THERE SHOULD BE MORE DANCING by Rosalie Ham Format: Trade Paperback ISBN: 9781864711905 Imprint: Vintage Australia Released

in July, 2011

Reading Guide Theres no point living for things we cant have because you dont get the life you could have. Margery Blandon, 2009 Synopsis Margery Blandon has led an upright, principled life guided by the wisdom of desktop calendars. Now she suspects that her firstborn, Walter, her champion and closest ally, has betrayed her. She suspects Morris, her second son, might have committed a crime, and that her only daughter, Judith, is trying to kill her. Then theres Pat, her lifelong neighbour and enemy, now demented, who possibly knows the truth about what went wrong. Should she throw herself from the 43rd floor of the Tropic Hotel, or should she abandon everything she believes and embrace her enemy for the sake of whats right? Characters Family: Cecily Margerys long dead twin sister to whom Margery talks of all events. It is the memory of her beloved sister Cecily that prevents Margery from fully engaging with her present world. Anita recognises early on that she has to get it right, that she cant get to the end of life and think, I failed. Shes a pragmatic, compassionate, responsible carer who doesnt look like one as far as Margerys concerned. Walter loved for his successes and the kudos he brought to Brunswick, quickly forgotten when he was no longer a winner. When Walter nearly dies Margery puts all of her energy into Walter. It was a step in the right direction but didnt extend to Judith, nor Morris, Margerys second son; the middle one who she hardly noticed. Judith Margerys last child, was conceived accidentally which prevented Margery from leaving her unhappy marriage. Judith also didnt turn out to be anything like Cecily and Judith feels this in her mothers abandonment of her. Happily, Judith is resourceful, and ultimately sets about fixing her life by fighting for what she deserves and by providing a loving life for her own daughter, DeeAndra (Pudding). The friends she could have had . . . Margerys protectors and good neighbours: Pat sees that she dresses garishly, sings and drinks and has fun, which Margery wont allow herself to long for and thus resents. Pat has been protecting Margery from truths she didnt think she could cope with. A true case of lost friendship opportunity. Flossy represents the brighter side of life, a certain kind of worldliness, warmth and opportunities for dancing. What Margery doesnt see is that Flossy too has had her desires thwarted.

Mrs Bist is goodness, and discretion. She could have told Margery the truth, she could have been a good friend to her, a role model for Margery to live by, but Margery rejected her good intentions, and is scathing of Mrs Bists do-gooding. Mrs Parsons when the Dr suggests Margery visit Mrs Parson daily to tie her shoes, she begins to do so without a second thought and it brings purpose and friendship to her life. Margery fails to see they could have been friends 40 years earlier if only she had opened her eyes and heart to Mrs Parsons. The Ahmeds every time they see Margery shes either being assaulted by her daughter, or looks as if she has been. Those who she looks down upon are looking askance at her. Kevin another isolated, searching, opportunistic, lonely person in the middle of a million people. Perhaps hell find a friend in Samuel, Mrs Parsons son, restored to his rightful neighbourhood. Themes Loyalty, family, ageing and questions about how to live a good life. What is a good life? Margery Blandon suffers the long-term effects of unresolved guilt and grief over the death of her twin sister when a teenager and it impacts badly on her family, friends and enemies, one and the same in some instances. The grief and guilt of this and her subsequent dedication to Cecily meant that she was absent for her own children and husband. As a result, Margery and her family failed themselves and each other, only rallying at the end, when Margery is almost eighty, a widow, her children middle-aged. Central ideas also include loss of faith, looking but not seeing, judging people by their appearance, failing to realise the potential in a life and failing to recognise the truth when its in the street beyond your door, and especially if its about yourself, and within. Margery lives by platitudes but when Pat declares, Whoever sheds mans blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man she is flagging the idea that Margery will get from life what she puts in. Margery is a mess of contradictions. She feels guilt for putting her mother in a nursing home, is dead keen for Flossy - her temporary flat mate to attend one, encourages Kevin to keep Pat in one, but is outraged by the idea that her children want to move her to an aged-care facility. Its her loss of faith in (people and God), her inward-turning perspective (and the desktop calendars) that prevented Margery seeing beyond how things appear; prevent her seeing the potential in life, marriage, her children and friends. By not seeing the truth, Margery only knew half her life. When she did see the truth, it appeared as herself, and her arch-enemies Pat and Flossy. But Pat and Flossy hadnt actually done anything to her that she hadnt participated in herself. While Margery neatly threaded the principles of how she thought her life was (or should be) into fabric to display proudly on the walls of her home, her refuge, people around her suffer, and die unnoticed deaths. Margery was able to find a focus for her grief and loss in Walter, who, unlike Cecily, happily lived through his near-death crisis with Margerys help. Finally, Mrs Parsons died at a time when change was occurring in Margerys life and her careful world was rattled. Mrs Parsons death after an accident in the car driven by Margery shook her, but the idea that she might have caused the Mrs Parsons death is dismissed by the well-meaning Constable Morgan. Too late Margery understands that she could have been a more astute friend to Mrs Parsons, but in fact it was her lack of interest in Mrs Parsons that allowed her to live a life patiently waiting and her pain closely held. Though Margery raised a dysfunctional family, and has racist tendencies, she ends up with three granddaughters; two illegitimate, one of whom has a black father, the other a Thai mother, and her eldest aspires to being a groupie.

Reading Group Questions 1. Is Gold Street, Brunswick with its blend of original residents, newer families, families from other cultures, renters and the encroachment of the moneyed crowds wanting bigger modern houses and no corner pub a typical/believable suburban street? What do you think the author is suggesting about modern Australian life? 2. Is Margery a bad person, and racist, or can her ignorance of the world around her excuse her poorer behaviours? 3. Is it possible to live a life of principles as Margery sets out to do, or is compromise inevitable? 4. How important is loyalty in life? 5. Margery is a mess of contradictions the idea of a nursing home for herself appals her, yet she allowed her mother and Pat to enter one. Are we all a roiling mass of contradictions or has Rosalie Ham drawn an extreme example to direct our gaze inwards? 6. Who is the hero of There Should Be More Dancing? Anita? Pat? Flossy? Walter? Margery? 7. Can you judge a book by its cover?

Reading Guide taken from There Should be More Dancing by Rosalie Ham Available in bookshops July, 2011 | ISBN: 9781864711905 Imprint: Vintage Australia | Publisher: Random House Australia
Copyright Rosalie Ham 2011. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.