The Steele Diaries

reviewer: Felicity Chapman

month entered: 10/2008

author: Wendy James

year of publication: 2008

Publisher: Vintage

review:

Wendy James delivers an engaging narrative about three generations of women and pushes the boundary of who a ‘good mother’ should be.  There are no villains or victims in The Steele Diaries but a story line embroiled in the idiosyncrasies of life and desire.  The seemingly irreconcilable union of maternity and creativity is central in this journey that unfolds against a backdrop of equally juxtaposed entities: the Sydney art scene and the Australian Outback.  The Steele Diaries is a tantalizingly complex story of humanness, motherhood, and yearnings from the heart.