Yes, for me this novel ticks all the boxes, in a good way. It is set in Sydney, mostly and the Riverina area also. It is a family saga, mainly about the five Dunbar boys, though mostly it is about the fourth boy, Clayton and written by the eldest, Matthew on his grandmother’s Remington typewriter.
It is also a deeply moving love story, with a restrained but steady relationship between Clayton and Carey, and a more slow burning one between Matthew and Claudia, however, underpinning all that is the emotional and deathly sad relationship between Michael and Penelope, the five boys’ parents.
Along the way, we get a glimpse into the world of horse racing, a national sport that exceeds that of the UK. Every Australian child knows the names of the great racing legend Phar Lap, there is even a film about him. Racing in Australia is a much more democratic event; there are of course, the racing hierarchy, but they are there because they have got there, not because they are born to it – it does make a difference.
We get gorgeous glimpses of Sydney in a very understated way, and become familiar with the streets of the racing quarter, which until even quite recently was pretty unspoilt; no longer though, much of it is now torn down and redeveloped.
There is a wonderful theme running through this whole novel about a fictional book called The Quarryman, a study of Michelangelo. It does not exist, but if you wanted to pursue the line that is suggested in Bridge of Clay, then you might try this book
Then the writing, it flows along carrying the reader on a great adventure and then breaking our hearts, I think I did not stop crying for the last one hundred pages. Not sobbing, but leaking tears at the tenderness of it all and the sadness.
Markus Zusak came to prominence with his fourth novel, The Book Thief which was almost instantly made into a film. But this is a much more interesting book about ordinary people making a life for themselves under some hardship and personal strain, and coming good in spite of all that.
deborahjs 