The Place on Dalhousie

If you are familiar with award winning author Melina Marchetta you will delight in revisiting familiar characters from Saving Francesca and The Piper’s Son in The Place on Dalhousie.

If you are not, you will be charmed by the characters you meet, and eager to devour Marchetta’s backlist when you have finished this wonderfully touching novel of home, family and friendship.

After Rosie Gennaro and Jimmy Hailler cross paths and enjoy a brief fling while travelling through Queensland, neither expect to see one another again, but fifteen months later, Jimmy learns Rosie has given birth to his son.

Rosie has reluctantly returned to the house on Dalhousie Street in Sydney, the home she once shared with her family, before her mother show more succumbed to cancer, before her father’s sudden death, but in which now her hated stepmother, Martha resides, to raise her son.

The house on Dalhousie is more than just a home to Rosie, it is all she has left of everything she has lost. As far as she is concerned Martha, despite being the legal owner of the house, is an interloper with no legitimate claim. The two live together as if strangers, Marta is no more fond of her sullen stepdaughter than Rosie is of her. Marchetta explores this complicated relationship, and it’s progression, thoughtfully.

Rosie is an abrasive character, consumed by anger, guilt and bitterness connected to her mother’s illness, her father’s remarriage, and his sudden death. I found it difficult to like her initially, she comes across as a self involved brat, but slowly, for the sake of her son, she begins to relax her defences. The author’s development of Rosie feels authentic, the change in her is gradual, and realistically limited.

Jimmy’s entry into the tense and awkward situation at the Dalhousie house is a catalyst to soften the enmity between Rosie and Martha. Having been abandoned by his own parents, Jimmy, though hesitant, is determined know his son and meet his responsibilities. I quickly grew very fond of Jimmy, who has had a difficult and far from blameless life, but who is decent and loyal. Jimmy’s friendships with his high school mates are his anchor, and give him support as he grapples with the uncertainty of his future.

For all the authenticity of Marchetta’s characters, and their stories, in The Place on Dalhousie there is the lightest touch of magical realism, a coincidence that closes a circle in a way that could have felt melodramatic, but instead felt right and true.

A beguiling story of loneliness and connection, of home, of family and friendship, of belonging, The Place on Dalhousie is a captivating novel, I was smiling so widely during the last chapter my cheeks hurt. show less

This is, finally, Marchetta’s novel about Jimmy Hailler, who is part of the friendship group from Saving Francesca and The Piper’s Son, now in his mid 20s. But it is equally about Rosie, her stepmother Martha and the house built by Seb, Rosie’s late-father.

It begins with “When Rosie Met Jim” (previously published as a short story). Rosie and Jimmy are stuck in a Queensland town during a flood; Rosie was left behind by her boyfriend and Jimmy’s car was stolen. Two years later, Rosie is back in Sydney, living with her step-mother Martha and raising a toddler.
After 30 years of avoiding high school reunions, Martha has reconnected with her high school netball team, and three years after her husband’s death, is considering show more selling his house. (Parts of her story are based on -- but not entirely identical to -- Marchetta’s short story “The Centre”.) And Jimmy, who went north to look to track down his parents, is discovering that journey set him on to the path to finding a family, just not the one he thought he was looking for.

This is Marchetta, so it is a powerfully moving story about grief, friendship and finding family. It is shorter than her more-recent novels and I finished it feeling oddly disappointed. With three protagonists, I felt like there needed to be more. I liked how Martha’s story unfolded and I loved all the bits about Jimmy and his friends (because they’re characters I’ve been invested in for YEARS), but I wanted more of Rosie, from Rosie’s POV.

Then I reread the book the following day, and reconsidered. I’d like more, certainly, but it is a satisfying story as it is. show less

Marchetta is simply amazing. She creates fictional communities like no one I've ever known. Her stories are always fairly small, but her cast of characters is always large and wonderfully written and I genuinely fall in love with them by the end of the book. The only equivalent I can think of is JK Rowling's huge Harry Potter cast, except that's a big story told over multiple books. Marchetta's books are all smaller and stand-alone. She's just wonderful.

Started reading it this morning, finished it this afternoon, although I almost couldn't bear to finish it because then the story would be over and that made me sad. You start to fall in love with the characters and become vested in their lives, it's twisty turning back on itself connections. A lovely story of the family you have and the family you choose to have. A warming heart lifting story about finding connection in unlikely places, making peace, finding love and family. A must read

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I'm glad I bought it. It's an easy read, and although the main character has a Sicilian background, the story is a very Australian one. It begins in a New South Wales country town that is about to flood. Rosie, who is looking after an elderly resident, helps to evacuate her. She meets Jimmy, an SES volunteer, who is also helping with the rescue. From this meeting, Rosie and Jimmy form an unlikely relationship. They find out they were both born in Sydney's Inner West. At least they had one thing in common.

After the flood, they both go their separate ways. Rosie makes her way back down to Sydney as Jimmy returns up to North Queensland to work in the mines. What Jimmy doesn't know is that show more Rosie is pregnant and he's the father.

The story is full of friendship drama, family discord and some fractured relationships. There is a reality in Melina Marchetta's writing, her characters are believable. I felt for the characters as they bumbled through their late 20s navigating life and forming long-lasting relationships. Some of the friendships began during their school years.

There are many references to Rosie's heritage and the house she grew up in on Dalhousie Street. A house her father, Sebastian was restoring up until he died. With her mother having passed away from cancer, the house may have to be sold. This issue causes a lot of tension between Rosie and her step-mother.

I enjoyed this book, the story and characters felt real, they reminded me of my friends and family. show less