Dedicated to the men and women of the US forces, this is Hannah's twentieth novel, but the one she says she had the most difficulty writing, because of her determination to do the military proud.
“I have nothing in common with those people,” reveals reluctant party-goer Michael to his wife Jolene, on the eve of her 41st birthday do with her military workmates.
“I am those people,” replies the United States Army Black Hawk helicopter combat pilot.
Dedicated to the men and women of the US forces, this is polished Hannah’s twentieth novel, but the one she says she had the most difficulty writing, because of her determination to do the military proud.
Mid-life marriage shock aside — as her lawyer husband announces that he doesn’t love her anymore — the mum with the “best part time job in the world”, must also battle pre-teen daughter Betsy’s embarrassment at a mom in a flight suit.
But domestics will always be trumped by war, and when Jolene is suddenly deployed to Iraq, the household is literally blown apart — a minefield both in small-town Poulsbo,Washington where Michael must become full-time dad, and in the cockpit where the mum of two dodges death for her country.
Autumn is the gentle time in Australia. Spring can suddenly present you with a frost that withers the new shoots and tomatoes, but autumn is mostly blue skies. Autumn rain is usually gentle, the great thunder heads of summer gone.
As I write this the persimmons are ripe, big fat orange fruit, and the leaves are just turning orange.
In a few weeks they’ll be stunning, a tree like a blaze of fire, with leaves that will drop to an almost perfect circle on the ground.
I only rake them after they have turned brown. The persimmons will still be hanging like orange globes on the bare tree, unless the birds have eaten them, which they probably will — but then the birds are even more beautiful than the fruit.
The pomegranates are round and gorgeous too. The pomegranate leaves have turned bright yellow and the sugar maples have turned bright red.
You need cold night and warm days and little wind for the best autumn colours, as well as a good wet summer.
We’ve had the wet summer all right and the autumn colours are the most stunning I have ever seen.
If your climate is too warm for traditional autumn leaves, you may still be able to get some autumn colour with crepe myrtles, both the brilliant purple, mauve, pink or white blooms and the reddish orange leaves.
Old-fashioned crepe myrtle varieties were prone to mildew in warm and humid climates — or even if it wasn’t particularly warm and humid.
Modern varieties both bloom longer and are pretty much disease free, no matter what the weather throws at them.
I inherited an old crepe myrtle when we bought our place, and a hideous straggly multi-stemmed bush it is, with vaguely pink blooms almost hidden by the branches.
But the new varieties I planted about five years ago are one of the most stunning features of our autumn garden.
You can prune crepe myrtles to keep them as low shrubs, but if you let them grow tall to their natural 3-6 metres high they have smooth mottled trunks, one of the most beautiful barks you can find in the backyard.
Crepe myrtles require little care to keep them lovely. Prune off spent flowers in winter, if you get around to it.
If you don’t, they’ll eventually turn into small crisp debris that blows away in the wind. Do prune off small low twiggy branches though, to keep the smooth ‘top model perfect’ slim crepe myrtle shape.
Older varieties tended to sucker, so you ended up with a big bushy mass instead of an elegant shape.
Be firm if your crepe myrtle shows any tendency to sucker and snap off suckers at once. Sucker-bushes can become so shaggy that even the flowers look messy, instead of one of the highlights of the autumn garden.
Crepe myrtle flowers seem to jump at you. One day it’ll be an unremarkable green tree; the next there’ll be a brilliant blaze of blooms.
The new varieties flower for months, from early autumn well into winter. Make sure you plant them where you can see the tops of the trees as the plant grows taller.
In cold areas, plant them near a warm sunny wall or in a sheltered courtyard, as they don’t like cold winds.
In return you’ll get the most brilliant of autumn blooms, colour without fuss for decades in almost any garden in Australia.
Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux‘s wedding plans are well under way with the pair looking at the exclusive Elounda Beach Hotel & Villas resort in Crete to host their July nuptials.
Jen has reportedly visited the hotel recently looking for a wedding venue, with the hotel’s manager telling celebrity website TMZ “She has connections on the other side of the island as well”.
Take a look at the stunning Elounda Beach Hotel & Villas resort here!
Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux are planning their Greek wedding!
The stunning Elounda Beach Hotel & Villas resort.
The stunning Elounda Beach Hotel & Villas resort.
A number of celebrity guests are expected to attend the wedding.
The pair are planning on tying the knot in a traditional blue-domed chapel.
Visitation with his mother is very much to her convenience, she drives a nice car and lives in a wealthy neighbourhood yet she only pays $100 a month in child support! My husband refuses to remodify the payments because he doesn’t want to cause waves. I can kind of see his point of view, however, the situation leaves me financially drained. It’s just not fair to me. And though I have been more of a mother figure than his mum I am not treated as an equal.
I am becoming increasingly unhappy with the situation and have bailed before but I truly love my husband and have returned to try to make things work. However, as bad as this sounds I really feel nothing at all for my stepson. He is eight-years-old and I am only going through the motions of being a step-parent. I am relieved when he is at his mother’s house and enjoy the time away from him. I dread when he comes back.
I would never harm him in anyway but I wish so badly that he would just go live with his mother. I can honestly say if I never saw him again I wouldn’t shed a tear or miss him one single bit! It would be AWSOME if he moved out of state and I could never see him again. I love the alone time with my husband and the only reason I have lasted this long is because I love him so much. I know this may sound selfish, but I miss my husband.
If you sincerely want to make a go of it then the effort has to come from you as well as the recognition that you need to look honestly at your behaviour. Whatever you might think, you have not given 150 per cent nor are you a mother figure to this little boy, who appears to be let down badly by both you and his mother so his father’s love and affection will be even more important. By all means enjoy the time alone with your husband, but stop thinking about yourself the rest of the time, and if you want to be treated as an equal then behave like one.
If you can’t love your stepson then at least treat him with respect, as you would anyone else of importance to your husband. Talk to your husband without being negative about his son and ask him what he thinks would make life easier all round for the three of you. Work as a team with him to make his son feel loved and cherished. Children are very intuitive and he will know that you don’t like him and can’t wait to be rid of him, so you cannot expect a positive response or any sort of warm relationship until you put the real effort in yourself.
You’ve built a strong and loving relationship with his dad and you need to build one with him so try doing some things together just for the two of you. It could be connected to his dad, like organising a birthday treat or cooking him a special meal, because one thing you have in common is that you both love the same person and can start from that angle.
At the heart of this is the simple fact that you fell in love with a man who is a fantastic dad and he always will be but whether or not he is always your husband will undoubtedly be affected by how you treat his son. You don’t have to be your step son’s mother but if you get this right you and he could have a very strong friendship which can only enhance your marriage.
Your say: Have you had a similar experience? Share your stories and thoughts below.
An image from The Weekly's fashion shoot in Copenhagen.
Flicking through the May issue ofThe Weekly, you might notice some rather spectacular scenery in our coat special.
We aren’t in the habit of flying to Europe to shoot fashion stories, but when ECCO offered me a press trip to Denmark for Copenhagen Fashion Week, it was an opportunity too good to refuse.
So back in February, I packed up suitcases full of the best Australian fashion and flew to Denmark for a week of fun, fashion and bitterly cold weather.
For everyone who has wondered what life as a fashion editor is like, I kept this little diary of my trip just for you — enjoy!
Walking in Style
The trip started with a bang, I was invited to interview the head designer for ECCO ladies shoes, Niki, the night I arrived.
It was great to get an insight into the company and its Danish history but even more fascinating to speak to a fourth generation shoe maker, who has worked at his craft for 17 years — more than half of his life.
Niki started working for ECCO when he was 16. He began as a patternmaker and has risen through the ranks.
He told me about his passion for Scandinavian design and assured me I would be captivated by the designs that he was preparing to show at the ECCO Walk In Style Awards the following night.
The Walk in Style Awards were amazing. The fashion shows were broken up into three categories with a 1960s mod vibe, including a bold colour-blocking story and earthy back-to-nature theme.
Crown Princess Mary with the ECCO Walk In Style award winner Hadassah De Boer.
There was a great performance by Denmark’s own Lady Gaga, a popstar named Aura, and a wonderful energy.
Marlene Birger
At the By Marlene Birger (BMB) show it was all about luxe fabrics. Marlene’s winter collection included a long fluid silk gown with metallic hardware, lurex knits, a textured metallic houndstooth skirt, jacquard prints, camel coats, electric blues and sexy black lace.
The five keys looks that stood out were elegant, ladylike, sophisticated styles that are fit for royalty and us mere mortals too.
There was even a black version of the stunning white BMB tuxedo Princess Mary wore to the Walk in Style Awards.
These pieces are all on my wish list, and a selection is stocked locally at Christiansen Copenhagen.
Fashion, jewels and grunge
The team at Georg Jensen invited me to their Copenhagen headquarters where local pret-a-porter label YDE was on show.
As I arrived I was ushered inside as they were worried an Australian girl should not be out in the snow — it was -6 degrees!
Once inside and toasty warm, I watched the artisans and silversmiths working away in a glass studio as the elite Danish crowd — actresses, models, magazine editors — milled around waiting for the show to start.
On the catwalk, YDE designs shared the spotlight with George Jensen jewels, with all the models wearing pieces from both brands.
Models on the catwalk at the YDE show.
Later that night I went to Christiania — a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents in downtown Copenhagen — to see Rutzou.
Christiania is like nowhere I’ve ever been and there’s a lot to take in — a mix of dark independence, art and mystery.
The show was in a graffiti-covered shed — a very rustic and grungy setting that sharply contrasted with the collection shown.
Rutzou is all about femininity, beautiful prints and fluid silhouettes constructed in an artfully tailored manor — and a favourite of Princess Mary.
A crown fit for a princess
I was invited to the Ole Lynggaard flagship boutique to see the latest collection and images from the campaign featuring Danish beauty Helena Christiansen.
Ole and his daughter Charlotte are the brand’s designers, while son Simon is the CEO and I have not met a nicer family.
They are all so passionate about their craft, their Danish heritage and Scandinavian design.
Charlotte told me about one of their most stunning creations, a beautiful bespoke tiara made of gum leaves, semi-precious stones and pave diamond clusters.
It took over 400 hours to construct and was made for an exhibition celebrating Ole’s work as a jeweller.
When the piece was finished, the Lynggaard’s were shocked to be approached by the Danish Palace and asked if Mary could wear the piece.
They agreed and Mary wore the piece to an event, and now frequently wears Ole Lynggaard jewels.
The tiara Ole Lynggaard hand-crafted for Princess Mary, and Mary wearing the piece.
Work and play
The rest of my time I spent sight-seeing in the below zero temperature. I went on a cruise around the canals, saw the famous Little Mermaid statue, looked at the castles, walked the streets and fit in a spot of shopping!
I also spent a lot of time furiously preparing for a fashion shoot. On my second-last day I joined a team of Danish photographers, hairdressers and make-up artists to shoot a beautiful coat spread for the May issue ofThe Weekly.
It was such a fun day — even though it was -8 degrees — but we quickly forgot about the cold and just had an amazing time.
Behind-the-scenes at The Weekly’s Copenhagen fashion shoot.
Keep an eye out for the shoot in the May issue ofThe Weeklyso you can see for yourself how beautiful Copenhagen really is.
Thank you to ECCO for inviting me on this trip, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and cannot wait to go back!
Some of the best Scandinavian brands are now available in Australia. Here’s how to get your hands on some Scandi-style:
One year ago, blushing bride Kate Middleton walked up the aisle at London’s Westminster Abbey, completing her transformation from commoner to Duchess.
It has been a whirlwind first year of marriage for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, including tours to Canada and the US and dozens of official engagements in the UK.
But that doesn’t mean they haven’t had time for romance – these pictures prove that no matter where they go, William and Catherine only have eyes for each other.
Which is your favourite picture of the young couple?
The couple broke protocol during their Canadian tour last year, hugging in public.
William and Catherine exchange a loving look in Yellowknife.
The duchess lovingly touches William’s stomach in Canada last year.
William helps his wife into her new jumper at Blachford Lake in Canada last year.
Catherine looks adoringly at William at a tree-planting ceremony in Ottawa last year.
William looks in awe of his wife in LA last year.
The couple whisper to each other at a citizenship ceremony in Ottawa.
William couldn’t keep his hands off his wife as they visited a charity in December.
William shoots an admiring glance at Catherine on the red carpet in December.
The couple share a joke in the rain on Prince Edward Island in 2011.
The couple at a charity gala in November.
The couple share a joke at a concert in December.
William and Catherine were very tactile when they visited Copenhagen last November.
Catherine tries not to laugh at William on the red carpet in January.
Catherine found William’s joke very amusing in LA last year.
William guides his wife through the crowd in Yellowknife, Canada, last July.
William and Catherine chatting as they strolled along the beach in Canada.
The couple exchange another loving glance on Prince Edward Island in 2011.
Catherine reaches for William’s arm in Ottawa.
Catherine turns to look for William in Ottawa last July.
The couple attended a concert to celebrate Canada Day, but only had eyes for each other.
William gazes at his new wife with obvious admiration in Montreal.
When you think of nannas, knitting and bingo come to mind, but this certainly isn’t all nannas of the 21st century are doing.
Grandmother and co-author of new book New Age Nannas Susan Moore says what it means to be a grandmother in Australia is changing and women are embracing it.
“I don’t remember much about my grandparents, but they certainly didn’t drive cars,” she said.
“Nowadays nannas are very mobile and they are very active.”
Susan and her good friend of 36 years Doreen Rosenthal, both academics, decided to co-write a book about being a nanna in the 21st century after they started chatting about being grandmothers themselves.
The pair had discovered that there weren’t many books about actually being a grandmother and decided to conduct research on Australian grandmothers for their own book, which is made up of a combination of advice and real life stories.
Together, they surveyed more than 1000 Australian women on how they felt about being a grandmother, finding some surprising results and very interesting women.
“It is different for different women, but while women are retiring later and working longer their daughters are also having children later too and some of those things balance out,” Susan said.
“Lots of women think I’ll work full time until I have my first grandchild and then I’ll take a couple of days a week off – it is just about balance.
“But most are very happy to do a day or two of child care and different women at different stages of health can do different things, some were doing the school pick-up, while some do 40 hours a week child care and love it.”
Many of the grandmothers surveyed said that although they enjoyed playing the grandparent role, they also required time for themselves, their work and the things they love doing.
After receiving surveys back from more than 1000 women and interviewing 24, Susan and Doreen say there was certainly a common theme amongst Australian grandmothers.
“For many becoming a grandmother made them remember what is important in life. They said ‘I’ve been bogged down at work and I’ve been worried about a few wrinkles and now when I see these young children I am seeing hope for the future and for the new generation,” Susan said.
“Some of us have changed and we are living longer and healthier lives and a lot of grandmothers are still working at least part time.”
Their research also found that many women initially didn’t like the idea of becoming a grandmother.
“Quite a number of the woman said when ‘I first found out I was going to be a grandmother I really wasn’t sure, I thought ‘oh I’m too young to be a grandmother – I’m not ready for this’,” she said.
Susan put this reaction down to the fact that women are living longer and retiring later. But even though women’s lives and lifestyles have changed, Susan says we still welcome being a grandmother with open arms.
“Virtually without exception when it happened they were so excited and full of love and raw emotions and then paradoxically I think a number of women said ‘I thought it was going to make me feel older, but it actually has made me feel younger’,” she said.
Susan said the aim of their study was simple – to reflect Aussie grandmothers back to themselves.
“One of the major goals was to reflect Aussie grandmothers back to themselves in a way so that they could read the book and think yes that’s how I feel about it or think, no I’m not quite like that,” she said.
“We wanted to, I guess, describe Aussie grandmothers in their diversity and richness.”
A cracking, taut prologue in which a traumatised young woman launches herself off a London bridge to be lost to the murky depths of the Thames sets the pace and tone for this highly accomplished novel.
Secrets of the Tides, by Hannah Richell, Hachette Australia, $29.99.
A cracking, taut prologue in which a traumatised young woman launches herself off a London bridge to be lost to the murky depths of the Thames sets the pace and tone for this highly accomplished debut novel.
Who is she, why is she in such a state of despair and is she beyond saving? These are just a few of an intriguingly woven web of questions that make up the patchwork plot of this emotional modern-day family thriller.
Time ebbs and flows as we dart between present, near past and long past trying to unlock the secrets of one family.
It’s as if the constantly present sea — along the south coast of England — has entered the storyteller’s psyche (which you’ll find it literally has, in a way), although calling the family the Tides is possibly a metaphor too far.
As we gather snapshots of the lives of mother Helen and daughters Dora and Cassie, it’s clear this is a family torn apart by betrayal, guilt and clandestine trysts, which rise to a head on one summer’s day of tragedy.
Yet there’s much more to author Hannah Richell’s writing than a cleverly constructed plot.
Her characters — and by these I mean her female characters for they are by far the strongest — are multi-layered and not necessarily wholly likeable (always a good sign).
Helen struggles with motherhood and, frankly, seems to be doing a pretty shoddy job of it, but emotionally, we understand exactly where she’s coming from.
Second-born Dora ricochets from mother to father to sister like a bruised pinball trapped in her family machine and we long for her to be able to grow and not repeat her mother’s mistakes.
Even Cassie seems crippled emotionally, but why? All does become clear and while smart minds may get there before the big reveal, it doesn’t matter because half the joy is watching our characters free themselves and breathe again.
A definite page-turner with unexpected depths.
About the author
Born in England, Hannah Richell, 37, emigrated here in 2005 after falling in love with Australia’s beauty.
She lives in a little cottage in Sydney with her husband, their two young children and a black-and-white cat called Lennie.
She only started writing when she was at home on maternity leave. “It was one of those distant things I’d only ever dared dream of,” says Hannah, who admits the inspiration for her debut work came from her own journey into motherhood.
In 30 words or less, tell us what is great about a book you are reading at the moment. The best critique will win The AWW Cooking School cookbook, valued at $74.95, and be printed in the July issue of The Weekly. Simply visit aww.com.au/bookclub, or email [email protected], or write to The Great Read, GPO Box 4178, Sydney, NSW 2001.
She’s been on our TV screen longer than any other star in Australia, so it’s easy to imagine that you know everything there is to know about Kerri-Anne Kennerley.
But you only have to delve a little beyond her perma-peppy on-screen persona to discover there are things about the so-called “queen of daytime TV” that most mortals would never guess at.
Like, for example, that she thinks she’s not very bright. That she’s always been dogged by a nagging desire for credibility. Or that she’s a self-confessed adrenaline junkie whose 30 years of live television have left her addicted to the spotlight.
Now starring in Dancing with the Stars and preparing to launch a secret TV project, Kerri-Anne is back on top. But if 2012 marks yet another rebirth for Kerri-Anne, 2011 was her annus horribilis.
Sacked from the Nine Network in November and forced off the morning show she had spent nine years fronting, TV’s original sunshine girl found herself momentarily in career free-fall.
That the news of her impending demise was delivered by a journalist calling to ask how she felt about being replaced was, Kerri-Anne says, a body blow that took no small amount of grace to absorb.
But despite her ignominious dismissal, Kerri-Anne is adamant her decision to join rival Seven Network was not motivated by even the slightest desire for revenge.
“I’m not out for vengeance. Not in the slightest,” she tells the May issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly. “I think it was Matisse who once said you shouldn’t carry around hatred and revenge, because it’s a poison in your body. And it’s so true.”
And so the Seven Network pounced with an offer Kerri-Anne couldn’t refuse. If she would agree to sliding into sequins every Sunday night (something she was fine with) and offer up her lack of dance skills for the nation’s amusement (something she was less fine with), they would give her a prime-time gig, a show she will only describe now as “an overseas format [Seven] bought from a production company”.
“Truth be known, I didn’t even really want to do Dancing With The Stars and I initially said no,” says Kerri-Anne. “But Seven really wanted me to do it and they dangled the carrot of another show in front of me and I got suckered in.”
As much as Kerri-Anne’s story is one of achievement, it’s also a tale of survival. How she has prevailed in an industry renowned for its fickle nature is a lesson in old-school showbiz doggedness.
Since the age of 13, when she pestered former kids’ TV personality Uncle Jim Iliffe until he relented and made her co-presenter of his afternoon show on Queensland telly, Kerri-Anne has hardly been a day out of work.
“I’ve never really spent time analysing how I survived, I was too busy surviving,” she says. “I guess I was always nervous I would never work again, which is a powerful motivator.
“I grew up in a middle class family with a strong work ethic. I am sure people think I have had a charmed life, but I haven’t. I’ve really had to apply myself.”
Like many women of her generation who left school at 15, Kerri-Anne is convinced she’s not smart.
“I’m not a very bright person,” she says. “I don’t learn very quickly. I have street smarts and I am a plodder. Those are the cold hard facts of my life.
“I honestly think one of the reasons I have survived is because I am not that bright. As a result, I’ve always been prepared to just put my head down and put the work in. Plus, I really don’t have seriously high expectations.”
Read more of this story and see our photo shoot with Kerri-Anne in the May issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
Your say: Do you have any words of encouragement for Kerri-Anne as she moves into the next phase of her career?
Miranda Kerr, her mother Therese and grandmother Ann.
Three generations of Kerr women talk to Bryce Corbett, who discovers how tragedy taught them the importance of having a mum.
Mother’s Day is especially poignant in the Kerr household. Not least because two generations of the women whose gene pool gave the world Miranda Kerr lost their mothers when they were only very young.
Talk now to Miranda’s mum, Therese, or Miranda’s grandmother, Ann, and they will both speak of the day they lost their mother in matter-of-fact terms.
“She went into hospital and never came out,” recalls Ann, 75. “Mum was 32 and I was 13 years old. We waved her goodbye in the taxi that took her to hospital and that was the last we saw of her.
“My father went grey overnight. He never remarried. He always said he loved my mother too much.”
For Therese, who was 17 years old and pregnant with Miranda when her mother unexpectedly passed away, the memory of that day is similarly vivid.
“Mum woke up one morning with pains in her chest, was admitted to hospital and never came out,” Therese remembers. “I felt like my heart had been ripped from my chest. And the saddest thing for me is that she never got to meet my children. I would give anything for that. She would have been so proud of them.”
There are no tears from either Kerr matriarch as they relate their sad story, yet barely a day goes by that Ann and Therese don’t think about their mums.
But time is a healer and the Kerr women of Gunnedah, in country NSW, are nothing if not stoic, all products of good country breeding.
Observing Ann and Therese now as they pose with Miranda for The Weekly’s cameras, it’s obvious that they form a close-knit family.
Although the rigours of full-time supermodelling mean Miranda has to divide most of her time between homes in Los Angeles and New York, she still speaks to or texts her mother at least once a day.
“I learned at a very early age that family is more important than anything,” says Therese. “Ann has been like a mum to me.”
Adds Ann: “We know what it is like to lose your mother at a young age. It created a bond between us. It makes you realise how important it is in your life to be able to say that one little word: Mum.”
It’s a source of no small amount of pride for Miranda, too, that she was born of such hardy stock.
“Mum and Nan are two of the strongest women I know and they are a great source of strength in my life,” she says.
“I am so very close to my mum. I couldn’t imagine my life without her. I think you can only ever fully appreciate how devastating losing your mum would be when you actually go through that experience yourself.”
Read more of this story in the May issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
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