Shirley by Ronnie Scott is a modern tale of the daughter of an influential celebrity, who suddenly realises that she needs to find out who loves and admires her for herself, and not for her connections.
Twenty years ago her mother was photographed as she stood, blood-soaked, outside “Shirley”, the family home. The infamous TV food personality then fled the country.
Years have passed and the daughter is now an adult. She owns an apartment, has developed her own cooking style, and has fallen in love. She has a job working as a copywriter for a health insurance company. Life is quiet, but she feels she has found contentment, finally.
Just lately, however, there are disruptions. Her undemanding boyfriend has, uncharacteristically, begun sleeping with men. Also, her mother is selling the notorious family home.
Then, a rather glamorous neighbour, who is pregnant, moves into the apartment downstairs, thus causing the girl to question everything she wants to believe are her own dreams and desires. She becomes uncertain of the way ahead and of who she is meant to be.
Shirley is an intricately woven narrative of the twists and turns relationships take as they evolve. Whether these are between close relatives or are those that develop over the years with school or work colleagues. These connections, the girl has found, have also become interwoven with the love of food, as have the preparation and cooking of it.
She also begins to realise that interactions with animals can take place whether or not that particular animal is part of the family, or to be consumed as food.
Shirley is a thought-provoking read that will encourage the reader to examine their own relationships, past and present, and to question their current status in this ever-changing world in which we find ourselves living.
ISBN: 9780143796657
Publisher: Penguin Books Australia
Shirley is available in paperback, e-book and audiobook.
About Ronnie Scott
Ronnie Scott’s first novel The Adversary was shortlisted for a Queensland Literary Award and the Australian Literature Society Gold Medal. He teaches Creative Writing at RMIT University. He works on unceded Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung country.
Leave a Reply