WELCOME
Over the years, my website has accumulated an archive of short pieces of prose, each of which can be read in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Most deal with the art and craft of writing, though some wander away up side paths. This archive can be accessed via the Writing Life tabs.Because my love of images is almost as great as my love of words, I post whatever catches my eye to Instagram.
I can be contacted direct or through my literary agent. I hope you find something on the site to enjoy.
TEMPERANCE
1st August 2023
I'm thrilled to say that my novel Temperance has at last moved out of my laptop and into book shops. Its cover, a painting called “Beach Scene”, by the amazing Clarice Beckett, conveys the essence of those long, hot summers of childhood, against which much of the novel is set.
Reviews
'Award-winning writer Carol Lefevre has a deft touch for psychological drama and the intricacies of domestic relationships. Here she takes a tightly stretched working-class canvass and loosens it into an evolving mystery (and a deferred coming-of-age tale) spanning decades.' Cameron Woodhead, The Age
'With her signature elegance and compassionate insight into human frailty, Carol Lefevre's Temperance reaffirms her as one of Australia's most accomplished writers.'
'The cover of Temperance features the 1932 painting 'Beach Scene' by Clarice Beckett, and the image perfectly evokes the light and heat of 20th-century beachside summers in Adelaide. But the painting's impressionist shimmer does far more than evoke visceral recollections of summer heat, it also conjures the mutable nature of memory.' Rachael Mead, InReview
You can read Rachael Mead's full review here.
The fictional settlement of Temperance, with its pub and its post office, had its genesis in a road trip my husband and I took many moons ago as newlyweds. We set out from Sydney to drive to Adelaide in the days before mobile phones or GPS, and found ourselves in an empty part of the map with rather less petrol than was ideal. As navigator, I diverted us along a side road to a tiny spot on the map that might have been a town, or might have been nothing. What we found there was a traditional outback pub, and a small store with a petrol pump, and a memory of place that would surface years later in this novel.
HOMESICK FOR OUSELVES:
the hidden grief of ageing
17th September 2023
"Homesick For Ourselves: the hidden grief of ageing" was the Friday Essay in The Conversation on 15th September 2023.
From the positive response, it seems that my own experience of ageing is widely felt.
You can read it in full here.
Listen to ABC Weekends with Andrea Gibbs as she chats with Carol about the essay. The broadcast was last Saturday 23rd September 2023 - click here.
THE SILVER MOTH
28th September 2022
The Silver Moth was published on 23rd of September 2022 after many years in the making. It is a sequel to Elizabeth Goudge's classic children's book The Little White Horse, a favourite of my own childhood, and I am thrilled to have been given permission to write it.
Readers familiar with the original will recognise the magical setting of Moonacre. This time the manor house, empty for many years and a bit rundown, is no less enchanting, as an elderly Maria Merryweather arrives with her granddaughter, Rose, to escape the bombs falling on London during the First World War. Rose soon settles in, and with the help of a host of kindred spirits, both animal and human, sets about re-negotiating peace with the ever troublesome de Noir clan, and solving the mystery surrounding the Silver Moth aeroplane.
To buy The Silver Moth or any of my books please click: Amazon or Booktopia or, if you prefer, from your local bookshop.
The Suddenly Senior podcast recently invited Carol to join them to discuss her essay "HOMESICK FOR OUSELVES: the hidden grief of ageing"
To listen to the podcast click here.
Susan Sheridan has written an interesting review of Temperance which appeared in the November 20th edition of The Conversation. Click here to read.
OTHER PLACES
I write a lot, and often end up with more words than I know what to do with. These pieces are the overspill. Under The Pink Lampshade
A month of mindfulness in the kitchen turned into this series of breakfast posts - thirtybeautifulbreakfasts
www.carollefevre.com has been chosen for archiving by the National Library of Australia and can be accessed through its digital collection. You can search their database via the box below.
