Karrana

It's the aftermath of the Second World War in the lush valley of Karrana, a fictional town on the north coast of New South Wales, Australia. Karrana is a novel about love, passion and the search for real fulfilment within a relationship. At a victory dance, Bridie O'Toole meets and falls passionately in love with Will Featherstone from the other side of the river. Both lack life experience and contentment within their families. Bridie feels powerless when confronted with family and social obstacles to her dreams of a life with her chosen partner. The third persona in this narrative is that of Nature itself, permeating the novel from the beginning to the end.

This novel fits into the broad genre of Women's Fiction, since it explores themes to do with love, passion and family. It examines these issues through the prism of the postwar years in country Australia and in Sydney, but the themes are still relevant in society today. Dramatic irony deems that Bridie's inner temperament and creative flair, drive her to want more from life than Nature alone, which is what satisfies Will. This narrative echoes that of Australia at the end of the forties, moving forward, through conflict and passion, towards a more tolerant and liberated future, especially for women. It resembles a "Coming of Age" novel from an historical perspective.