Review of Extinctions by Helen Hagemann

I usually support a same state writer and I also like to read prize winners. In relation to this book Extinctions, a Dorothy Hewett ms award winner and the 2017 Miles Franklin award, I am going to stick my neck out, and say sorry folks! but I thought this book was disappointing :(
It was mainly driven by backstory, ie all the relies of Frederick Lothian and Jan's - Fred's neighbour thrown into the mix. The surface level (ie. the literal level) was more interesting, two people meeting in a retirement village, both having adoptees in the family. Or as they say in academia the inclusion of "the other" or those on the margins. I wanted more of this interesting story than finding out about the characters' past lives. I also wanted a better ending of Callum, Morrison, Jan and Fred finally moving into Fred's family home and how they coped nicely (or not) with each other. I felt bogged down reading all the backstory and, at times, skim read to get to the surface action/problem/quest/whatever! And the title? Extinctions? It would have been better if rather than an engineer/lecturer Fred, per se, might have been an archaeologist/scientist/paleontologist, and even though retired still interested in anything worth saving, or on the danger list. Okay, so Caroline was into studying the end of certain species, but did that have any effect on the two main characters who were driven towards each other? I don't think so. All I can say is the "pictures" helped me whiz through the pages much quicker. On a positive note, the writing was excellent...er...to a point...so many similes...like, like, like, like. Are they supposed to make a good book? Obviously the judges of the Dorothy Hewett and the Miles Franklin thought so.

Poetry and Fiction Reviewer
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