Amelia Dee and the Peacock Lamp (Odo Hirsch, A&U, $15.95 pb, ISBN 9781741753011, October) ***

Odo Hirsch’s latest novel takes us into the world of Amelia Dee, a young girl in the suburbs with an extraordinary neighbour—yoga Master L K Vishwanath. The action begins as Amelia’s curiosity about one of the Master’s students leads her to the original owner of the beautiful peacock lamp that hangs in her house. As the story develops, so does Amelia’s understanding of the Master’s beliefs and it is through her eyes that the reader navigates the spiritual landscape. Hirsch has created strong and credible characters in this fairly ambitious novel although the significant spiritual element to the story may make it difficult for some readers to grasp. The language and narrative style of the novel help to make the story more accessible as does the inclusion of Amelia’s own stories. Amelia Dee and the Peacock Lamp is a thoughtful novel which will be well received in both retail and library environments. Suitable for ages nine-plus, this novel would be quite suitable for older readers because of the fairly advanced conceptual elements within. Although the novel may, at times, become overly philosophical, the strength and earnestness of the characters make this a delightful read that would make an ideal book club choice.

Natalie Crawford is the children’s specialist at Dymocks Claremont, WA

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2007, Thorpe-Bowker