Repentance

Alison Gibbs

‘Repentance vividly captures the past but speaks urgently to readers right now.’

Debra Adelaide

‘Irresistible, compassionate, and timely.’

Mark Tredinnick

View all reviews

‘Moves like a meditation, reflecting the rhythms of the natural landscape that Gibbs writes about so beautifully.’

Deborah Crabtree, Books+Publishing

‘There are moments of great beauty in this novel. Gibbs describes the bush with a knowing eye. There are also scenes where, inevitably, violence erupts between hippy protesters and those who want them out of the forests and out of town. These positions lead to a climax of confrontation which is arresting and memorable. The result shows the title of this novel is entirely apt.’

Christopher Bantick, The Weekly Times

‘Timely and atmospheric.’

Gemma Nisbet, The West Australian

‘[A] fresh and captivating read … Repentance is an incredible novel that puts you right in the middle of a town conflict, giving the reader a chance to explore the dynamics and hardships of what life is like in a smaller community. With detailed depictions of both the rainforest and farmlands, Gibbs has captured a beautiful snapshot of Australia’s past.’

Good Reading

‘Repentance is a quaint story, one offering a look into a pivotal time of Australian history.’

Jack Callil, The Guardian

‘The novel describes a time of high social upheaval … Where humans fit into the ecosystem, and how firmly or lightly we should tread, is a divisive and fascinating topic, and this is a note that examines these questions with creativity and refreshing open-mindedness.’

Louise Swinn, The Saturday Paper

‘Here is a novel that takes you deep into the landscape commonly known as the great outback, the true blue Aussie heartland … The story of what is right and wrong in how we care for our environment is also a story of family, filial piety and love. Isn’t that what all the greatest stories are about?’

Jessie Tu, Sydney Morning Herald

‘Evocative … Gibbs gives a voice to all factions, including local wildlife in brief, intense interludes among the ants, beetles, spiders, giant crickets that share the forest.’

Katherine England, The Advertiser

[T]his novel was just sublime. It ebbed and flowed like a gentle stream and even when it was at its most dramatic, there was a stillness to it that allowed you to really sink in and appreciate Alison’s beautiful writing and superb characterisation … This is a fine example of accessible and engaging literary fiction … [A] brilliant read.

Theresa Smith Writes

‘Repentance is a thoughtful novel set in 1970s Australia, when environmental politics began to develop into an important movement … An eminently readable novel bringing a significant period in Australian history to life, Repentance is a fascinating debut, both multi-faceted and assured.’

Penelope Cottier, The Canberra Times

‘A fierce, fair, and moving novel, so true you can smell the rainforest.’

Robert Drewe

‘But then we all love this place, don’t we, in our different ways?’

It’s the summer of 1976, and the winds of change are blowing through the small town of Repentance on the edge of the Great Dividing Range. The old families farmed cattle and cut timber, but the new settlers, the hippies, have a different perspective on the natural order and humankind’s place in the scheme of things. Soon everything will be disturbed. Either the old growth is coming down or the loggers have to be stopped. And although not everyone agrees on tactics, noone will escape being drawn into the coming confrontation.

A tale of a country town and its rhythms, Repentance is also the story of modern Australia at one of its flashpoints, told tenderly and beautifully through the eyes of characters you won’t forget.

‘Repentance vividly captures the past but speaks urgently to readers right now.’

Debra Adelaide

‘Irresistible, compassionate, and timely.’

Mark Tredinnick

View all reviews

‘Moves like a meditation, reflecting the rhythms of the natural landscape that Gibbs writes about so beautifully.’

Deborah Crabtree, Books+Publishing

Christopher Bantick, The Weekly Times

‘Timely and atmospheric.’

Gemma Nisbet, The West Australian

Good Reading

‘Repentance is a quaint story, one offering a look into a pivotal time of Australian history.’

Jack Callil, The Guardian

Louise Swinn, The Saturday Paper

Jessie Tu, Sydney Morning Herald

‘Evocative … Gibbs gives a voice to all factions, including local wildlife in brief, intense interludes among the ants, beetles, spiders, giant crickets that share the forest.’

Katherine England, The Advertiser

Theresa Smith Writes

Penelope Cottier, The Canberra Times

Details

Format:Paperback

Size: 234mm × 153mm

Extent:304pp

ISBN (13):9781922310064

RRP:$32.99

Pub date:5 Jan 2021

Rights Held: World

High-res cover:Download Image

AWARDS

CATEGORIES / tags

AUTHOR

Alison Gibbs

Alison Gibbs was born in Kyogle in 1963 and spent her childhood in the towns and villages of northern New South Wales. She now lives in Sydney, where she runs her own writing consultancy producing copy for United Nations agencies and the not-for-profit sector. Her short stories and essays have been published and broadcast in Australia and the United Kingdom and have received numerous short-listings and awards. Repentance is her first novel.

Fire Exit

Morgan Talty

RRP: $32.99 Pub date: 4 Feb 2025 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

The Knowing

Madeleine Ryan

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 4 Feb 2025 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Darkenbloom

Eva Menasse

RRP: $36.99 Pub date: 7 Jan 2025 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

The Liquid Eye of a Moon

Uchenna Awoke

RRP: $39.99 Pub date: 7 Jan 2025 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Thirst

Marina Yuszczuk

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 29 Oct 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Gifted

Suzumi Suzuki

RRP: $27.99 Pub date: 1 Oct 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Diving, Falling

Kylie Mirmohamadi

RRP: $32.99 Pub date: 3 Sep 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Bear

Julia Phillips

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 2 Jul 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Brothers and Ghosts

Khuê Ph?m

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 2 Jul 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

The Good Women of Fudi

Liu Hong

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 2 Jul 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Manny and the Baby

Varaidzo

RRP: $35.00 Pub date: 4 Jun 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

The Hairdresser’s Son

Gerbrand Bakker

RRP: $35.00 Pub date: 4 Jun 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Antiquity

Hanna Johansson

RRP: $27.99 Pub date: 30 Apr 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Thunderhead

Miranda Darling

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 3 Apr 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Vladivostok Circus

Elisa Shua Dusapin

RRP: $27.99 Pub date: 3 Apr 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

The Extinction of Irena Rey

Jennifer Croft

RRP: $35.00 Pub date: 27 Feb 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Between a Wolf and a Dog

Georgia Blain

RRP: $24.99 Pub date: 9 Jan 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Quick view

Bird Life

Anna Smaill

RRP: $29.99 Pub date: 9 Jan 2024 Category: Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945) Cover view

Repentance

Alison Gibbs

Related content

AUTHOR

EXTRACT

News