"On the surface, it would be women you would never think it'd happen to - women who had been in relationships who had been financially secure, then something changes in their life and it all goes pearshaped," Docker said.
The more she researched the more she felt compelled to weave this into The Lyrebird Lake Ladies Choir, to use art as a way of highlighting a prevalent women's issue.
"What I love about raising these big issues in fiction is it makes it accessible. Not everybody's going to read reports or watch hard-hitting documentaries on TV ... But a lot of people read fiction and they can talk about it with their friends in their book club at work," Ms Docker said.
As part of her research, she met with charity Mission Australia to get a further understanding of what happens to women who become homeless, and was shocked to find a dire need for funding more services nationwide.
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"Some accommodation is adults only [not suitable for children], there are places that are just for domestic violence victims only so some can't go in there. There are so many obstacles," Ms Docker said.
The book follows characters Eleanor, Maggie and Hannah, who find themselves lost and lonely and involved in the Lyrebird Lake Ladies Choir.
Docker said there are as many heart-warming moments as there are heart-wrenching, though her novel also delves into the emotional repercussions of forced adoptions from the 1970s and 1980s as well as dealing with trauma.
The Lyrebird Lake Ladies Choir by Sandie Docker is published by Penguin Random House. RRP $34.99.
WIN A COPY - Enter your details below for your chance to win a copy. Good luck!
https://www.thesenior.com.au/story/8652607/rising-homelessness-in-older-women-brought-to-light-in-new-novel/We have one copy of The Lyrebird Lake Ladies Choir (Penguin Random House) by Sandie Docker to give away, valued at $34.99.
Entries close Wednesday, July 31, 2024 at 11.59pm AEST.
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