Drybread

by marshall-owen

A graveyard is all that's left of the remote Central Otago settlement of Drybread, which miners, often hungry and disappointed, once searched for gold. It is to an old cottage nearby that Penny Maine-King flees with her young son, defying a Californian court order awarding custody of the child to her estranged husband. And seeking her in this austere, burnt country is journalist Theo Esler. He is after a story, but he discovers something far more personal and significant. Drybread, Owen Marshall's third novel, is a moving study of love and disappointment, of the harm we do to each other, knowingly and unknowingly, of the power and significance of landscape in our lives. Rich and subtle, it is a compelling book from one of this country's finest writers. 'Marshall is held in uncommon affection by New Zealand readers - generally we admire and respect rather than love our writers.' - Peter Simpson, New Zealand Listener 'I'm an admirer of Owen Marshall's literature, with my favourite stories, chapters, etc.' - Janet Frame 'Among active New Zealand writers only Maurice Gee writes with comparable - and equally unfashionable - moral and psychological weight.'- Lawrence Jones 'I find myself exclaiming over and again with delight at the precision, the beauty, the near perfection of his writing.' - Fiona Kidman, The Dominion.

Genres: Fiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published August 3, 2007

Reviews

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wanted to like this more as I generally feel well disposed to NZ writing. There was indeed some good writing in this, but the story was not very interesting and barely believable in parts. nWould a journo really get that involved in a child custody case?

[ROBIN FRASER · Rating 4 out of 5]

From Rangiora library book sale. Know of Owen Marshall, but first time reading. A holiday read that I enjoyed.
Unusually for me, a novel where I have been to almost every location from Drybread to Merivale. Something Londoners and New Yorkers will be a lot more used to.
I like Marshall's writing style and characterisation and there were quite a few laugh out loud moments. Definitely will seek out more of his work

[Janet Frame]

Owen gave me a copy of this book in 2010.
If Owen reads this please email me.

Such a nice man.
Lovely to have met and have coffee with.
I've been writing and still waiting to read this book.

On my list of unread books by Patrick Evans and C k Stead and Janet Frame.

I recommend that people read all these New Zealand authors books.

[Jean Potter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Carne Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be an intriguing slow-burner. It is well-written and has great descriptive passages that made me want to read to the end.

[Bachyboy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover of this book drew me in and I was hooked. I am a sucker for a Central Otago setting and although this wasn't a fast moving plot, it had drama and tension, enough to satisfy. Theo, a Christchurch reporter, follows the story of Penny who has absconded with her son to Drybread, He becomes less than detached with her and much of the plot is an exploration of relationships. Well written and worth reading.

[Tess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a NZ novel set in the South Island about a journalist's relationship with a mother who, with her child, is hiding from a wealthy American husband. I found it a reasonably good read, but it's not my favourite Owen Marshall.

[Nancy Lewis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I kept waiting for this book to be about the custody case, but instead it whined & whined about the reporter's (author's?) emotional baggage - his divorce, his superficial relationship with his parents, his feelings of inadequacy, the need for love in a cruel cruel world. Blah blah blah.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great NZ setting made the story even more interesting for me, but it could have been set in any isolated rural spot.