passed them on to modern Australians to write new letters, inspired by those from our collection.

The original letters may have shaped history, confessed love, covered philosophical matters like aging or creativity, or given an insight into the writers' lives. The modern letters do the same. By turns moving, funny and challenging, this is a collection of letters that will engage and enlarge readers' sense of empathy and may inspire them to pick up the pen themselves. This book is a testament to the particular power of a letter (or an email, fax or telegram) to shock us, to move us and to warm us.

Authors include:

Jane Austen
John Barrett
Barbara Blackman
Frank Bongiorno
Neville Bonner
David Brooks
Norma Brooks
Reverend John Flynn
Kate Forsyth
Mem Fox
Bill Gammage
Morris Gleitzman
Patrick Glynn
Daniel Gray-Barnett
Henry Lawson
Maggie Mackellar
Reverend William McLeod
Sir John Monash
Adela Pankhurst
Raelene Rallah-Baker
Frank Reid
Amy Remeikis
Sita Sargeant
Robert Skinner
Barrina South
Dr Ranjana Srivastava
Kylie Tennant
John Trigg
Sam Wallman
Shelley Ware
John Ian Wing
Michael Winkler
Judith Wright

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Paperback / softback
ISBN13: 9781922507747
Published: May 2026

Number of pages: 128
Width: 153 mm
Height: 234 mm
Depth: not specified

Publisher: National Library of Australia