Ice
By Louis Nowra

Ice

By (author) Louis Nowra

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Description
Ice tells the story of Malcolm McEacharn, the man who brings joy to early Sydney in the form of an iceberg and who later pioneers the first successful refrigerated voyage from Australia to London. He is a brilliant businessman who will later bring electricity to Melbourne, become its Lord Mayor and be one step away from becoming Prime Minister - but he is driven by an obsession that threatens to destroy him and his world. Ice also tells a parallel story, set in contemporary Sydney, of a young biographer who lies in a coma, and her husband's desperate attempts to resurrect her by unearthing the truth about her subject McEacharn. Both stories are redolent with longing, suffused by regret, illuminated by extraordinary imagery, hypnotic language and the spectre of suspended life in the 'mythical country of ice'. From the frozen, desolate Antarctic to bustling Victorian London, from the Yorkshire moors to colonial tropical Cairns, to Imperial Japan and to the gritty streets of modern-day King's Cross, Ice walks the line between life and death, fact and fantasy, grief and madness.

ISBN: 9781741754834
Classification: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)
Format: Paperback (230mm x 153mm x 25mm)
Pages: 336
Publish Date: 1-Nov-2008
Country of Publication: Australia

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Recent Books By Louis Nowra
Author Biography

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0 star rating by Boomert - Ice by Louis Nowra 09 Jan 2010
Lots of words have more than one meaning and in Ice Louis Nowra explores the many meanings of this three letter word to construct an entertaining and thoroughly engaging historical novel set mostly in Australia in the late 19th century. It begins with an iceberg being towed into Sydney Harbour where there is great celebration as the ice is carved and sold and the two people responsible for the feat are highly acclaimed. One of these two, Malcolm McEacharn, becomes the focus for the novel. He lost his father at sea, he marries in England and later returns to Australia. He perfects the transportation of refrigerated meat to England and he goes on to build the most astonishing house in Melbourne, where he becomes the mayor, and even has a go at becoming Australia’s second prime minister. This part of the novel is a fantastic element and I really liked the picture of an alternate Melbourne created by the author. There is a parallel story as well, of the biographer of Malcolm McEacharn, living in modern Australia and the contemporary meaning for the word ‘ice’. The whole book is fast-paced and lots of fun.

Author Biography: Louis Nowra
Louis Nowra is an acclaimed author, screenwriter and playwright and lives in Sydney. His books include The Misery of Beauty, The Twelfth of Never and the most recent title, Bad Dreaming, and his plays include Cosi, The Marvellous Boy and The Golden Age.

Recent books by Louis Nowra » View all books by Louis Nowra

Ice, Paperback (November 2009)

Ice, Paperback (November 2008)

Boyce Trilogy, Paperback (April 2007)

Bad Dreaming, Paperback (March 2007)