The Time of the Peacock

These stories re-create a strange and fascinating world, where a child may look through squares of lattice enclosing a garden of Indian jasmine and Kashmiri roses to the sheepyards and paddocks of the Australian countryside. They are unique in their depiction of the life of an Indian family in rural Australia, but they would be distinguished in any case by their quality — their crystalline images and lyrical feeling, their sensitive perception of light and shade, of human suffering, exile and joy.

Mena Kasmiri Abdullah was born in Bundarra, New South Wales, in 1930, the daughter of immigrant Indian parents. She grew up on her family's sheep farm in northern New South Wales and has been widely published in The Bulletin, Quadrant, Coast to Coast and in numerous Australian anthologies. She is best known for her stories about Indian immigrant families and the difficulties of adjusting to a new culture, He died in 2024, aged 94.

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