
Genre: Period Fiction/Fact/Mystery
Picnic At Hanging Rock By Joan Lindsay
On Valentines Day 1900, staff & students of Appleyard College situated within the Australian Bush, were busying themselves preparing for an outing. All dressed up in their finery, as the head mistress had reminded them that when off the grounds, they were representing the prestigious college.
Mr Hussey arrives in his drag, drawn by four magnificent bay horses, & once they have all clambered aboard, they set out on their 3 hour journey, stopping only once, for their picnic at Hanging Rock.
Once there & after lunch, three of the head girls & one of the juniors accompanied by a teacher Miss McCraw head off to explore, promising to take great care, not to go far & that they won't be long. However when they have not returned by 4pm, the time of the parties planned departure, their peers & guardians start to wonder what has become of them. The mystery of the girls disappearance sends out ripples of consequence to many.....
Ok, so remember how I said in my last review that I might have to resort to reading my partner's book's (that aren't necessarily my thing) between book deliveries?! Well, this is one of them, & apparently we do have some similar tastes occasionally, when it come to literature.
The first couple of chapters were hard work, mainly due to the wordings of the language used, as the story is set at the turn of the 20th Century. As the book progressed, I either acclimatised to it or it became easier to decipher. I've watched many period TV programmes, but it seems easier on screen than written down somehow....just me?
It is unknown whether the narrative is fact or fiction. The publisher decided at the time of publication, to remove further chapter(s) which apparently explain what actually occurred, as they wanted to retain an air of mystery.
These chapters are in a book entitled 'Secrets Of Hanging Rock'. If any of you have read it, no spoilers please, as I shall be reading & reviewing it in due course (heads up for anyone who would rather leave it here)....
Personally, I found it to be sporadically like wading through treacle, but then there are lots of descriptive passages regarding places which I really don't have the concentration span for.....I started to really get into it halfway through (there are only 17 chapters). The ending, I could see coming from the beginning of the last chapter. There are many other plot twists that I could elude to, but wouldn't want to spoilt it for you. It was definitely worth sticking with. A very intriguing novel that leaves a lot of questions unanswered, but has an ending that befits the narrative. I can't wait to read the follow up.
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