# Boy Swallows Universe

Boy Swallows Universe is the debut novel by Australian writer Trent Dalton. It was originally published by Fourth Estate in Australia in 2018.

## Synopsis

This semi-autobiographical coming-of-age novel is set in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1983. Eli Bell is a traumatised teenager with an absent father, a mute brother, an imprisoned mother, and a heroin dealer for a stepfather.

## Publication history

After its original publication in 2018 in Australia by publisher Fourth Estate the novel was later republished as follows:
* HarperCollins, US, 2019
* Fourth Estate, Australia, 2019, 2023
* The Borough Press, UK, 2019, 2020
The novel was also translated into Spanish, Swedish, French, Dutch, Finnish, Turkish, Portuguese, Chinese, Czech, and Lithuanian in 2019; Italian, Polish, and Russian in 2020; and German, Korean, Japanese and Hebrew in 2021. It became the fastest-selling debut novel in Australian history, selling more than a million copies worldwide.

## Critical reception

John Collee in The Age compared the writer to Tim Winton and Robert Drewe, stating: "Dalton is a writer in the same league. His dialogue is every bit as funny and accurate as Winton's, his prose just as evocative, and he's better at wrapping up the ending. The last 100 pages of Boy Swallows Universe propel you like an express train to a conclusion that is profound and complex and unashamedly commercial. There are shades of Raymond Chandler in the final confrontation with the town's bleached and wealthy benefactor whose cement bunker conceals a chilling secret. And even a nod to John Buchan."
Sunil Dasgupta writing in the Washington Independent Review of Books noted: "This is Dalton’s debut novel, and he is a compelling storyteller with an exceptional voice. He depicts a heroin-addled Australia that we are not familiar with in the United States, a perch from where Australia looks like all gorgeous beaches and even more gorgeous beach bums."

## Awards

* Dymocks Book of the Year, 2018, winner
* Indie Book Awards, Book of the Year, 2019, winner
* Indie Book Awards, Debut Fiction, 2019, winner
* New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards – UTS Glenda Adams Award for New Writing, 2019, winner
* New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards – People's Choice Award, 2019, winner
* Australian Book Industry Awards – Australian Literary Fiction Book of the Year, 2019, winner
* Australian Book Industry Awards – The Matt Richell Award for New Writer, 2019, winner
* Australian Book Industry Awards – Australian Book of the Year, 2019, winner
* Miles Franklin Literary Award, 2019, longlisted
* Australian Booksellers Association Awards – BookPeople Book of the Year, 2019, winner
* International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, 2020 longlisted

## Adaptations

A 2021 stage adaptation became the best-selling show in Queensland Theatre's history.
The book was adapted for a 7-episode TV mini-series produced by Brouhaha Entertainment's Andrew Mason and Troy Lum, which premiered on Netflix on 11 January 2024. The adaptation was written by John Collee, with episodes directed by Bharat Nalluri, Jocelyn Moorhouse, and Kim Mordaunt. It featured Lee Tiger Halley and Felix Cameron in the lead roles.