The Diaries of Ethel Turner by Ethel Turner

The Diaries of Ethel Turner Reviews

• 
  Velvetink

  Actually this is a collection of excerpts of Turner's diaries with introduction and discussion by Turner's granddaughter Sybil. The whole thing is kind of flat and dull and many of the excerpts are repetitive details of Ethel's shopping expeditions and daily trivia. There are of course gems of information about when Ethel met various other authors but they are few and far between. i think perhaps if the material was in a publisher's hands the resulting book would have been far different. I'm not finished yet but feel very let down by the overall atmosphere of the editing - it is toned very much like a family history with no analysis at all.
• 
  Darlene

  I don't know that any book of my entire life has taken me this long to read. But this wasn't fiction. This was someone's diary. It was the day by day mind meanderings of a writer who lived in Australia in the 1800s. No protagonist, no antagonist, no plot. Even so, far better than my own diaries in which I would eventually give up and write that I breathed in and out that day. So I doubt anyone will write anything about mine. They have probably begun to degrade into the earth like the trees the paper was made from.
  
  Another reason it was such a slow read for me was the small font. Luckily the entries were kept short so I would only sit and read an entry and let it go.
  
  Writers will find this interesting, seeing Ethel Turner's passion for writing, especially for children. Those interested in history, this diary takes place before the first world war. She witnessed world happenings from the land down-under. As a young woman, she sees Women's Suffrage. At first, she sees no sense in it but as she matures her writing reflects the need for social change for men and women for more equality.
  
  I found that interesting in that in the home she grows up in as a teen, they have servants. No wonder she sees no need for equality. She was able to spend her time studying languages, piano, and singing. Her life was full of social amenities, dances, etc. But still, she spends most of her days working on writing. She was and for me is an inspiration.
  
  Seven Little Australians, her book, I will be reading next.
  
  This is worth the effort it took me to read. Maybe you will like it, too.
  Oh, this is a BookCrossing book BCID 128-5141612. Not sure who is next for the read but I'll mark the site accordingly.
  
• 
  Marianne

  The Diaries of Ethel Turner is a volume compiled by Ethel Turner’s granddaughter, Philippa Poole. The entries are arranged by year, spanning over some forty years, and are interspersed with commentary by Poole as well as illustrations, photographs and cartoons relevant to the diary entries (although, unfortunately, not placed close to the diary entries to which they refer). There is also an extensive set of appendices which are frequently referred to in the text. Turner’s diaries are fascinating in that they describe in detail the pace of life for a young woman in the late 19th and early twentieth centuries, a far cry from life in the present day. Turner’s days were filled with reading, writing, idling, parties, balls and dances, picnics and teas, and mending and darning (something that anyone born after 1970 will not have experienced!). Of course, many entries deal with mundane matters, so parts are boring, but the overall effect certainly gives an insight into the background for Turner’s well known works, especially Seven Little Australians, Family at Misrule, Little Mother Meg and The Little Larrikin. Turner makes mention of other contemporary authors she encounters (A.B.Paterson, Henry Lawson) and her mention of shopping at Sydney icons like Anthony Horden, Marcus Clarke, Farmers, David Jones, Dymocks and Angus and Robertson will trigger nostalgia in many readers. The diaries seem to indicate a young woman who has a volatile relationship with friends, family and her prospective husband, Herbert Curlewis, but also a woman with a shrewd business sense. The joys and heartbreak of acceptance and rejection by publishers is interspersed with the frustration of finding suitable servants and the challenge of bringing up a young family whilst trying to write for a living. Quite a lot of poetry is included, some of which is quite delightful; the entries on the family’s trip to Europe and Britain are rather tedious, but the wartime entries are worth reading . On the whole, quite interesting.
• 
  Alayne

  I loved Seven Little Australian, The Family at Misrule and Little Mother Meg when I was young, and although reading someone's diaries is not very interesting usually, Ethel Turner's granddaughter Philippa Poole has compiled them well and made interesting comments along the way. I didn't know Turner had written so many books (41!) and will make an effort to find some of her others.
• 
  Mel

  An interesting read, some good insight into early 1900s Australia. A good companion piece to works like Austen and co from an Aussie perspective. Turner definitely has a knack for writing! Her diary is a fun read!
• 
  Yvensong

  I don't know why, but I just couldn't get into this. I usually enjoy diaries, but 50 pages in, and I'm mostly bored. Maybe, I'll try again later.