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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'In this brave and lucid account, Julia Leigh broaches a challenging life event often left undiscussed: how the struggle to have a child can take an agonizing toll. Leigh’s experience at the vanguard of medical science is acutely rendered, physically and emotionally, transmitting what it feels like to so desperately wish for a child while knowing that the odds are stacked against you. From the daily shots she puts herself through at home, to hopes raised and dashed, and finally to the decision to stop treatment, Avalanche bears witness to Leigh’s raw desire, suffering, strength, and, in the end, transformation―a shift to a different kind of love. The reader looks behind the scenes of a clinic and discovers how things really work: reality is a far cry from the slick marketing of the billion-dollar infertility industry. As for so many women, Leigh’s treatment failed, but her ghost child lingers in memory.' (Publication summary)
Adaptations
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Avalanche : A Love Story
2019
single work
drama
'Acclaimed Sydney novelist Julia Leigh is 38 years old and deeply in love with her new husband. Like countless other couples around the country, they want to have a child together and they make an appointment at an IVF clinic. They are full of hope and shared commitment. So begins this true story.
'Avalanche is Julia Leigh’s riveting, emotionally honest and exceptionally moving account of a profound and widespread experience. She lays bare the highs and the lows, the pull of maternal yearning, the toll on a relationship, and the daily oscillation between hope and doubt. It’s a story we can all relate to – about the dreams we have for ourselves, the hopes we have for our futures and the goals we have for our families.'
Source: Sydney Theatre Company.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Pick Your Own Misadventure
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , March 2017;'On the first page of Julia Leigh’s memoir Avalanche, the author injects herself with artificial hormones: ‘I did this knowing that no matter how hard I hoped, no matter what I tried, chances were I’d never have a child.’ This is a book about hope, effort, and chance. Hope: the possibility of a child ‘conjured out of the ether’; the brittle optimism that sustains Leigh through years of fertility treatments. Effort: the brutal physical, psychological and financial costs of assisted fertility treatments. Chance: the statistics that, when finally in clear view, reveal that hope to have been remote all along.' (Introduction)
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Review : 'Avalanche: A Love Story' by Julia Leigh
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , August no. 383 2016; (p. 74)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
[Untitled]
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 4 June 2016; (p. 36)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
Not Bringing Home the Baby
2016
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 4 June 2016; (p. 14) -
Sweet Dark Purpose
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , June no. 123 2016; (p. 50-51)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography
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Shining a Light on Dark Times
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 30 April - 1 May 2016; (p. 30) The Saturday Age , 30 April - 1 May 2016; (p. 30)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
Unshackled Memoir of IVF’s Hope and Despair
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 14-15 May 2016; (p. 19)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
Sweet Dark Purpose
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , June no. 123 2016; (p. 50-51)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
[Untitled]
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 4 June 2016; (p. 36)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
Review : 'Avalanche: A Love Story' by Julia Leigh
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , August no. 383 2016; (p. 74)
— Review of Avalanche : A Love Story 2016 single work autobiography -
Not Bringing Home the Baby
2016
single work
column
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 4 June 2016; (p. 14) -
Pick Your Own Misadventure
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , March 2017;'On the first page of Julia Leigh’s memoir Avalanche, the author injects herself with artificial hormones: ‘I did this knowing that no matter how hard I hoped, no matter what I tried, chances were I’d never have a child.’ This is a book about hope, effort, and chance. Hope: the possibility of a child ‘conjured out of the ether’; the brittle optimism that sustains Leigh through years of fertility treatments. Effort: the brutal physical, psychological and financial costs of assisted fertility treatments. Chance: the statistics that, when finally in clear view, reveal that hope to have been remote all along.' (Introduction)
Awards
- 2017 shortlisted New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-Fiction
- 2017 longlisted The Stella Prize
- 2016 winner Australian Centre Literary Awards — Peter Blazey Fellowship