August 27

The Thorn Birds

Posted by lori . 7 Comments

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This is a sentimental favorite.  I read it as a very young woman and was captivated by the epic sweep of the novel.  Set in the Australian outback, the story focuses on the Cleary family between the years 1915 and 1969.  Most people who are familiar with the story will remember the forbidden love between Meggie and Father Ralph, but it is much more than that.   It is a story about family, longing, betrayal, ambition and tragedy.  I think it may be time to read this one again.

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 27th, 2011 at 3:00 am and is filed under Few and Well Chosen (Books). You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

7 Responses to " The Thorn Birds"

  • houndstooth says:
    August 27, 2011 at 2:51 pm

    There’s another one that I’ve never read, but have thought about. There is never going to be enough time for me to read all the books that I want to!

    Reply
  • mel says:
    August 27, 2011 at 4:56 pm

    the movie was my first exposure to this story and then the book. it is a good one.

    Reply
  • Julie says:
    September 4, 2011 at 7:44 pm

    And Oh! Richard Chamberlin in the movie!

    Reply
  • Danielle says:
    October 11, 2011 at 1:05 am

    Great to see that people are still reading, watching and enjoying The Thorn Birds – it was one of my favourite books, and I enjoyed the mini-series as well. What are your views about how the television adaptation compares with the book?

    Reply
    • lori says:
      October 11, 2011 at 9:47 pm

      Hi Danielle,

      Thanks for visiting. I posted this same reply on your blog. I really enjoyed reading your post on The Thorn Birds. I did enjoy the mini-series, but only because I viewed it as separate from the book. In fact, that’s the way I typically enjoy any film adaptation…if I can separate the book and the film into “related” but not the “same” works of art. The mini-series was an interesting story with beautiful actors, but when I read the book, I became so enmeshed with the story, it became a part of that period of my life. You mentioned in your post that Colleen McCullough detested Meggie. I found that fascinating because I remember having that sense when I read the book. At the very least, I remember feeling that the author treated her main character with a very strong, unsympathetic light. It certainly didn’t bother me, in fact it made Meggie more “real” and human to me.


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