In the autumn of 1949, two women convene in the parlour of an upmarket Melbourne hotel. Tess is married and childless. Mary, unwed and pregnant. Over thirty minutes, Mary agrees to a life-altering pact: to hand over her child.
One year earlier, Mary had arrived in the ruined port of Kure, where thousands of Australians had established an occupation of the Hiroshima prefecture. Among the rubble, she finds a surreal expat world of picnics, parties and uneasy privilege, while the local population struggles to rebuild.
There she meets Sullivan “Sully” Darling, an Australian journalist. What begins as a weekend trip to the mountains turns into a love affair —one that forces Mary to confront her ideals about the war, the Allies’ legacy and herself.
Back in Australia, the echoes of occupation linger, as Mary fights to reclaim her place —and her child —in a society determined to possess her.
For fans of Colm Tóibín’s Brooklyn, Kristin Hannah and Sarah Winman, The Occupation is a tender, beautifully told novel about love, legacy and the quiet aftershocks of history.
Our library stands on Wadawurrung Country. Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute acknowledges the Wadawurrung People of the Kulin Nation as the first inhabitants and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we work, learn and create. Always Was, Always Will Be, Aboriginal Land.
