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Book Circle | The Widow and Her Hero
| WED |
| 28 |
| MAY |
The Widow and Her Hero by Thomas Keneally
In 1943, when Grace and Leo Waterhouse married in Australia, they were part of a young generation ready to sacrifice themselves to win the war, while being confident they would survive. Sixty years on, as Grace recounts what happened to her doomed hero, she can say what she suspected then: that men are fundamentally childish and
for many of them, bravery is its own end.
The tale she tells is one of great love, lost innocence, a charismatic but
unstable Irish commander, dashing undercover missions against the Japanese in Singapore, and - in her eyes - reckless, foolhardy exploits. As fresh details continue to emerge, Grace is forced to keep revising her picture of what happened to Leo and his fellow commandoes - until she learns about the final piece in the jigsaw, and an ultimate betrayal. As absorbing as it is moving, this timely novel poses unsettling questions about heroic codes and why men so willingly and fatally adopt them.
'An exceptionally good novel, harrowing, but uplifting, the work of a master storyteller.' Allan Massie, The Scotsman
'Both touching and gripping until the very last page. Warmly recommended.' Daily MailEVERYONE IS WELCOME
In 1943, when Grace and Leo Waterhouse married in Australia, they were part of a young generation ready to sacrifice themselves to win the war, while being confident they would survive. Sixty years on, as Grace recounts what happened to her doomed hero, she can say what she suspected then: that men are fundamentally childish and
for many of them, bravery is its own end.
The tale she tells is one of great love, lost innocence, a charismatic but
unstable Irish commander, dashing undercover missions against the Japanese in Singapore, and - in her eyes - reckless, foolhardy exploits. As fresh details continue to emerge, Grace is forced to keep revising her picture of what happened to Leo and his fellow commandoes - until she learns about the final piece in the jigsaw, and an ultimate betrayal. As absorbing as it is moving, this timely novel poses unsettling questions about heroic codes and why men so willingly and fatally adopt them.
'An exceptionally good novel, harrowing, but uplifting, the work of a master storyteller.' Allan Massie, The Scotsman
'Both touching and gripping until the very last page. Warmly recommended.' Daily MailEVERYONE IS WELCOME