Name: The Rain Heron
ISBN: 9781922268778

Robbie Arnott

From a 2019 Sydney Morning Herald Young Novelist of the Year and the author of the highly praised novel Flames comes another beguiling, transformative work of fiction confirming Robbie Arnott as one of Australia's most exciting writers.

The Rain Heron

A gripping novel of myth, environment, adventure, and an unlikely friendship, from an award-winning Australian author Ren lives alone on the remote frontier of a country devastated by a coup d'état. High on the forested slopes, she survives by hunting, farming, trading, and forgetting the contours of what was once a normal life. But her quiet stability is disrupted when an army unit, led by a young female soldier, comes to the mountains on government orders in search of a legendary creature called the rain heron—a mythical, dangerous, form-shifting bird with the ability to change the weather. Ren insists that the bird is simply a story, yet the soldier will not be deterred, forcing them both into a gruelling quest. Spellbinding and immersive, Robbie Arnott’s The Rain Heron is an astounding, mythical exploration of human resilience, female friendship, and humankind’s precarious relationship to nature. As Ren and the soldier hunt for the heron, a bond between them forms, and the painful details of Ren’s former life emerge—a life punctuated by loss, trauma, and a second, equally magical and dangerous creature. Slowly, Ren's and the soldier’s lives entwine, unravel, and ultimately erupt in a masterfully crafted ending in which both women are forced to confront their biggest fears—and regrets. Robbie Arnott, one of Australia’s most acclaimed young novelists, sews magic into reality with a steady, confident hand. Bubbling with rare imagination and ambition, The Rain Heron is an emotionally charged and dazzling novel, one that asks timely yet eternal questions about environment, friendship, nationality, and the myths that bind us.

A Novel

Ryan Mateyk

one of my favourite books of the year. this ultimately to me was a powerful eco-fable about humanity's obsession with colonizing nature, though there were so many layers to it. it touches on guilt, and responsibility, and human cruelty - whether innate or learned, and how we can grow from it regardless of the source. there was magic and darkness, though all remained rooted in a similar reality to our own. i really really loved and will be recommending for awhile.

elizabeth

It's always hardest to write reviews about books that I really love because all I want to say is, "I loved it! You have to read it! Just read it!"

Thankfully, this book is best consumed without knowing a lot, so I don't feel like I should say much. (This is also how I felt about one of my favorites from my 2021 list: Susanna Clarke's miraculous, surprising Piranesi.) I'm almost glad that the blurb on the jacket doesn't really capture much of what the book is about. 

The Rain Heron is a strange, shimmering bridge between myth and survival story. It's difficult to place in time and space. It's gorgeous and atmospheric yet accessible and quick-paced. It confronted me with questions about what demands I make of nature, and what I owe it. I wish I could read it for the first time again.

Janice Hopper

I read this book in one afternoon. I sat down to read and just. couldn't. stop.

It's a little hard to describe what this book is about. It's about a myth that maybe isn't really a myth. It's about war, and climate, and loss, and grief, and more loss. And maybe a little gain.

The image of the rain heron will stay with me for a long time.

This is the best book I've read this year so far. You should read it.

'Written with economy and grace, The Rain Heron is a timeless and poignant meditation on our fragile relationship with the natural environment.' Guardian 'Arnott's eco-fable, set in a politically broken near future, explores the constant push-pull that exists between our capacity for enchantment and our need to exploit what we find. It's sad and satisfying.' The Times Ren lives alone on the remote frontier of a country devastated by a coup. High on the forested slopes, she survives by hunting and trading - and forgetting. But when a young soldier comes to the mountains in search of a legendary creature, Ren is inexorably drawn into an impossible mission. As their lives entwine, unravel and erupt - as myth merges with reality - both Ren and the soldier are forced to confront what they regret, what they love, and what they fear. A vibrant homage to the natural world, bursting with beautiful landscapes and memorable characters, The Rain Heron is a beautifully told eco-fable about our fragile and dysfunctional relationships with the planet and with each other, the havoc we wreak and the price we pay. 'The Rain Heron is genuinely and completely magnificent - a magical thing.' Robert Lukins

Elizabeth Garza

What an odd little book. For me anyways. I think fans of ... I think Colson Whitehead, would like this.

The Rain Heron

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