Country Australia Publication date 1960 Pages 263pp Publisher Angus & Robertson Followed by The Well Dressed Explorer | Language English Media type Print Originally published 1960 Genre Literary fiction Preceded by Girl with a Monkey | |
 | ||
Similar Thea Astley books, Classical Studies books | ||
A Descant for Gossips (1960) is a novel by Australian author Thea Astley.
Contents
Plot summary
In a dusty Queensland country town young Vinny Lalor is bullied by her fellow students at the local high-school. Her teacher, Helen Striebel, is the only one to show Vinny any support and when the teacher is involved in a scandal with a fellow male teacher, Vinny is again hurt.
Critical reception
Joyce Halstead in The Australian Women's Weekly was impressed: "This gifted writer has drawn with a scholar's touch a sensitive and intense study in human emotions played out against the cruel pettiness of a small town community. The dusty Queensland tropical background, so well described, is significant, but remains unobtrusively incidental to the main theme. An excellent and important new novel."
Television adapatation
In 1983 a television mini-series based on the book was released. The adaptation was directed by Tim Burstall, based on a script by Burstall and Ted Roberts and featured Kaarin Fairfax, Geneviève Picot and Peter Carroll in the lead roles.