Review
For all of you who remember the television
mini-series called The Thorn Birds, this book, by the same author,
will be a delightful escape into Australian life at the turn
of the century. Even better than a great read, this is a great
read that isn't too long. Oh, sure, I read the Gulag Archipelago
and Gone With the Wind and didn't begrudge a single syllable,
but you can't fault a good author who can tell a light-hearted
fairy tale with a minimum of prose.
The time of this novel is right before
WWI, near the Blue Mountains in Australia. The village of Missalonghi
is named after the poet Byron, and most of the females in this
far-flung clan have Latin names to complement the period. Along
comes John Smith and buys up the valley in the center of their
town right from under their self-important noses. Missy Wright
is one of the three man-less ladies of Missalonghi, homely, unimportant
and destined for a fate no better than her past. These women
are taken advantage of, bullied, pitied, and despised by all
their more successful relatives because of their lack of means.
John Smith upsets this balance in a way that Missy would never
have dreamed because she finally has the courage to change her
own life.
The author, Colleen McCullough, is a neurologist
by profession, and after leaving Australia has centered her many
books on Australian life. Rich prose and wicked satire on social
mores make this a book worth reading.
-- Jan Irvine
|
