City Bushman: Henry Lawson and the Australian Imagination.

Fremantle: Curtin University Books, 2004.

‘Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: … fascinating and important book.’ The Age

‘ an original, stimulating, sometimes provoking study, distinguished by the suppleness of its thinking … City Bushman marks new tracks in which others will undoubtedly travel.’  Australian Historical Studies

‘wonderful new contribution to Australian cultural studies … thoroughly researched …clear and pertinent … comprehensive and accurate … an attractive virtually error free volume. City Bushman is an informative, entertaining, and fresh perspective on one of Australia’s most important writers … an extremely valuable addition to the body of work on Australian literature and culture.’ Biography

           ‘... fascinating and useful.’ Australian

‘illuminating … thorough … terrific … an important contribution to Lawson studies. It offers a wealth of meticulously researched, new information; it proceeds laterally to establish innovative and surprising links; and it raises questions which future Lawson scholars will need to conjure with and will learn from.’  History Australia

' Lee's book goes a long way towards making Lawson a suitable subject for research once again... City Bushman is a revelation because it opens up a seemingly fossilised discourse ... and succeeds in making both the writer and his oeuvre relevant as a literary and ... a socio-historical phenomenon ...' JAS Review of Books

‘a fascinating study … a valuable …  and a worthwhile read.’ Guardian Express

‘a good compendium of what Lawson means to Australia … a worthy addition to the … Lawson bibliography.’ Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society

 ‘fascinating … and … valuable contribution to the debate as to what exactly constitutes the Australian identity.’ Western Suburbs Weekly

Frank Hardy and the Literature of Commitment.

Melbourne: Vulgar Press, 2003. (co-edited with Paul Adams).

‘ … a comprehensive kit for understanding Hardy’s work, in context and in comparison with his contemporaries.’ Australian Historical Studies

 ‘ … a goldmine of prefatory material.’ Australian Book Review

 ‘… celebratory, recuperative offering that should send many a reader back to Hardy’  Overland

‘This book should appeal not only to Hardy fans and scholars with a special focus, but also to anyone interested in Australian literature and history … essays such as these remind us that there is a radical tradition of writers who have changed the way we see the world.’  Australian Literary Studies

‘… this is a significant collection’...  Reviews in Australian Studies

Authority and Influence: Australian Literary Criticism 1950-2000.

St. Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 2001. xxxviii + 401 pp (co-edited with Delys Bird and Robert Dixon).

‘ a breakthrough assembling of many of the crucial documents of the past 50 years … A must for the student of Australian writing.’ Australian 

‘… intelligent and judicious … fair and perceptive … a handy work of reference …’ Canberra Times

‘… a comprehensive survey of the most important tendencies in the development of Australian literary criticism.’ Journal of Australian Studies

 ‘… allows us to examine and … to reanimate significant shifts and moments in Australian literary criticism … helps to dispel the myth that criticism coming prior to 1980 was without theory.’ Westerly 

‘ … entertaining, informative and intellectually meaty… this book will be a mainstay.’ Antipodes

 ‘ … revivifies an enormous body of work … of value to all interested in Australian culture. Writers and overseas critics should seek it out  … Australian literary studies has been very much the poorer without it and can’t help but benefit from the generosities it offers.’  Australian Literary Studies

 ‘… provides hope for the continuing existence and importance of Australian literary studies’ Overland

 ‘ … a serious book that is readable and enjoyable; an intelligent anthology which offers twists and turns.’ Overland

Turning the Century: Writing of the 1890s.

Australian Authors Series. St.Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 1999. xxviii + 390 pp.

 ‘… breaks new ground with theoretical assurance and radical imagination. Don’t assume you know the period until you read it.’ Overland

 ‘ … an important work … a very comprehensive selection… a book to stimulate the thoughts of Australians …’ Margin 

  ‘… you’ll love this … an entertaining collection that works as both an important documentary text as well as something pleasurable to read …’ Sun-Herald

 ‘ inspiring anthology’ Australian

 ‘Lee’s collection – more wide ranging than Leon Cantrell’s … is a mixture of familiar classics and welcome surprise … varied and interesting writing which … speaks for itself’. Sydney Morning Herald

 ‘Lee has made an excellent selection and has succeeded admirably…’ The Canberra Times