On the Jellicoe Road

Far out, Melina Marchetta. The only Australian writer I get excited about when I see a new book by her in the shops. The only Australian writer who has actually discovered the 20th century, let alone the 21st. The only Australian writer who peoples her stories with human beings.

This is a goodie. Interestingly enough, like her other two books, I was distinctly underwhelmed when I first started reading it. I think it’s because her stories are so character driven that you get lost when you first plunge into her world. There’s a car accident, there’s a suicide, there’s a this and a that, and it takes about half-way through the book before it’s all clear and you start really caring about these people. This is less funny than Alibrandi and more moving than Francesca, but altogether it’s just as powerful and just as important as those other two books.

What’s it about? A girl in a boarding school who is trying to manage the real things in life – relationships. There’s barely any mention of classes or schoolwork; it’s all about a mock-war with the “Cadets” (private schoolboys) and “Townies” (local school kids), or about Hannah, her mentor who has suddenly disappeared, or her mother, who dumped her a long time ago. It’s a big puzzle which comes together just at the right time. As usual, Marchetta captures the intensity of adolescence perfectly, and one of her themes seems to be that the transient intensity is just as, or perhaps more, important than the adult feelings and realities which follow. She is a lovely writer; she has the appropriate timing with her dialogue, followed by moments of sheer lyricism. I liked this book. I liked it very much.