MISSUS

by Ruth Park ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 16, 1986

From the Australian novelist who some 40 years ago published two enormously popular and well-received novels, The Harp in the South and Poor Man's Orange, all about an Irish immigrant family in Australia. Park recently decided to write a ""prequel"" to the story, and it's a good one--the tale of a tough roustabout who marries a faithful young woman while he loves another. The novel begins in the early-20th century, in New South Wales, where Hugh Darcy and his mischievous, clubfooted brother Jer grow up in poverty and, as soon as they can, escape their brutal father (their mother has already died a suicide). They wander together around the country, Hugh working on sheep ranches as a laborer, Jet a ""come-ye-all,"" or storyteller; but then they finally return to their small town, where Hugh meets and courts Margaret Kilker, a good Catholic girl from a middle-class family. They're engaged, but on one of his frequent, wandering trips, Hugh meets the vivacious Bids Tookey, a girl completely unlike the sedate Margaret. He falls in love and attempts to break up with Margaret, but he's stopped by certain underhanded measures on the part of Jer (who feels Bids will not tolerate him in her house) and by Margaret's mother, Eny, who finds Bids and tells her of her daughter's prior claim. A trapped Hugh returns to marry Margaret, and a fascinating stage is set for the next two volumes of the trilogy (which will be reissued by St. Martin's later this year). Not just another generational saga, but superior and sure-footed storytelling.

Pub Date: Feb. 16, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1986

Categories: FICTION