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brendanlambourne's review against another edition
4.0
Beautiful imagery of the Australia that once was - highly enjoyable book.
roie_23's review against another edition
3.0
So I read this series in order the books were released and I’m struggling to decide whether that was a good idea or not. I feel like if I had read in chronological order I wouldn’t have gotten into them so easily because this book is very dry. But I also feel like because I already had opinions on the two central characters of Hughie and Margaret from the other two books my reading of this was very different then if I came in cold.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.
roie's review against another edition
3.0
So I read this series in order the books were released and I’m struggling to decide whether that was a good idea or not. I feel like if I had read in chronological order I wouldn’t have gotten into them so easily because this book is very dry. But I also feel like because I already had opinions on the two central characters of Hughie and Margaret from the other two books my reading of this was very different then if I came in cold.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.
polyhy_14's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
astarkvedja's review against another edition
2.0
Milde himmel. Når en forfatter man i utgangspunktet liker, avspiser en med sånt ettermiddagsseriemøl mellom to permer, mister man trua på både livet og litteraturen.
happyhobbit1's review against another edition
3.0
Started reading “harp in the south” on my kindle but didn’t realise the kindle edition was actually the trilogy with the same name as the middle book in the trilogy…was taking forever to get through it so I downloaded the audio version from the library then discovered I had been reading book 1 of the series called “missus”. Have finished that now and taking a break and will resume with book 2 of the audio one day.
becaroniandcheez's review
5.0
Can't go wrong with Ruth Park. If Tim Winton is my king of Australian fiction, she's the queen.
phthadani's review
2.0
I think I read it in the wrong sequence I was supposed to read in the older of the publication. I didn't really enjoy it. I found it a bit confusing as it felt like the author wanted you to know these characters prior to reading this book so I am hoping to start the second book very soon to get a better grasp of what's going on in the story.
tien's review
3.0
I’ve only read [b:Playing Beatie Bow|395868|Playing Beatie Bow|Ruth Park|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1319471195s/395868.jpg|1469251] by [a:Ruth Park|53234|Ruth Park|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1240197496p2/53234.jpg] which I loved… but then again, young adult/time travel is a most favourite genre of mine so that’s not big surprise. [b:Missus|2452890|Missus|Ruth Park|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1462494573s/2452890.jpg|2460084] being the first book of a well-loved Australian trilogy, Harp in the South, is quite different in spirit. And to be honest, I’m not too sure I’m keen on it… I feel so much pressure, sometimes, to love the classics and so, feel that I really have to dig deep for a reason why I’m not enjoying the story.
Life in colonial Australia was hard for both men and women. This novel is set in between the depression period when things were looking better at the start and ended with a worrying outlook. If you don’t have a stable job, you’d go on & become a rouseabout (“An unskilled labourer or odd jobber on a farm, especially in a shearing shed”) which means that move from place to place, whoever is hiring at the time. It’s not an easy life, hard work and fairly lonely. Of course, you get away with a lot of other things too, though sometimes, they do catch up to you! This is Hughie. I found it hard to sympathise with him for he is an unsteady sort of chap though ‘likeable’ but not one you could depend on. He had a reason for his skittishness but he does get carried away sometimes.
On the other hand, the novel also features a number of strong women with diverse perspectives. Each of these women fought for a future they could live with. It may not what society (or even your parents) deem is right or good for you but one you could tolerate, if not, be happy with. Things were truly awful for women back then and my heart fairly broke for each of these women. They all longed for different things and despite, at times, in spite, of opposition they found their destinies.
Life in colonial Australia was hard for both men and women. This novel is set in between the depression period when things were looking better at the start and ended with a worrying outlook. If you don’t have a stable job, you’d go on & become a rouseabout (“An unskilled labourer or odd jobber on a farm, especially in a shearing shed”) which means that move from place to place, whoever is hiring at the time. It’s not an easy life, hard work and fairly lonely. Of course, you get away with a lot of other things too, though sometimes, they do catch up to you! This is Hughie. I found it hard to sympathise with him for he is an unsteady sort of chap though ‘likeable’ but not one you could depend on. He had a reason for his skittishness but he does get carried away sometimes.
On the other hand, the novel also features a number of strong women with diverse perspectives. Each of these women fought for a future they could live with. It may not what society (or even your parents) deem is right or good for you but one you could tolerate, if not, be happy with. Things were truly awful for women back then and my heart fairly broke for each of these women. They all longed for different things and despite, at times, in spite, of opposition they found their destinies.
roie's review against another edition
3.0
So I read this series in order the books were released and I’m struggling to decide whether that was a good idea or not. I feel like if I had read in chronological order I wouldn’t have gotten into them so easily because this book is very dry. But I also feel like because I already had opinions on the two central characters of Hughie and Margaret from the other two books my reading of this was very different then if I came in cold.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.
I struggled through this, I was expecting a different take on the character of Hughie but it was similar to what you read in Poor Man’s Orange and it is quite frustrating. I wished there was more of Margarets story because it mainly focuses on Hughies life story before they meet then his following their meeting.
It’s definitely not as good as The Harp in the South or Poor Man’s Orange but I do put that down the fact that it was written 40 years after those two.