Book Review: THE GREAT ESCAPE FROM WOODLANDS NURSING HOME by Joanna Nell

  

THE GREAT ESCAPE FROM WOODLANDS NURSING HOME

by

Joanna Nell

At nearly ninety, retired nature writer Hattie Bloom prefers the company of birds to people, but when a fall lands her in a nursing home she struggles to cope with the loss of independence and privacy. From the confines of her 'room with a view' of the carpark, she dreams of escape.

Fellow 'inmate', the gregarious, would-be comedian Walter Clements also plans on returning home as soon as he is fit and able to take charge of his mobility scooter.

When Hattie and Walter officially meet at The Night Owls, a clandestine club run by Sister Bronwyn and her dog, Queenie, they seem at odds. But when Sister Bronwyn is dismissed over her unconventional approach to aged care, they must join forces -- and very slowly an unlikely, unexpected friendship begins to grow.

Full of wisdom and warmth, The Great Escape from Woodlands Nursing Home is a gorgeously poignant, hilarious story showing that it is never too late to laugh -- or to love.

My Thoughts

I don’t know if such fiction books have a collective name, but I’ve had a lot of fun reading books featuring older people that live in aged care homes, such as The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson. It doesn’t take much scratching below the surface to realise these places are not an ideal place to live, but what appeals to me is the often plucky and remarkable characters you meet in the story. The Great Escape from Woodlands Nursing Home by Joanna Nell introduces us to several such characters, focusing on Hattie Bloom and Walter Clements. They’re both 90-odd, are steadfast in their desire to go to their real homes, but are at the mercy of people who supposedly know best.

I think Nell has done a good job in illustrating the disingenuousness of the aged care system. Nell’s words are never aggressive, but certainly provocative, as she weaves into the story multiple examples of how aged care is managed to run efficiently, and with little money. The independence and desires of residents is, at best to be ignored, and at worst, to be threatened with guardianship by those in authority.

Enjoying all this, I did still feel there was something indefinable missing in the story. The blurb mentions residents banding together to help Sister Bronwyn, but this plot seemed weak, given it wasn’t properly addressed until late in the book. Much of the book has the characters making a fuss – if you will – before immediately backing down. It’s not until the final stages of the book, when the great escape happens, that the story is elevated into something that had me loudly cheering for the residents instead of just feeling melancholy.    

I would also like to mention the set up of the Woodlands Nursing Home itself. It’s based on the game Monopoly. Resident rooms are labeled with one of the game streets, from ‘Go’ and collecting your $200, onto Whitechapel Road and around all the corners to Mayfair. So clever! Hattie Bloom, makes the observation that ‘depending on how you landed on this particular Monopoly square, the foyer and reception area represented either IN JAIL or JUST VISITING.’ Such insight really says it all.

This was my first Joanna Nell novel. I am glad I chose to read this book and I will be looking to add her other books onto my to-be-read pile. 

Review copy courtesy of Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton

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About the Author

Joanna Nell is a Sydney-based writer, GP and advocate for positive ageing. Her bestselling debut novel The Single Ladies of Jacaranda Retirement Village was published in 2018 with rights sold internationally. Her second novel The Last Voyage of Mrs Henry Parker was published in 2019.

Joanna's award winning short fiction has been published in a number of magazines, journals and short story anthologies including Award Winning Australian Writing. She has also written for The Sydney Morning Herald's Spectrum and Sunday Life magazines.

https://www.joannanell.com/