peteg's blog - noise - books - 2016 09 22 HenryHandelRichardson TheGettingOfWisdom

Henry Handel Richardson: The Getting of Wisdom.

Thu, Sep 22, 2016./noise/books | Link

Kindle. I guess I didn't really know what I was in for with this one. Richardson is, of course, Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson and is clearly writing about what she knows: doing horrid time at a Melbourne private school for young ladies. Not quite everything goes as one would predict, but enough does, and enough is taken for granted about the prevailing society of Melbourne that this is not as illuminating as it could have been. The writing gets playful at times, and it seems very strange to imagine livestock being anywhere near Collins Street. I liked the title and perhaps it has brought solace over the years to some who don't fit.