than a character. Patrick White, Australia's only Nobel laureate, admitted privately that in spite of the "beautiful landscapes", he found it full of "cartoon dialogue and cartoon characters" and would never read the entire novel. The novel won the 1976 Miles Franklin Award, beating Frank Hardy's But the Dead Are Many and Thomas Keneally's Gossip from the Forest. Interpretation Sean Monahan has argued that the book's conclusion serves a double purpose. Despite being the most open-minded white person in the book, Jeremy ultimately cannot leave the Aboriginal people alone at this climactic moment, and his need to "follow the logic of the white man's thinking" and interfere is what causes the tragedy. Prindy, meanwhile, was defined by Herbert as "the symbol of the tragedy of the Australian Dream" and his death symbolises the inevitable failure of the Australian nation unless it finds a better way forward for its Indigenous people. References External links A book on Herbert's novels at www.xavier-herbert-novels.com. The book has 5 chapters on Poor Fellow My Country which can either be read on site or downloaded. 1975 Australian novels Miles Franklin Award-winning works Novels set in Australia William Collins, Sons books Xavier Herbert Novels about nationalism