This month we had a choice to read books
by either Kate Grenville or Charlotte Wood.
KATE GRENVILLE
Kate Grenville is a prominent
Australian author, born in 1950 and well known for her historical fiction set
in Australia. Some of her novels have been made into movies and television
series.
ED: THE CASE AGAINST FRAGRANCE
Ed found some of it a bit boring,
especially the discussion of different chemicals. She did not finish the book.
JO: THE SECRET RIVER
Jo said it was interesting. The Aboriginal people were treated
badly. There were massacres and a lot of
people did not know. She said it was
okay, but she found it hard to get through.
JUDY D: SEARCHING FOR THE SECRET RIVER
Judy said it was interesting how she
got the information to write a book. She
didn’t know if she wanted to write a novel or a history book. Judy found it very dull and boring.
KERRIE: UNSETTLED
This was written 20 years after The
Secret River. It’s Kate’s personal story on how to go about writing a
historical novel. She enjoyed the Secret River but found the information
unsettling and disturbing. 20
years later and she’s still unsettled. Even the words used at the time “taking
up land” when they were just taking it from the Aboriginals. Kerry found it a very good book but also
found it unsettling. She felt a
connection as her relative was Solomon Wiseman.
JUDY A: IDEA OF PERFECTION
Judy read it 23 years ago. It is one of her top 20 books and she said it
holds up well. It’s about two misfits
who find each other. One is a shy
engineer who is employed to demolish a dilapidated bridge in a small country
town. The other is a plain female museum curator who has come to town to start
a heritage museum. The third character
is Felicity, the wife of the local bank manager. She believes she is a cut above everyone
else. This book celebrates ordinary
people.
MARGARET: She read
the same book. It was a favourite in a
family book club. Everyone loved it. Margaret’s father was a building and
bridge inspector, so it reminds her of her father. She would recommend this to anyone as it is a
beautiful and funny book.
ONE LIFE – MY MOTHER’S
STORY
HELEN: This is a
story by Kate Grenville about her mother Nance.
Her mother was born in 1912. She
was an inspirational mother and teacher.
When she died, she left behind fragments of a memoir. It was a century of tumult and change. It also echoes countless lives of women of
her times, a time when most women had no ambitions beyond the domestic. This is a deeply moving homage to her
mother. Kate said her mother was very
supportive of her when she began to write.
THE RESTLESS DOLLY MAUNDER
LESLEY: Dolly was Kate Grenville’s grandmother and Nance’s mother. This story is based on memories and recollections of snippets of country NSW as the 6th of 7 children. Life on the land was tough, and her father was tough. Her mother was worn out and subservient. She wasn’t shown love or cuddles. Dolly wanted to be a teacher, but her father said she just had to help on the farm. She married an itinerant worker, had three children. Her husband was easy going. She had to push him to move Sydney. With some financial help they started a corner shop and did well. They went into various businesses but during the depression lost it all and decided to go back to the country. Then she moved back to Sydney as she wanted her children to be well educated. Dolly was a force of nature, driven, restless, frustrated with women’s place in society. It was a strong line of women, Dolly, Nance and then Kate. Lesley enjoyed this book.
A ROOM MADE OF LEAVES
LYN: This is a story about Elizabeth Macarthur, John Macarthur’s
wife. John was a wealthy and corrupt early pioneer of the Australian
wool industry. Lyn said it was well researched.
Kate Grenville found memoirs of Macarthur’s wife. She weaves fact and
fiction well. Lyn did not read it all
but enjoyed what she has read.
THE LIEUTENANT
KELLY: It’s the
story of an English marine who is injured during his duties in the Navy. He
becomes an astronomer. He has an opportunity to come to Australia on half
pay. He was asked to go out to look for
food because of his knowledge of astronomy.
He was asked could he do something about the assaults on three
aboriginal women, but he felt he didn’t have the power to intervene. Kelly said
it was a bit boring.
BEV: She also
read this book. Daniel Dawes is the main
character. He gets a scholarship. Other
kids seem to have more money than brains.
He doesn’t fit in. He is
interested in astronomy and is good at maths. He is helped by a professor to go
on the 1st Fleet where he sets up an observatory. There are copious descriptions that go on
and on. He befriended an aboriginal girl
who taught him the language. He had an affinity with the aboriginal people but
could not cope with their treatment. He would
retreat to his observatory. He was sent
home in disgrace. Bev enjoyed the first
part but not the second part.
PRUE: She also
read this book. She loved it as she is
very interested in the languages. Daniel Dawes was out of step with the
world. He developed a love of astronomy. He was sent to Australia on the 1st
Fleet. He was there to observe a comet, but he found the treatment of the
aboriginal people difficult. He was torn between his moral duty and his duty as
a lieutenant. In England a lieutenant
was hung because of his behaviour. Prue
said Kate Grenville was a beautiful writer, and the book was easy to read. She will read the third one in the trilogy.
CHARLOTTE WOOD is also an acclaimed
Australian author. She was born in 1965 and is well known for her original and
thought-provoking novels. She is the author of 7 novels and 3 non fiction
novels.
THE CHILDREN (Pub 2007)
JOAN: This
story is set in Australian country town in 2006 when a father of the household
falls off the roof of his home. He ends
up in intensive care on life support.
His wife is Margaret. The adult
children are called to his bedside for a seven day vigil and it is the family
interactions that flow through with a tragic end. The characters are either bland or grossly
annoying. The storyline is bleak and it
seems like childhood is something we never escape from. Joan did not find it worthwhile to read.
STONEYARD DEVOTION
ROSEMARY: The
narrator is an unmarried, presumably middle aged woman, who abandons her
marriage, her career as a conservation specialist, and her life to join the
nuns at a convent in rural NSW, the town of her childhood, despite having no
religious affinity. She is escaping her life which is overwhelming, as the
world deals with the pandemic. She gradually adapts to the far gentler rhythms
of monastic life in their own little bubble. She reflects on her life, her
family and friends and guilt she feels. Rosemary said it was a slow moving book
with no real plot.
EVERYWHERE I LOOK BY HELEN
GARNER (PUB 2016)
JUDY J: This is a
collection of essays, diary entries and true stories spanning more than 15
years of the work of one of Australia’s greatest writers. Helen Garner takes us
from backstage at the ballet to the trial of a woman for infanticide, from the
significance of moving house to the pleasure of re reading Pride and
Prejudice. The collection includes her
famous and controversial essay on the insults of age, thoughts on loneliness
and dying. This is her moving tribute to
her mother, and the story of her joy in discovering the ukulele. It is a multifaceted and profound portrait of
life. It glows with insight and
wisdom. There are 28 stories of different
lengths. They are written so beautifully,
and you want to keep reading on to the next one.
Kris
AUGUST: We will be reading one of 2 books from the Library Kits
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai or Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Please email Rosemary to arrange a pick up, if you do not have a book yet and then return to Rosemary at our next book club meeting in August.
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