READING
From the library “The Choke” by Sophie Laguna, is a story about relationships in rural Australian told by an abandoned toddler, Justine, being raised by her grandfather, an old man tormented by memories of his time on the Burma Railway. This harrowing story is well written but the underlying sexual violence, the obvious neglect of the child and the alcohol fueled violence within the family result in a very disturbing book.
Ignorant, neglected and with undiagnosed dyslexia, when Justine becomes pregnant at 13, she’s sent off to another town to have the baby. The grandfather believes he has made arrangements for the baby to be adopted, but Justine has other plans, and supported by an aunt she rarely sees, she keeps him.
I know this was supposed to be a happy ending but all I could imagine was a 14 year old with no experience of mothering, poorly educated, no income and living with her childless aunt and partner with no idea about raising a happy, healthy child. All a bit sad, really.
The author, Alexandra Joel, wrote this biography “Rosetta: A Scandalous True Story” about her great grandmother who deserted her child, Joel’s grandmother, as a five year old having already divorced the father. The great grandmother then ran away with her Australian Chinese beau, first to Sydney from Melbourne and then to the UK, where the pair practiced “Japanese” medicine, hypnosis and gave massages. Their clients and friends included aristocrats and royalty and their business flourished.
When WW1 broke out they returned to Sydney and continued to increase their wealth. Rosetta never attempted to contact her child and left her fortune to her third husband, a man forty years younger than herself.
A brilliant story about escaping a stifling environment and re-inventing yourself, but also another example of how being abandoned can impact on children. It was a fabulous snapshot of Australia from the beginning of the century until more recent times.
My favourite book this week is “Picardy” by Marian Somes. This memoir charts the family’s first garden of native Australian plants, through to a mixture of Australian and European plantings and finally, greatly influenced by trips to France, a large, fully blown, very French garden in Victoria’s Gippsland region. ( You can click on the bookcover or title to view and buy the book)
The Somes’s have build a rammed earth home intended to look like a French farmhouse, a dovecote and a barn which look lovely but it’s the garden they have created on their 26 acres which steals the scene. They have a cutting garden, annuals and perennials, a vineyard and olive grove, a trufferie and orchard, vegetable gardens and general planting to create a visual feast.
Somes is an accomplished cook and some recipes are included, but the most stunning part of this book is the gorgeous photos. A lovely read which left me itching for more land!
WATCHING
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Pie Society film was as good as the book and lovely. The lead, Juliet (Lily James), apparently previously worked with four of the other actors on Downton Abbey. It’s a moving film about post-war friendships, love and books. A successful London based author travels to Guernsey after corresponding with a member of the book club. A beautifully told but sad story with a happy ending and an amazing travelogue for Guernsey!
Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Peggy Plowright, Dame Eileen Atkins and Dame Judi Dench gather occasionally to reminisce. All stars of the English stage and films, the ladies talk is interspersed with flashbacks of them in various roles. Full of wit and wisdom, these iconic women share their memories of when they were bright young things through to their roles now days. The filming seems to take place in one afternoon and was very entertaining, although a little stiff at times.
Tomorrow is Shark Awareness Day
Researchers claim that about 100 million sharks are killed by humans every year. Thought to have evolved over 420 million years ago, sharks are older than dinosaurs. Their population is increasing every year.
I live in Australia, where in 2017, more than 66 shark attacks were recorded, with 20 being fatal. The State and Federal governments struggle to find an equitable solution to this problem so that humans can safely share the oceans with the sharks.