Dr Margaret Sutherland

Leaving Gaza Dr Margaret Sutherland

Can there be two more different women than Ruth, a vibrant Israeli writer who grew up amid gunfire and grenades, and long-married Barbara, living and painting in her Australian home town? Ruth's independence and her passion for Israel's political cause introduce conflict into the artistic world of Heath and Barbara Barnes. Ruth enters their close, humdrum atmosphere just as Barbara declares war on a life she now sees as subservient and controlled. Perhaps she just craves attention and respect, but Heath can't understand her needs. The newcomer is drawn in to fill a growing rift, until sociable lunches and cosy picnics turn awkward and falter. 'Innocence can be dangerous, ' Ruth points out to her friend. 'What do you mean?' 'We can't deny the dark side's never far away.' Touching and relevant to contemporary fiction readers, Leaving Gaza is a dramatic portrait of women with different pasts in contrasting locations, who confront doubts about their separate fates.