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The Convent
A breathtaking novel that follows the hidden and intertwined lives of four young women as they face difficult, life-changing, impossible choices during the 1920s, 1960s, and the present
'I woke up with a feeling about today,' Stella says dreamily. 'Something truly amazing is going to happen.' 'To us or to the world?' I say. 'To you.' 'To me?' I laugh. 'Nothing ever happens to me, Stella.' 'But today it will.' 'Will it be good?' She looks thoughtful and then frowns. 'I . . . I don't know.'
Peach is 19 and pretty happy with the way things are. She has her college work, two wildly different best friends, her sister, Stella, to look after, and a broken heart to mend. But when she takes a summer job at a café in the old convent, her idea of who she is takes a sharp turn into the past. Where once there were nuns, young girls and women who had fallen on hard times, Peach discovers secrets from three generations of her family. As their stories are revealed, Peach is jolted out of her comfort zone. But does she really want to know who she is? Warm and real, intense and provocative, this novel shows in vivid detail how fate and the choices we make ripple and reverberate through time.
'I woke up with a feeling about today,' Stella says dreamily. 'Something truly amazing is going to happen.' 'To us or to the world?' I say. 'To you.' 'To me?' I laugh. 'Nothing ever happens to me, Stella.' 'But today it will.' 'Will it be good?' She looks thoughtful and then frowns. 'I . . . I don't know.'
Peach is 19 and pretty happy with the way things are. She has her college work, two wildly different best friends, her sister, Stella, to look after, and a broken heart to mend. But when she takes a summer job at a café in the old convent, her idea of who she is takes a sharp turn into the past. Where once there were nuns, young girls and women who had fallen on hard times, Peach discovers secrets from three generations of her family. As their stories are revealed, Peach is jolted out of her comfort zone. But does she really want to know who she is? Warm and real, intense and provocative, this novel shows in vivid detail how fate and the choices we make ripple and reverberate through time.
432 pages, Paperback
First published September 26, 2012
18 people are currently reading
700 people want to read
About the author
Maureen McCarthy
33 books104 followersMaureen McCarthy, the ninth of ten children, was born in 1953 in country Victoria. She has worked as a teacher in Victorian secondary schools and has written scripts for television and educational films. Her film credits include 'Skipping Class', he award-winning documentary, 'Eating Your Heart Out', and the SBS mini-series, 'In Between', which was later adapted inot four novels by Maureen. Her latest works includes the novels Ganglands and Cross My Heart, which was published in 1993 and short-listed for the NSW Premier's Prize in that year. An Australian author and scriptwriter, her novels concern the lives of emerging adults, from ages sixteen to early twenties. McCarthy has three sons and lives in Melbourne.
Maureen dedicated her story in the collection 'Family: A Collection of Short Stories' to the memory of her much-loved nephew, Justin Haire, who died tragically in October 1993, aged 21 years.
Maureen dedicated her story in the collection 'Family: A Collection of Short Stories' to the memory of her much-loved nephew, Justin Haire, who died tragically in October 1993, aged 21 years.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
October 4, 2012
Maureen McCarthy is one of the few authors whose protagonists are generally aged in their late teens or early twenties, embarking on university or finding their way in the first years after leaving school. I started university about the time Queen Kat, Carmel & St. Jude Get A Life was published (it has been republished this year by Allen & Unwin) and loved the book, quickly devouring the rest of her backlist soon after. It has been a while now since I have read anything by the author but I was thrilled to receive The Convent for review. Though The Convent is labeled as young adult fiction, I feel the novel will appeal to a much broader age range of women. A thoughtful, intriguing and heartfelt story, it explores the experiences of four generations of women whose fates are linked to the Abbotsford Convent.
Nineteen year old Peach (Perpetua) has always admired the Abbotsford Convent's grandeur, now home to artists studio space, boutique stores and the cafe at which Peach works, but she was unaware of it's personal significance. Adopted at birth, it isn't until Peach receives a letter from her biological grandmother, Ellen, that she learns her grandmother was raised there and her birth mother, Cecilia, once served as a nun within the Enclosed order. While Peach struggles to come to terms with the unexpected information about her past, it is her present that she is most concerned with. Her sister is depressed, her best friend is pregnant and she is still reeling after a messy break up.
As Peach navigates her way through her changing world, McCarthy traces Peach's lineage and their connection to the convent. Sadie was declared an unfit mother in 1915 after her husband abandoned her and her daughter Ellen taken from her to be raised in Abbotsford. Ellen spent her entire childhood as a ward of the nuns before marrying and her daughter, Cecilia pledged her life to God's service as a young woman. The author shares snippets of these women's lives and their hopes, dreams and regrets with alternating chapters.
Through the the women's stories, McCarthy also traces the changing social and moral landscape for women over the century. Attitudes to women's rights, motherhood, marriage and sexuality have shifted seismically in the last one hundred years and the author acknowledges the evolution without any feminist rant.
McCarthy admits that she has a very personal connection to this story. Most significantly McCarthy's own mother was raised in the Abbotsford Convent after being made a ward of the state at age 3 and while she rarely spoke about her time there, McCarthy was always fascinated by her mother's early life. McCarthy's interest in her characters and their experiences is evident in the care in which she has constructed the story.
The Convent is a wonderful story, an easy read but with surprising depth for the thoughtful reader to ruminate on. This is a great choice for any Australian Women Writer Challenge participants given the relevance of its themes.
Nineteen year old Peach (Perpetua) has always admired the Abbotsford Convent's grandeur, now home to artists studio space, boutique stores and the cafe at which Peach works, but she was unaware of it's personal significance. Adopted at birth, it isn't until Peach receives a letter from her biological grandmother, Ellen, that she learns her grandmother was raised there and her birth mother, Cecilia, once served as a nun within the Enclosed order. While Peach struggles to come to terms with the unexpected information about her past, it is her present that she is most concerned with. Her sister is depressed, her best friend is pregnant and she is still reeling after a messy break up.
As Peach navigates her way through her changing world, McCarthy traces Peach's lineage and their connection to the convent. Sadie was declared an unfit mother in 1915 after her husband abandoned her and her daughter Ellen taken from her to be raised in Abbotsford. Ellen spent her entire childhood as a ward of the nuns before marrying and her daughter, Cecilia pledged her life to God's service as a young woman. The author shares snippets of these women's lives and their hopes, dreams and regrets with alternating chapters.
Through the the women's stories, McCarthy also traces the changing social and moral landscape for women over the century. Attitudes to women's rights, motherhood, marriage and sexuality have shifted seismically in the last one hundred years and the author acknowledges the evolution without any feminist rant.
McCarthy admits that she has a very personal connection to this story. Most significantly McCarthy's own mother was raised in the Abbotsford Convent after being made a ward of the state at age 3 and while she rarely spoke about her time there, McCarthy was always fascinated by her mother's early life. McCarthy's interest in her characters and their experiences is evident in the care in which she has constructed the story.
The Convent is a wonderful story, an easy read but with surprising depth for the thoughtful reader to ruminate on. This is a great choice for any Australian Women Writer Challenge participants given the relevance of its themes.
May 13, 2015
I really enjoyed the easy pace of this book, it was almost like being an observer. As a family historian it really appealed to my 'need to know' instincts and I believe the fact that the story was based on real events and circumstances made it all the more compelling. Wonderful descriptions of the Convent and surrounds made it really come to life. I found myself pacing my reading in order to prolong the experience.. Life within the confines of the convent is vividly and realistically portrayed with, sometimes confronting, yet sensitive attention to facts. It's one of those rare books where you find yourself missing the characters long after the book is finished. I look forward to reading more of Maureen McCarthy's books.
October 6, 2012
Based on her mother’s own history as ward of the state at the Abbotsford Convent in Victoria, the author tells the story of three generations of women whose lives have been affected in different ways by the convent’s historical past. Ellen, who at age four became a ward of the state living at the convent, after her father had her mother declared an unfit parent; Cecilia, Ellen’s only daughter, who at age nineteen took her vows and joined the secluded order as Sister Anunciata; and 19-year-old Peach (or Perpetua), Cecilia’s daughter adopted out at birth and as yet unaware of her heritage.
With insight and sensitivity the author tackles the subjects of motherhood, religion and the changing role of women in our society, as well as the search for our origins and the legacies of past generations which shape our lives though we might not be aware of them. I really enjoyed reading this book, and the characters came alive for me. McCarthy is one of the few authors who manages to pull off switching characters and times between individual chapters, without distracting from the main storyline or confusing the reader. Whilst we hear from Peach in the first person, her mother’s and grandmother’s stories are narrated in the third person, and skip back and forth between 1916 and the present time – which slowly unveils their personal histories and fleshes out their characters as the reader learns more about them.
Having visited several convents on our travels around Australia, I could picture the austere room Cecilia would have inhabited at the convent, as well as the isolation, the heat and a life totally removed from anything she would have known previously. Not a stranger to the Catholic religion (after spending my childhood in Europe), I was still somewhat shocked by the harsh boundaries imposed on the convent’s young recruits and charges – as well as learning that a man had the power to have a child taken away from her mother without a proper trial and prove of neglect. Despite the messages contained in the story and its sometimes controversial themes, the author tells the story without judgment or righteousness, but creates an interesting contrast between the different life stories which stimulates the readers to make up his/her own mind. Though some of the later elements of the story where predictable, I savoured every opportunity to learn more about its protagonists, hoping for all the threads to come together in the end.
Tackling issues affecting every woman at some stage of her life, this book will appeal to women of all ages – even if only to muse how conditions have changed for our gender in the last century. The Convent also provides a fascinating insight into a chapter of Australian history not often addressed in fiction – of convent life in rural Australia. An insightful, thought provoking and enjoyable read – highly recommended.
With insight and sensitivity the author tackles the subjects of motherhood, religion and the changing role of women in our society, as well as the search for our origins and the legacies of past generations which shape our lives though we might not be aware of them. I really enjoyed reading this book, and the characters came alive for me. McCarthy is one of the few authors who manages to pull off switching characters and times between individual chapters, without distracting from the main storyline or confusing the reader. Whilst we hear from Peach in the first person, her mother’s and grandmother’s stories are narrated in the third person, and skip back and forth between 1916 and the present time – which slowly unveils their personal histories and fleshes out their characters as the reader learns more about them.
Having visited several convents on our travels around Australia, I could picture the austere room Cecilia would have inhabited at the convent, as well as the isolation, the heat and a life totally removed from anything she would have known previously. Not a stranger to the Catholic religion (after spending my childhood in Europe), I was still somewhat shocked by the harsh boundaries imposed on the convent’s young recruits and charges – as well as learning that a man had the power to have a child taken away from her mother without a proper trial and prove of neglect. Despite the messages contained in the story and its sometimes controversial themes, the author tells the story without judgment or righteousness, but creates an interesting contrast between the different life stories which stimulates the readers to make up his/her own mind. Though some of the later elements of the story where predictable, I savoured every opportunity to learn more about its protagonists, hoping for all the threads to come together in the end.
Tackling issues affecting every woman at some stage of her life, this book will appeal to women of all ages – even if only to muse how conditions have changed for our gender in the last century. The Convent also provides a fascinating insight into a chapter of Australian history not often addressed in fiction – of convent life in rural Australia. An insightful, thought provoking and enjoyable read – highly recommended.
October 13, 2012
I’m sticking my neck out to declare that this is Maureen McCarthy’s best novel. It’s written in her typically expansive style with memorable characters that are brought together by their association with a Melbourne convent which has now been converted into commercial and arts and crafts spaces. From 1915 when Sadie’s three year old child Ellen is taken away one morning from her home by a policeman and a social worker to the present, when Perpetua (Peach) is found by Ellen, her grandmother and her mother, a former nun, Cecilia, McCarthy weaves her story through time changes and multiple narrations to achieve my complete engagement.
The story moves to 1926 when Ellen aged 14 has been returned to the Sacred Heart convent because of her ‘bad blood’. Then we are transported to 1964 and the fascinating bride of Christ ceremony as Cecilia, aged 19 is inducted into the closed order of the convent. We learn about the arcane disciplines of the order and empathise with her brother Dominic and her father who oppose her ordination, “cooped up like a bloody chook”. The only light touch is Breda, a fellow novice who has a healthy disregard for regulations and shockingly disappears the night before her final vows. Then to Peach, in the present time, a first year physiotherapy student and an adopted child not interested in learning about her biological parents, with her 16 year old sister Stella, conceived soon after the adoption. Her friend Det, an artist with a studio at the former convent, persuades her to apply for a part time job serving at the coffee shop there. Det, after two abortions reveals her pregnancy but surprises all by deciding to have the baby. Other complications are with Peach’s ambivalence about her boyfriends and her sister’s obesity.
The stony presence of the convent buildings including the notorious laundries where the forced adoption girls slaved many hours to wash and iron the linen for hotels under the harsh regime of the elderly nuns and the naïve compliance of the novices dominates the story. Key scenes are Cecilia, surprised by her grief about giving up her baby, conceived with a revolutionary priest and Breda’s escape over the wall with a 23 year old inmate. They become lovers and nurture Cecilia many years later when she returns to Australia after her flight to France.
After the various dramas about convent life and the exploitation of the adopted girls in the laundry, it was refreshing to read of Peach’s lack of interest in finding her birth parents. There are no longeurs in this gripping story and even Catholic schools could not disapprove as the women keep their faith in prayer and their need for a god. The short chapters and clear designation of time, place and narrator facilitate easy reading. The contemporary story has a few expletives and there are sexual references and birthing details that are totally contextual and should cause no concerns in schools that worry about these things. The strengths of the many convincing characters and the dramatic force of their stories moved me swiftly through the 419 pages. Use this in years 9-11 as a class text or for author study with Maureen McCarthy’s other fiction.
Wide reading links: the big questions, choices, identity, belonging, power, families, historical fiction and generations.
The story moves to 1926 when Ellen aged 14 has been returned to the Sacred Heart convent because of her ‘bad blood’. Then we are transported to 1964 and the fascinating bride of Christ ceremony as Cecilia, aged 19 is inducted into the closed order of the convent. We learn about the arcane disciplines of the order and empathise with her brother Dominic and her father who oppose her ordination, “cooped up like a bloody chook”. The only light touch is Breda, a fellow novice who has a healthy disregard for regulations and shockingly disappears the night before her final vows. Then to Peach, in the present time, a first year physiotherapy student and an adopted child not interested in learning about her biological parents, with her 16 year old sister Stella, conceived soon after the adoption. Her friend Det, an artist with a studio at the former convent, persuades her to apply for a part time job serving at the coffee shop there. Det, after two abortions reveals her pregnancy but surprises all by deciding to have the baby. Other complications are with Peach’s ambivalence about her boyfriends and her sister’s obesity.
The stony presence of the convent buildings including the notorious laundries where the forced adoption girls slaved many hours to wash and iron the linen for hotels under the harsh regime of the elderly nuns and the naïve compliance of the novices dominates the story. Key scenes are Cecilia, surprised by her grief about giving up her baby, conceived with a revolutionary priest and Breda’s escape over the wall with a 23 year old inmate. They become lovers and nurture Cecilia many years later when she returns to Australia after her flight to France.
After the various dramas about convent life and the exploitation of the adopted girls in the laundry, it was refreshing to read of Peach’s lack of interest in finding her birth parents. There are no longeurs in this gripping story and even Catholic schools could not disapprove as the women keep their faith in prayer and their need for a god. The short chapters and clear designation of time, place and narrator facilitate easy reading. The contemporary story has a few expletives and there are sexual references and birthing details that are totally contextual and should cause no concerns in schools that worry about these things. The strengths of the many convincing characters and the dramatic force of their stories moved me swiftly through the 419 pages. Use this in years 9-11 as a class text or for author study with Maureen McCarthy’s other fiction.
Wide reading links: the big questions, choices, identity, belonging, power, families, historical fiction and generations.
June 13, 2018
It took me a few goes to read this book but it was well worth it. I have never visited the Convent but did so on my final day of reading. Maureen’s writing allows the reader to be there with the characters and share in their journey. I was pleased with the way Maureen didn’t shy away from the difficulties of religious life, the unfairness of the lives of the “fallen women” but still treated the Christian spirituality with respect.
October 12, 2012
4.5 stars
The Convent is a fascinating exploration of (fictional) young women who were associated with the Abbotsford Convent. Inspired by McCarthy’s family history, The Convent is a young adult novel which will appeal to readers young and old. The author’s mother was raised in the Abbotsford Convent as a ward of the state in the 1920’s and for a long time she yearned to inquire into the past, but didn’t actively research the institution until after her mother’s death.
I’m a big fan of Maureen McCarthy’s novels; the first I read was When You Wake and Find Me Gone (2002) which I picked up in my late teens. It’s set partly in Australia and partly in Ireland and explores history, war and family in such an powerful way that I’ve still got it sitting on my bookshelf almost ten years later… and I really should pick it up and read it again because I’ve always thought of it as one of my favourite books.
Anyway, back to The Convent! The four women were inspired by women in McCarthy’s own life, the woman who adopted out her daughter (her grandmother), the orphan (her mother), the nun (her sister), and the present-day student (her friend’s daughter). And so the characters Sadie, Ellen, Cecilia and Peach fell into place.
Sadie is a young woman separated from her husband in 1915. On one fateful day, her young daughter Ellen is removed from her care and placed with the nuns at the convent. She doesn’t play a huge role in this book, probably only two chapters are dedicated to her. But she is certainly the catalyst to the lives of the next three generations of women in the story.
Ellen was raised in the convent during a time when people didn’t ask questions or inquire about the past. Ellen goes on to have a have a large family, including one daughter, Cecilia. Ellen’s earlier years aren’t explored in too much detail through her viewpoint, but she plays a huge part in the novel during the present day era as the grandmother of young Peach.
Cecilia (Ellen’s daughter) was a young woman curious about the world and the role of God had in her life. She chose to join the convent at the age of 19 where she served as a nun for ten years. She is released from the convent in her thirties and a brief fling leads to an unplanned pregnancy. Baby Perpetua is born and Cecilia chooses to adopt her out to a couple who are ready and willing to raise a child.
Perpetua (Peach) is the main protagonist of the novel, set in modern day (the 90s I think) and she’s just got a new job at the local café in an arty precinct, formerly known as the Abbotsford Convent. Her adoptive parents have gone on an overseas trip and she is left with her recluse younger sister, a broken heart from the fallout of her first love and her two feisty best friends Cassie and Det. She receives a letter from her biological grandmother Ellen and her curiosity is sparked, she begins to question who she is and where she came from. Her identity crisis is exacerbated by her friend Det’s unexpected pregnancy- she smokes, drinks and has no plans for the future.
I loved how McCarthy weaved the lives together of these four remarkable women, the lives they lead in very different times and the influence of the maternal genetic line in a family that has become unglued due to laws, societies and personal reasons. I wholeheartedly recommend McCarthy’s novels, I’ve never been disappointed. Must trawl through her backlist, I’ve got a couple of her books still sitting on my TBR shelf.
The Convent is a fascinating exploration of (fictional) young women who were associated with the Abbotsford Convent. Inspired by McCarthy’s family history, The Convent is a young adult novel which will appeal to readers young and old. The author’s mother was raised in the Abbotsford Convent as a ward of the state in the 1920’s and for a long time she yearned to inquire into the past, but didn’t actively research the institution until after her mother’s death.
I’m a big fan of Maureen McCarthy’s novels; the first I read was When You Wake and Find Me Gone (2002) which I picked up in my late teens. It’s set partly in Australia and partly in Ireland and explores history, war and family in such an powerful way that I’ve still got it sitting on my bookshelf almost ten years later… and I really should pick it up and read it again because I’ve always thought of it as one of my favourite books.
Anyway, back to The Convent! The four women were inspired by women in McCarthy’s own life, the woman who adopted out her daughter (her grandmother), the orphan (her mother), the nun (her sister), and the present-day student (her friend’s daughter). And so the characters Sadie, Ellen, Cecilia and Peach fell into place.
Sadie is a young woman separated from her husband in 1915. On one fateful day, her young daughter Ellen is removed from her care and placed with the nuns at the convent. She doesn’t play a huge role in this book, probably only two chapters are dedicated to her. But she is certainly the catalyst to the lives of the next three generations of women in the story.
Ellen was raised in the convent during a time when people didn’t ask questions or inquire about the past. Ellen goes on to have a have a large family, including one daughter, Cecilia. Ellen’s earlier years aren’t explored in too much detail through her viewpoint, but she plays a huge part in the novel during the present day era as the grandmother of young Peach.
Cecilia (Ellen’s daughter) was a young woman curious about the world and the role of God had in her life. She chose to join the convent at the age of 19 where she served as a nun for ten years. She is released from the convent in her thirties and a brief fling leads to an unplanned pregnancy. Baby Perpetua is born and Cecilia chooses to adopt her out to a couple who are ready and willing to raise a child.
Perpetua (Peach) is the main protagonist of the novel, set in modern day (the 90s I think) and she’s just got a new job at the local café in an arty precinct, formerly known as the Abbotsford Convent. Her adoptive parents have gone on an overseas trip and she is left with her recluse younger sister, a broken heart from the fallout of her first love and her two feisty best friends Cassie and Det. She receives a letter from her biological grandmother Ellen and her curiosity is sparked, she begins to question who she is and where she came from. Her identity crisis is exacerbated by her friend Det’s unexpected pregnancy- she smokes, drinks and has no plans for the future.
I loved how McCarthy weaved the lives together of these four remarkable women, the lives they lead in very different times and the influence of the maternal genetic line in a family that has become unglued due to laws, societies and personal reasons. I wholeheartedly recommend McCarthy’s novels, I’ve never been disappointed. Must trawl through her backlist, I’ve got a couple of her books still sitting on my TBR shelf.
December 29, 2012
I really enjoyed this book. A little disappointed by the ending, but only a little. I just wanted to know more (or perhaps I was waiting for a big bang or something? not sure) and it did leave me thinking deeply and wondering about some of the characters, but that isn't always a bad thing and often how we see life from our own perspective. (I think I've decided I'm a bit of a sticky beak and I really wanted to know some things about some characters and it just didn't eventuate so I felt like there were some unanswered questions.)
I enjoyed the style it was written in and I really related to each character. I was fascinated with the whole nun side of the story and still felt like I wanted to know more there, but that could just be my morbid curiosity.
The book is quite thick and long (heavy to hold while I was reading in bed that's for sure) but it didn't seem to drag on. It jumps around in time but that also seems to suit it and applies the right amount of story at the right amount of time.
I really enjoyed this story and would highly recommend it.
I enjoyed the style it was written in and I really related to each character. I was fascinated with the whole nun side of the story and still felt like I wanted to know more there, but that could just be my morbid curiosity.
The book is quite thick and long (heavy to hold while I was reading in bed that's for sure) but it didn't seem to drag on. It jumps around in time but that also seems to suit it and applies the right amount of story at the right amount of time.
I really enjoyed this story and would highly recommend it.
January 2, 2013
I live near the Convent where this story is set, so I have also visited the coffee shop that Pearl, the main character, works in. I have walked the Convent grounds but never been into the building. I am now keen to go back and look again for this book was a beautiful blend of building history and the lives of those who lived there. It could have been a sentimental read but it wasn't. A blend of past and present, the values and beliefs of each time not clashing but each dealt with respectfully.
Although promoted for late teens I have been recommending this book to adults esp those who live in inner Melbourne or have a Catholic upbringing.
It is lovely Maureen just lovely.
Although promoted for late teens I have been recommending this book to adults esp those who live in inner Melbourne or have a Catholic upbringing.
It is lovely Maureen just lovely.
August 2, 2014
Not bad. Kinda boring, but not a horrible read.
August 28, 2015
really great book!!!! 10/10 do recommend
May 13, 2018
My mother gave me this book to read and I had it sitting in my room for over 6 months before I attempted to read it. I knew it was important to her because it describes the convent she lived at during the 60’s which is the time she stayed there. But other than general complaining about the years she was there and how it was a hard time she has never ever described what it was like, however to this day she will say that when it comes to the nuns there are some who were fantastic and others who were not so fantastic. She will always credit them for getting her into sports which was a passion of hers. Outside of that I knew nothing of this place until I read the book. Funny enough my youngest brother moved back to Melbourne and he lives walking distance from the convent he moved there without even knowing this is the one mum was always referring to until she went for a visit and told him. This book is well written and has helped me understand my mother in a way I never thought I could she was made to feel so ashamed of it that my father was truly shocked when I in my mid twenties told him of course I knew mum was at the convent apparently when she first had children she told him she never wanted us to know of her time there (I have not mentioned/confirmed this with my mum her and my dad are long divorced and he has since passed away). Thank you for taking the time to write this it has given me a lot of insight into my mother’s past.
July 27, 2018
I don’t want to rate this book badly because it’s simply not the genre I would usually read. I however did it enjoy it, and took a liking to the characters. I believe that the writing was powerful because it was able to evoke emotion out of me for characters that aren’t even real. This is usually very hard to do.
There were small details that were left as loose ends or promises of something that could happen later on which I don’t believe any first book should do even if it has been intended as part of a series. Without the promise of a second book, I think all loose ends should be tied up by the last page. They weren’t major things but they were definitely things unnecessary to the development of the story so it confused me?
Overall, I found my experience average but again- I usually read fantasy and sci fi so this isn’t surprising.
There were small details that were left as loose ends or promises of something that could happen later on which I don’t believe any first book should do even if it has been intended as part of a series. Without the promise of a second book, I think all loose ends should be tied up by the last page. They weren’t major things but they were definitely things unnecessary to the development of the story so it confused me?
Overall, I found my experience average but again- I usually read fantasy and sci fi so this isn’t surprising.
June 4, 2021
"Peach is nineteen and pretty happy with the way things are. When she takes a summer job at a cafe in the Old Abbotsford Convent, her idea of who she is takes a sharp turn ... into the past. The nuns, orphans and fallen women are long gone when Peach discovers her own deep connection to the place. But as the convent's stories intertwine with her own, Peach is jolted out of her comfort zone."
Although the chapters alternate between characters, slowing down reading a bit, the author does pull it all together towards the end. The subjects of adoption, illegitimacy, relationships with friends and family, and life in a Catholic convent are all bound together in this warmly told story.
Although the chapters alternate between characters, slowing down reading a bit, the author does pull it all together towards the end. The subjects of adoption, illegitimacy, relationships with friends and family, and life in a Catholic convent are all bound together in this warmly told story.
July 3, 2023
I had this title on my to-read list for several years but could not find it ANYwhere. There may have been one public library in Ohio that had it, it did not come up on Amazon, didn't show up on any of the book buying sites. A great mystery to me. Then early this year, there it was, maybe on Book Outlet, I barely remember. To say that my anticipation level was high would be an understatement, but I was disappointed right from the beginning and I can't even express why. Too much hype in my head? I will say that the last 5 or so chapters really did draw me in, and so my experience was not wasted. But I did almost abandon this one.
January 26, 2018
This book has a slow start and I found it hard to get into. I was also getting confused about the characters and the time periods because of all the jumping around between the generations and it didn’t seem to flow well to me. Although I know nothing about nuns and how they lived, then and now, I found the story to be kind of interesting, but I couldn’t warm to any of the characters. I also didn’t think there was any real closure at the end of the book and I felt many things were left unresolved.
August 18, 2019
In places this novel comes alive - mostly the sections set in the past. I feel the modern pregnancy just feels too forced to give the three parallel stories. And conversations between the young people of the modern era didn’t have a natural rhythm or feel. I get that this is meant to be young adult fiction and having the modern pregnancy may hook younger readers into the story and the brutality of the treatment of the “fallen” girls and the powerlessness of women.
August 23, 2019
An interesting story told around the Convent in Abbottsford over four generations. This novel slipped between time frames, telling parts of each woman's story in an interwoven thread. It allowed one story to enhance another story. Maureen very cleverly revealed more along the way that filled out the other characters story, without explicit telling.
If you are looking for an enjoyable read, I commend this book to you.
If you are looking for an enjoyable read, I commend this book to you.
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June 1, 2020DNFed at 54 pages. Maureen McCarthy was one of my favourite authors when I was a teen but I think I've waited too long to read this one. Alternating POVs and timelines sometimes don't work for me and I'm struggling to get into this. I'm going to put it down for now, but I might pick it back up again down the track.
October 30, 2020
I enjoyed the insight into a piece of Melbourne's history, the Abbotsford Convent and what went on there. I know that the story itself is fiction but it contains a lot of anecdotal evidence for the experiences of the women who lived there. I enjoyed the book.
April 20, 2019
True rating = 2.5 stars. Not bad; for full review please visit http://thebooksmithblog.wordpress.com
February 9, 2020
Took several detours while reading this so it took a while longer than hoped for. It was pretty good, not astonishing, but I would maybeee read again.
November 30, 2022
This author interview my Grandma prior to writing this book. It was great to see her experiences included and it made it feel all the more real. If anything, this book missed out on opportunities to really ridicule the orphanage as an institution, however, I can still understand this perspective.
November 15, 2013
I love Maureen McCarthy's writing, it tends to focus on character rather than action and be very frank and real and insightful, which is exactly the kind of writing I like. I can't stand those kind of books where the writing is terribly slick, polished and contrived, as though the author's trying very hard to be deep and clever. I really love many of M.McC's books and expected to love this, but I was a bit disappointed with it. I found it hard to get into and although I enjoyed it well enough while I was reading, I never felt that kind of itch to get back to the story once I'd put it down, because not much ever happened. I thought the book was lacking in direction or purpose, and I found the constant jumping around between different characters and different times in their lives confusing.
Cecelia was my least favourite character, which didn't bode well since the majority of the novel seemed to focus on her. I thought her reasons for wanting to join the convent were unclear, but then her reasons for wanting to leave again were odd too. When she joined everyone was like "are you sure you want to, you realise it's a very harsh and deprived lifestyle and they'll never let you see your family again?" and she was like "yes yes I know, but it's what I want". Then her father died and various other family events happened and she kept asking for special permission to see them and seemed really shocked when the nuns said no. What did she expect? Apparently she thought they'd change the rules for her because she was special. There were other things that made her want to leave, like the harsh way some of the nuns treated the laundry girls, but in general it seemed like it came down to petty things like not being able to wash as often as she would've liked. So yeah, I couldn't really warm to her.
I liked Peach better but kept picturing Jude from Queen Kat, Carmel & St. Jude Get A Life whenever she talked because they were very similar. Her sister Stella was VERY odd and the bit where she had some strange obsession with her singing teacher and wanted to change her name to be the same as hers? Or something? Was never resolved.
Cecelia was my least favourite character, which didn't bode well since the majority of the novel seemed to focus on her. I thought her reasons for wanting to join the convent were unclear, but then her reasons for wanting to leave again were odd too. When she joined everyone was like "are you sure you want to, you realise it's a very harsh and deprived lifestyle and they'll never let you see your family again?" and she was like "yes yes I know, but it's what I want". Then her father died and various other family events happened and she kept asking for special permission to see them and seemed really shocked when the nuns said no. What did she expect? Apparently she thought they'd change the rules for her because she was special. There were other things that made her want to leave, like the harsh way some of the nuns treated the laundry girls, but in general it seemed like it came down to petty things like not being able to wash as often as she would've liked. So yeah, I couldn't really warm to her.
I liked Peach better but kept picturing Jude from Queen Kat, Carmel & St. Jude Get A Life whenever she talked because they were very similar. Her sister Stella was VERY odd and the bit where she had some strange obsession with her singing teacher and wanted to change her name to be the same as hers? Or something? Was never resolved.
December 29, 2015
This book is brilliant.
At first I read the blurb and thought The Convent was another boring history book. But rather, I was mightily surprised at the amount of beautifully written history bound in a delicate story of four different colourful lives, all connected to the convent, where their family history lies.
The Big Five:
1. What makes this book good?
A - This book is good because it is an intriguing story that touches on the lives of four different women at different times in their lives, each in a totally different time setting to each other. This book combines love of all kind, the bonds that connect family to each other and history. All this information and emotion comes together to create a beautiful novel.
2. What would make this book better?
A - More! I could read more on everything on this book! Sequel! Sequel!! (although this may ruin the amazing feeling at the end of the first book!)
3. Would I recommend it to a friend and why?
A - Yes I would. I would recommend this book because it made me retrain my thoughts about how interesting history can be and how it interacts with your families' past.
4. What type of book is it?
A - Non-fiction, young adult/adult novel for those interested in stories of inspirational young women and the difficulty of those who lived in 1950-75 convents.
5. What was my favourite part of the book?
A - When Peach finds out all of her families past (you'll have to read it to know what I'm talking about!)!!
Conclusion:
Read this book! I don't often give out 5 stars but this was well worth it!
At first I read the blurb and thought The Convent was another boring history book. But rather, I was mightily surprised at the amount of beautifully written history bound in a delicate story of four different colourful lives, all connected to the convent, where their family history lies.
The Big Five:
1. What makes this book good?
A - This book is good because it is an intriguing story that touches on the lives of four different women at different times in their lives, each in a totally different time setting to each other. This book combines love of all kind, the bonds that connect family to each other and history. All this information and emotion comes together to create a beautiful novel.
2. What would make this book better?
A - More! I could read more on everything on this book! Sequel! Sequel!! (although this may ruin the amazing feeling at the end of the first book!)
3. Would I recommend it to a friend and why?
A - Yes I would. I would recommend this book because it made me retrain my thoughts about how interesting history can be and how it interacts with your families' past.
4. What type of book is it?
A - Non-fiction, young adult/adult novel for those interested in stories of inspirational young women and the difficulty of those who lived in 1950-75 convents.
5. What was my favourite part of the book?
A - When Peach finds out all of her families past (you'll have to read it to know what I'm talking about!)!!
Conclusion:
Read this book! I don't often give out 5 stars but this was well worth it!
October 3, 2013
I have to be honest, I have no idea what made me pick this book up and buy it in the first place, but I can assure you I’m really glad I did! I’ve never read anything by Maureen McCarthy before, but I do believe I will be hunting down every single book she has ever written now.
Firstly, how cool is the main character’s name? Peach! I mean, come on…that is awesome. Even though at times I wanted to pull her out of the book and slap her around for being so frustrating and stroppy, I had to pull back and remember what it was like being nineteen. She is whole, but broken all at the same time, her friends are detrimental to her sanity, but she loves them fiercely. I wanted to scream at her and pull her into my arms for a big squishy hug all at the same time.
The book follows the lives of four women, a great grandmother, grandmother, mother and daughter, who have all been separated from each other in different ways. It shows the flow on effect that one tragic separation can have through the generations.
If you want laughs, this is not the book for you. I don’t think I even giggled once. I cried, though, a lot. It was an emotional wringing out of the soul. So much heartache graces the pages of this book, all real, and all painful, but don’t let that stop you from picking it up and reading it. Once I started I couldn’t put it down and I read on through the blur of my own tears.
See more reviews at www.aussieownedandread.com
Firstly, how cool is the main character’s name? Peach! I mean, come on…that is awesome. Even though at times I wanted to pull her out of the book and slap her around for being so frustrating and stroppy, I had to pull back and remember what it was like being nineteen. She is whole, but broken all at the same time, her friends are detrimental to her sanity, but she loves them fiercely. I wanted to scream at her and pull her into my arms for a big squishy hug all at the same time.
The book follows the lives of four women, a great grandmother, grandmother, mother and daughter, who have all been separated from each other in different ways. It shows the flow on effect that one tragic separation can have through the generations.
If you want laughs, this is not the book for you. I don’t think I even giggled once. I cried, though, a lot. It was an emotional wringing out of the soul. So much heartache graces the pages of this book, all real, and all painful, but don’t let that stop you from picking it up and reading it. Once I started I couldn’t put it down and I read on through the blur of my own tears.
See more reviews at www.aussieownedandread.com
December 30, 2012
Another wonderful novel from Maureen McCarthy. Peach is the adopted daughter of two Melbourne doctors. One Christmas, she is left to look after her younger sister, Stella, when her parents go overseas for an extended holiday. All seems well, until she discovers that one of her best friends, Det, is pregnant again. Det has already had two abortions, so this time, she plans to keep the baby. Another problem arises when Peaches, whose real name is Perpetua, discovers that her real grandmother is still alive, and wishes to make contact with her. Add to the mix Peaches recent break up with her boyfriend, the fact that her other friend Cassie disagrees with her over how to help Det during her pregnancy, the ballooning weight of her sister, and her eventual discovery that her birth mother is now back in Melbourne - all these make for a very compelling plot, which raises lots of issues around family and belonging.
The background to the novel is McCarthy's own complicated Catholic heritage. McCarthy's depiction of the Convent at Abbotsford is fascinating as is the detail about the lives of both the religious inhabitants of the nunnery, and their charges who were either abandoned children and orphans, or fallen women who had to work under ghastly conditions in the Convent's commercial laundry.
The background to the novel is McCarthy's own complicated Catholic heritage. McCarthy's depiction of the Convent at Abbotsford is fascinating as is the detail about the lives of both the religious inhabitants of the nunnery, and their charges who were either abandoned children and orphans, or fallen women who had to work under ghastly conditions in the Convent's commercial laundry.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 11, 2015
Quite enjoyable, well written, a few too many incidental details that needed more development to make them worth inclusion in the storyline. Or maybe I should just realise that life is like that - things aren't necessarily neat and tidy. I guess we all have preferred eras to read in, and the 1960s/70s aren't my favourites. I'd have preferred to explore more of Sadie's story, because its less familiar, and difference makes for interest to me. That said, the idea of generations of women in one family with links to a particular convent is intriguing and I appreciate the device. The treatment of children, especially orphans or those of poor circumstances, and of women in general, over the years and how it has changed to reflect ideas of fairness and equality, to achieve the best outcomes and undamaged adults is worth the exploration. There is the contrast between a poor, deserted woman desperate for the return of her daughter, the mother who willingly gave up her daughter for freedom and the mother with boundless support who is undecided about whether to keep her son or not. The more I think about it, the more there is to examine about the changing social mores that relative freedom of choice has engendered.
Read
January 26, 2016Maureen McCarthy begins her wonderful new novel by introducing us to four women, Sadie, Edna, Cecilia and Perpetua (or Peach), all from one family and all of whom have been affected in some way by the Abbotsford Convent.
Peach is at university and has a part-time job at the Convent Cafe. While her much-loved parents are overseas, she is looking after her younger sister and dealing with her friends’ lives and dilemmas, as well as recovering from her own broken romance – the usual growing up issues. Then, out of the blue, she gets a letter from an old woman whose daughter Cecilia was once a nun at the convent and is Peach’s birth mother.
In this totally absorbing novel, the Abbotsford Convent and the story of the women who struggled and survived there becomes a little world writ large. Friendship, betrayals, cruelty, faith, idealism and the search for meaning are all there.
McCarthy’s story is one of girls determined to survive and live authentic lives in different generations, despite coming from totally different standpoints. This is a fascinating book, written for young adults but to be passed round friends and family of every generation, and then discussed over pastries and coffee in the convent gardens!
Peach is at university and has a part-time job at the Convent Cafe. While her much-loved parents are overseas, she is looking after her younger sister and dealing with her friends’ lives and dilemmas, as well as recovering from her own broken romance – the usual growing up issues. Then, out of the blue, she gets a letter from an old woman whose daughter Cecilia was once a nun at the convent and is Peach’s birth mother.
In this totally absorbing novel, the Abbotsford Convent and the story of the women who struggled and survived there becomes a little world writ large. Friendship, betrayals, cruelty, faith, idealism and the search for meaning are all there.
McCarthy’s story is one of girls determined to survive and live authentic lives in different generations, despite coming from totally different standpoints. This is a fascinating book, written for young adults but to be passed round friends and family of every generation, and then discussed over pastries and coffee in the convent gardens!
April 9, 2013
The Convent is a book that takes you back and forth on a gentle roller coaster ride of life. The Catholic way of life from the early 1900 s right through to the present day rang true. The story of 4 generations of women make choices that result in choices being made for them. The torment of having and losing children is a general theme throughout the story. Sadie loses her child Ellen at the age of 3. Ellen is placed in a home for abandoned children. Ellen then grows to become the mother of Cecila and her many brothers. Cecilia makes the choice to enter the convent. Peach is the present day character in this family history. Though the themes were about loss and lack of hope in many instances, Maureen McCarthy has a warm and caring style that takes the reader along the bumpy road, weaving in and out of the thoughts and minds of the characters. A great read in the historical setting of the Abbotsford Convent in Melbourne.
Allen & Unwin need to look very carefully at the editing of the book. There were many mistakes along the way.
Allen & Unwin need to look very carefully at the editing of the book. There were many mistakes along the way.
June 19, 2013
This was one of the books my school required all year 11 students to read this year. At first I thought I was going to really hate it as I read the blurb and saw that it had nuns in it. I'm not a religious person and since my school tends to do a lot to do with religion, I was expecting the convent to be a boring book on how great god is. However whe I started reading it, I found that it was really quite enjoyable.
I liked the way the story was written in a disjointed manner as it made me want to read on to get to the characters I enjoyed reading about the most. I especially liked the characters shoes stories were set in the past. This book actually sparked some curiosity into the past and history of the Magdalen Laundries and as I like history, I found it quite fascinating to see how others lived during other time periods.
In the end a book I was dreading reading was one I actually enjoyed, and although it is not the usual genre I would read or even a book I would consider reading myself, I'm happy to say that I think most people would enjoy it.
I liked the way the story was written in a disjointed manner as it made me want to read on to get to the characters I enjoyed reading about the most. I especially liked the characters shoes stories were set in the past. This book actually sparked some curiosity into the past and history of the Magdalen Laundries and as I like history, I found it quite fascinating to see how others lived during other time periods.
In the end a book I was dreading reading was one I actually enjoyed, and although it is not the usual genre I would read or even a book I would consider reading myself, I'm happy to say that I think most people would enjoy it.
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