'I was a glutton for my mother's life, she tells me. Nestled there inside her I took hold and sucked the very blood from her.'
Throughout her childhood Ivy is punished for the theft of her mother’s life. Then Victor arrives suddenly one suburban Sydney summer, and stays, bringing with him the possibility of a father – but also the terrible danger that he might discover June and Ivy’s secret. Twenty years later, when Ivy is uneasily married to Linford, she searches out Victor. In his house by the beach, past and present collide.
To read an extract from the book, click here.
Pieces of a Girl is out of print, but secondhand book stores or Ebay sometimes have copies.
Awards
1998 Jim Hamilton Award - winner
2000 Dobbie Award, shortlist
2000 Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Novelists, commended
Reviews
Debra Adelaide, Sydney Morning Herald
'Atmospheric and stylish writing, compressed and highly focused.'
The Sun Herald
'Lean and emotive, mysterious and yet immediate'
The Australian
'A teasing fiction that credibly images the confusions and fixations of a woman who comes late to taking possession of her own life … a neat twist on linear depictions of gender bending.'
Australian Style
'There is something unmistakably edgy about Pieces of a Girl; a moody, atmospheric tension that manages to pervade this dreamscape of a book from the very opening page.… A highly recommended debut.'
Who Magazine
'Immaculately polished style and lush, inventive imagery'
Adelaide Advertiser
'Haunting, memorable, highly original.'
The Bulletin
'A promising first novel ... a writer to watch.'
The Canberra Times
'Charlotte Wood’s debut novel marks her as a fine Australian talent … impressive in her control of mood and voice.'
Australian Bookseller & Publisher
'A compelling read, and although the material it deals with is sometimes disturbing, it is made easier for Wood’s lyrical writing and her fascinatingly bizarre characters.'
