I wasn't even aware Peter Carey had a new novel coming out, but, according to "The Elegant Variation", it's titled His Illegal Self, and to prove it he's even got a photo of the galley proof. Amazon.com lists its publication date as February 5, 2008; and amazon.co.uk lists a date of February 7, 2008. They have a blurb which reads:
Che is raised in isolated privilege by his New York grandmother, the precocious son of radical Harvard students in the sixties. Yearning for his famous Outlaw parents, denied all access to television and the news, he takes hope from his long-haired teenage neighbour who predicts 'They will come for you, man. They'll break you out of here.' Soon Che too is an outlaw, fleeing down subways, abandoning seedy motels at night, as he is pitched into a journey that leads him to a hippy commune in the jungle of tropical Queensland. Here he slowly, bravely, confronts his life, learning that nothing is what it seems. His Illegal Self is an achingly beautiful and emotional story of the love between a young woman and a little boy, and a wonderful journey of self-discovery.Che is always a good name. Best
Australian Rules footballer's name I ever heard was Che Cockatoo-Collins. Essendon and Port Adelaide supporters will remember him.
