Scan barcode
A review by katiescho741
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
3.0
I'm currently down a rabbit hole about disappearances, so this was the perfect time to read this book. It has a dash of a True Crime feel to it - the final sighting of the missing, the police statements, newspaper articles, and various mentions of the futures of some of the characters. It's an odd mix of gentle prose you'd expect from a modern classic about a picnic, with a bit of violence, and a little creepiness.
It's interesting that the story revolves around the characters who aren't there - the missing women - and the characters who are there feel sort of like side stories to the main events. I enjoyed the mix of the Victorian rules and propriety at the girls' college, and the reality of the harsh Australian wilderness where it was built. I liked the way we see how everyone's lives are altered by the events of the picnic - both for good, and for bad.
I had never heard of this short, Australian classic until recently, but it was a good read.
It's interesting that the story revolves around the characters who aren't there - the missing women - and the characters who are there feel sort of like side stories to the main events. I enjoyed the mix of the Victorian rules and propriety at the girls' college, and the reality of the harsh Australian wilderness where it was built. I liked the way we see how everyone's lives are altered by the events of the picnic - both for good, and for bad.
Spoiler
I was intrigued by the actions of Mrs Appleyard. The murder of Sara comes out of nowhere and was an odd thing to tag onto the end of the novel, along with Mrs Appleyard's suicide. I couldn't make sense of why she would do it, unless the implication is that she was in a drunken rage? I'll give it a pass though, as the discovery of the body was gruesomeI had never heard of this short, Australian classic until recently, but it was a good read.