The Getting of Wisdom was first published in 1910 and has continued to sell well. Germaine Greer’s introduction, of course, makes this edition even more appealing to the reader.

Described by H. G. Wells as the best school story he knew, The Getting of Wisdom is the classic Australian novel of school days, a compelling and frank account of a young girl’s coming of age.

‘Sexual tension tightens every page’ writes Germaine Greer. ‘The enduring truth is that The Getting of Wisdom is Richardson’s only great book, precisely because the subject is, like the rest of us, ordinary, and therefore deeply important.’