Twice winner of the Miles Franklin Award, Christopher Koch returns with a remarkable novel of gripping narrative power. Young Hugh Dixon believes he can save his father from ruin if he asks his estranged great-uncle Walter- a wealthy lawyer who lives alone in a tasmanian farmhouse passed down through the family-for help. As he is drawn into Walter's rarefied world, Hugh discovers that both his uncle and the farmhouse are links to a notorious episode in the mid nineteenth century. Walter's father, Martin, was living in the house when it was raided by members of an outlaw community run by Lucas Wilson, a charismatic ex-soldier attempting to build a utopia. But like later societies with communitarian ideals, Nowhere Valley was controlled by the gun, with Wilson as benevolent dictator. twenty-year-old Martin's sojourn in the Valley as Wilson's disciple has become an obsession with Walter Dixon: one which haunts his present and keeps the past tantalizingly close. As Walter encourages Hugh's ambition to become an artist, and again comes to his aid when one of Hugh's friends is charged with murder, the way life's patterns repeat themselves from one generation to another becomes eerily apparent. Dramatic, insightful and evocative, Lost Voices is an intriguing double narrative that confirms Koch as one of our most significant and compelling novelists.
Twice winner of the Miles Franklin Award, Christopher Koch returns with a remarkable novel of gripping narrative power. Young Hugh Dixon believes he can save his father from ruin if he asks his estranged great-uncle Walter- a wealthy lawyer who lives alone in a tasmanian farmhouse passed down through the family-for help. As he is drawn into Walter's rarefied world, Hugh discovers that both his uncle and the farmhouse are links to a notorious episode in the mid nineteenth century. Walter's father, Martin, was living in the house when it was raided by members of an outlaw community run by Lucas Wilson, a charismatic ex-soldier attempting to build a utopia. But like later societies with communitarian ideals, Nowhere Valley was controlled by the gun, with Wilson as benevolent dictator. twenty-year-old Martin's sojourn in the Valley as Wilson's disciple has become an obsession with Walter Dixon: one which haunts his present and keeps the past tantalizingly close. As Walter encourages Hugh's ambition to become an artist, and again comes to his aid when one of Hugh's friends is charged with murder, the way life's patterns repeat themselves from one generation to another becomes eerily apparent. Dramatic, insightful and evocative, Lost Voices is an intriguing double narrative that confirms Koch as one of our most significant and compelling novelists.
- ISBN:
- 9780732294632
- 9780732294632
- Category:
- Contemporary fiction
- Format:
- Paperback
- Publication Date:
- 01-10-2012
- Publisher:
- HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd
- Country of origin:
- Australia
- Pages:
- 476
- Dimensions (mm):
- 235x157x25mm
- Weight:
- 0.74kg
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Reviews
2 Reviews
Lost Voices is the seventh novel by Australian author, Christopher Koch. When Jim Dixon makes a serious error of judgement that could affect the whole family, his son, Hugh secretly goes to Walter Dixon, the great-uncle he has never met, to ask for help. He gets quite a bit more than he bargained for. As well as providing aid, his great-uncle becomes a source of inspiration, a patron and the revealer of a fascinating piece of family history: the story of Walters father, Martin Dixons involvement with a pair of notorious Tasmanian bushrangers. The novel is divided into three parts: the third person narration of Martins story is nested within the first-person narration of the relevant events in Hughs life. The lack of inverted commas denoting speech is only momentarily distracting as Kochs text ensures there is no ambiguity about the speaker. This is a novel that contains many parallels, echoes, or recurring themes, both between the two stories and within them: an appeal for help to a richer man; a father favouring one child over another; the patronage of an artist; the articulation of individual concepts between like minds; true friendship; men who have no respect for women; hypnotic power; and younger man/older woman relationships. Koch touches on the concepts of beauty, Utopia, Gnosticism and the nature of evil. His characters are well rounded and their interactions are realistic and often moving. Kochs plot is original and events like prison escapes, shoot-outs and a gripping court trial all keep the reader enthralled. His rendering of mood and scene is skilful and his extensive research is apparent on every page. The reader may well wonder how much of the authors personal experience is involved. This novel is filled with beautiful prose: We grew silent, and watched the afternoon light thicken and turn wheat-coloured over the roofs and the river and the hills; over the district that contained the mysteries of childhood, and that hidden joy at the heart of things that Bob and I had run after as boys, holding out our hands. is but one example of this. This is Kochs last book and a fitting testament to a fine author. A wonderful read.
This is two stories for the price of one!
First we have the story of Hugh, a young man wanting to be a commercial artist and forming a relationship with his estranged great uncle Walter. Then we have the story of outlaw Lucas some 100 years or so before Hugh's story. The connection? The bushranger once visited the farm where Walter now lives and has been a lifelong obsession of his.
3 stars because it was as well written as you'd expect from this author and beautifully crafted. I think both stories were great on their own and didn't really need each other to be valid - but maybe I missed the point of the dual storyline?
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