Fatima Downunder
by Julie Ryan
The third book of a trilogy is almost always the payoff. It is the book the author wanted to write, but the many pages of setting up the story were never going to be accepted by a publisher. So the two preceding books, no matter how good, do not contain the point the author wants to get across.
With Fatima Downunder, the point Dennis Bogdanovitch and the author Julie Ryan are making is driven home. This book does not start slowly, it is a car that is already in motion and as it moves, it accelerates towards that denouement. It brings Dennis home to New Zealand, where he reunites with his wife and brings Fatima and her son along with him.
This book is a rush, with a direct and forceful writing style that makes it difficult to stop reading. It turns the odd path and life decisions Dennis makes into a vehicle that delivers us to a conclusion where predestination becomes more of an afterthought of the creator than a profound philosophical concept. While I liked Swimming with Big Fish and Swimming with Crocodiles, I loved Fatima Downunder, and Fatima Downunder enters the “must-read” category with a bullet.
No, I am not going to discuss the point being made. That would prevent you from properly enjoying the book, but I do insist that you read these books in order. Nor should you read the first and then decide to stop because it was merely entertaining, because that would miss the point entirely. Entertainment is the vehicle, but the destination is someplace else entirely, and well worth the journey.
FlaxFlower reviews for Swimming With Big Fish and Swimming With Crocodiles appeared on 28 January 2025 and 30 May 2025. Locate them via the Archives function at right.
by Julie Ryan
The third book of a trilogy is almost always the payoff. It is the book the author wanted to write, but the many pages of setting up the story were never going to be accepted by a publisher. So the two preceding books, no matter how good, do not contain the point the author wants to get across.
With Fatima Downunder, the point Dennis Bogdanovitch and the author Julie Ryan are making is driven home. This book does not start slowly, it is a car that is already in motion and as it moves, it accelerates towards that denouement. It brings Dennis home to New Zealand, where he reunites with his wife and brings Fatima and her son along with him.
This book is a rush, with a direct and forceful writing style that makes it difficult to stop reading. It turns the odd path and life decisions Dennis makes into a vehicle that delivers us to a conclusion where predestination becomes more of an afterthought of the creator than a profound philosophical concept. While I liked Swimming with Big Fish and Swimming with Crocodiles, I loved Fatima Downunder, and Fatima Downunder enters the “must-read” category with a bullet.
No, I am not going to discuss the point being made. That would prevent you from properly enjoying the book, but I do insist that you read these books in order. Nor should you read the first and then decide to stop because it was merely entertaining, because that would miss the point entirely. Entertainment is the vehicle, but the destination is someplace else entirely, and well worth the journey.
FlaxFlower reviews for Swimming With Big Fish and Swimming With Crocodiles appeared on 28 January 2025 and 30 May 2025. Locate them via the Archives function at right.
Review by BJ Chippindale
Title: Fatima Downunder
Author: Julie Ryan
Publisher: Orakei Press
ISBN: 9780473738211
RRP: $40
Available: bookshops; or online www.copypress, www.ketebooks.co.nz, www.thenile.com.au/
Author: Julie Ryan
Publisher: Orakei Press
ISBN: 9780473738211
RRP: $40
Available: bookshops; or online www.copypress, www.ketebooks.co.nz, www.thenile.com.au/
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