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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Do not believe too quickly…
'What if Elizabeth Macarthur—wife of the notorious John Macarthur, wool baron in early Sydney—had written a shockingly frank secret memoir?
'In her introduction Kate Grenville tells, tongue firmly in cheek, of discovering a long-hidden box containing that memoir. What follows is a playful dance of possibilities between the real and the invented.
'Grenville’s Elizabeth Macarthur is a passionate woman managing her complicated life—marriage to a ruthless bully, the impulses of her own heart, the search for power in a society that gave her none—with spirit, cunning and sly wit.
'Her memoir reveals the dark underbelly of the polite world of Jane Austen. It explodes the stereotype of the women of the past: devoted and docile, accepting of their narrow choices. That was their public face—here’s what one of them really thought.
'At the centre of this book is one of the most toxic issues of our times: the seductive appeal of false stories. Beneath the surface of Elizabeth Macarthur’s life and the violent colonial world she navigated are secrets and lies with the dangerous power to shape reality.
'A Room Made of Leaves is the internationally acclaimed author Kate Grenville’s first novel in almost a decade. It is historical fiction turned inside out, a stunning sleight of hand that gives the past the piercing immediacy of the present.'(Publication summary)
On the Web
- The Wheeler Centre presents a conversation between author Kate Grenville and Professor Larissa Behrendt about A Room Made of Leaves. Premiered 2 July 2020. YouTube Sighted: 06/08/2020
- Kate Grenville appears in conversation with award winning historian, author, broadcaster and public commentator Professor Clare Wright OAM. A National Library of Australia supported book launch event. You Tube video. Sighted: 06/08/2020
Notes
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Dedication: Dedicated to all those whose stories have been silenced.
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Epigraph: Do not believe too quickly! - Elizabeth Macarthur
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
Works about this Work
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Nichola Garvey Review of Kate Grenville, A Room Made of Leaves and of Michelle Scott Tucker, Elizabeth Macarthur : A Life at the Edge of the World
2022
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Journal of Biography and History , no. 6 2022; (p. 213-217)
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel ; Elizabeth Macarthur: A Life at the Edge of the World 2018 single work biography 'Every generation claims the right to reinterpret the past from the present standpoint, which is why we see continual upgrades or modern iterations of an historical figure. Styles change, as do emphases, even when source materials do not. Why though, do some historical figures continue to ignite the curiosity of biographers? Certainly, an exceptional life story helps but sometimes it comes down to the richness of the archive. In Elizabeth Macarthur’s case, she possesses both.'(Introduction)
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I Hijacked Elizabeth Macarthur’s Story for A Room Made of Leaves. Now, through Her Letters, She Speaks for Herself
2022
single work
column
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 12 April 2022; -
My Ten Best Novels of 2020
2021
single work
criticism
— Appears in: SF Commentary , May no. 106 2021; (p. 28-33) -
The Pursuit of Self and Story
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Antipodes , vol. 34 no. 2 2020; (p. 394-395)
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel 'It takes Mrs. Elizabeth MacArthur over two hundred pages to find the room of leaves. This space, carved for herself and her lover, is a physical space of safety and authenticity, but throughout the novel, Elizabeth pursues her authentic self through moments of feeling. We first see Elizabeth comfortable with herself as a child helping her grandfather with sheep and in the winks of queerness between her and her friend Bridie—which, as a queer writer and reader, I appreciate. I enjoyed Elizabeth's narrative pursuing a sense of self and navigating what that means to her in each situation she is forced into. When she meets MacArthur, she chases his advances not because he is worthy of her or for any hopes of romance but because in the moment of ecstasy, she experiences a euphoria of self and control that intoxicates her. Unfortunately, this moment ties her to MacArthur as wife. The novel does not shy away from the dismal historical reality of life as an orphan, losing her grandfather's respect, and being married to a callous man.'(Introduction)
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Contemporary Historical Fiction and Kate Grenville's A Room Made of Leaves
2020
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Antipodes , vol. 34 no. 2 2020; (p. 200-216)'This essay situates the recent return to referentiality and authenticity in contemporary historical fiction in the context of the current climate of global literary culture, which is concerned with ideas of identity, positionality, proximity, and authenticity. This return is guided by a refreshed ethics of literary production, a renewed sense of moral obligation to represent the past truthfully and earnestly, while maintaining postmodernism's skepticism toward the production and construction of historical narratives. Some contemporary historical novels have (re)assumed the responsibility of demonstrating to the general reading public how histories are written and, by extension, propose an ethical and critical engagement with the past that aligns with the shift in political and cultural sensibilities we have witnessed over the past decade. The case study in this essay is A Room Made of Leaves (2020) by Kate Grenville, a critically acclaimed Australian historical novelist.' (Publication abstract)
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First Blush
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 27 June 2020; (p. 14)
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel -
Review: Kate Grenville’s A Room Made of Leaves Fills the Silence of the Archives
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Conversation , 13 July 2020;
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novelSome time ago, during the renovation of a historic house in Sydney, a tin box, sealed with wax and wrapped in oiled canvas, was found wedged under a beam in the roof cavity. The house was Elizabeth Farm…
'So begins A Room Made of Leaves’ editor’s note, detailing the discovery of the “long lost secret memoirs” of Elizabeth Macarthur, wife of colonial wool baron John Macarthur. The “editor and transcriber” is Kate Grenville, author of the acclaimed colonial novel based on her family history, The Secret River.' (Introduction)
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A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville Review – the Untold Story of an Unruly Woman
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 31 July 2020;
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel'What would Elizabeth Macarthur, wife of notorious Australian colonist John Macarthur, say if she could set the record straight?'
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Noted : A Room Made of Leaves
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , August no. 169 2020; (p. 57)
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel -
Leaves Worth Turning
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 11 July 2020; (p. 17)
— Review of A Room Made of Leaves 2020 single work novel'It is almost wicked, the pleasure Kate Grenville takes in piercing the bubble of impeccability that surrounds the historical figure of Elizabeth Macarthur.'
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What If the Wife of a Colonial Monster Had Left behind Brutally Frank Secret Memoirs?
2020
single work
column
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 3 July 2020;'In writing Elizabeth Macarthur’s imagined tell-all, I wanted to take the image of the devout, demure, compliant and uncomplaining woman and blast it open.'
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y
At Home with Kate Grenville
Astrid Edwards
(interviewer),
2020
19698993
2020
single work
podcast
interview
'Kate Grenville is one of Australia’s most celebrated writers. Her international bestseller The Secret River was awarded local and overseas prizes, has been adapted for the stage and as an acclaimed television miniseries, and is now a much-loved classic. Grenville’s other novels include Sarah Thornhill, The Lieutenant, Dark Places and the Orange Prize winner The Idea of Perfection.
'In 2020 she returns to the first years of European settlement in Australia with A Room Made of Leaves, an alternative memoir of Elizabeth Macarthur.
'Kate has also written non-fiction, including One Life: My Mother’s Story and The Case Against Fragrance, as well as three books about the writing process.
'In 2017 Grenville was awarded the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature.' (Introduction)
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Quarantine Q&A : Kate Grenville
2020
2020
single work
interview
— Appears in: Feminist Writers Festival 2016-; -
Kate Grenville, Sofie Laguna, Julia Baird and Others : The 20 Best Australian Books of 2020
2020
single work
column
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 17 December 2020; -
My Ten Best Novels of 2020
2021
single work
criticism
— Appears in: SF Commentary , May no. 106 2021; (p. 28-33)
Awards
- 2021 longlisted Voss Literary Prize
- 2021 longlisted HNSA Historical Novel Prize — Adult
- 2021 shortlisted The Age Book of the Year Award — Book of the Year
- 2021 winner New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Christina Stead Prize for Fiction
- 2021 shortlisted The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction
- New South Wales,
- Sydney, New South Wales,