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IRINI
SAVVIDES
Irini Savvides' debut novel,
Willow Tree and Olive, follows the journey of an Australian-born
Greek girl in her final year at school trying to come to terms with
all the difficulties of adolescence - fitting in with friends and teachers,
fitting in with her family, fitting in with her Greek heritage. Through
one brief encounter, a long buried trauma in her early life is brought
to the surface and precipitates a major crisis in her life. The story
of how she comes through this period makes for compelling reading -
it's a confronting story but charts an intriguing journey through her
past experiences and her present day return to the country of her origin.
As Melina Marchetta comments, 'a beautifully fragmented story, so powerful
and relevant. Olive is one of the gutsiest characters I've read.'
Irini says this about her
novel: 'The original idea came from wanting to write a story about survival
in emotionally difficult circumstances and also wanting to explore my
own dual culture. . . I wanted to show the strength of young adults
when faced with great odds . . . I wanted to explore the duality of
hope and despair.
'Anybody who shares two cultures
will find resonances with this book. Then, of course, there are the
sufferers of any kind of abuse. While this book does not provide a model
for healing, it does show one story of survival and demonstrates that
hope is ever present . . . I wanted to reach those who have suffered
loss or grief, to remind them not to give up, to look for synchronicities
in life, the desire to beat the suffering. To survive and thrive.'
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Irini
was born in Sydney to Greek Cypriot parents. A teacher of English
and Drama, she is passionate about teaching and learning (and
also about travel!). Willow Tree and Olive was written
as part of Irini's thesis for her Masters of Arts degree at
Macquarie University, and her research included travels to
Greece to follow her character's footsteps. In 2000 she was
awarded two writing mentorships at the Varuna Writers' Centre
in Katoomba, the first for poetry and the other to work on
young adult fiction. She is currently completing a Master of
Education and lives in the Blue Mountains.
Irini's second novel, Sky
Legs, has just been published.
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