Adult and Young Adult Fiction Award
Winning Entry: Woman For Sale by Shirley Eldridge
Highly Recommended:Where Dragonflies Dream by Moira Yeldon
Recommended: Tomorrow's Promise by Bernadette Piper
JUDGE'S REPORT by Amanda Perlinski
Thank you to those of you who submitted your books to be judged in the Society’s first book awards.
Firstly, I’d like to mention two books which did not meet criteria, definitely not being Fiction.
Legitimate Bush Woman Goes to Town by Raelene Hall and How Did I Get Here? by D.Y. Adams.
Both were stories about their own lives and totally un-fictionalised. How Did I Get Here is a classic memoir describing the passage of the author’s life, while Legitimate Bush Woman Goes to Town is a series of vignettes, a couple of pages each, describing episodes, anecdotes or philosophy about her life in the bush compared to her new one in the city. It is illustrated by simple, delightful and humorous line drawings that augment the stories. A delightful little book to dip in and out of when you don’t want to become immersed in another novel, a snack rather than dinner.
In the process of telling the author’s life story How Did I Get Here deals with important themes, including sibling child sexual abuse and the gradual realisation that the author has become a victim of coercive control during her marriage. It also draws on the migration experience of British migrants during the era of subsidised passage, common to many.
Both books, are deserving of reading and present valuable ideas.
Shirley Rowland entered two books; an adult fiction novel and a young adult fantasy. I much preferred the latter, The Sorcerer’s Warning. The protagonist in this story is definitely a 21st century princess: one which I much enjoyed. No waiting around to get rescued in this story. Shirley creates a fantasy world including maps. I do love to see a map in a book although, even with my glasses on, I struggled to read the tiny print. However, there are some great descriptive passages as the world of Iosa is constructed for the reader.
This story is about treachery and betrayal. People are not always who they seem to be or have their expressed intentions. It’s also a coming-of-age story as Elissa changes from a naïve young princess into a young woman with a greater understanding of the complexity of human behaviour, learning that she cannot always trust those who she should be able to. A necessary lesson of adolescence if the young adult is to protect themselves in both the real and the online world.
Another fantasy, this time for adults, worth a mention, was presented by Helen Iles, A Call to Sarah. The genre appears to be Australian Noir meets Romantasy. Given the current popularity of both genres this book should sell like hot cakes. The writing style suited the book, at times older style words are used to push the reader back in time, such as agreeance rather than agreement and umbrageous rather than shady, and there’s plenty of descriptive language to set the mood.
Now to move on to the winners of this year’s Book Awards:
The Commended book is:Tomorrow’s Promise by Bernadette Piper
The book is written from the points of view of the two young lovers with the voice being identified by the name at the head of each chapter. This currently popular technique, gives the work a contemporary feel.
Set at the end of the nineteen sixties/early seventies, I had the advantage of memory, and to me it felt entirely authentic. Looking at the cover, I feared it would be a pastiche. It was not. The Vietnam war cast a shadow over all our lives, its terrors gracing each evening’s news. I had no difficulty in identifying with Emmaline, out there protesting. This story could have been just another romance set in an historical context but it transcends this genre and instead offers a more meaningful exploration of the time. The book gives a realistic view of war and the suffering inflicted even upon those trying to do good in the face of its horrors. It also illuminates the plight of single mothers at a time before the Single Parent Payment and the change in attitude towards those women who found themselves pregnant, single and who were forced to make terrible decisions. These issues have been linked since the beginning of time. Men make promises before they go to war and then, through no fault of their own, fail to return, leaving their promise unable to be fulfilled and a fatherless child. It’s easy to forget the impact of this in our more liberal age but the reality is, the world changes and, as we appear to be entering a more conservative era, we ought not be too complacent. The same can be said for the other issues addressed in this book, homosexuality and mental illness. These too are dealt with sympathetically and realistically.
I enjoyed the author’s writing style. Letters are used as an effective and appropriate tool to voice characters that are not physically present. They also serve to remind the reader of a time before the ubiquitous mobile phone and email availability and when many of us still did not have even a landline in our homes, and how difficult it is, during a time of war, to make contact with loved ones.
The author uses juxtaposition creatively to highlight the horrors of war, for instance: “Mickey could not believe how beautiful it was. Golden sands, azure sea and green forests growing to the water’s edge until you turned the other way. The golden sands were covered with army tents, men and machinery. Helicopters flew overhead, the thump, thump, thump of their blades joining the choir of noise.”
The descriptive language I found very effective. The author cleverly evokes the reader’s imagination without needing to overdo the gory details that can sometimes impede a reader continuing on. Naturally, there are many emotional scenes in this book and they too are handled effectively and without histrionics. The characters are beautifully drawn, real and believable. There’s plenty of action and dialogue. The story captivated me from the beginning. Plenty of twists, turns, multiple plot lines and scene shifts: Perth, Melbourne, London, Vietnam, Amsterdam, Israel, America. All woven into a coherent and exciting storyline with emotional highs and lows, shifting the story along apace. With multiple points of conflict and resolution, there’s plenty of tension. This is a page turner.
Highly Commended:Moira Yeldon: Where Dragonflies Dream
This book is a sequel but can be read alone (having read both, I think did add to the enjoyment.) The author does recap events from the first book as appropriate, which I found useful. The plot is sufficiently complex to hold the interest but not too convoluted to follow. There’s enough action going on while still managing to deal with strong emotional issues.
The genre is probably best categorised as literary fiction. All the settings are beautifully described. The heat and humidity of the tropics exudes the scenes set in Brunei, where most of the action takes place. A small, less visited country, across two periods in time, enables the reader to explore unfamiliar culture, religion, climate, scenery and wildlife and the changes that have impacted the country over 20 years. The Ex-pat lifestyle gives this book its context and maintains interest. The book explores the changes that occur in the key characters’ relationships over time. It focuses on the impacts on them of situations sometimes outside of their control and the impact on their growing children. The use of music and poetry to illustrate these ideas works well. For example: his problems still drummed in his ears and pumped around in his chest. These issues were discordant, like an ill-tuned note, as they screeched and grated on his nerves.
The reader is completely immersed in everything from Iban long houses to luxurious hotels and gold covered mosques. I also enjoyed learning more about the history and culture of Brunei.The vocabulary is appropriate to the individual characters, whether they be Australian, British or Malay, young or old, male or female. The imagery is captivating, metaphors original, such as using the mating behaviour of flying ants: …it was not exactly a pleasant task for the females chewing off their own wings. She hoped she could grow new wings and embrace her new freedom. Stars, flowers and birds are used frequently as symbols. There is much poetic, erotic language in the book which is well managed. There is also pain and sadness expressed, along with love and joy. For instance: As they waited for the transplant that never came, the one small miracle, the belief that he might improve, the glass full of wishes had shattered and the genie had disappeared.
The main themes are grief and loss and the journey towards resolution. This naturally includes an exploration of the various types of love. The characters and their actions thoroughly and realistically explore these themes through the vehicle of the poems of Rumi. The message is integrated into a well-rounded story where all of the characters grow and develop. The story is an exploration of the human condition with the characters learning to accept that all possible ways of being are legitimate.
And our winner is: Shirley Eldridge: Woman for Sale
This is a true story, necessarily fictionalised to protect all those involved. The third-person point of view is most suitable for this very particular work. The reader watches as the life of the main character gradually disintegrates, evoking empathy, and is then restored by the kindness of others. This book is socio-educational, casting light on a shocking industry exploiting marginalised and impoverished women and should be on top of everyone’s reading list. It needs much more publicity to take its message to those with the power to end this appalling trade. It is supported by an evidence-based appendix.
Despite the horror, this book is unputdownable! The first paragraph pulls the reader immediately into the story with a realistic description of the poverty and is quickly followed by the second paragraph where we have an emotive, original description of the environment: “the air hung as still and foul as the inside of a second-hand coffin.” The emotive scene where Rose has to say goodbye to her children was written with such intensity, it could not fail to move the reader: “The next morning, utterly exhausted, Rose, her eyes red and nose runny, tried to say goodbye to her children. Jasmine and Iris didn’t look any better than her. Reality had smashed into them all like a gale force wind, depleting them of any strength they thought they might have had.” Other creative descriptions continued to illustrate the story, such as when comparing the difference of the hunger of the girls to that of the trafficker: “Mr Wang though, shouldn’t be. His belly protruded like a third trimester pregnancy from his ill-fitting lightweight suit.”
The reader is left in no doubt as to the message embedded in this story. The slavery of desperate trafficked women who suffer not only from the perpetrators of their abuse but also from the misogyny and laws of their own country that support it. The need for serious change is evident throughout, from the behaviour of western clients that use the industry, the hotels that facilitate it and those throughout the chain that profit from it.
All of the characters are well-rounded and realistic. There are a number of voices within the book. The language used is appropriate to each of the characters. The relationship between Rose and Mr Bob is beautifully written. His respect for this woman who many men would dismiss as a worthless prostitute is evident immediately and never wavers, despite his own difficulties with his developing illness, which shifts the power imbalance as the story progresses.
Shirley has clearly done her homework. I have no doubt that she has visited the locations described in the book or has had detailed first-hand descriptions from those who have. The descriptive writing illuminates the truth of the story and is not overblown. The settings are integral to the story. Even though the story is based on truth, Shirley has still hit all the plot points with twists and turns and breath-holding moments. The woman depicted on the front of the book is attractive but maintains a look of vulnerability. The dark background is suggestive of the dark subject matter and the information on the back cover encouraged me to read the book. The critique provided by an eminent academic is persuasive and her Appendix is a useful adjunct to the book. The information about the Author on the back of the book makes me think that I should perhaps read more of her intriguing stories.
Congratulations Shirley
