The Chosen

Now, she seems like a musical note which has escaped into the air that is the river of all music. At night he goes into the dark, looks up at distant stars, miserable that knowledge has robbed us of the old certainties. Once we had souls, and souls went 'up there' when we died. Now, we have nothing, no souls, no destination, just an arithmetic of meaningless distances. An artist is commissioned to weave a tapestry for the council chamber of the town of Lost River. For this task, he must hear the stories of a random selection of the townsfolk - fifty-two in all, one for each week of the year - to discern the gestures by which he might define their lives. Their portraits represent an odyssey through humankind - the saintly, the insane, the larrikin, the prophet, the murdered, the murderer, the mindless materialist and the rich in spirit...people who ave caught a glimpse of something strange, perhaps the borders of a world behind everyday. His subjects are haunted by the death of one of their number in mysterious circumstances, while the artist is haunted by thoughts of Yarrow, the woman he loves but who is lost to him. Every page of this book offers a quotable gem, the most profound insights into the social, political, sexual, spiritual and humorous aspects of us all. This is vintage Ireland, possibly his best yet. Some quotes on "The Chosen": 'Ireland's brilliant new novel is a dazzling kaleidescope of ordinary and extraordinary Australians that again shows his work is at the peak of contemporary Australian writing.' - Helen Daniel. 'This is essentially a novel of ideas, a candid view of the general malaise that is Western culture at the end of the 20th century...beneath the vivacity, the brightness with words, the comic pace and tempo, this is a disturbing book and one I suspect is portentous' - Martin Flanagan, "The Age". 'As the tapestry takes shape, the stories of lust, malice, hope, love and of yearning for other worlds form kaleidescope patterns. There are unexpected and rewarding depths in Ireland's exploration of the searching heart and the interconnections of people and places. "The Chosen" is a novel to savour.' - Patricia Rolfe, "The Bulletin". David Ireland was born in 1927 and lives in Batemans Bay. He is one of Australia's most celebrated novelists, having won the Miles Franklin Award three times: in 1971 for "The Unknown Industrial Prisoner", in 1976 for "The Glass Canoe", and in 1980 for "A Woman of the Future". The latter title also won him the "Age" Book of the Year Award in 1980. In 1981, he was made an AO and in 1985 he was awarded the Australian Literature Society Gold Medal. This is a work of prestigious imagination and insight by one of Australia's most applauded writers. It is David Ireland's first novel in ten years and a work of significant literary importance. "The Chosen" has been shortlisted for the 1997 "Age" Book of the Year Award.