A Far-Flung Life (by M.L. Stedman)
I was excited to learn that M.L. Stedman, author of The Light Between Oceans, had written a new book, A Far-Flung Life. After more than a decade, it was certainly worth the wait—I enjoyed it even more than her debut novel.
Set on the vast Meredith Downs, a million-acre sheep station in remote Western Australia, the novel begins in 1958 when a truck accident kills the MacBride family’s patriarch and eldest son, setting off a chain of tragedy. The youngest son, Matt, survives with serious injuries and is thrust into an impossible moral dilemma. Further tragedies and closely guarded secrets follow, shaping the lives of the remaining MacBrides across decades. At its heart, this is a story about belonging, fate, and the ways compassion and forgiveness help us live with what cannot be undone.
It was everything I hoped it would be—one of those sweeping stories told across decades of the characters’ lives. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect when I started listening, but Stedman carefully lays the groundwork with the 1958 setting, the characters, and their isolated life on Meredith Downs. It doesn’t take long for the sadness and dark moments to arrive. There is a quiet beauty in the way she writes about these characters, especially in the face of their tragedies and impossibly difficult circumstances. Her eloquent writing made me feel what they felt and kept judgment at bay.
Looking back on the story as a whole, it is filled with sadness and heartbreak. Moments of joy and hope do appear, yet they feel guarded because of the secrets the characters carry. As a reader who knows those secrets, I found myself cautiously optimistic during the happier scenes. The ending was perfectly heartfelt and beautifully told, though I was left with an overwhelming sense of sadness for the story as a whole.
I borrowed the audiobook through Libby. Lewis Fitz-Gerald’s narration was a pleasure to listen to.
This was a wonderful book. Not quite a five-star read for me, but Stedman has delivered a nearly perfect novel about family, tragedy, and the quiet healing that comes with moving forward.
I'm amazed that I was successful in growing dahlias for a second summer season. I painstakingly dug up the tubers in the fall, carefully stored them in our garage over the winter, and successfully replanted them this past spring. This Labyrinth variety is also known as a semi-cactus decorative dahlia, and I'm in love with its peachy-raspberry flowers.
Photo credit: lostthepath.com
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