{"title":"Catherine Chidgey","description":"\u003cp\u003eCatherine Chidgey’s novels traverse the intricate landscapes of human emotion and memory, often weaving threads of \u003cem\u003egeneral fiction\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ecrime\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003ehistorical narrative\u003c\/em\u003e into compelling stories. Her works, such as \u003cstrong\u003eRemote Sympathy\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eThe Book of Guilt\u003c\/strong\u003e, explore themes of identity, loss, and the shadows cast by the past, inviting readers into rich, atmospheric worlds.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhether delving into psychological suspense or the nuances of personal and cultural history, Chidgey’s storytelling is marked by a keen insight and elegant prose. Readers can expect nuanced characters and thought-provoking plots that linger long after the final page.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"pet","title":"Pet","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLike every other girl in her class, twelve-year-old Justine is drawn to her glamorous, charismatic new teacher, and longs to be her pet. However, when a thief begins to target the school, Justine's sense that something isn't quite right grows ever stronger. With each twist of the plot, this gripping story of deception and the corrosive power of guilt takes a yet darker turn. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYoung as she is, Justine must decide where her loyalties lie. 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We are here and this is our tree and we're staying and it is ours and you need to leave and now. Tama is just a helpless chick when he is rescued by Marnie, and this is where his story might have ended. 'If it keeps me awake,' says Marnie's husband Rob, a farmer, 'I'll have to wring its neck.' But with Tama come new possibilities for the couple's future. Tama can speak, and his fame is growing. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOutside, in the pines, his father warns him of the wickedness wrought by humans. Indoors, Marnie confides in him about her violent marriage. The more Tama sees, the more the animal and the human worlds - and all of the precarity, darkness and hope within them - bleed into one another. Like a stock truck filled with live cargo, the story moves inexorably towards its dramatic conclusion: the annual Axeman's Carnival. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePart trickster, part surrogate child, part witness, Tama the magpie is the star of this story. Though what he says aloud to humans is often nonsensical (and hilarious with it), the tale he tells us weaves a disturbingly human sense. 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Children who survive are allowed to move to the Big House in Margate, a destination of mythical proportions, desired by every Sycamore child. Meanwhile, in Exeter, Nancy lives a secluded life with her parents, who never let her leave the house. As the government looks to shut down the Sycamore homes and place their residents into the community, the triplets’ lives begin to intersect with Nancy’s, culminating in revelations that will rock the children to the core. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGradually surrendering its dark secrets, \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Guilt\u003c\/em\u003e is a spellbinding novel from one of our greatest storytellers: a profoundly unnerving exploration of belonging in a world where some lives are valued less than others. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePraise for Catherine Chidgey\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e‘Chidgey again displays her prodigious talent for psychological suspense and minutely evoking past eras . . . Faultless.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘Chidgey is a find.’\u003cem\u003e —Times Literary Supplement\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e‘A lingering, haunting book, which belongs on the shelf with \u003cem\u003eWe Have Always Lived in the Castle \u003c\/em\u003eor \u003cem\u003eMy Brilliant Friend –\u003c\/em\u003e a landmark in the small but potent canon of contemporary novels about unusual girls reckoning with themselves and the world around them.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCatherine Chidgey \u003c\/strong\u003eis the author of \u003cem\u003eIn a Fishbone Church\u003c\/em\u003e (1998), \u003cem\u003eGolden Deeds \u003c\/em\u003e(2000), \u003cem\u003eThe Transformation \u003c\/em\u003e(2003), \u003cem\u003eThe Wish Child\u003c\/em\u003e (2016), the 'found novel' \u003cem\u003eThe Beat of the Pendulum\u003c\/em\u003e (2017), \u003cem\u003eRemote Sympathy\u003c\/em\u003e (2020), \u003cem\u003eThe Axeman’s Carnival\u003c\/em\u003e (2022) and \u003cem\u003ePet\u003c\/em\u003e (2023). Her novels have been published to international acclaim and have been shortlisted and won numerous prizes including, the Women’s Prize and, twice, the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction. She lives in Ngāruawāhia and lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Waikato. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Upstart Distribution","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46392788910316,"sku":"9781776922246","price":31.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781776922246.jpg?v=1745383265"},{"product_id":"axemans-carnival-b-format-by-catherine-chidgey-9781776922260","title":"Axeman's Carnival (B-Format)","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEverywhere, the birds: sparrows and skylarks and thrushes, starlings and bellbirds, fantails and pipits – but above them all and louder, the magpies. We are here and this is our tree and we’re staying and it is ours and you need to leave and now.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTama is just a helpless chick when he is rescued by Marnie, and this is where his story might have ended. ‘If it keeps me awake,’ says Marnie’s husband Rob, a farmer, ‘I’ll have to wring its neck.’ But with Tama come new possibilities for the couple’s future. Tama can speak, and his fame is growing. Outside, in the pines, his father warns him of the wickedness wrought by humans. Indoors, Marnie confides in him about her violent marriage. The more Tama sees, the more the animal and the human worlds – and all of the precarity, darkness and hope within them – bleed into one another. 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Though what he says aloud to humans is often nonsensical (and hilarious with it), the tale he tells us weaves a disturbingly human sense. \u003cem\u003eThe Axeman’s Carnival\u003c\/em\u003e is Catherine Chidgey at her finest – comic, profound, poetic and true.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Upstart Distribution","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46626810822892,"sku":"9781776922260","price":23.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781776922260.jpg?v=1751869141"},{"product_id":"the-book-of-guilt-by-catherine-chidgey-9781761349379","title":"The Book of Guilt","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNever Let Me Go\u003c\/em\u003e meets \u003cem\u003eZone of Interest\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA creepy, compelling novel that takes place in a version of our world where some lives are valued less than others. It will shock you with each new revelation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEngland, 1979. Vincent, Lawrence, and William are the last remaining residents of a secluded New Forest home, part of the government's Sycamore Scheme. Every day, the triplets do their chores, play their games, and take their medicine, under the watchful eyes of three mothers: Mother Morning, Mother Afternoon, and Mother Night.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTheir nightmares are recorded in \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Dreams\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e \nTheir lessons are taken from \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Knowledge\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e \nAnd their sins are reported in \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Guilt\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAll the boys want is to be sent to the Big House in Margate, where they imagine a life of sun, sea, and fairground rides. 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