Colin McCullough's book “Singing in Blackthorns” introduced itself to the reading world in 1977. The novel quickly gained popularity - to date, tens of millions of copies are officially sold. This is Australia's most popular and best-selling book.
Despite the not-so-old entourage, for the modern reader the events described in the book may seem like wild, dense barbarism. Only a hundred years have passed since the events described in the book, and the world has changed beyond recognition. The way of life in the country and its reputation have changed very much in a relatively short period of time. Who knows how they will perceive the book in the future. Today it is difficult to find a reading person who has not heard about this work.
What happens in the book
The book "Singing in Blackthorn" reviews has mostly positive. Many readers are surprised at the cruelty of the plot; many words were expressed about the lack of love adventures. But classics became classics insofar as they reveal the most diverse facets of human life, and the love line is only one of the lines that shaped this story.
What conquered people with this book? It can be noted that with amazing care and love the life of working people, their habits and customs were written out. Despite the fact that people from well-known and wealthy families also participate in the development of the plot, the biographies of the poor always turn out to be in the center of the story. The author carefully describes, first of all, the intricacies of working processes and life: how to cut reeds, how to care for sheep and how to farm on inhospitable and hot land. Many classics primarily describe what they themselves know - gossip and torment of the upper world, where no one ever held anything heavier than a fork in their hands. Colin McCullough goes into the details of the construction of cesspools, not disdaining them at all. Reviews of the book “Singing in Blackthorns” practically do not mention this, but you will encounter a description of the most strange and painful details of life.
The book considers the ups and downs of relations between representatives of different nationalities and religions who have long left their homes. But no one in the book is in a hurry to forget their cultural heritage, and the old conflicts of Europeans are booming in the new land. In terms of historical and social realism, the book is definitely a success.
However, does it come to people's minds when it comes to “Singing in a Blackthorn”? No, people concentrate on another component. Namely, on the dramatic story of the family of Irish settlers Cleary and the love line. In reviews of the book “Singing in Blackthorn,” people often want to discuss precisely the written love story. However, there is very little love as such in the novel - more of life disappointments, betrayals and strange, abnormal affection.
A family
The theme of the family is fertile ground for describing a long and intense drama. Everyone has a family, and if the author is at least a little attentive to himself and others, he will surely find his responsive audience. From this point of view, “Singing in Blackthorns” is also distinguished by accuracy and the ability to lure the reader. The story begins with a description of domestic injustices, family troubles and misfortunes of hardworking hardworking people. They are imperfect, but spelled out so well that even the extremely strange behavior of an individual can be justified. In the end, each of the heroes faced great personal grief, but continued to show indefatigable stamina. It is this persistence in the face of unhappiness that has been written out as the main advantage of the Cleary family. For this, they are respected by other characters and readers love. However, perhaps it was the stubborn resistance to adversity that caused the most trouble to these people. Instead of adjusting to circumstances, deviating from the path of their misfortune and making life easier for them, they endure any blow of fate and willingly substitute for a new one. That is why the novel is called “Singing in a Blackthorn”.
Suicide bird
The author created a unique legend about a bird performing the most beautiful song in the world. And the bird can sing this song only once in a lifetime, on the verge of death. According to legend, the bird rushes into a blackthorn and strung itself on the sharpest spike. And he sings until his death, but God listens and enjoys with a smile. This is a strange story about singing in blackthorn, the content of the book is original, and its language is tasty and interesting.
So, at the source of the book is an eerie legend about the animal’s auto-aggressive, suicidal behavior. And the heroes of the novel behave exactly like this bird - they fly onto the pointed teeth of a blackthorn, as if nothing could be more beautiful. And the world is watching this, not making any attempts to positively influence the situation, but imbued with respect. After all, everyone has enough of their troubles.
Both the story of family drama and the story of love - everything in the book is based on this desperate motive. At the beginning of the book, due to the youth of some characters, it may not be clear where everything is going. However, the further, the more terrible the life of the heroes becomes, and young, open to the world of fate break with terrible cruelty. Therefore, sometimes readers of “Singing in a Blackthorn” write reviews about the book to express their mixed feelings. It would seem that a well-written and attentive to trifles book as if considers it its duty to show what other dirty and bad things can happen in a person’s fate.
Frank
Perhaps the most striking, but also short example is the story of Frank, an older brother from the Cleary family. From the very beginning, his personality, ambitiousness and unquenchable thirst for a better life were spelled out. You can compare this nature with the ancestor of his family, Armstrong, who sailed to Australia as a prisoner. On the way, Armstrong lost all his teeth and was constantly punished for his wild, unyielding character, but with the help of an animal desire to live, he managed to overcome circumstances and begin the race of a respected and prosperous New Zealand aristocracy.
Like his ancestor, Frank quickly went to jail; however, criminals were not expelled from Australia, as the years before from Europe. Australia already had enough work for convicts. And so the story of the conqueror of the world ended; so it ended for many.
Looking closely, one can see that anger and internal disorder were taken from a sensitivity not typical for other men of the Cleary family to any domestic injustice. So, the father of the family, Paddy, and his other sons did not see anything terrible at all in doing hard work for little money; they believed that the division of duties on the principle “men work outside the home and women do all the housework” is absolutely fair. No one, except Frank, has never tried to prevent such a course of affairs. The Cleary family had five sons and one daughter at the beginning of the book; the household needs of all these people are served by a single woman, each year more and more withdrawing into herself and losing interest in the world. Never in her head does it come to rebel against such an order - not that upbringing. Despite the great declared love for her, no one but Frank ever tried to provide the smallest help. And father Paddy chose hard, exhausting methods of earning money outside his home, without even thinking about how to lighten his own burden. The burden of work for Cleary is something completely natural, like the air they breathe. And when the conditions of their existence improved in the novel, they owed this not to themselves, but to the circumstances and the old lonely woman who remembered them and did not even like them.
Maggie
Clearies treat themselves ruthlessly, and expect the same from every member of their family. Therefore, Frank, unable to observe other people's torment and be content with the modest future of an ordinary hard worker, escapes from home. Which does not bring him good. However, the rest of the family receive plenty of misfortune, despite all their humility and hard work.
And in full accordance with this tendency, "unfortunately" is moving a love line, no less terrible and heavy. The only daughter of the family, Maggie, the main character who reveals the story for us, becomes a victim of strange egocentric personalities. While she lives with Frank and Paddy, she is still a child and receives a share of love and care from them. Most of all she appreciates love and care. But when the author’s hand removes from her life, first a caring brother, and then a loving father, there is no one to look after an innocent and open soul. Like all Cleary, she works without objection to a sweat and suffers an unjust pain; only at the end of such selflessness is there no reward. The author of The Singing in the Blackthorn book is cruel in some way - or perhaps realistic. But the world of this work presents to the reader’s eyes not at all the sweet love story written in the 1983 miniseries.
Ralph
The biggest trouble that happened with the Cleary family was perhaps a meeting with Priest Ralph. At first, he appears as an intelligent young man with a subtle mind and sense of humor. However, even being quite grown up at the time of appearance in the plot, it is as if cut off from the outside world. He is not really interested in people, fulfilling his role as a preacher, and considers it normal. Moreover, it was his detachment and habitual ability to hide her behind polite words that made him look good in the eyes of others. The only thing that worries Ralph is his failed career at the Vatican. And only the little girl Maggie, whom he first met when she was not yet ten years old, arouses his interest. Despite the fact that aunt Maggie from the very beginning with a keen jealous eye pointed out to him the whole essence of his inclinations, Ralph continued to rub his trust in the child. And, completely conquering the heart of Maggie and her father, Ralph at the first opportunity committed a betrayal.
Crocodile Ralph's Tears
The complete book “Singing in Blackthorn” contains many injustices and terrible scenes. And many of them are connected with the personality of Ralph’s father.
There is such an expression: "Do something on the blue eye." It is understood that a person does vile things with a naive look, as if he himself were not aware of his deception. Ralph robs the Cleary family of a huge fortune in order to pursue a career. Sometimes he expresses some torment about this, but it’s hard to believe in a crocodile tears. It seems surprising that in principle he reserves the right to suffer and express his feelings out loud. Nevertheless, he does this with even greater shamelessness than Raskolnikov.
And the main character of “Singing in Blackthorn” is in love with this strange person. As if he had not done enough yet, he conceives a child with Maggie, whom he raised and changed clothes in childhood. And Maggie knew so little human warmth in her life that she was sincerely and directly attached to Ralph. He, in fact, does not need her - for the sake of his ambitions, he is completely calm, shedding only a grain of crocodile tears, leaves her and her relatives. It is this storyline that forces some to leave perplexed reviews about the book “Singing in Blackthorn”.
Why Ralph is known as a romantic hero and not a traitor
There are different paths in life, and not one of them leads to grandiose results. The fact that the priest considers it absolutely normal to steal money from under the nose of an honest and working family is not surprising - history knows many such examples. What is surprising is the lack of noticeable condemnation of the character from his own side, and the words of other characters. Only the notary Grof spoke well that the correct behavior of a clergy would be to destroy papers proving the priest's rights to the household. But, perhaps, without special emphasis on this situation on many pages, all its horror is not so clearly visible to the eyes of readers as it should.
The book “Singing in the Blackthorn” is commented by a wide variety of people, and not all of them allow themselves to deceive the hypocritical pity of Priest Ralph for himself.
Why love this book
Written by McCullough, the book “Singing in Blackthorn” was a significant event in the world of literature, and this can be understood. Of great interest is carefully and with understanding the prescribed life of ordinary people in an amazing Australian region.
The book “Singing in Blackthorn” in its entirety is a terrible and realistic story, and therefore the stories described seem so familiar. Here everyone can find something personally for themselves. "Singing in the Blackthorn" do not have a sequel to the book. Perhaps this is for the best. Who knows what else the characters would go through.
“Singing in Blackthorns” is a book, a summary of which may seem strange. In fact, this is a book about how noble and proud people, not inclined to complain and bow to circumstances, turn out to be betrayed by a hypocritical egocentric priest, who in the future will also make a child to the girl Maggie. The fate of people here is difficult, but no one seems to notice it - all the troubles exist only then to move on. Towards new troubles and new blackthorn bushes.
Looking for beautiful phrases
Such a peculiar work as "Singing in the Blackthorn", quotes from the book can be presented for every taste. Unless - perhaps nothing funny can be extracted from it. However, lovers of beautiful expressions may like the inner life of the characters and their statements. Nevertheless, it should be remembered that words taken out of context do not at all reflect the real situation. In the end, the characters here are limited by their own experience, most of them received the most meager education, or even none at all. And some of the characters are delightfully egocentric and, in principle, do not notice anything except their own problems. Therefore, take quotes from the book “Singing in the Blackthorn” carefully.