The Classics Challenge: Reading an Australian Classic

Continuing my efforts to incorporate more classics into my reading, in February I picked up an Australian classic called My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin. The novel is considered to be semi-autobiographical in nature and is set in the late 19th - early 20th century in the South-East of Australia. The main character is a seventeen year old girl named Sybylla. She is head-strong and unruly, she is also vivacious and a tomboy. I definitely appreciated the author's stance on women's place in society, her desire to break away from the expected role of wife and mother, and her rebellion against the proper look and behavior for a young woman.

There were, however, other aspects of the novel that I did not enjoy as much. For example, for all her yearning for independence in life, Sybylla is for the most part shallow and immature. She is utterly insecure and has such a low self-esteem that no matter how many young men shower her with attention, she still professes to be ugly and undesirable. Her behavior towards Harold is odd to say the least. She flirts with him, and then goes out of her way to try to make him jealous simply because she wants him to exhibit his passion and admiration for her. In the end, she hurts him over and over again, the person who truly loves her. I do understand her desire to be independent, but I don't think asserting one's independence lies through hurting those who care for her.

In the end I rated this book at 2 out of 5 stars. I am glad I read it, but the heroine definitely did not live up to my expectations.