THIS ALL COME BACK NOW

an anthology of blackfella speculative fiction

The first-ever anthology of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander speculative fiction – written, curated, edited and designed by blackfellas, for blackfellas and about blackfellas. In these stories, ‘this all come back’: all those things that have been taken from us, that we collectively mourn the loss of, or attempt to recover and revive, as well as those that we thought we’d gotten rid of, that are always returning to haunt and hound us.

Some writers summon ancestral spirits from the past, while others look straight down the barrel of potential futures, which always end up curving back around to hold us from behind. Dazzling, imaginative and unsettling, THIS ALL COME BACK NOW centres and celebrates communities and culture. It’s a love letter to kin and country, to memory and future-thinking.

READ EXCERPTS
– Overture, the introduction to the anthology by Mykaela Saunders, at Sydney Review of Books
– Clatter Tongue, a short story by Karen Wyld, at Kill Your Darlings
– Terranora, a short story by Mykaela Saunders, at Readings

HONOURS FOR THIS ALL COME BACK NOW

PRAISE FOR THIS ALL COME BACK NOW

‘This All Come Back Now is an act of radical subversion and intellectual sovereignty… They bring us a love-letter to country, to family, to ancestors, to all-times simultaneously and to writing the future.’
Associate Professor Jeanine Leane for Sydney Review of Books

‘Beautiful, sardonic, and thought-provoking.’
Declan Fry for The Age/Sydney Morning Herald

‘This is the best kind of anthology—one with something for everyone, be it entertainment, scares, humour, or the conversation of ideas.’
Beau Windon for Kill Your Darlings

‘This All Come Back Now is a gift to Blackfella readers and storytellers. It’s a compelling and rich showcasing of Blak thought.’
Laura La Rosa for The Saturday Paper

‘Playful, bitter, loud and proud…I recommend this anthology to readers interested in good fiction generally and speculative fiction in particular. But most emphatically, I recommend it to anyone who might wonder what a First Nations response to the question of our potential future might look like.’
Yasmine Musharbash for The Conversation

‘A ground-breaking work that has been sadly overdue. May it open the gateway for more.’
Elizabeth Fitzgerald for Nerds of a Feather

‘A wild romp through different universes and timelines, all wrapped up in the book cover of the year.’
Sam Elkin for Arts Hub

‘A powerhouse of First Nations stories.’
Cheryl Akle for The Weekend Australian

‘A collection with purpose and power… masterfully arranged, the anthology creates meaning in addition to its individual parts.’ 
Dasha Maiorova for The Big Issue

‘Saunders is biting about the history of speculative fiction’s hostile portrayal of First Nations characters and cultures… this anthology takes back control.’ 
Jo Case for In Daily

‘Displays the richness and diversity of speculative fiction by First Nations authors…These stories skilfully use the tools and tropes of speculative fiction to illuminate the world as it is for their readers, and also allow for a sharing of cultural knowledge.’ 
Robert Goodman for Newtown Review of Books

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