Description - The Memory Tree by Tess Evans
When Paulina dies mid-dance, she leaves 12-year-old Zav and 7-year-old Sealie with their loving but unstable father, Hal. The grieving family decides to plant a tree in her memory - a magnolia which, growing along with the children, offers a special place where secrets are whispered and feelings can be confessed.
But as the memory tree grows, Hal, bereft, and increasingly suspicious of the world, turns to his own brand of salvation to make sense of the voices that bewilder and torment him. Mrs Mac, housekeeper and second mother since Paulina's death, cooks, cleans, loves and worries about her 'family'. She is even more concerned when Hal brings a larger-than-life stranger to the house for a beer; but Pastor Moses B. Washbourne, founder of the Church of the Divine Conflagration, ex-sergeant of the US Army, soon becomes part of the family, with surprising and far-reaching consequences.
As the seasons pass, Sealie blossoms into young woman, the apple of Hal's eye while Zav, having spent his childhood quietly trying to win his father's lost attention, is conscripted for duty in Vietnam.
And all the while, the voices continue to murmur poisonous words to Hal who knows he must keep them hidden . . . until he is persuaded into the most tragic of acts.
Written with humour and compassion, The Memory Tree is a poignant and compelling story of love, loyalty, grief and forgiveness.
'Set in suburban Melbourne from 1960's to modern day, The Memory Tree...is a tender, original, compassionate family saga shaped by two tragic events.' - Herald-Sun
'This is a work of fiction but it deals with some difficult and disturbing questions about state of mind. Its strength lies in exploring whether one should stand by one's family, no matter their actions.' - Newcastle Herald
'Evans is a writer who takes an omniscient role, speaking through and for all of her characters, selecting for her readers moments in history that create portraits that are intimate and dense.' - Bendigo Weekly Book Club Pick of the Week
'Wonderfully written, there is much to admire about this literary family drama. The Memory Tree is an insightful novel that examines the strength and fragility of familial relationships, the devastation of mental illness and the grace of forgiveness.' - Book'd Out
'A subtly mesmerising narrative that will charm and captivate the reader.' - Toowoomba Chronicle
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