Great Novels about Clare
- ruwoltjon
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Several Novels and books focus on Clare and its surrounding Clare Valley. Here are some of them.
Books by Monica McInerney:
Those Faraday Girls
Debut Novel by Mark McAvaney:
Old Novel by Dorothy M. Leaney
Classic Novel by Hilarie Lindsay
The Trip of a Lifetime
by Monica McInerney (2017)
“You’ll be laughing in one breath, crying in the next… If you haven’t discovered McInerney yet, now is the time to do so.”
– Better Reading, Australia
Shortlisted for General Fiction Book of the Year in the 2018 Australian Book Industry Awards.
‘I always thought memories were unchangeable. Set in stone, shaped by the years. But there are always others too, ones you haven’t let yourself remember . . . ’
The wilful and eccentric Lola Quinlan is off on the trip of a lifetime, taking her beloved granddaughter and great-granddaughter with her. More than sixty years after emigrating to Australia, she’s keeping a secret promise to return to her Irish homeland.
Lola’s Secret by Monica McInerney (2014)
Every now and then a book comes along that stops you in your tracks…A master of her genre, McInerney invites you into this charming and addictive tale of love and family values.”
– U Magazine, Ireland
Shortlisted for General Fiction Book of the Year in the 2012 Australian Book Industry Awards.
Magic can happen in every family…
At the Valley View Motel in South Australia’s picturesque Clare Valley, eighty-four-year-old Lola Quinlan is up to her usual mischief.
She’s sent her family away for Christmas and invited a number of mystery guests to come and stay. But who are all these people, and why aren’t they spending the festive season with their own loved ones?
As the big day draws closer and Lola’s personal family dramas threaten to unravel her plans, she discovers that at a special time of year, magic can happen in every family – especially your own.
A funny, sad and moving novel about memories and moments and the very meaning of life.
For Everything a Time
by Mark McAvaney (2024)
Originally from Clare, Mark McAvaney moved to London 22 years ago and pursued his artistic career.
Returning to launch his new book, Mr McAvaney said he never dreamed he would write a book that would have Clare and its community as the foundation for the story.
“My family is from here and I grew up amongst this beautiful part of he world,” Mr McAvaney said.
“When I started writing this book, I felt compelled to use the region and the people I knew as characters because it felt right.”
Launched at the Clare Valley Wine, Food and Tourism Centre, Mr McAvaney’s book signing was well received by locals and tourists. Many keen to have their books signed and learn more of the story, with some asking “are we in it?”
The novel is set in the fictional town of ‘Ennis Creek’ in the Clare Valley. The fictional story tells of a character, being trapped in a coma after a devastating car crash left him trapped in his body.
After 13 years the main character, Mac, returns to face he past he had been running from and the story unfolds the journey between the two following that night of the fateful car crash.
The book tells of the pride of country families and the tests of two families which followed the accident, including prejudices which ran deep.
A compelling and heartfelt story, Mr McAvaney has drawn from his life in the region and written a work with the message of hope.
“I have drawn on the people I know, the life I have had and woven in a message of attainable peace,” Mr McAvaney said.
Signed copies available from Clare Valley Information Center for $29.95
The Washerwoman's Dream:
The beloved Australian outback classic by Hilarie Lindsay (2002)
Painstakingly researched, this book is the amazing story of Winifred Steger.
The Washerwoman's Dream is the story of a remarkable woman with a tenacious spirit, and is now an enduring Australian classic.
Pieced together by Hilarie Lindsay from Winifred’s memoirs, short stories, letters and unpublished novels, this is an account of the amazing life of a forgotten Australian writer.‘One of the hardest punishments is to be thrown into the world with aspirations and dreams that cannot be fulfilled for want of education ... ’ Winifred Steger
Moving to Watervale, South Australia, Steger wrote fourteen unpublished novels based on her life in the outback.
In 1962-65 Jack’s Jane, Four Rings on her Fingers and The Door that Loved were serialised in the Clare Northern Argus, without payment.
In 1969, under the name Winifred Stegar, Angus & Robertson Ltd published her 'autobiography', Always Bells: Life with Ali. Based on 'Arabian Days', it was rewritten as a novel.
She continued writing into her late nineties but slipped into virtual obscurity, until she celebrated her one-hundredth birthday with much fanfare, including a message from the Queen.
Borrow from Clare Library
or buy from eBay, ~$22.00
Read much more: Novels about Clare
Comments