Today I’m admiring a new book, The Season, by Helen Garner. This is a beautifully-written non-fiction story about a grandmother and her relationship with her fifteen year old grandson through one junior Australian Football League season. At first, it takes some application to see how a book about this topic could be so rich in so many ways.
Invisible woman
At eighty years of age, Helen Garner, a highly acclaimed Australian writer and one of my favourite, uses what she calls ‘the invisibility of women of a certain age’ to follow her grandson, Amby (Ambrose) as he plays football in an under-16, Melbourne suburban team.
She effaces herself during training sessions and at weekly games, although several times she is invited to provide the oranges and snakes {sweets} at half time.
She becomes a ‘living witness’ to the development and growth of her grandson and his team.
Relationships during the season
While apparently focused on the game, she also describes the development of the relationship between herself and her grandson. Living next door to Amby’s family enables her to experience much of their family life during the season.She reflects this in her relationships with Amby’s dad and his siblings.
Background
Garner she says that she became passionate about the game and a staunch follower of the AFL Western Bulldogs team during the severe Melbourne lock-downs during the early days of the COVID pandemic in 2020. She says,
I learned that when the chips are down, football rises. I saw that it’s a kind of poetry, an ancient common language amongstranges, a set of hopes and rues and images…. And I started to glimpse wat is grand and noble, and admirable and graceful about men.’
Reflections on the wins and losses of the Western Bulldogs underpin the narrative.
The Season sings
Garner’s sense of story and her ability to pay attention to the world around her and to write about her observations make The Season sing. The song of birds, the sights and sounds of a nearby construction site, lights and the light, rain and passers-by all attract her attention. She is self-effacing and writes humorously about her own ageing process and age-related deficits.
Realisations
Today I realised a number of things that made this book so special for me.
As a grandmother, I’ve followed the development and maturing of grandchildren, although sadly not as closely as the author and her grandson. Now I’m blessed to be beginning again with great-grandchildren.
My own passion for football developed when I worked as a Community Nurse in a remote Aboriginal Community. Although not a COVID lockdown, life at Jigalong for a lone nurse often felt quite isolated. The passion and enjoyment of the Martu people, boys and girls, men and women, for the West Coast Eagles team infected me. My children still occasionally take me to a game at the Perth Stadium. I still follow West Coast.
As a writer, I have the utmost respect for the artistry of Helen Garner’s writing. A friend once told me that an understanding of craft comes before artistry. Garner is an artist of the first order. Though it is so much more.
***
The Season will appeal to many people.
- Grandparents, especially whose grandchildren are adolescents. The Season seems like a handbook for grandparenting.
- Football lovers (all codes)
- Those who love attentive, sensuous writing
- Book club members
- Older children
- Teachers of writing and those who aspire to write better
- Teachers of writing, literature, English.
DETAILS
The Season by Helen Garner. Text Publishing, November 2024. IBSN 9781004180790
Some other book reviews by Maureen Helen
Women and Children, by Tony Birch
Stone Yard Devotional, by Charlotte Wood
How wonderful, Maureen! I’m going to read Helen Garner! She sounds wise – especially in her choice of footy team. (Lol!)
Seriously, you’ve mentioned Garners writing to me before, and now I see more fully why.
A must read. Insights in grandparenting and her close observations of what’s going on around her invite me into her world.
Xx
Susan. You will love her writing! Can’t wait to share with you. Mx
I meant add, I love the photo of you. Xx
Thank you. Anne took it one day when she came with me to a West Coast Eagles game, probably the week we won a semi final. Football’s of the joys of my life and I’ve never quite worked out why, especially as I don’t approve of violence. But Garner’s book made it all seem better.
A few days after Joshua was born, I had a terrible thought. It suddenly hit me that I would have to spend endless winter hours watching football or rugby. I didn’t mind the idea of summer cricket.
I needn’t have worried; he disliked all but tennis.
My older grandsons are/were all keen sportsmen, and I have often provided a taxi service. Fortunately, no one invited or expected me to stand and watch a game. 😂
As you probably gathered, enjoy Australian Rules Football (and not much other sport except swimming). I was delighted to find Helen Garner’s book, not just becuse of the football, but also because she is such a clever writer.