Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Picnic at Hanging Rock

Despite this being set in the summer, I found fall to be a very suitable time to be reading this - a mysterious disappearance that juxtaposes beautiful, vivid descriptions of the Australian natural landscape. The manner in which the book simultaneously tapped into these themes, and made them complement one another, was definitely its strongest aspect; Joan Lindsay was able to seamlessly transform a relaxing, jubilant, picturesque picnic on a sunny day into an unspoken, yet unmistakably omnipresent, horror that had much more far-reaching consequences than one would expect such a mere picnic outing to have. Yet Lindsay still made routine reference to Hanging Rock’s beauty and that of surrounding areas (even the beauty found in the world of Appleyard College) in spite of all that had occurred. This had the effect of magnifying just how jarring the effect was on the lives of those directly and indirectly involved, as well as depicting how quickly one’s sense of the familiar can be a painful - and in fact disturbing - reminder of the dark events that transpired.

My main complaint had to do with their being perhaps too much left to the imagination, and too much left unsaid. Although I understand and agree with the need to have some element of mystery as to what actually happened to the vanishing girls, it was done in a way that wasn’t really subtle -

for example, we read early on about Edith watching the girls walk away and her being unable to keep up, but not only is that moment never spoken of again (albeit partially due to Edith’s forgetting of it) but it appears entirely insignificant a detail - nothing explained later in the narrative is even remotely connected to this moment. I get the idea of trying to set an unsettling tone early on, but the way that it was completely ignored made it feel like what we read about at the picnic was not of any importance. This was again frustrating with the disappearance of Miss McCraw alongside the girls, with Edith again referencing having seen her and the detail not being brought up ever again. I understand the point of leaving some details unexplained and some aspects up to the imagination, but it felt like there was just no connection in the actual mystery itself - everything that happened felt so unaligned that it felt as though we were dealing with entirely separate mysteries rather than having them weave together.

Overall, I definitely respect what it was trying to do in terms of crafting a story that could show the simultaneous beauty and horror behind the natural world, as well as
how humans interact with tragic events (sensationalizing and personalizing them as well, as we saw with the townsfolk and the schoolfolk, respectively). While I do appreciate the intrigue that played into the story’s telling, it at times felt a little more undeveloped when intended to come across as unsolvable/unexplainable. Nevertheless I do think this is an enjoyable read for the imagery alone, which definitely kept me very invested in my reading.

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cozylifewithabby's review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I read this as part of my reading around the world challenge. It was just the right amount of mystery, supernatural, horror, and descriptions of 1900 Australia. Also, it's only 200 pages. Definitely worth the read.

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thewoodlandbookshelf's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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sherrythepenguin's review against another edition

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mysterious slow-paced

3.0

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pollyandthebooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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bookstorian's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

After reading the script adaption and wanting to know more about the story prior to teaching it I knew that this Aussie classic needed to be read.

There are so many aspects of the story that my literary brain loved and there were others that were a little waning on my modern sensibilities.

Here is what I thought as I read:

-Loved the establishment of place, the idea that the landscape, especially the rock becomes a character. There is so much beautiful language used to articulate this.

-The shrouded mystery happens quickly. There is so much foreshadowing in the lead up to the picnic.

-The things that cannot be explained. The lure towards the rock, the clocks stopping and the curse like aftermath of the picnic is clear (reminded me of what happened to Howard Carter’s crew after the discovery of King Tut).

-Feels a little spooky, so well done that you can see why people think it is a true story as it feels so plausible that it could actually happen. People disappearing into the bush, probable.

-The flick between time and perspective got a little confusing at times and I had to go back an reread different sections. The narrator achieved a very subjective perspective throughout the story. Not placing the blame on any one or anything and letting the reader decide (even from the very beginning this is clear).

-I became sleepy like the characters at the later half of the story. I did already know the ending from the reading the script though.

-I’m ok with the ending. I’m ok with the not knowing. It makes the story more plausible and believable, people disappear all the time without any resolutions being made. I think stories that don’t have an ending that comes wrapped in a big bow are often the ones I think about the most afterwards.

-Also special shout out to the cover artist. I loved the moody sketch and colour palette of the book, plus extra points for a matte cover!

Overall, I am glad that I have read this text as not only do I have more contextual information about the play but I can also give this Aussie classic a big tick. Keen to check out the mini-series as see how it translates to screen now!

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sarah984's review against another edition

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dark reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

This book is a tale of the unsolved disappearance of a group of schoolgirls on a picnic trip and how that shock reverberates through their community and changes other characters’ lives forever.

The points of view are all well done in terms of having different voices and showing which aspects of what had happened mattered to them. I understand from the introduction that there were originally supernatural elements that were toned down for publication and I think that was a good call.

Due to the setting and the publication date, there are a few things that seem pretty dated, including racially insensitive language and a weird obsession with bullying one of the children for being fat.

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francestea's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

A not-too-dark mystery with intriguing and many love-em or hate-em type characters. This book never really seemed to go where I expected and jumps around to follow different characters, often doing a bit of foreshadowing for the next section. Great writing and a great read. Definitely wait and read the forward at the end as, with many forwards, it spoils the ending. Also do yourself a favour and look-up an image of Hanging Rock- it’s very cool!

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