And as the Depression has its impact on the country, the story of what’s possible for these women proves surprising. Grace hates mess, and Kitty wishes people saw more than just her beauty. Edda wants to be a doctor Tufts wants to organise the world. But now she's returned to the sweeping epic in her new book called Bittersweet, it's the story of two sets of twin sisters growing up in the fictional Australian town of Corunda in the 1920's and 1930's.They all train as nurses, but their desires and ambitions are very different. Determined not to be typecast, she has roamed boldly across genres to write the acclaimed Masters of Rome series of historical novels and the Carmine Delmonico crime series, as well as a memoir. But Colleen hated it and she famously refused to write a sequel. It was made into a mini series starring Rachel Ward and Richard Chamberlain in 1977. 'synopsis' may belong to another edition of this title.It's been 36 years since Colleen McCullough's hugely successful romantic epic The Thorn Birds was published. She flourished at Catholic schools and earned a physiology degree from the University of New South Wales in 1963.

Raised by her mother in Wellington and then Sydney, McCullough began writing stories at age 5. Rendered with McCullough's trademark historical accuracy, this dramatic coming of age tale is wise in the ways of the human heart, one that will transport readers to a time in history that feels at once exotic and yet not so very distant from our own. Colleen Margaretta McCullough was an Australian author known for her novels, her most well-known being The Thorn Birds and Tim. The results are sometimes happy, sometimes heartbreaking, but always. They meet men from all walks of life-local farmers, their professional colleagues, and even men with national roles and reputations-and each sister must make weighty decisions about what she values most. As the Latimer sisters become immersed in hospital life and the demands of their training, they meet people and encounter challenges that spark new maturity and independence. Together they decide to enroll in a training program for nurses-a new option for women of their time, who have previously been largely limited to the role of wives, and preferably mothers. They are famous throughout New South Wales for their beauty, wit, and ambition, but as they step into womanhood, they are not enthusiastic about the limited prospects life holds for them. Four sisters are McCullough’s avatars of women’s progress in Depression-era Australia. Yet these vivacious young women each have their own dreams for themselves: Edda wants to be a doctor, Tufts wants to organize everything, Grace won't be told what to do, and Kitty wishes to be known for something other than her beauty. In her first epic romantic novel since The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCullough weaves a sweeping story of two sets of twins-all trained as nurses, but each with her own ambitions-stepping into womanhood in 1920s and 30s Australia.īecause they are two sets of twins, the four Latimer sisters are as close as can be.

Bittersweet by Colleen McCullough