all my life. Brennan has finally clarified for me why some readers criticise Helen for making herself part of her books. Brennan had access to Helen's archive material, diaries, letters, family and friends. In fact Wood acknowledges the value of introspection in her writing, saying that “Garner’s gradual awakening to her unadmitted anger is what gives her best book, her novel The Spare Room (2008), much of its shattering power.” (James Wood, 2016).
If you think I have breached your copyright in any way please let me know. It explained my mixed feelings about her but also meant I discovered who wrote a book I read that has haunted me for ages about a woman who cares for her dying friend but couldn't recall who wrote it. Helen Garner is the same age as me, was in the year below me at University, studying the same subjects with the same tutors, yet I never met her there. (Becca Rothfeld, 2015).

Helen Garner is an Australian national treasure and Bernadette Brennan's thoughtful, well written and thoroughly entertaining book explains why. An academic book about Helen Garner, one of my favourite Australian authors, and her work. But the more I’ve thought about it, it truly is. This is a gap in Brennan’s book, given that one of the most controversial aspects of Helen Garner’s reputation as an Australian novelist of international note is the autobiographical nature of her fiction. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. I honour and respect their cultural heritage, customs and beliefs, and respect and support their ongoing care of this country. Bernadette Brennan's study of Garner's life and writing over the past 40 years is revealing and honest as Garner is in her own writings. '

I liked it most however for the portrait it draws of a writer determined to be truthful to herself and her craft who is not afraid to step on toes if they get in the way. This may not, I suspect, reassure all those close to her who may not want their lives to be caught up in such a risky writer-reader venture but, theoretically, I like what she says and the honesty with which she says it. Yes, and I was going to add that with a daughter writing an often rather personal blog I have to practise what I preach here and be the reader who can rise above so I can see beneath! Australian young adult writer John Marsden says he must find “the voice”. Naturally I responded best to the sections dissecting Garner’s work which I have responded most to - her early novels, which I adore, and her “true crime”, which I find frustrating at best but for some reason always persist with. Fascinating and insightful, it's a must for Garner fans and anyone curious about the life, influences and creative process of one of Australia's most interesting writers. I really enjoyed how this book explores Garner's literary output - everything from Monkey Grip to her screenplays and latter day works - within the context of what was going on in her life at the time, and maps her development as a writer. April 3rd 2017 Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published

I read this for an essay I was writing. (BTW This is not meant to criticise Garner but just to say it’s her way of writing. This is a very accessible and interesting study of a woman and her body of work. I liked it most however for the portrait it draws of a writer determined to be truthful to herself and her craft who is not afraid to step on toes if they, Really enjoyed this. Like having a great conversation with an insightful and generous friend about your favourite author! I never thought about it like before. (Robert Dessaix, 2008). Its a mix of bio and commentary on HG as a writer.

In fact, in a talk she gave in 2001 at the National Library of Australia’s conference titled “The Secret Self: Exploring Biography and Autobiography” someone who writes “helplessly about the intimate”. I stress the unappealing, mean, aggressive, unglamorous aspects of myself as a way of lessening my anxiety about portraying other people as they strike me. It was very readable (not too literary) and I sped thru it in a couple of days. Take Kate Holden (In my skin) for example. Garner has faced a fair amount of criticism for her views and rightly so at times. Structured around the writing and release of each of Garner's books, Bernadette Brennan had access to HG's archive, as well it seems, her massive circle of friends and family. She is revered for her fearless honesty in the pursuit of her craft. He has become a celebrity by writing a blow-by-blow account of such things as his alcoholic father’s death and his relationship with his partner. ), I find Garner’s writing irresistible – I have no idea how she does it, but I think that clear-eyed honesty that you identify is rare and very attractive. Australian Book Industry Award (Literary Fiction): Her courage in tackling personal stories and themes and personal responses to other people’s stories and putting it out there for others to critique is inspiring. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account.

Probably a lot of fiction is autobiography disguised as happening to other characters. There should be more literary biographies like it: perfectly balanced between biography, wider social / cultural context and the work itself, with the latter given the most attention. Some time ago I reviewed a short story titled “The young painters” by Nicole Krauss. I loved Monkey Grip but hadn't read the others but now going in search. Her ethical challenge is about the “other” people in her life who get pulled into her exploration of “the intimate”. With a style that is clear and elegant, Bernadette Brennan has crafted an … There is a sense of feeling cheated, perhaps, with a sense that Garner’s novels somehow do not “qualify” as fiction.

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