Customer Reviews

The Harp in the South

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The author's obit appeared in The Gray Lady recently. On a whim I ordered this book used for 1 cent. It was published in 1947. It is a fond reminiscence of the Irish experience in Australia. The shanty Irish provided the brute labor for the Aussie Industrial Revolution. They were poor as dirt and lived in decrepit tenenments where bed bugs sucked there blood as a nightly ritual. The flaws of this family are fondly recounted. This family is afflicted by alchoholism, poverty, and disappointment. There is a tragic loss of a young child. The daughter is are so naive she gets knocked-up and needs to visit a back alley abortionist. There is mostly grinding poverty occassionally offset by glimmers of joy or moments of happiness. This book is surprisingly readable. It is like a soap opera which opens a window on the early 20th century Irish immigrant experience in Australia. The author shows pride of craft and executes at a high level. Recommended.

I grew up absolutely loving Playing Beatie Bow by this author so when I ran into another book by her I was excited to see what it was like. Unfortunately, this book was a disappointment to me. It's interesting to learn about that time period and social class in Australia, but the characters and story just didn't do it for me. Not a keeper.

"The Harp in the South" by Ruth Park is a worthwhile read that seems to me to be partly autobiographical by the author, or based on her first hand observations of working class Irish- Australian immigrants in the early to mid 20th century. She is on target in recording their feelings,expressions,thoughts etc. In addition she goes beyond the "class filter" shrouding most world literature in my view, that shows the poor and working classes in adisparaging, condescenting or trivializing way, speaking instead in a compassionate and authentic voice. Her characters come across in a powerful way you will not soon forget. In a way somewhat similar to Frank McCourt in 'Angela's ashes" Ms. Park airs out the many "dirty linens" of the working class Irish-Australians for all to see.
With all its coarseness and cultural and religious monoculture of that time via the unchallenged pre Vatican 2 Catholic Church- those times come off to me as much slower in pace and gentler in the sense that much more in life was taken for granted than is the case today. Also I found an off puttingly mild tone of a 1930's soap opera intruded into the story about midway, watering it down and weakening it. By weakining the story, in no way are the manifest horrors of bothched abortions, medieval care for the disabled,alcoholism,filth,tropical vermin rampant throughout the slums of Sydney mild or gentle-these conditions are grimly and unflinchingly there for the reader. The quality of the narrative in the second half of the book slows down enough, and Park's character descriptions are less compelling in a way that finishing the book can be tedious. That said I reccommend it,

I recently read this Australian classic and loved every page. Set in the 1940's it gives a realistic view of Sydney's Surrey Hills. Life was hard for the Darcy Family but I found this book truly uplifting. The ending is fantastic and the feelings expressed by the characters could easily apply to today. I highly recommend The Harp in the South.

Harp in the South givs the readers an over view of what happened in the early 1940's in the city of sydney and the suburb of surry hills. the darcey family tell a story of what happened during there days at plymonth street and it shows us the experience they had during their lives in sydney. Harp in the South experiences alot of pain, hardship and the joys and saddness that people of the lower middle class experience........

Really this is a great book i have newver before seen something that can so easily empty my stomach and I am just amazed that such a gory description of death and murder can be written in english beats a trip to the morgue anyday

Really this is a great book i have newver before seen something that can so easily empty my stomach and I am just amazed that such a gory description of death and murder can be written in english beats a trip to the morgue anyday