{"product_id":"shell-4","title":"Shell","description":"'\u003ci\u003eThe day the great man sang, heat blazed in haloes over Bennelong Point. This is what Pearl will remember, later, this is what she will say: that his voice turned the air holy. Men, sweat-slicked, stood with bowed heads or hung off scaffolds, swatting at flies and tears. Few looked at the singer; they needed all their senses to hear. Needed their whole bodies, skin and eyes and hearts, to absorb what they couldn’t say: that sacredness had returned to this place. It flowed through them on a single human voice, through their bodies and the building that was rising beneath their hands.'\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘A \u003cb\u003eshimmering love letter to Sydney\u003c\/b\u003e, with the husk of the emerging Opera House its beating heart … \u003cb\u003eRequired reading\u003c\/b\u003e‘  \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAustralian Women’s Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSydney, 1960s\u003c\/b\u003e: newspaper reporter \u003cb\u003ePearl Keogh\u003c\/b\u003e has been relegated to the women’s pages as punishment for her involvement in the anti-war movement, and is desperate to find her two young brothers before they are conscripted.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Newly arrived from Sweden, \u003cb\u003eAxel Lindquist\u003c\/b\u003e is set to work as a sculptor on the Sydney Opera House. Haunted by his father’s acts in the Second World War, he seeks solace in his attempts to create a unique piece that will do justice to the vision of Jørn Utzon, the controversial architect of the Opera House’s construction.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePearl \u003c\/b\u003eand \u003cb\u003eAxel’s \u003c\/b\u003elives orbit and collide, as they both struggle in the eye of the storm. This is a soaring, optimistic novel of art and culture, and of love and fate.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA beautifully crafted, spellbinding story of love, loss and identity, set in the shadow of the Vietnam War, for readers who loved \u003ci\u003eAll the Light We Cannot See\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Goldfinch\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Praise for \u003ci\u003eShell\u003c\/i\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘\u003cb\u003eDestined to become a classic\u003c\/b\u003e due to the exquisite imagery of [Olsson’s] prose. If the test of contemporary fiction is whether a second reading delivers fresh layers of insight and meaning, the answer here is an unequivocal yes’  Caroline Baum, \u003ci\u003eSydney Morning Herald\u003c\/i\u003e, The Best Books of 2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘This narrative of war and hope, architecture and yearning, and old and new world, makes \u003ci\u003eShell\u003c\/i\u003e a \u003cb\u003enovel of energy and enlightenment\u003c\/b\u003e, and, to boot, a \u003cb\u003esource of delightful reading\u003c\/b\u003e' Thomas Keneally, author of \u003ci\u003eSchindler’s List\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eIn the Name of the Father\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘A \u003cb\u003eluminous \u003c\/b\u003elook at a city at a time of change, a time when the building of the Sydney Opera House was a reach for greatness'\u003ci\u003e The New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘Olsson’s writing is \u003cb\u003ebeautiful\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003cb\u003ecaptivating\u003c\/b\u003e, and is enough in itself to recommend this book … Her descriptions are \u003cb\u003evivid\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003cb\u003eevocative\u003c\/b\u003e’ \u003ci\u003eNew York Journal of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‘This is a novel with a \u003cb\u003esharp eye\u003c\/b\u003e, a \u003cb\u003ewarm heart\u003c\/b\u003e and\u003cb\u003e sprawling ambitions\u003c\/b\u003e, painted on the most splendid canvas of all’\u003ci\u003e The Australian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e 'War, architecture, guilt, salvation, politics – this book has a little bit of it all... A \u003cb\u003efascinating \u003c\/b\u003elook at Australia during the Vietnam War, the creation of the Sydney Opera House, and the ever-present battle between the violence of war and the beauty of art. \u003cb\u003eRecommended\u003c\/b\u003e' \u003ci\u003eHistorical Novel Society\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"Simon \u0026 Schuster Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57260732186968,"sku":"9781471172632","price":18.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0278\/1295\/4195\/files\/9781471172632_da24f077-c0c7-4bca-ac89-383ad7a4c69c.jpg?v=1778825773","url":"https:\/\/agendabookshop.com\/products\/shell-4","provider":"Agenda Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}