We All Lived In Bondi Then by Georgia Blain
“I nodded although I still dream of it sometimes, the doors opening, but never quite wide enough to let me really see if it is him, and sometimes I am afraid for him, while at other times I am at peace because I know he is okay, he is in his pram, and he is with someone who loves him.”
We All Lived in Bondi Then (Scribe, 2024) is an evocative and heart-rending collection of previously unpublished short stories from Georgia Blain, the author of the multi-award-winning bestseller Between a Wolf and a Dog. For those unfamiliar with Blain, she sadly passed away from brain cancer in 2016, shortly before her fifty-second birthday. Acknowledged as a remarkable writer for the way she astutely threads emotive themes through her work, reading this collection is nothing short of haunting and magic.
The light collection contains only nine stories, but each packs a powerful punch. In the opening story, ‘Australia Square’, a woman reflects on a defining moment for her family: the day her nanny left her brother in an elevator at her father's workplace. Missing for two weeks, he is eventually returned to the family, but the damage of this single moment in time extends its long coils deep into their future:
“Hoping I would find a clear, concise explanation for her relentless attempts to retrieve my brother’s memory, perhaps some awareness of her own madness, maybe it was an apology I wanted or a glimpse of softness and love, even regret that she had lost me.”
The complexity of mother-daughter relationships resonates strongly throughout many of the stories. In ‘Dear Professor Brewster’, a woman enters into an escalating back and forth with her mother’s physician as they battle a dementia diagnosis. In ‘Far From Home’, a woman on holiday with her mother is distracted by a blast from her past as tragedy unfolds. In ‘Last Days’, a new mum reflects on the sacrifices and changes motherhood brings with it:
“Just one more street, she tells herself, promising that she’ll then turn for home, but the blackness stretches forever, and she keeps on driving.”
While most of the stories are grounded in a ‘present day’ reality, ‘Last One Standing’ moves us to a dystopian future, where one woman, Aisla, has carved out a life of routine and monotony, the foundations of survival. With only an elderly dog for companionship, she reflects on her childhood, the people she thought she knew, and how a person can surprise you. As her dog reaches her final days, a young girl arrives, and Aisla quietly realises the world can still surprise her:
“And then she stands up and goes to get the shovel, her small body stronger than it looks as she carries it over to where the trees stretch, bare branched and slender, and she proceeds to dig. Just like someone who has done this before.”
Another favourite of mine, ‘Sunday’, has a simple but engaging premise. A woman calls home to check on her partner, only for her dog to answer the phone. At first, believing her partner is playing a trick on her, she leans into the conversation. What starts as a humorous exchange slowly unravels into an existential reflection on where her life is going:
“‘When I was younger I didn’t think so much. I was too busy experiencing. Probably a bit like what it’s like for a dog. I was so much more in the moment. But now I spend a lot of my days killing time. I have too much space in which to think and worry. I think I need to change my life. I really do.’”
Brimming with nuance and warmth, Blain’s characters are rich and deep, readily drawing you into their emotional worlds as they handle both the common and uncommon challenges of everyday life.
The subtle quality of these stories demands more than one reading – something I am all too willing to oblige!
Elaine Chennatt is a writer, educator and psychology student currently residing in nipaluna. She has a special interest in bibliotherapy (how we use literature to make sense of our lives) and is endlessly curious about the creative philosophies of others. She lives with her husband and two bossy dachshunds on the not-so-sunny side of the river (IYKYK). Find her online at wordswithelaine.com.
