Melina Marchetta, Looking for Alibrandi, Penguin Australia, October 2022, 304 pp., RRP $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761047206
In 1993, Looking For Alibrandi won the CBCA Book of the Year award for Older Readers. Thirty years later, this modern classic remains a timeless work of Australian literature.
Seventeen year old Josie Alibrandi has one goal for her final year of high school- emancipation. What can possibly stand in her way, you ask? Perhaps just the expansive cultural expectations placed on her as a third generation Italian, or maybe even the ‘curse’ of her mother’s illegitimacy. Josie faces all too familiar challenges in navigating the HSC, intricate family conflict and first love.
Although she’s determined that her problems are among the world’s most taxing, Josie learns the importance of family, friends and more significantly, remaining true to oneself.
In this beautiful 30th anniversary hardcopy edition of Looking for Alibrandi, Josie’s journey is brought to the attention of a new generation of young readers. Facing the HSC year myself, I found that this novel has magically and accurately captured the Australian high school experience. Through Marchetta’s crafting of multidimensional characters, the themes of family tradition, the search for purpose and the importance of love are explored.
Equipped with an exclusive sneak peek of the original manuscript, a preface, interviews and more, this edition is not to be missed!
Reviewed by Olivia Sammut
