|
|
Article: A map of the gardens. (Mixed Media).(Book Review)
- Article from:
- New Internationalist
- Article date:
- January 1, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 New Internationalist Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
by Gillian Mears (Picador/Pan Macmillan ISBN 0-330-36346-8)
For Gillian Mears, it's all about the warp and weave of human relationships: making a birthday cake for a neglected child, protecting a loved one, making a trek to Tibet in the hope of healing, escaping from an abusive employer.
In her evocative collection of stories, most of which are based in the screen-door-squeaking Australian countryside, you can feel the sting of the sun as you turn each page.
What keeps the pages turning is Mears' ability to present the self-doubt of the characters as they rise above the humourless responsibilities of adulthood. Gently revealed are those things ...