'Beth is intrigued by the witty and charming Miles, but perplexed by his reluctance to make love to her. When she meets Marcus, the very antithesis of Miles, they embark on a passionate and uneasy relationship. Surrounding Beth are Kyrie, her brash, sexually adventurous cousin; Nita, Marcus's mother mourning the defection of her man; and Juliet, who continually ponders her own dreams while making everyone else's come true.
'Here are people drawn together in their tentative quests for permanence, tenderness and love in an era when there are no rules about the age, gender or the faithfulness of lovers.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
'In 1978, Australia’s two most coveted national literary prizes of the time were both won by women: Helen Garner’s first novel Monkey Grip (1977) won the National Book Council Award for fiction, and the Miles Franklin Literary Award was won by Tirra Lirra by the River (1978), Jessica Anderson’s fourth novel. Both of these books have since become classics of Australian literature, rarely out of print and regularly rediscovered by new generations of readers.' (Author's introduction 30)
Fabricating the Self : The Fictions of Jessica Anderson
St Lucia
:
University of Queensland Press
,
1996
Z509037
1996
single work
criticism
Fabricating the Self : The Fictions of Jessica Anderson
St Lucia
:
University of Queensland Press
,
1996
Z509037
1996
single work
criticism
