''The Erratics'' is a 2018 memoir by Canadian-Australian author Vicki Laveau-Harvie. The book, which was Laveau-Harvie's first, explores the author's dysfunctional relationship with her mother, who experienced narcissistic personality disorder. ''The Erratics'' was the recipient of the 2019

Stella Prize The Stella Prize is an Australian annual literary award established in 2013 for writing by Australian women in all genres, worth $50,000. It was originally proposed by Australian women writers and publishers in 2011, modelled on the UK's Bailey ...

and was shortlisted for the Douglas Stewart Prize for Nonfiction at the

New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, also known as the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, were first awarded in 1979. They are among the richest literary awards in Australia. Notable prizes include the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction, th ...

Summary

After Vicki Laveau-Harvie's mother is hospitalised for a fractured hip, she and her sister travel to their parents' home in Alberta, Canada to care for their elderly parents. Laveau-Harvie has been estranged from her parents for eighteen years, having moved to France as a young adult and then to Australia. When she arrives in Canada, she discovers that her father has been brainwashed, starved and imprisoned by her mother. Her mother, who has long been prone to narcissism and manipulative behaviour, is experiencing delusions. She and her sister attempt to have their mother institutionalised, fearing that she will kill their father once she is released from hospital. Eventually, her mother is placed in a mental health ward for ongoing treatment, and Laveau-Harvie returns to Sydney.

Publication history

''The Erratics'' was first published in June 2018 by the independent publisher Finch Publishing, which went out of business six months later. The out-of-print book was then picked up by

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

after being unexpectedly longlisted for the

, and was re-issued in March 2019. After winning the Stella Prize, the book was published by

Penguin Random House Penguin Random House Limited is a British-American multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate publishing company formed on July 1, 2013, with the merger of Penguin Books and Random House. Penguin Books was or ...

in the United States in August 2020. Laveau-Harvie described the experience of going from her debut book falling out of print to winning a major literary award as "a fairytale".

Reception

The book received positive reviews in the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', the ''

Sydney Review of Books The ''Sydney Review of Books'' (''SRB'') is an online literary magazine established in 2013. According to the journal's inaugural editor James Ley it was created to address shortcomings in Australian book reviews. Awards In 2019 ''SRB'' co ...

'', ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'', ''

The Conversation ''The Conversation'' is a 1974 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written, produced, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It stars Gene Hackman as a surveillance expert who faces a moral dilemma when his recordings reveal a potential ...

'' and ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. The Stella Prize judges' report writes that "the narrative is brimming with honesty, the narrator somehow manages to see all viewpoints, and we are rewarded with an evocative and expansive view of a family that has more than its fair share of dysfunction". Reviewers praised Laveau-Harvie's ability to balance grief and humour, as well as the quality of her writing and her vivid descriptions of the Canadian winter landscape. Camilla Nelson wrote in ''

'' that the book was both "remarkable" and "deeply uncomfortable", and that "where the rest of us would rather deal in easy platitudes, this book is deeply honest".

Awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Erratics, The Australian memoirs 2018 non-fiction books