The beloved Australian classic, first published in a stunning Clothbound Classics edition by Penguin. Miles Franklin's debut novel follows the lively and restless 16-year-old Sybylla Melvyn - closely modeled on Franklin herself - as she struggles to escape the restrictive rural life. Growing up on her parents' farm, Sybylla desperately longs to read, write, sing, and achieve great things. However, her ambitions for a 'brilliant career' are continually thwarted, first by the harsh demands of rural family life and later by the chains of a proposed conventional marriage to the wealthy Harold Beecham. With only her brilliant, contradictory mind to guide her, Sybylla is forced to define a life on her own terms. 'My Brilliant Career' is acclaimed for capturing the spirit of Australia in the early 20th century. The passionate and precocious protagonist's struggles illuminate the emerging women's rights and suffrage movement during this period, while poignantly capturing the intensity of youth.