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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'A seductive novel of family, destiny, love and wallpaper They met on a train. They fell in love. They got married. They lived happily ever after. Or not.
'Francis Sprigge and Lilian Powys, two strangers escaping their past, move to the Blue Mountains together, following their dreams of creativity and love. But as Francis pursues his gift for designing exquisite wallpaper, Lilian finds that the ordinary life she craves remains frustratingly beyond reach. Despite her adoring husband and spirited young daughter Adelaide, Lilian cannot outrun her demons, and cracks soon appear in the family′s harmonious veneer.
'Nearly thirty years later, Addie Sprigge returns to her childhood haunts to lead a small team of conservators in the restoration of a historic mansion. But as they peel back the layers of wallpaper and begin to uncover the secrets of the house, the past resurfaces in unexpected ways. Addie learns much more about herself, and her parents, than she ever could have anticipated.
'Flock is the captivating story of talented and passionate people and the ghosts they must lay to rest, as well as a ravishing exploration of the nature of love - and wallpaper.' (From the publisher's website.)
Notes
-
Dedication:
For Ken, Glen and Kei
And the wallpapers we loved, and endured. -
Epigraph:
Some women marry houses.
It's another kind of skin; it has a heart,
a mouth, a liver and bowel movements.
The walls are permanent and pink.
See how she sits on her knees all day,
faithfully washing herself down.
Men enter by force, drawn back like Jonah
into their fleshy mothers.
A woman is her mother.
That's the main thing.
Anne Sexton, 1961
-
Epigraph:
- Love has no bounds in Pleasure, or in Pain. - 'Eclogue II', Virgil, translated by John Dryden
- She is very lovely and mine which is very lovely. - 'Bundles for Them', Gertrude Stein
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Large print.
- Braille.
Works about this Work
-
Wallpaper Fiction
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 330 2011; (p. 20)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Love, Loss and Life Written on Walls
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 26 March 2011; (p. 23)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Emotions Uncovered, Layer by Subtle Layer
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19-20 March 2011; (p. 30)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Off the Shelf : Fiction
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 5 March 2011; (p. 38)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Cover Notes
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 6 March 2011; (p. 21)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel
-
Untitled
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , March vol. 90 no. 6 2011; (p. 32)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Cover Notes
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 6 March 2011; (p. 21)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Off the Shelf : Fiction
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 5 March 2011; (p. 38)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Emotions Uncovered, Layer by Subtle Layer
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19-20 March 2011; (p. 30)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel -
Love, Loss and Life Written on Walls
2011
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 26 March 2011; (p. 23)
— Review of Flock 2011 single work novel
- Blue Mountains, Sydney, New South Wales,
- 1950s
- 1980s