Always the Islands of Memory

Noel Virtue

The Memories is a shed that keeps the remnants of Parnell and Sister Lark's memories. Parnell, the older sister, believes The Memories helps them learn by remembering what they have survived. Sister's past, though, is one she'd rather not face.They were born around the turn of the 20th century. Now, over 60 years later, they live in a small home in the Waikato District of New Zealand's North Island with their two old dogs and dying cow. They have lived through two wars, an earthquake, and the Depression. Sister now has a wooden leg and is a bit "off" - not exactly crazy, but not really sane, either.

When Sister goes into The Memories, she plays her current 45 rpm records. Parnell makes sure she has the most current hits. Parnell looks over the photos and clippings in The Memories, remembering what has happened to them, their parents, and their no-good-brother over the past decades. When they learn that he has been murdered, they are shocked but not upset. He had been out of their lives for around thirty years and they didn't want him back. Nor is he present in The Memories.

Parnell knows the two of them should return to their parents' old farm in the south near Wellington. But they keep putting off the trip. Both women have their reasons for delaying. But things have to change. Parnell knows it.

Always the Islands of Memory is a quiet, memorable book. Noel Virtue writes in the sisters' present, but also revives Parnell's memories of the past. The book follows the two women from young adulthood, hitting on the awful, and occasionally good, milestones of their lives. Virtue uses a deft touch to bring the Lark sisters to life. A windfall after the death of their younger brother almost splits the two women up.

Don't expect to get sucked into Always the Islands of Memory. The story telling is insiduous - creeping inside the mind. Soon the reader is caught up, wanting to know what has happened to bring them to where they are now. The women stay to themselves, although Sister always wants to play with children and visit the babies in the hospital. Parnell worries what Sister may accidentally do while out.

Virtue's book draws the reader in quietly, completely. The relationships in the Lark family are complicated, yet he is able to tell their story well in this short novel. I ran across this book in a used book store. It's not easily availabe in the United States. It is worth the effort of tinding it to read.