The Architect

The Architect (2001) is a novel by Australian author John Scott. It was shortlisted for the Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature, the Victorian Premier's Prize and the 2002 Miles Franklin Award, an annual literary prize awarded to "a novel which is of the highest literary merit and presents Australian life in any of its phases" Plot summary The novel tells the story of two architects: successful young Australian Andrew Martin, and neglected Johannes Von Ruhland. When Martin meets Von Ruhland in Berlin he is drawn into the older man's world. Reception In an interview with The Age following the novel's Miles Franklin Award shortlist announcement, Scott admitted to being disappointed by how his novel was initially received and had nearly given up on writing fiction because of the cold reception. "It had a number of spiteful reviews and hardly sold any copies. I could see my literary career being dismantled in front of my eyes". He later expressed hope that the unexpected shortlisting will mean that "the book won't sink without trace."