Shell: A Novel - Hardcover

Olsson, Kristina

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1501193139 ISBN 13: 9781501193132

Publisher: Atria Books, 2018

Synopsis

“A luminous look at a city at a time of change, a time when the building of the Sydney Opera House was a reach for greatness.” —The New York Times

In this spellbinding and poignant historical novel—perfect for fans of All the Light We Cannot See and The Flamethrowers—a Swedish glassmaker and a fiercely independent Australian journalist are thrown together amidst the turmoil of the 1960s and the dawning of a new modern era.

1965: As the United States becomes further embroiled in the Vietnam War, the ripple effects are far-reaching—even to the other side of the world. In Australia, a national military draft has been announced and Pearl Keogh, a headstrong and ambitious newspaper reporter, has put her job in jeopardy to become involved in the anti-war movement. Desperate to locate her two runaway brothers before they’re called to serve, Pearl is also hiding a secret shame—the guilt she feels for not doing more for her younger siblings after their mother’s untimely death.

Newly arrived from Sweden, Axel Lindquist is set to work as a sculptor on the besieged Sydney Opera House. After a childhood in Europe, where the shadow of WWII loomed large, he seeks to reinvent himself in this utterly foreign landscape, and finds artistic inspiration—and salvation—in the monument to modernity that is being constructed on Sydney’s Harbor. But as the nation hurtles towards yet another war, Jørn Utzon, the Opera House’s controversial architect, is nowhere to be found—and Axel fears that the past he has tried to outrun may be catching up with him.

As the seas of change swirl around them, Pearl and Axel’s lives orbit each other and collide in this sweeping novel of art and culture, love and destiny.

About this title

About the Author

Kristina Olsson is a journalist and the award-winning author of the novels Shell, In One Skin, and The China Garden, and two works of nonfiction, Boy, Lost: A Family Memoir and Kilroy was Here. She lives in Brisbane, Australia.

Review

Praise for Shell:

“A luminous look at a city at a time of change, a time when the building of the Sydney Opera House was a reach for greatness.”, New York Times

"Olsson masterfully captures the different cultures [the protagonists] come from...Olsson’s writing is beautiful, captivating, and is enough in itself to recommend this book.", New York Journal of Books

"A beguiling, original, and beautifully written imagining of Sydney of the sixties. " -- Gail Jones, award-winning author

“A beautifully crafted novel about a fascinating time in our history. There is a luminous precision in every sentence.”  -- Heather Rose, award-winning author of The Museum of Modern Love

“This narrative of war and hope, architecture and yearning, and old and new world, makes Shell a novel of energy and enlightenment, and, to boot, a source of delightful reading.” -- Thomas Keneally, author of Schindler's List and In the Name of the Father

"War, architecture, guilt, salvation, politics – this book has a little bit of it all...A fascinating look at Australia during the Vietnam War, the creation of the Sydney Opera House, and the ever-present battle between the violence of war and the beauty of art. Recommended.", Historical Novel Society

"Olsson's subtle and nuanced tale displays how deeply the past—or at least one's perception of it—informs life in the present.", Kirkus Reviews

"Olsson's American debut features lyrical writing that brings the cultural upheaval of 1960s Australia vividly to life, and readers who appreciate leisurely paced, thoughtful literary fiction will savor each word of this emotional story of two people—and a country—reckoning with their past and future.", Booklist

"A contemplative story of personal guilt and political upheaval.", Publishers Weekly

"Evocative, learned, and moving.", The Sunday Times

About this edition

• Publisher: Atria Books
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1501193139
• ISBN 13: 9781501193132
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 272