‘Trust breached’: publisher distances herself from author John Hughes amid plagiarism claims

Upswell publisher Terri-ann White says she is distressed by controversy around former Miles Franklin prize longlist novel The Dogs

• Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email and listen to our podcast

The publisher of John Hughes' 2021 book The Dogs has said her trust has been breached by the author, after the novel was found to contain sections that were nearly identical to extracts from the Great Gatsby, Anna Karenina and a Nobel laureate's nonfiction work.

In a statement posted to the website of Upswell Publishing on Friday, Terri-ann White said while her impulse is always to stand by my author", she was affronted by a line he wrote in a piece justifying his work, published by the Guardian yesterday: I wanted the appropriated passages to be seen and recognised as in a collage."

Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning