Description
A luminous and courageousstory about the hopes and dreams we all have for our lives and relationships,and the often fraught and unexpected ways they may be realised. Angela Savage draws us masterfully into the lives of Anna, an aidworker trying to settle back into life in Australia after more than a decade inSoutheast Asia; Meg, Anna’s sister, who holds out hope for a child despiteseven fruitless years of IVF; Meg’s husband Nate, and Mukda, a single mother inprovincial Thailand who wants to do the right thing by her son and parents. The women and their families’ livesbecome intimately intertwined in the unsettling and extraordinary process oftrying to bring a child into the world across borders of class, culture andnationality. Rich in characterisation and feeling, Mother of Pearl, andthe timely issues it raises, will generate discussion amongst readerseverywhere. ‘This isa story of family and motherhood, and also a story of culture and exploitationthat asks us to think through the costs of our insatiable desire in the West tohave everything. What I find remarkable about this novel is how it refuses easyand lazy judgement, how it takes seriously questions of loss, longing, and ourhuman need to connect with each other.’ — ChristosTsiolkas, author of The Slap
