Chris Womersley’s Bereft: Review Round-up
Chris Womersley’s new novel Bereft has been receiving some amazing press recently, and deservedly so. Garnering comparisons to Cormac McCarthy and set in Australia this book is one which is cannot be missed. We thought we’d collect a few of the more recent and alternative reviews of the book for you:
1) There is an exceptionally strong sense of time and place, with the Australian countryside a presence in its own right. Other reviews have suggested echoes of and a homage to Cormac McCarthy.
While I didn’t find Bereft as visceral as The Road, there’s no denying that Womersley’s post-WWI Australia certainly shares elements of McCarthy’s apocalyptic nightmare.-Lizzy Siddal
Read the full review over on Lizzy’s Literary Life.
2) The image of central New South Wales is a stark and beautiful one – harsh and rugged. I could almost smell the dust and feel the heat. The prose was unique and conjured vivid sensory reactions as I read it.
The novel also addresses spirituality, and Quinn’s struggle to believe that God hasn’t forsaken him. He doesn’t like people questioning God, yet he does so himself.
He is both repulsed and drawn to the occult, to a medium who channeled his sister, and to Sadie’s trinkets and spells.
This is a novel that I could read a few times and get something different from it every time. It would also be a great novel to discuss as part of a book club, because of its subtlety and the variety of issues it raises. Highly recommended.
Read this review in full on My journal of becoming a writer.
3) The prose it beautiful, the characters fully drawn, there is also a mystery at its heart giving it that page turning quality, yet never at the expense of any of its other winning factors.
It also covers a very interesting period in a countries history I knew nothing about yet came away with the atmosphere still lingering with me long after finishing the book. Highly recommended.
I am really glad I read this book, I have instantly started wondering if its eligible for a certain award this year but wouldn’t want to jinx it, it is only January after all.
I am saddened to see that you can’t get his debut novel ‘The Low Road’ in the UK as yet, as I would definitely like to read more of his work. Has anyone else read that? Who else has read this one? I would love to know if readers in Australia have heard as much about this book as I imagine you might.-Simon Savidge
Read this wonderful review in full over on Savidge Reads.
If you’d like to read a free extract of the novel we have an interactive flipbook available now!
Afterwards you can listen to Chris on the fantastic Litopia:
