Restless Dolly Maunder by Kate Grenville Published by Canongate Books on November 2, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Biographical, Fiction / Historical / General, Fiction / Small Town & Rural, Fiction / Women
Pages: 256
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2024 A DAILY MAIL NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2023 LONGLISTED FOR BEST FICTION IN THE INDIE BOOK AWARDS AUSTRALIA 2024 Born into the sweat and drudgery of a New South Wales sheep farm at the end of the 19th century, Dolly Maunder is different to her siblings. She will not endure the small, servile existence of a wife. Dolly, bright, ambitious and stubborn, dreams of a different fate, of building something that she truly owns. She will do whatever it takes to be the woman she deserves to be. Even with a husband and children, Dolly pushes the boundaries of what is ‘proper’ and what a wife and mother ought to do, as war spreads across Europe and the rules are forever changed. But every life has its limits. What happens when Dolly’s wanderlust finally risks taking her too far?
My Review
I read this book because it was the book that was chosen for a book club that I participate in each month. We chose between two books from The Women’s Prize Long List this month, and Restless Dolly Maunder won. I am honestly not sure how I felt about it. I am not sure how it managed to make the list, let alone end up on The Women’s Prize Short List, but it did. This is the first book that I have ever read by Kate Grenville, and I am not saying it will be my last, but I am not so sure I would seek her out either. Reader, have you ever read anything by this author? I would be curious to know.
You are probably wondering what this book is about, and in my review, I will include a small spoiler or two, but it won’t be anything to ruin the story. So, let me begin, and honestly, there isn’t much to say. In this story, we follow a woman named Dolly. The time frame for the story is the late 1800s to the mid-1900s. We first meet Dolly as a young girl living on a sheep farm. We discover that she has multiple brothers and sisters, and her dad is not the friendliest of men. Dolly is a child who enjoys going to school and hopes to one day become a teacher along with her good friend Minnie. We follow the two girls through school, and when I say school, I mean until the age of fourteen, when they have to get done. The high school is hundreds of miles away, so fourteen is the cut-off age for most students in their education. If a student wishes to go on and become a teacher, they have to get permission from their father, which for some is not good. Unfortunately for Dolly, Minnie has made the decision not to go on to become a teacher but a wife and mother. Dolly, on the other hand, approaches her dad one evening at the dinner table and asks if she is allowed to go on and become a teacher. He shot her down quickly with a line similar to over my dead body. No daughter of mine is going to go to work beyond this house. It makes me look as though I can not take care of my family. This is the end of Dolly’s lifelong dreams. She is devasted and angry that she is unable to go on in education and at the injustice of being a girl during this time. This anger will carry Dolly throughout her life.
Dolly ends up doing the thing that all girls of Dolly’s age do, and that is become a working member of the household. She is no longer in school and is expected to pull her weight at home through daily chores and cooking. She hates the repetitive nature of this and is very unhappy. Dolly, over the years, does manage to have boyfriends, but nothing ever comes of their relationships, either due to religious beliefs or their stations in life. Eventually, Dolly is twenty-eight and single, with spinsterhood fast approaching. Dolly is smart, though, and manages to marry a boy she went to school with. He is a hard worker and not bad-looking either, but he is content doing the same things day in and day out where as Dolly is not. Dolly eventually convinces her husband to take some chances, and they move on to other things beyond farming. This makes Dolly happy for a time, but her restlessness kicks in, and she finds other ventures for them to take on. They have discovered that, as a couple, they work well together when it comes to running businesses. They may not have the most loving of marriages, but they do have a good partnership. They go on like this for years, moving from business to business because Dolly always wants a new challenge. Nothing ever seems to take away her unhappiness and restlessness. She spends her whole life on the move, searching for the next thing to fill the void in her. I will tell you, Reader, this does become repetitive as you are reading, but then again, I suppose that is the point of the story, isn’t it?
I will say that there are points in this story that I really feel for Dolly and the losses that she has endured. I can not imagine how powerless she, like many women, felt in their own lives at this time. It makes me grateful to be living in a time where I am able to make my own decisions and live the life that I choose. A life that I want to live rather than one that society expects me to live. If you enjoy historical fiction, trying to find your place in the world, and stories about women’s lives, then this may be the book for you. I can not say that I did not enjoy the story, but I can not say that I did either. There were parts I liked for sure but it became so repetitive that I was glad when it was over. I know I have already asked, but I truly am curious: have you read anything by this author, and if so, what was it? Until Next Time, Reader, Happy Reading.
Trigger Warnings:
- Death of a Child
- Parental Death
- War
- Poverty
- Loss of Friendship
- Infidelity
- Sexism
- Child Abuse