Boy, Lost

By Kristina Olsson

Kristina Olsson's mother lost her infant son, Peter, when he was snatched from her arms at a train station in the hot summer of 1950. She was young and frightened, trying to escape a brutal marriage, and in no way prepared for this final blow. Yvonne would not see her son again for nearly 40 years. Kristina was the first child of her mother's subsequent marriage and, like her siblings, grew up unaware of the reasons behind her mother's sorrow, though Peter's absence resounded through the family. Yvonne dreamt of her son by day and by night, while Peter grew up a thousand miles away, dreaming of his missing mother. The family memoir Boy, Lost tells how their lives proceeded from that shattering moment, the grief and shame that stalked them, what they lost and what they salvaged. It is the story of a family, the cascade of grief and guilt through generations, and the endurance of memory and faith.

• Language: English
• Publisher: University of Queensland Press
• Release date: Apr 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9780702248924

Kristina Olsson

Kristina Olsson is a journalist and the award-winning author of the novels Shell, In One Skin, and The China Garden, and two works of nonfiction, Boy, Lost: A Family Memoir and Kilroy was Here. She lives in Brisbane, Australia.

Reviews for Boy, Lost

[philipjhunt · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The amazing aspect of this book is the depths to which the author explores the minds of her characters. She relates so much of what is going on the head and heart of each person, that I began to wonder if I was reading a novel. Indeed, Kristina Olsson would forgive me, I hope, for thinking she was making it up. But towards the end of this family memoir, we glean a little of the many hours she has spent with each person, undoubtedly probing and feeding back what she was hearing. As a result we have profundity as well as drama. The story is titled "Boy, Lost" but its span is much wider. A memorable read.