The Inheritance of Ivorie HammerWhen brothers Arcadia and Otto Cirque arrive in a fading gold-mining town with their travelling circus, Saturnalia, the town and the life of young Marianne Ward will never be the same. Months later, the flamboyant Arcadia Cirque is found dead, a pregnant Marianne goes missing, and Otto Cirque sets off to find her. These dramatic events echo down the decades to Mrs Ivorie Hammer, who is dealing with her own problems. Pregnant and vexed by recent catastrophic events in her hometown, she discovers that her own origins are not as she thought. As the small community of Pitch is scandalised by mysterious deaths and disappearances, it is Ivorie's secret history that holds the key to the truth. 'Quite unlike anything I've read before in Australian literature.' Chris Womersley |
Contents
The House of Jupon | 1 |
CANYON | 18 |
OUTER PITCH | 90 |
MIDDLE PITCH | 149 |
INNER PITCH | 220 |
Acknowledgments | 322 |
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Common terms and phrases
amongst Arcadia Cirque arrived baby Bald Sherry bone Borrel Sweetley brothel madam brother Canyon chair Chapter chest Cirque’s dear door dress Ernest Hammer eyes face feel felt figure finally find fine fingers fire first flat floor Florence Paratha flower friends George Duke girls glass grisegris hair hand hanging pocket head House of jupon husband Inner Pitch Ivorie Hammer Ivorie’s julian Paratha knew Lawrence looked Mackaby Madam Slipper Marianne Ward Mary Ann doll Miss Pappy Miss Pfeffersalz Morag Pappy mother mouth neck Nelly nodded office ofit once one’s Otto Cirque parlour perhaps Pette Po’s Racine Racine’s returned Robert Starlight Rosa Minim says seemed Senior Sergeant Sherry Sherry’s shook sleep smiled Starlight sisters stood strange Sweetley’s Thaddeus things Thomas Paratha thought took turned watched wife window woman women