All These Things Are True

Novel In Progress

In early January of 1934, just as the setting sun casts shadows on the South Head of Sydney Harbour, twelve year old May Swift witnesses an accident that reveals disorienting truths about the stability of her family and the wonder and danger of love in the adult world.

She comes of age shaped by this trauma, keenly aware of the illusions and traps of romantic love, and determined to avoid them. But when she meets Lawrence Saywell, a dynamic young Jewish man, and they fall in love, she is not sure how to reconcile her fears with the profound connection they share.

When Lawrence enlists and leaves in January 1940 as part of the first Australian convoy, he and May are deeply committed to each other, but as the war progresses and communication with him becomes more scarce, May wrestles with her hopes for herself, the intervention of Lawrence’s family and the growing instability of her own. She tries to fend for herself, but her distance from Lawrence leads her to make a choice that will have repercussions for the rest of her life.

Some letters reach their destination in time. Some do not.