Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #961 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-10
• Binding: Paperback
• 448 pages

Synopsis
Cloudstreet: a broken-down house of former glories on the wrong side of the tracks, a place teeming with memories of its own, a place of shudders and shadows and spirits. From separate catastrophes, two families flee to the city and find themselves sharing this great sighing structure and beginning their lives again from scratch. Together they roister and rankle in a house that begins as a roof over their heads and becomes a home for their hearts. '"Imagine Neighbours" being taken over by the writing team of John Steinbeck and Gabriel Garcia Marquez and you'll be close to the heart of Winton's impressive tale' - "Time Out". 'Winton is just one of the best' - "Independent".

Customer Reviews

Meet the Pickles and the Lambs!
'Cloudstreet' as recommended to me by a friend last year, I had already read 'The Riders' and enjoyed it. 'Cloudstreet' is a lovely story and you feel a real affection for all of the characters. You can tell a lot of love when into this book.

Reader from London
This is gem. The language is earthy and highly original, giving it a strong Australian flavour and sense of place. But Winton's motley cast are universal, we cannot help but share their hopes and fears. Cloudstreet is a little sentimental, but in a good way, as if Winton is utterly swept away by the lives of his characters. John Steinbeck's Cannary Row springs to mind. There are shades of all sorts of other writers - most noticeably Garcia Marquez. But Cloudsteet is an original: larky, brutal, and ultimately overwhelming. I sense the author hit his imaginative groove here and really enjoyed writing this. I certainly loved reading it.

Not simply an Australian classic, surely a world classic
A rollercoaster of a novel. Issues of chaos, love, disappointment and acceptance played out in one of the most isolated cities of all. A truly authentic portrayal of the Australian spirit, delivered in the finest prosaic style.