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'“I woke with a gasp. And lay in the dark, open-mouthed, holding my breath. That feeling ... that feeling was indescribable. For a moment I had felt as if I were falling ... falling into bliss.”
'All his life, Richard Kline has been haunted by a sense that something is lacking. He envies the ease with which some people slip – seemingly unquestioningly – into contented suburban life or the pursuit of wealth.
'As he moves into middle age, Richard grows increasingly angry. But then a strange event awakens him to a different way of living. He finds himself on a quest, almost against his own will, to resolve the 'divine discontent' he has suffered since childhood. From pharmaceuticals to new age therapies and finding a guru, Richard's journey dramatises the search for meaning in today's world.
'This moving and audacious novel is a pilgrim's progress for the here and now. Suffused with yearning and a sense of the mystical, this extraordinary novel is one of Lohrey's finest offerings yet.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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Epigraph: All our scientific and philosophic ideals are altars to unknown gods. –William James, Varieties of Religious Experience
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also large print.
Works about this Work
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Free Solo
2022
single work
essay
— Appears in: Lohrey 2022; (p. 60-87) 'Early in the writing of this book I went to see a film called Free Solo. It is about a remarkable feat of human courage and strength: a man climbing the goo-metre high rock face, El Capitan, without ropes or harness. The film looks at the psychology of Alex Honnold, the man who could do some-thing that would seem, to most people, utterly terrifying. He is single minded to such an extent that he comes across as comic. He starts a relationship with a woman while they are filming: 'I don't mind having her in the van, he says of his new girlfriend. 'She's pretty; she doesn't take up too much space.' His climbing friends discuss the risks of entering into a relationship when attempting such a difficult goal. Would his concern for her impact his capacity to carry it out? I tried not to guffaw when he referred to himself as a warrior. Facing down and ignoring danger. Here I thought is a kind of masculinity that 'gets the job done.' It prides itself on its lack of encumbrance. Solitude. There is no concern for the minutiae of life: he eats his dinner with the spatula he used to cook it. Such embodiment of masculinity enables a focus so intense that a man can balance his body on a tiny foothold 800 metres in the air while he switches his grip between one thumb and the other. And in doing so, he achieves an act of the the most extreme self-reliance and, arguably, pride: doing the most dangerous thing without dying.'(Introduction)
- y A Short History of Richard Kline by Amanda Lohrey Melbourne : CAE Book Group , 2015 9463588 2015 single work criticism
-
Review : A Short History of Richard Kline
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , May no. 111 2015; (p. 73)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel -
A Soulful Longing
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , April 2015;
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel -
Review : A Short History of Richard Kline
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 7 March 2015;
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel
-
Review : A Short History of Richard Kline
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Books + Publishing , vol. 94 no. 3 2015; (p. 21)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel -
Sense of Yearning Creates Space for Allegory
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 7-8 March 2015; (p. 16-17)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel -
Fifty Shades of Spirituality
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 7 March 2015; (p. 18)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel 'While the subject of sex is no longer taboo, that of our spiritual journeys remains hidden in the closet...' -
Hauntings
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , March no. 369 2015; (p. 37)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel -
From the Other Side of Restless Disillusionment
2015
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 21-22 March 2015; (p. 35) The Canberra Times , 21 March 2015; (p. 22)
— Review of A Short History of Richard Kline : A Novel 2015 single work novel - y A Short History of Richard Kline by Amanda Lohrey Melbourne : CAE Book Group , 2015 9463588 2015 single work criticism
-
Free Solo
2022
single work
essay
— Appears in: Lohrey 2022; (p. 60-87) 'Early in the writing of this book I went to see a film called Free Solo. It is about a remarkable feat of human courage and strength: a man climbing the goo-metre high rock face, El Capitan, without ropes or harness. The film looks at the psychology of Alex Honnold, the man who could do some-thing that would seem, to most people, utterly terrifying. He is single minded to such an extent that he comes across as comic. He starts a relationship with a woman while they are filming: 'I don't mind having her in the van, he says of his new girlfriend. 'She's pretty; she doesn't take up too much space.' His climbing friends discuss the risks of entering into a relationship when attempting such a difficult goal. Would his concern for her impact his capacity to carry it out? I tried not to guffaw when he referred to himself as a warrior. Facing down and ignoring danger. Here I thought is a kind of masculinity that 'gets the job done.' It prides itself on its lack of encumbrance. Solitude. There is no concern for the minutiae of life: he eats his dinner with the spatula he used to cook it. Such embodiment of masculinity enables a focus so intense that a man can balance his body on a tiny foothold 800 metres in the air while he switches his grip between one thumb and the other. And in doing so, he achieves an act of the the most extreme self-reliance and, arguably, pride: doing the most dangerous thing without dying.'(Introduction)
Awards
- 2016 longlisted The Stella Prize
- 2015 shortlisted Queensland Literary Awards — Fiction Book Award
- 2015 shortlisted Tasmania Book Prizes Tasmanian Literary Awards — Margaret Scott Prize