{"product_id":"the-mary-smokes-boys-isbn-9780989360401","title":"The Mary Smokes Boys","description":"\u003cb\u003eShortlisted for\u003ci\u003e The Age \u003c\/i\u003eBook of the Year\u003cbr\u003eLonglisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrey's mother dies giving birth to his sister Irene and he prays that she will be returned to him so he might protect her from the world as his father did not. This prayer, Grey believes, is answered in his sister Irene. He becomes obsessed with protecting her purity and innocence while befriending the wild boys of the small town of Mary Smokes—horse-handlers and fox hunters and part-time timber workers—members of a small, vanishing tribe who find themselves caught between an old relationship with place and a new one that is exemplified by the highway that threatens their town. Holland's kinship with Per Petterson's \u003ci\u003eOut Stealing Horses\u003c\/i\u003e is palpable. \u003ci\u003eThe Mary Smokes Boys\u003c\/i\u003e is heart-rending and unforgettable, a suspenseful story of horse thieves and broken promises, of love and tragedy, of the fragility and grace of small town life, and how one fateful moment can forever alter the course of a life.\u003cb\u003eShortlisted for\u003ci\u003e The Age \u003c\/i\u003eBook of the Year\u003cbr\u003eLonglisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA 2011 \u003ci\u003eAustralian Book Review \u003c\/i\u003eBook of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA 2011 \u003ci\u003eAdelaide Advertiser \u003c\/i\u003eBook of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA 2011 Readings Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eThe Mary Smokes Boys\u003c\/i\u003e is a gem. The writing is absolutely terrific and the characters distinct and deftly revealed. And the story is a heart wrecker.\" —Barry Lopez, author of\u003ci\u003e Light Action in the Caribbean\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"One of those books, one of those straight-to-the-heart, life-changing books.\" —Krissy Kneen, author of \u003ci\u003eAffection\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Barely a scene or image is wasted . . . He weaves Hemingway’s blunt sentences and carved dialogue with the old fashioned storytelling of a folk tale imbued with the dark romance of a Nick Cave ballad.\" —Jo Case, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Age\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Patrick Holland’s beautiful, beautiful novel is a tale that transports you through its realization of place and its genuinely affecting story of love (for brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers). And yes, for a language as pure and magical as I have read in a long time. A major work.\" —Martin Shaw, Readings (Australia)\u003cb\u003ePATRICK HOLLAND\u003c\/b\u003e is a founding member of the Asia Pacific Writers and Translators Association and grew up in outback Queensland, Australia, where he worked as a horseman before moving to Brisbane. He has worked and studied in China and Vietnam and is the author of the travel book, \u003ci\u003eRiding the Trains in Japan: Travels in the Sacred and Supermodern East\u003c\/i\u003e and the Saigon-based novel \u003ci\u003eThe Darkest Little Room,\u003c\/i\u003e a collection of stories, and \u003ci\u003eThe Source of the Sound,\u003c\/i\u003e which won the Scott Prize and was shortlisted for the Steele Rudd Award. He lives in Melbourne, Australia.","brand":"Hawthorne Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48532206158053,"sku":"NP9780989360401","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780989360401.jpg?v=1773183057","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-mary-smokes-boys-isbn-9780989360401","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}