A Eucalyptus Fable

My wife has finished reading a recently published novel, Eucalyptus, by 
the Australian writer, Murray Bail, which she has now given me along with 
a command to plant some eucalyptus trees. I quote in part from the jacket 
blurb:

'On a property in western New South Wales a man named Holland lives with 
his daughter, Ellen. Over the years, as she grows into a beautiful young 
woman, he plants hundreds of different eucalyptus trees on his land, 
filling in the landscape, making a virtual outdoor museum of trees. When 
Ellen is nineteen, he announces his decision: she may marry only the man 
who can correctly name the species of each and every gum tree on his 
property.'

The author's conceit evidently derives from the brothers Grimm as well as 
Puccini. It is an enjoyable work and I commend it to all who have the 
least interest in trees, romance, Australia, or modern fairy tales. I 
only wish I had devised a similar test before my daughters ran off with 
unsuitable young men. 

The Australian publisher is The Text Publishing Company; the publisher in 
the USA is Farrar, Straus and Giroux; and Harvill Press is the UK 
publisher. 

Warm regards,

William Glover



**********************

William Glover
Mango Corners, Jones Estate
NEVIS, West Indies (Antilles)

wmglover@caribsurf.com
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