Image from Google Jackets

A letter from Paris : a true story of hidden art, lost romance, and family reclaimed / Louisa Deasey.

By: Publisher: Brunswick, Victoria : Scribe Publications, 2018Copyright date: ©2018Edition: Australian editionDescription: 319 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some colour), portraits (some colour) ; 24 cmContent type:
  • text
  • still image
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781925713312
Subject(s): Genre/Form: DDC classification:
  • 920 23
Summary: When Louisa Deasey receives a message from a Frenchwoman called Coralie, who has found a cache of letters in an attic, written about Louisa's father, neither woman can imagine the events it will set in motion. The letters, dated 1949, detail a passionate affair between Louisa's father, Denison, and Coralie's grandmother, Michelle, in post-war London. They spark Louisa to find out more about her father, who died when she was six. From the seemingly simple question Who was Denison Deasey? follows a trail of discovery that leads Louisa to the libraries of Melbourne and the streets of London, to the cafes and restaurants of Paris and a poet's villa in the south of France. From her father's secret service in World War II to his relationships with some of the most famous bohemian artists in post-war Europe, Louisa unearths a portrait of a fascinating man, both at the epicentre and the mercy of the social and political currents of his time. This book is about the stories we tell ourselves, and the secrets the past can uncover. A compelling tale of inheritance and creativity, loss and reunion, it shows the power of the written word that crosses the bridges of time.
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Status Date due Barcode
Book Book Jessie Street National Women's Library General Stacks 920 DEA (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Available for reference in the library and ILL 68109

Multiple formats will be published.

Prepublication record (machine generated from publisher information)

Includes bibliographical references (pages 305-307)

When Louisa Deasey receives a message from a Frenchwoman called Coralie, who has found a cache of letters in an attic, written about Louisa's father, neither woman can imagine the events it will set in motion. The letters, dated 1949, detail a passionate affair between Louisa's father, Denison, and Coralie's grandmother, Michelle, in post-war London. They spark Louisa to find out more about her father, who died when she was six. From the seemingly simple question Who was Denison Deasey? follows a trail of discovery that leads Louisa to the libraries of Melbourne and the streets of London, to the cafes and restaurants of Paris and a poet's villa in the south of France. From her father's secret service in World War II to his relationships with some of the most famous bohemian artists in post-war Europe, Louisa unearths a portrait of a fascinating man, both at the epicentre and the mercy of the social and political currents of his time. This book is about the stories we tell ourselves, and the secrets the past can uncover. A compelling tale of inheritance and creativity, loss and reunion, it shows the power of the written word that crosses the bridges of time.

There are no comments on this title.

to post a comment.