Joseph Furphy

Novelist, born near Melbourne, Victoria, SE Australia. He worked as a farmer and a bullock-driver before moving to Shepparton, Victoria, in 1883, where he worked at the iron-foundry established by his elder brother. He contributed a series of articles to the Bulletin magazine under his pseudonym, and wrote a lengthy novel, Such is Life, which was revised, shortened, and published in 1903. His reputation rests on this one major work, which encapsulated his hard-working philosophy and marked a move away from literature's Romantic concept of Australia's pioneering days.

Joseph Furphy September 26, 1843–September 13, 1912, is widely regarded as the "Father of the Australian novel".

Furphy's popularity may have influenced the usage of the Australian slang word furphy, meaning a "tall story".

Furphy was born in Yering, Victoria.

Such is Life is a fictional account of the life of rural dwellers, including bullock drivers, squatters and itinerant travellers, in southern New South Wales and Victoria, during the 1880s.

The book comprises a series of loosely interwoven stories of the various people encountered by the narrator as he travels about the countryside. At times the prose is difficult to understand because of the use of Australian vernacular and Furphy's attempt to convey the accents of Scottish and Chinese personalities.

The title of Such is Life is said to be derived from Ned Kelly's last words.

In 1905, Furphy moved to Western Australia, where his sons were living.