Poor Man's Orange - Softcover

Ruth Park

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0207142904 ISBN 13: 9780207142901

Publisher: TBS The Book Service Ltd, 1980

Synopsis

It’s the early 50s. The Darcy family have made a home for themselves in Surrey Hills, NSW. The elder daughter, Rosie, is pregnant with her second child to her husband Charlie and Rosie’s sister, Dolour, finds comfort in doting over her niece Moira. Father Hughie and Mumma live downstairs, as irrepressible as ever.

Continuing the history of the Irish Darcys begun in Missus and continued in The Harp in the South, this third installment of a trilogy reacquaints readers with the vicissitudes of slum life in a Sydney suburb. An unforgettable family and a cast of unforgettable characters enliven a story that is sometimes tragic but often humorous in a time of poverty and destitution, hope and promise.

About this title

About the Author

Ruth Park was a New Zealand-born Australian author. Her best known works are the novels The Harp in the South (1948) and Playing Beatie Bow (1980), and the children's radio serial The Muddle-Headed Wombat (1951–1970), which also spawned a book series.

From Publishers Weekly

Continuing the history of the Irish Darcys begun in Missus and continued in The Harp in the South, this third novel of a trilogy, out of print for 35 years, acquaints a new generation with the vicissitudes of slum life in a Sydney suburb. Roie, the older Darcy daughter, has married Charlie Rothe and is pregnant with her second child; 16-year-old Dolour compensates for her adolescent gawkiness by lavishing her affection on her niece Moira. Roie dies in childbirth, a tragedy made more palpable by the wealth of love that has enriched her marriage to Charlie. Now two children must be cared for by Mumma Darcy and Dolour, while Daddathe shiftless, irrepressible Hugh Darcy, older here but no more responsiblecontinues to carouse and even, to his shame, bring gifts to a prostitute. The inconsolable Charlie, hitherto hardworking and dependable, loses his way, and the family is mired for a time in poverty and hopelessness. But the author's light touch is unfailing; she turns from the somber Darcys to the Chinese "fluiterer" next door and to the tiny old man with his hundreds of parcels whom Hugh drags home from a flophouse. Slowly, in the midst of serio-comic diversions, the mood of the household changes. In short, Park supplies tears and laughter aplenty in this absorbing family saga.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: TBS The Book Service Ltd
• Publication date: 1980
• ISBN 10: 0207142904
• ISBN 13: 9780207142901
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 276