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Bereft

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Bereft

By: Chris Womersley
Narrated by: Dan Wyllie
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It is 1919. The Great War has ended, but the Spanish flu epidemic is raging across Australia. Schools are closed, state borders are guarded by armed men, and train travel is severely restricted. There are rumours it is the end of the world.

In the NSW town of Flint, Quinn Walker returns to the home he fled ten years earlier when he was accused of an unspeakable crime. Aware that his father and uncle would surely hang him, Quinn hides in the hills surrounding Flint. There, he meets the orphan Sadie Fox – a mysterious young girl who seems to know more about the crime than she should.

A searing gothic novel of love, longing and justice, Bereft is about the suffering endured by those who go to war and those who are forever left behind.

2011, Australian Book Industry Award (ABIA) Literary Fiction Book of the Year, Winner

2011, Miles Franklin Literary Award, Short-listed

2011, The Age Book of the Year Award Fiction, Short-listed

©2010 Chris Womersley (P)2011 Bolinda Publishing Fiction Historical Fiction War
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Critic Reviews

"A rich, gripping tale of love, loss, conflict and salvation . . . I had that very rare experience of wanting to read it again, almost immediately." (Australian Bookseller & Publisher)
All stars
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I found the whole story to be gripping although extremely dark or gothic. The descriptions of what it was like living in France during World War 11 to be very interesting.

What happened to the people who were affected by mustard gas

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