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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Since her sister died, Meg has been on her own. She doesn’t mind, not really—not with Atticus, her African grey parrot, to keep her company—but after her house is broken into by a knife-wielding intruder, she decides it might be good to have some company after all.
'Andy’s father has lost his job, and his parents’ savings are barely enough to cover his tuition. He can't go home to Hong Kong -- but if he wants to graduate, he’ll have to give up his student flat and find a homeshare. Living with an elderly Australian woman is harder than he’d expected, though, and soon he’s struggling with more than his studies.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Notes
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Dedication: For Rani, Alyssa and Toby.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
Works about this Work
-
Australia in Three Books
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: Meanjin , Autumn vol. 80 no. 1 2021;
— Review of Looking for Alibrandi 1992 single work novel ; Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel ; Stranger Country 2019 single work autobiography'I was a bookish child with a voracious hunger for stories. At the age of four, I would hold a tiny torch under my blanket at preschool during nap time so I could keep reading. I devoured all the books and demanded more. In those early days, the books that captured my imagination were about magical, impossible things: fairies, pixies, kindly moon folk. I pored over Australian kids’ books such as Animalia, Possum Magic and Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, losing myself in colourful illustrations of strange creatures, rather than anything rooted in the real.' (Introduction)
-
Everyone Has a Mirror Face
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Antipodes , vol. 33 no. 2 2019; (p. 437-438)
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel -
Victoria Nugent Reviews Room for a Stranger by Melanie Cheng
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Mascara Literary Review , December no. 24 2019;
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel'Two strangers from completely different backgrounds with seemingly little in common thrown together, it’s a common enough set up for a novel. But in Room for A Stranger, Melanie Cheng uses that premise exceptionally well to create an undeniably pleasurable read, rich in texture and feeling.' (Introduction)
-
Where Do the Lonely People Come from?
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22 June 2019; (p. 24)
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel'While the towns and villages of Europe emptied into cities for the burgeoning opportunities and exploitations of the industrial revolution, the romantics countered with celebrations of nature and the individual. Literature has been fascinated by the figure of the isolated self, surrounded by millions, ever since.' (Introduction)
-
July in Fiction
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Overland [Online] , July 2019;
-
[Review] Room for a Stranger
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , May no. 155 2019; (p. 65)
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel -
Where Do the Lonely People Come from?
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22 June 2019; (p. 24)
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel'While the towns and villages of Europe emptied into cities for the burgeoning opportunities and exploitations of the industrial revolution, the romantics countered with celebrations of nature and the individual. Literature has been fascinated by the figure of the isolated self, surrounded by millions, ever since.' (Introduction)
-
Victoria Nugent Reviews Room for a Stranger by Melanie Cheng
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Mascara Literary Review , December no. 24 2019;
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel'Two strangers from completely different backgrounds with seemingly little in common thrown together, it’s a common enough set up for a novel. But in Room for A Stranger, Melanie Cheng uses that premise exceptionally well to create an undeniably pleasurable read, rich in texture and feeling.' (Introduction)
-
Australia in Three Books
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: Meanjin , Autumn vol. 80 no. 1 2021;
— Review of Looking for Alibrandi 1992 single work novel ; Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel ; Stranger Country 2019 single work autobiography'I was a bookish child with a voracious hunger for stories. At the age of four, I would hold a tiny torch under my blanket at preschool during nap time so I could keep reading. I devoured all the books and demanded more. In those early days, the books that captured my imagination were about magical, impossible things: fairies, pixies, kindly moon folk. I pored over Australian kids’ books such as Animalia, Possum Magic and Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, losing myself in colourful illustrations of strange creatures, rather than anything rooted in the real.' (Introduction)
-
Everyone Has a Mirror Face
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Antipodes , vol. 33 no. 2 2019; (p. 437-438)
— Review of Room for a Stranger 2019 single work novel -
Generational Exchange : Melanie Cheng on ‘Room for a Stranger’
Carody Culver
(interviewer),
2019
single work
interview
— Appears in: Books + Publishing , March vol. 98 no. 1 2019; (p. 19-21)'Melanie Cheng’s debut novel Room for a Stranger (Text, May) follows the unlikely friendship between an elderly Australian woman and an international student from Hong Kong. Reviewer Carody Culver spoke to the author.' (Introduction)
-
Traces
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , May no. 411 2019; (p. 36)'What does it mean to live in a place but never to fully belong to it? How does our capacity for intimacy alter when we are in exile? How do we forge an identity among haphazard collisions of cultures and histories?' (Introduction)
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Books Roundup Stop Being Reasonable, Room for a Stranger
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Kill Your Darlings [Online] , April 2019; -
July in Fiction
2019
single work
review
— Appears in: Overland [Online] , July 2019;
Awards
- 2020 longlisted Miles Franklin Literary Award
- 2020 shortlisted New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Multicultural NSW
- 2020 longlisted Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) — Australian Literary Fiction Book of the Year