Doing Something for Australia: George Robertson and the Early Years of Angus and Robertson, Publishers, 1888-1900

From tentative beginnings in 1888, Angus and Robertson soon hit their stride as publishers with the publication of Banjo Paterson's verses The Man from Snowy River. This book was a phenomenal success, surprising even its publishers. Snowy River was quickly followed by two successful Henry Lawson titles, In the Days When the World was Wide and While the Billy Boils. From this foundation, Angus and Robertson went on to publish books for the Australian community for the better part of the next hundred years. The powerful force in the early publishing was George Robertson, who devoted himself to the task and who, with the continuing success of the firm's many books, truly believed he was "doing something for Australia." This book tells the story of how Angus and Robertson operated as a business to achieve their success, which in effect tells the story of George Robertson himself. Jennifer Alison is a graduate of the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales. She worked as