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Violin Lessons
A collection of spellbinding true stories of hardship, yearning and celebration. Tales that span the globe, and bring us back to Melbourne to the extraordinary story of AmalOCoher flight from Iraq, her fears boarding the unseaworthy boat now known as SIEV X, her night spent clinging to a corpse alone in the sea, and her desire to have her story told."
191 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
48 people want to read
About the author
Arnold Zable
17 books25 followersZable was born on 10 January 1947 in Wellington, New Zealand to Polish-Jewish refugee parents. They moved early in his life to Australia and he grew up in Carlton, Victoria.
Zable is known as a storyteller - through his memoirs, short stories and novels. Australian critic Susan Varga says that Zable's award-winning memoir, Jewels and Ashes, "was a ground-breaking book in Australia, one of the first of what has since become a distinct auto/biographical genre: a second-generation writer returns to the scene of unspeakable crimes to try to understand a fraught and complex legacy, and, in so doing, embarks on a journey into the self.
In an interview Zable explained that the rights and experiences of refugees and asylum seekers underpins his work:
"The current generation of refugees are experiencing the intense challenges faced by previous generations. We tend to forget, or fail to imagine, how difficult it is to start life anew far from the homeland. We forget also that nostalgia, the longing for the return to homeland, is a deep and enduring aspect of the refugee experience."
In the same interview he said about his language that "I am drawn to the quirky sayings and observations that define a person or a culture".
Zable is known as a storyteller - through his memoirs, short stories and novels. Australian critic Susan Varga says that Zable's award-winning memoir, Jewels and Ashes, "was a ground-breaking book in Australia, one of the first of what has since become a distinct auto/biographical genre: a second-generation writer returns to the scene of unspeakable crimes to try to understand a fraught and complex legacy, and, in so doing, embarks on a journey into the self.
In an interview Zable explained that the rights and experiences of refugees and asylum seekers underpins his work:
"The current generation of refugees are experiencing the intense challenges faced by previous generations. We tend to forget, or fail to imagine, how difficult it is to start life anew far from the homeland. We forget also that nostalgia, the longing for the return to homeland, is a deep and enduring aspect of the refugee experience."
In the same interview he said about his language that "I am drawn to the quirky sayings and observations that define a person or a culture".
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 26, 2012
Heartfelt short stories that are obviously true, as told to the author. I saw/heard this author speaking at a book event that included a couple of other Australian authors who wrote stories about/from the middle east. He spoke particularly about the final story, which obviously really touched him. It reminds me that sometimes we don't consider how difficult our country can make it for asylum-seekers who have genuine need to leave their homes.
May 6, 2019
I liked a couple of stories, particularly the last one. But I was expecting beautiful lyrical tales and they didn’t meet my expectations. The main theme was war, which was not what I had expected from reading the back of the book. (Note book club book)
December 28, 2025
What an amazing man possessing such a wonderful way with words.
March 26, 2016
These are important and powerful short stories about mostly unhappy people who have suffered through war or oppression. People should know about the Jews' treatment in Poland, the hardships of refugees trying to get to Australia, and struggles of US soldiers in Vietnam. I found Zable's expression beautiful and the stories compelling, although I didn't enjoy the story within a story technique where one story is interrupted to tell another story - I understand the need to juxtapose themes, but it gave the stories a stop-start feel that broke up the flow too often.
August 23, 2011
In Violin Lessons Arnold Zable lets us experience fragments of other peoples lives. Beautifully written he tells these stories that move us to tears and make us realize how fragile life really is. The last story is the book, The Ancient Mariner tells the story of Amal, a SIEV X survivor. I think this story will haunt me for the rest of my life.
November 21, 2016
Violin Lessons is a collection of tales from Arnold Zable, all with a powerful yet sensitive theme of music and discovery.
Zable is a new writer for me and another to follow.
His words are touching and poetic with a lightness and clarity that is not often found even in the best of novels, non-fiction or poetry.
Beautiful. Add this to your 'must reads'.
Zable is a new writer for me and another to follow.
His words are touching and poetic with a lightness and clarity that is not often found even in the best of novels, non-fiction or poetry.
Beautiful. Add this to your 'must reads'.
July 10, 2012
Read Sky's review here or listen to our interview with Arnold Zable.
April 18, 2014
I started reading this book because I met the author, but I'll read another one because I enjoyed this book. Such an interesting assortment of people he's met and the unique stories they have to tell him.
October 21, 2011
Magical writing gives ordinary people a voice for their part of history - stunning stories that could make you cry
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews