The Thorn Birds
by Colleen McCullough
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Book Reviews of The Thorn Birds
Book Review: Legendary Storytelling
Summary: 4 Stars
The book starts with the legend of the thornbird - a bird who searches all his life for a thorn bush and once he finds it, impales himself on the thorn and while doing so sings the most beautiful song, even better that that of a lark or a nightingale and the song is so beautiful that even God smiles.
For the best is only bought at the cost of great pain.
This single sentence seems to sum up the common element binding the entire book.
The Thornbirds is the story of the Cleary family, and their journey from their unpretentious roots in New Zealand where they worked as sheep shearers, to the huge Australian sheep farm Drogheda, owned by Paddy Cleary's autocratic sister. The family being Irish, the land is in their blood and from the time that they arrive on Drogheda the land plays a unmistakeable part in their fortunes and destinies. The story spans 3 generations from Paddy Cleary and his wife Fiona, their sons and only daughter Meggie and the Catholic priest Ralph De Bricassart, to Meggie's children - the exotic actress Justine and priest Dane.
But we see all this mostly through the interaction of Meggie with her family and her forbidden love for Father Ralph.
The author Colleen McCullough has a wonderful descriptive style of writing. From the the dry dust, heat and flies of the Australian Outback, the relentless forces of nature like storms, drought, wildfires, to the power-hungry corridors of the Vatican all are brought to life in the pages of this book. And the element of love and pain is dealt with in a balanced way and not over excessively.
However, only the main characters are really 3D, and I often found myself skipping through large parts of the book that didn't interest me.
Overall it is a must read as it makes us realize love is not just demanding and wanting its more so about giving and sacrificing.
Book Review: Moving along with vivid and believable characters
Summary: 5 Stars
The Thorn Birds is an epic saga about the family of Paddy and Fee Cleary, and their children, especially Meggie, the only girl. Paddy is a working class sheep shearer, but his wife Fee seems mysteriously aristocratic. The story opens in 1915, in rural New Zealand on Meggie's fourth birthday. Writing about the next two years in the life of the Cleary's, the author introduces us to the personalities, family relationships and struggles of Paddy, Fee and their first four children.The story resumes in 1921 when Meggie is ten years old. The Cleary's move to Drogheda in New South Wales, Australia. Drogheda, in the Outback some 610 miles West of Sydney, is a vast sheep farm owned by Mary Carson, Paddy's long lost sister. Mary Carson is immensely wealthy, shrewd, treacherous and weary of living. Since Mary has no other living relatives, she invited Paddy to run Drogheda during her final years. In return, he would inherit the bulk of her vast estate...well that's what she told Paddy.
Mary Carson has an interesting relationship with a twenty-eight year old, ambitious, handsome Catholic Priest, father Ralph de Bricassart. Having enticed father Ralph with generous contributions to the church, Mary claws into his psyche to play mind-games, and conceives a twist that will set the story soaring. The central intrigue, however, is going to be the relationship between Meggie and Father Ralph during the next 48 years.
This is a brilliantly crafted tale that draws the reader into life in the Australian outback where it took six weeks for the mail wagon to complete its rounds. It also pokes a hard-nose into the workings of the Catholic Church and the trauma of celibacy. The descriptions of Drogheda as it changes during the seasons and over the wet-drought cycle are a bit tedious at times, but otherwise the pace moves along with vivid and believable characters.
Book Review: Best characters of all?
Summary: 5 Stars
Given that everyone under the sun has recapped the story, commented upon the relationship between the two main characters, Meggie and Ralph, or gushed about how McCullough brings the Outback to life, let me add a tidbit that is seldom covered: JUSTINE and RAINER HARTHEIM. Oh, how I adore these two characters, even more than Meggie and Ralph!
JUSTINE is so flawed, yet I can't help but root and care for her. Fragile, strong, bold, frightened, confident, insecure, talented, and lacking. She is such a human mix, and I can't help but empathize with her. She's an adorable b*tch--Rainer Hartheim lovingly calls her a monster--and I am in awe of Colleen McCullough for her ability to create such a character as Justine.
RAINER HARTHEIM... If I were to dream up my sexiest man, Rainer Hartheim would be it. (Please realize that I might have somewhat perverse tastes.) Like Justine, Rainer is a bit of a monster. He shuts down his emotional self for a substantial period of his life, and he is remorseless in his pursuit of his goals. Yet throughout all of this, he is completely aware of what he's doing, and of who and what he is. He feels shame for his past actions; but if he had to do it again, he would. He accepts his past actions, but moves on with the self-promise that he will, from this point forward, be the person he wants to be, someone of whom he can be proud. I love Rainer's patience; perseverance; spirit; spirituality; control; ambition; incredible intelligence; sophistication; philosophical acceptance of life, others, and himself; loyalty; heart; sensuality; and truth to self. He's a man who loses himself; and when he regains himself, he is completely aware of and deeply thankful for it. A powerful individual, and a presence one can never ignore. Can you understand why I find this incredible, self-redeemed man so sexy?
Book Review: A Heart-rending Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough, begins in 1915 and spans three generations long. It is a complex story about the Cleary family that leave their home in New Zealand to live and work on a relative's extensive, Australian sheep ranch. At the ranch, the family experiences many tragedies and hardships including fires, floods, droughts, and devastating deaths of loved ones. The main character, Meggie, falls madly in love with a handsome man named Ralph. Unfortunately, Meggie is not able to marry Ralph because he is a priest. Ralph loves Meggie dearly, but has devoted his entire life to God. Throughout the novel, they experience great love and sorrow together. Meggie has children who become the third generation of the novel. The children bring her much happiness, but she still has a deep passion for Ralph in her heart. This forbidden love for Ralph will stay burning inside her soul throughout her entire life.I truly enjoyed how the author used a lot of description and detail in the novel. This description enabled me to paint vivid pictures of the beautiful, Australian land in my mind, as well as clear pictures of the many different characters' inner and outer appearances.
This extraordinary love story was like an emotional rollercoaster. It twisted and turned leaving me feeling many different emotions including love, humor, sadness, anger, hate, and malice. I often found myself crying as well as laughing while I eagerly devoured every word on the page. It kept me reading and reading until the very interesting ending. I would recommend this captivating novel to anyone who is looking for a great story about life and love! I'm sure you will enjoy it just as much as I did!
Book Review: A Heart-rending Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough, begins in 1915 and spans three generations long. It is a complex story about the Cleary family that leave their home in New Zealand to live and work on a relative's extensive, Australian sheep ranch. At the ranch, the family experiences many tragedies and hardships including fires, floods, droughts, and devastating deaths of loved ones. The main character, Meggie, falls madly in love with a handsome man named Ralph. Unfortunately, Meggie is not able to marry Ralph because he is a priest. Ralph loves Meggie dearly, but has devoted his entire life to God. Throughout the novel, they experience great love and sorrow together. Meggie has children who become the third generation of the novel. The children bring her much happiness, but she still has a deep passion for Ralph in her heart. This forbidden love for Ralph will stay burning inside her soul throughout her entire life.I truly enjoyed how the author used a lot of description and detail in the novel. This description enabled me to paint vivid pictures of the beautiful, Australian land in my mind, as well as clear pictures of the many different characters' inner and outer appearances.
This extraordinary love story was like an emotional rollercoaster. It twisted and turned leaving me feeling many different emotions including love, humor, sadness, anger, hate, and malice. I often found myself crying as well as laughing while I eagerly devoured every word on the page. It kept me reading and reading until the very interesting ending. I would recommend this captivating novel to anyone who is looking for a great story about life and love! I'm sure you will enjoy it just as much as I did!