By Charlotte Wood
July 8, 2024
A woman abandons her city life and marriage to return to the place of her childhood, holing up in a small religious community hidden away on the stark plains of the Monaro.
She does not believe in God, doesn’t know what prayer is, and finds herself living this strange, reclusive life almost by accident. As she gradually adjusts to the rhythms of monastic life, she finds herself turning again and again to thoughts of her mother, whose early death she can’t forget.
Disquiet interrupts this secluded life with three visitations.
With each of these disturbing arrivals, the woman faces some deep questions. Can a person truly be good? What is forgiveness? Is loss of hope a moral failure? And can the business of grief ever really be finished?
