THE AUTHOR’S CUT by OWEN MARSHALL Penguin, $36 On Thursday night, my husband and I drove home in the dark, back to Lake Tekapo after watching the movie premiere of Coming Home in the Dark in Timaru. The internationally acclaimed movie, directed by James Ashcroft is inspired by Owen Marshall’s short story of the same title: Coming Home in the Dark. He wrote this story in 1995 and it has recently been republished with a selection of twenty Owen Marshall stories in The Author’s Cut to coincide with the release of the movie. In the past I have commented on the kind, non-judgmental and forgiving nature of much of Owen Marshall’s writing. That is probably why Coming Home in the Dark, the first story in the book shocked me to the core. Not only turned a friendly family picnic into a dark and cruel thriller, the contrast between the violence and the story’s beautiful setting in the Mackenzie Region – starting at Mt Cook and ending at the Burkes Pass Cemetery packed a punch. Driving home in the dark on Thursday, unwillingly re-enacting the bleak movie scenes with car headlights illuminating New Zealand country roads, I pondered why anyone would write a story or make a movie with such meaningless violence. In a radio interview on Nine to Noon, Owen Marshall said he was moved to write the tale after reading about random acts of violence in the news. “People going happily about their lives and then they're caught up in something they have no responsibility for. Just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. “I think part of a writer’s task is to go to the dark side as well as to go to the bright side to show all aspects of character and all aspects of society and not hesitate to do that.” Owen Marshall is celebrated for his authentic portrayal of New Zealand’s everyday society and with Coming Home in the Dark he went to the very underbelly of this society, completing this portrayal. Thankfully, the book has a mix of stories, not all grim, not all set in New Zealand, but all beautifully crafted by the master of New Zealand short stories. Owen Marshall will speak to Philip Temple about his new book The Author’s Cut at the Create Festival in the Lake Tekapo Community Hall on Sunday 26 September from 12 to 1PM. He will also appear together with Grahame Sydney to speak about their book Landmarks on Saturday 25 September at the Twizel Event Centre from 2 to 3PM. (The premiere movie tickets were kindly donated by Renee Rowland from the Twizel Bookshop and Timaru Booksellers.)
