Abstract: This paper examines the critical reception of Alexis Wright’s Plains of Promise as a piece of magical realism, and suggests that it should be read as something of a preparatory text for Wright’s later and more highly acclaimed work, Carpentaria.

Keywords: Alexis Wright; Plains of Promise; ambiguity; Indigenous; women; magical realism

Copyright © Katie Valenta 2012. This text may be archived and redistributed both in electronic form and in hard copy, provided that the author and journal are properly cited and no fee is charged.