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On Our Selection
This afternoon, as Dad approached his dumb patient, he suddenly put down the bucket of water which he was carrying and ran, shouting angrily. A flock of crows flew away from Farmer and "cawed" from a tree close by. Dad was excited, and when he saw that one of the animal's eyes was gone and a stream of blood trickled over its nose he sat down and hid his face in his big rough hands.
363 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1899
12 people are currently reading
138 people want to read
About the author
Steele Rudd
94 books5 followersRudd was born Arthur Hoey Davis at Drayton, Queensland, and left school early, working on nearby stations before joining the public service in Brisbane. He married Violet Brodie in 1894 and they had four children. The Bulletin published his first sketch of life as a selector in 1895. More stories followed, and their popularity led the Bulletin to publish the collections On Our Selection (1899) and Our New Selection (1903), which were also successfully adapted for the stage. Rudd established Steele Rudd's Magazine in 1903, which continued (with name-changes, lapses and revivals) until 1927. Rudd was prolific, writing six plays and more than twenty books, including the well-received novel, Memoirs of Corporal Keeley (1918). His wife's institutionalisation in a mental hospital, the dissolution of their marriage, problems with alcohol and money, are all considered to have contributed to a decline in the quality of his later work.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 14, 2021
Hilarious...like tripping over the cat and landing in your mom's favorite cactus plant.
I feel this is a book I should have read 40 years ago when it was still slightly more relevant...when times were slightly simpler than now. I didn't though...'cos I was obsessed with Stephen King, Arthur Clarke, James Herbert and J.R.R Tolkein. Shame on me. I'm sure when it was written back around 1900, it was actually quite funny. Now, it seems a bit stodgy - a bit too simple.
Unfortunately, I think it lost a lot in translation to an ebook as there were a LOT of paragraphs that just didn't make sense. I guess this is one for the easily amused.
I feel this is a book I should have read 40 years ago when it was still slightly more relevant...when times were slightly simpler than now. I didn't though...'cos I was obsessed with Stephen King, Arthur Clarke, James Herbert and J.R.R Tolkein. Shame on me. I'm sure when it was written back around 1900, it was actually quite funny. Now, it seems a bit stodgy - a bit too simple.
Unfortunately, I think it lost a lot in translation to an ebook as there were a LOT of paragraphs that just didn't make sense. I guess this is one for the easily amused.
February 9, 2021
I didn't cotton on the meaning of the title until I started and realised that 'selection' basically means the land they're living on. A humorous family stories of pastoral Australian lives. Humorous mostly because they are failing as farmers but also quite sad because life was just hard. I'm not sure how the author did it but there was such a fine balance between humour and sadness. The only thing I really could do without was the cruelty to animals.
January 18, 2019
This classic of Australian humour is a bit of a problem for modern readers on quite a few bases. If one was to adopt the more nuanced and culturally complex approaches taken by current literary criticism 'On Our Selection' is rather unsatisfactory. It certainly represents a paternalistic, white Anglo-Saxon narrative where women and more significantly Aboriginal Australians are pushed to the margins. The inordinate amount of cruelty to animals displayed by the leading characters can be very hard to stomach, and the naive colonialist approach taken by Rudd when depicting the land must surely be an issue for more 'cosmopolitan' critics of today. If it wasn't for the obvious political and economic disadvantage held by Dad, Dave and the rest of the family, I would imagine 'On Our Selection' would infuriate many who would read it through early 21st century glasses.
For me I had some issues along these lines, with the animal cruelty the most objectionable aspect of the book. However I can understand and appreciate its then contemporary cultural context and would frame it thus. It is not so much a collection of stories that will bring new insight into the Australian condition or Australian humour. No; instead it is like an oil lamp illuminating our past, describing in its fictional setting the sheer bloody hard work that was an historical truth of the 19th century for men (and women) on the land. It also harkens back to some of the most traditional tropes of literature; the beauty and terror of the rustic world and the (at times) comedic simplicity of those working in it.
For all the talk about how comedy 'On Our Selection' is I would suggest that much of the laconic, black humour that is written into Rudd's work is either not so funny according to today's sensibilities, or are just overstated. Yes, there are some scenes, some wry descriptions or passages of conversation between the characters where one will giggle or smile. However when compared to work produced by others Australian writers at the time (such as Lawson and CJ Dennis) Rudd isn't as laugh out loud as we've been told to expect over the years.
It may also be observed that because this book has such an important part in the received canon of classic Australian books, what it signifies thereof is arguably more important than what is between the covers. It is undoubtedly important in projecting a nascent Australian voice at a time when the colonial settlers of this country were articulating our differences from the rest of the world. Therefore one major reason why one should read this book is to come to grips with the emerging maturity of the Australian identity in the 'golden era' of the 1890s-1910s, before WW1 and our nation's military achievements took control of this narrative.
Regarding the stylistic aspects of this book, it is written in a prose which is mostly clear to read and simple in its naturalism. There are times when Rudd's accounting of his characters' speech are a little confusing due to punctuation or archaisms, but most people should readily surmount these hurdles. It is blatantly obvious that Dad is the key character and he is mostly an engaging one, without too much complexity in his depiction. Dave, Joe and other male personae often serve as either the fulcrum or support for a comedic scene where Dad is the real agent of humour, whereas the women (including Mum, Kate and Sally) are presented (in their more peripheral depictions) as figures of stability, anchoring their menfolk to sober realities.
It must also be said that Rudd does an excellent job of bringing the bush alive, without either presenting it as a barren, sullen world of terror and disaster nor as some pale shadow of a European Eden. This is unforgiving country with beauties and hardships; sometimes it repels its inhabitants, other times it is good. If there is one thing that will always identify an Australian author as one who is worth reading it is how they interpret and present their environment. Rudd does this no worries.
In summary, would I recommend 'On Our Selection'? Yes I would, but not to everyone and especially not to anyone who may find animal cruelty far too offensive, and seek 'pale, male and stale' issues with any book they read. Yes, Steele Rudd has written a classic Australian book, and if you are to delve into its pages be cognisant of its limitations as well as its historical and cultural legacy.
For me I had some issues along these lines, with the animal cruelty the most objectionable aspect of the book. However I can understand and appreciate its then contemporary cultural context and would frame it thus. It is not so much a collection of stories that will bring new insight into the Australian condition or Australian humour. No; instead it is like an oil lamp illuminating our past, describing in its fictional setting the sheer bloody hard work that was an historical truth of the 19th century for men (and women) on the land. It also harkens back to some of the most traditional tropes of literature; the beauty and terror of the rustic world and the (at times) comedic simplicity of those working in it.
For all the talk about how comedy 'On Our Selection' is I would suggest that much of the laconic, black humour that is written into Rudd's work is either not so funny according to today's sensibilities, or are just overstated. Yes, there are some scenes, some wry descriptions or passages of conversation between the characters where one will giggle or smile. However when compared to work produced by others Australian writers at the time (such as Lawson and CJ Dennis) Rudd isn't as laugh out loud as we've been told to expect over the years.
It may also be observed that because this book has such an important part in the received canon of classic Australian books, what it signifies thereof is arguably more important than what is between the covers. It is undoubtedly important in projecting a nascent Australian voice at a time when the colonial settlers of this country were articulating our differences from the rest of the world. Therefore one major reason why one should read this book is to come to grips with the emerging maturity of the Australian identity in the 'golden era' of the 1890s-1910s, before WW1 and our nation's military achievements took control of this narrative.
Regarding the stylistic aspects of this book, it is written in a prose which is mostly clear to read and simple in its naturalism. There are times when Rudd's accounting of his characters' speech are a little confusing due to punctuation or archaisms, but most people should readily surmount these hurdles. It is blatantly obvious that Dad is the key character and he is mostly an engaging one, without too much complexity in his depiction. Dave, Joe and other male personae often serve as either the fulcrum or support for a comedic scene where Dad is the real agent of humour, whereas the women (including Mum, Kate and Sally) are presented (in their more peripheral depictions) as figures of stability, anchoring their menfolk to sober realities.
It must also be said that Rudd does an excellent job of bringing the bush alive, without either presenting it as a barren, sullen world of terror and disaster nor as some pale shadow of a European Eden. This is unforgiving country with beauties and hardships; sometimes it repels its inhabitants, other times it is good. If there is one thing that will always identify an Australian author as one who is worth reading it is how they interpret and present their environment. Rudd does this no worries.
In summary, would I recommend 'On Our Selection'? Yes I would, but not to everyone and especially not to anyone who may find animal cruelty far too offensive, and seek 'pale, male and stale' issues with any book they read. Yes, Steele Rudd has written a classic Australian book, and if you are to delve into its pages be cognisant of its limitations as well as its historical and cultural legacy.
May 16, 2016
Took me a while to get the humour. Okay, maybe I still don't get it. Dry. Like, how bad can things get, and what craziness will happen on top of that. But even for someone who didn't get it there were laugh out loud moments. The nutso guy, the way they reacted to the lady teacher's wardrobe, but wow was I taken aback by how they treated their animals. Yeah. That bothered me. Was it supposed to? I didn't understand.
November 1, 2020
On Our Selection is a collection of comic tales now regarded as an Australian classic, and I have categorised this post as Australian literature, but I don’t think literature is what it is…
Steele Rudd (real name Arthur Hoey Davis 1868-1935) wrote for The Bulletin in its heyday, publishing the triumphs and – more often – the travails of the quintessential Selector family trying to carve out a living in the backblocks of the country. I think these stories have a value from an historical point of view for they depict the grinding poverty, the determination and resilience of early settlers, but after a while they begin to pall.
The illustrations, by no less than five different artists, are excellent. It is these pictures that show the pitiful condition of the nag that Dad enters in a horse race, the joy of Kate’s wedding, and the poverty they endure. Today, in the age of the credit card, handouts from charities, the pension and other benefits, it is hard to envisage being so destitute that there is no sugar for their tea and the pigs must go hungry so that the family can dine on pumpkin. Each disaster – damaged fencing, a mirror smashed by a lunatic swaggie called Crazy Jack, failed crops and disastrous fires – strikes the modern reader with a kind of horror and profound sympathy for these people, yet for generations Dad and Dave were much loved as comic characters and their adventures can still be seen on DVD.
There isn’t much in the way of character development. According to the introduction by one Cecil Hadgraft, Dad becomes more taciturn and unlikeable as the years go by, but I gave up reading before getting that far.
Steele Rudd (real name Arthur Hoey Davis 1868-1935) wrote for The Bulletin in its heyday, publishing the triumphs and – more often – the travails of the quintessential Selector family trying to carve out a living in the backblocks of the country. I think these stories have a value from an historical point of view for they depict the grinding poverty, the determination and resilience of early settlers, but after a while they begin to pall.
The illustrations, by no less than five different artists, are excellent. It is these pictures that show the pitiful condition of the nag that Dad enters in a horse race, the joy of Kate’s wedding, and the poverty they endure. Today, in the age of the credit card, handouts from charities, the pension and other benefits, it is hard to envisage being so destitute that there is no sugar for their tea and the pigs must go hungry so that the family can dine on pumpkin. Each disaster – damaged fencing, a mirror smashed by a lunatic swaggie called Crazy Jack, failed crops and disastrous fires – strikes the modern reader with a kind of horror and profound sympathy for these people, yet for generations Dad and Dave were much loved as comic characters and their adventures can still be seen on DVD.
There isn’t much in the way of character development. According to the introduction by one Cecil Hadgraft, Dad becomes more taciturn and unlikeable as the years go by, but I gave up reading before getting that far.
June 19, 2022
This is an Australian 'classic' but like our Cuisine is perhaps an acquired taste. I found it had a skewiff perspective which is only just enough out of whack that it seems like a regular story until you pause, take a second glance, and recognise the oddities. Such as who is telling the story...second person plural maybe? And the tone is dead pan dry humour, which matches the landscape, but at the extreme, Australian El Niño end of the scale. And who is we? The story's told in a strange tense - first person plural? - but it seems the we in question varies as the subject in view rotate around the family. I was never quite sure who was telling the story.
The story is a sad one, despite the humour, an Australian family doing it tough in the outback prior to modern technology and communication (it's hard enough with them). At the mercy of unpredictable seasons and without much of a clue about how to manage land, vegetable or beast, the picture is one of economic and physical desperation. The humor only serves to highlight this by keeping us reading lest we give up in despair. Yet somehow this kind of staunch larrikanism provided enough momentum to Australia's early population and economy to bring about its modern form, not without reason labeling is the lucky country. Perhaps there is supposed to be more to this than my face value reading, but at face value it's interesting but hard to place otherwise.
The story is a sad one, despite the humour, an Australian family doing it tough in the outback prior to modern technology and communication (it's hard enough with them). At the mercy of unpredictable seasons and without much of a clue about how to manage land, vegetable or beast, the picture is one of economic and physical desperation. The humor only serves to highlight this by keeping us reading lest we give up in despair. Yet somehow this kind of staunch larrikanism provided enough momentum to Australia's early population and economy to bring about its modern form, not without reason labeling is the lucky country. Perhaps there is supposed to be more to this than my face value reading, but at face value it's interesting but hard to place otherwise.
September 25, 2025
3.5 stars. A historical fiction collection of short semi autobiographical stories recording the homely pathos and humour of life on a small Darling Downs on an Australian outback farm and grazing property. The property was a “ real wilderness - nothing but trees, goanna’s, dead timber and bears: and the nearest house - Dwyer’s - was three miles away…Lonely! It was lonely.” The family consisted of Dad, his wife, Dan, who was always wandering off and coming back to sponge of the family and perhaps get some girl into trouble, Dave, hard working and dependable, Joe, an irrepressible young lad, and the girls, Kate, Sarah and Norah. The neighbours are the Dwyers, Andersons, Maloneys and Donovans.
The children received schooling up to around the age of 12. The boys watered the cows, drove the horses in the plough and hunted kangaroos and koala bears.
My favourite stories include ‘The Parson and the scone’, ‘Dave’s Snakebite’, ‘A Splendid Year for Corn’, ‘The night we watched for Wallabies’, and ‘A Surprise Party’.
A very popular book in early 1900s Australia.
An entertaining, amusing read about a way of life in the 1890s Australian outback.
This book was first published in 1899.
The children received schooling up to around the age of 12. The boys watered the cows, drove the horses in the plough and hunted kangaroos and koala bears.
My favourite stories include ‘The Parson and the scone’, ‘Dave’s Snakebite’, ‘A Splendid Year for Corn’, ‘The night we watched for Wallabies’, and ‘A Surprise Party’.
A very popular book in early 1900s Australia.
An entertaining, amusing read about a way of life in the 1890s Australian outback.
This book was first published in 1899.
January 3, 2018
Exceptional writing from the 1890s, an insight into life in the 19th century Australian bush that is uproarious and touching. Rudd's sense of humour is very "outback", and not something that I think many of my generation appreciate. I count myself among that number sometimes! But I'm lucky to have the bush in my blood enough to enjoy this. I ultimately prefer Henry Lawson's Joe Wilson stories because of the added layer of tasty despair that he incorporates. But Rudd was writing in the tradition of rural comedy that has persisted for centuries. The tough frontier life, and even just life for those doing it tough in the very real working class of the time (parts of Australia didn't have indoor plumbing until well into the 1970s), was made bearable by that sense of humour, taking the worst of life with a sense of humility and endurance. Beyond the humour, this is an insight into a lifestyle that has all but vanished in our century.
February 23, 2024
A part of Australian history has been neatly encapsulated in this engaging piece of literature.
Originally written as a series of short stories, it's easy to take small pieces at a time.
On the treatment of animals, I found the introduction to be helpful preparation, and have summarised it below:
"Modern readers are sometimes shocked by the violence in 'On Our Selection'. There are instances of extraordinary cruelty to animals. [...] It may seem surprising, particularly when this passage is quoted out of context, the treatment of the furrow horse seems to have been intended to be humourous, and such incidents appear to have been read as funny by their audiences at the turn of the century. [...] It may be helpful for today's readers to regard the violence in the Rudd's stories as cartoon violence. Ultimately the horse like many a [cartoon] character appears to be unhurt by its vicious treatment and even has its own minor revenge [...]"
Originally written as a series of short stories, it's easy to take small pieces at a time.
On the treatment of animals, I found the introduction to be helpful preparation, and have summarised it below:
"Modern readers are sometimes shocked by the violence in 'On Our Selection'. There are instances of extraordinary cruelty to animals. [...] It may seem surprising, particularly when this passage is quoted out of context, the treatment of the furrow horse seems to have been intended to be humourous, and such incidents appear to have been read as funny by their audiences at the turn of the century. [...] It may be helpful for today's readers to regard the violence in the Rudd's stories as cartoon violence. Ultimately the horse like many a [cartoon] character appears to be unhurt by its vicious treatment and even has its own minor revenge [...]"
February 22, 2020
Two stars. I never thought I'd do it. I grew up with Steele Rudd's work. His 19th century writings were much treasured, and then there was the 20th century movie that didn't really do its humour justice. But I'm a grown up now, and the 21st century me, really struggled with the misogyny of it all.
It's not really a fault of the author, as these were the times they lived in, where women were the invisible sex put upon the earth to prop men up and make men's lives easier. And On Our Selection was thick with it. Men are the main theme, doing all the work, having all the important conversations, all the grand adventures. While women are there in the background to feed and clean, to 'nag' or 'scold', raise the kids, or 'be terrified of creatures so that men can feel themselves the braver, tougher sex'.
It just doesn't seem a funny treasure anymore. Just an embarrassment.
It's not really a fault of the author, as these were the times they lived in, where women were the invisible sex put upon the earth to prop men up and make men's lives easier. And On Our Selection was thick with it. Men are the main theme, doing all the work, having all the important conversations, all the grand adventures. While women are there in the background to feed and clean, to 'nag' or 'scold', raise the kids, or 'be terrified of creatures so that men can feel themselves the braver, tougher sex'.
It just doesn't seem a funny treasure anymore. Just an embarrassment.
September 23, 2021
Another from the free classics selection I’ve been sprawling through, but thank god it was short, I get it’s supposed to be witty, but fuck all happens really and it’s not really that funny! Ok for a once through but got a bit tedious in the end! Not so bonza
November 6, 2023
An Australian classic. A story of the hard life of early bush pioneers. I found the language to be coarse and the Dad’s temper particularly towards animals to be in poor taste. The Australian humor would be hard for non Australians to understand.
October 9, 2021
Väga humoorikalt kirjutatud, mõnus lugemine!
December 25, 2014
Reading the country humor of another country is a stitch--and a bit of a challenge with the different vocabulary and background knowledge and quirks of farming and weather conditions and animals (this is Australian!) and more. But...I visited the cafe/pub where Rudd began writing these vignettes and with that prodding, am very much enjoying them--another volume to go!
August 6, 2016
a real classic. wonderful dry humour.
February 29, 2020
Brilliant! Real life hardships mixed with classic Australian humour.
January 3, 2023
Picked this up purely because it was free on the books app but I was pleasantly surprised.
This book gives the reader an insight into difficult outback life. Not much happens but it was okay!
This book gives the reader an insight into difficult outback life. Not much happens but it was okay!
November 18, 2022
honestly, it wasn't badly written but just boring in my opinion.
December 10, 2012
I had been meaning to read this classic for a while.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews