Moving among strangers : Randolph Stow and my family / Gabrielle Carey.
Publication details: St Lucia, Qld. : University of Queensland Press, 2013.Description: 232 pages, : bibliography (230-232) ; 21 cmISBN:- 9780702249921 :
- 306.85092 23
- Joint Winner of the 2014 Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction.
Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item reserves | |
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Book | Melbourne Athenaeum Library | Non-Fiction | 306.85 CAR | Available | 055047 |
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Two literary lives defined by storytelling and secrets As her mother Joan lies dying, Gabrielle Carey writes a letter to Joan's childhood friend, the reclusive novelist Randolph Stow. This letter sets in motion a literary pilgrimage that reveals long-buried family secrets. Like her mother, Stow had grown up in Western Australia. After early literary success and a Miles Franklin Award win in 1958 for his novel To the Islands, he left for England and a life of self-imposed exile. Living most of her life on the east coast, Gabrielle was also estranged from her family's west Australian roots, but never questioned why. A devoted fan of Stow's writing, she becomes fascinated by his connection with her mother, but before she can meet him he dies. With only a few pieces of correspondence to guide her, Gabrielle embarks on a journey from the red-dirt landscape of Western Australia to the English seaside town of Harwich to understand her family's past and Stow's place in it. Moving Among Strangers is a celebration of one of Australia's most enigmatic and visionary writers.
Joint Winner of the 2014 Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction.