In March the Reading Group will read Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood.

It’s a quiet but powerful novel that explores themes of solitude, faith, and the weight of the past. The story follows a woman retreating from her old life, seeking something (but what?) within the quiet routines of a convent in contemporary rural Australia.

We thought it would be interesting to discuss the themes of religious retreats and choosing a life of isolation, as well as faith and doubt, and how our pasts can never entirely be left behind. Also, the writing itself is restrained yet elegant and quite easy to read.

We’re looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Charlotte Wood lives in Sydney. She is the author of seven novels and three works of non-fiction. Her novel The Natural Way of Things won the 2016 Stella Prize, the Indie Book of the Year and Novel of the Year Awards, and was joint winner of the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction. Her next novel, The Weekend, was an international bestseller and was shortlisted for the 2020 Stella Prize, the Prime Minister’s Literary Award and the Australian Literature Society Gold Medal. In 2019 she was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) and named one of the Australian Financial Review’s 100 Women of Influence. Her features and essays have appeared in the New York Times, Guardian, Literary Hub and Sydney Morning Herald, among others. Her novel Stone Yard Devotional was shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2024.

Info and booking: 0471 997940, infobiblio@comune.bolzano.it