Book description
Winner, 2009 Asher Literary Award Three generations, two world wars,
one family The young men who worked in the canefields of northern New
South Wales in 1914 couldn't wait to set off for the adventure of war.
The women coped as best they could, raised the children, lived in fear
of an official telegram. They grieved for those killed, and learnt of
worse things than death in combat. They bore more sons to replace those
lost, and these were just the right age to go off to the Second World
War. The Ghost at the Wedding chronicles events from both sides of war:
the horror of the battlefields and the women left at home. Shirley
Walker's depictions of those battles - Gallipoli, the Western Front, the
Kokoda Track - are grittily accurate, their reverberations haunting.
Written with the emotional power of a novel, here is a true story whose
sorrow is redeemed by astonishing beauty and strength of spirit.
'Exquisitely written ... A portrait of true Aussie grit and survival not
to be missed.' Australian Women's Weekly 'Powerful ... A succession of
lightning strikes.' Roger McDonald, Australian Literary Review 'A
poignant family war memoir, a tragic love story and a rare literary
accomplishment ... A book I must read again.' Warren Brewer, Hobart
Mercury 'Convinces utterly, immerses the reader in the experience …
Evocative, heartfelt.' Lucy Sussex, Sunday Age
