Member Loginmenu
The Wingmaker

The crumbling marble angel is Vega’s most ambitious restoration project yet, but she thinks she can manage it, if she could just find somewhere to house the statue while she works. Her father, Vince, has the solution: the abandoned Seafarers’ Hotel, which sits alone at the end of a winding coastal road, offers both the space and the quiet Vega craves.

The hotel also holds other surprises, however. The chandeliers are home to dive-bombing canaries, the ballroom occasionally hosts a troupe of tango-dancing farmers, and one of the bedrooms is occupied by an inept handyman who might be even more broken than Vega.

As Vega restores the fragile angel to its former glory, can she also find a way to pick up the pieces of her life and begin anew?


INTERVIEWS and REVIEWS


ABC Radio National: The Bookshelf (0:37:00)   
ABC Radio National: Blueprint for Living    
Australian Book Review    
Final Draft podcast   
Guardian:  Among Finland’s cold lakes and majestic pines, I learned to be present to beauty (op-ed)    
Sydney Morning Herald   
West Australian    

Mette Jakobsen
About the Author

Mette Jakobsen has a PhD in creative writing and a BA in philosophy. In 2004 she graduated from NIDA’s Playwrights Studio and several of her plays have been broadcast on ABC Radio National. Her previous novels are The Vanishing Act, shortlisted for the Commonwealth Book Prize in 2012, and What the Light Hides.

Read Moreright
Extent:
224pp
Format:
Paperback
Text publication date:
3 August 2021
ISBN:
9781922330727
AU Price:
$24.99
NZ Price:
$30.00
starstarstarstarstar
starstarstarstarstar
Loading Rating
Praise for Mette Jakobsen
andThe Wingmaker

‘Radiant, enchanting—The Wingmaker is a joy to read. I adore Mette Jakobsen’s writing.’

‘Mette Jakobsen’s first novel is a gossamer web, a work of fragile beauty.’

‘A wonderful story told with a voice that I wanted to listen to. A voice that will stay with me for a long time.’

‘A delectable delight, a fetching fable that is both heartbreaking in its poignancy and breathtaking in its delicacy.’

‘Jakobsen has written a very special book, a tender and considered exploration of how we love and how we cope with loss.’

‘Mette Jakobsen is an expert in creating images…Jakobsen describes the sights and sounds of inner-city Newtown as lovingly as she details the bush in the Blue Mountains.’

‘A novel replete with Jakobsen’s characteristic delicacy and enchantment.’

‘Readers of Mette Jakobsen will have come to admire the impressive poise of her writing…[In The Wingmaker], her sharp internal landscapes are balanced by the flamboyant whimsy of life pressing on, regardless of trauma or the weight of the past.’

‘Jakobsen handles her material with a light touch, imbuing her elegant prose with a contemplative air that’s complemented by playful flights of fancy…and an appealingly wry narrative voice.’

‘Charming…Jakobsen is an expert at creating jewel-like moments that often feel filmic…There’s a lot to like about The Wingmaker.’

Other editions ofThe Wingmaker
  • The Wingmaker
    ebook
    ISBN: 9781922459138
    3 August 2021
    Buy ebook