By Nina Willingham
A Language of Limbs is a deeply emotional exploration into queer love and queer heartbreak during the devastation of the AIDS pandemic.
The novel, written by Newcastle author Dylin Hardcastle, is a difficult one to review. It is clearly written with a lot of thought, even at times feeling like one is reading the author’s heart itself, but can fall short of its intended emotional weight in some respects.
Set on the South Coast of Australia, it spans 30 years over the lives of two, unnamed queer women beginning in the 1970s, all within a tight 200 pages.
Hardcastle’s prose and consistent use of metaphor is undoubtedly beautiful and, while at times overwhelming for my taste, is sure to find a lot of love from those in want of a delicious meal filled with wordplay and description.
Their use of poetry throughout the text, however, does not meet the same standard. Placed in key aspects of the story, it can make some emotionally heavy scenes lose their weight.
The issues of bigotry and homophobia are well explored and Hardcastle shows a keen knowledge of Sydney, queer life and community, and the effects of engrained societal homophobia.
Where they miss the mark, however, is their integration of the incredibly dark and painful past Australia has regarding its Indigenous peoples. While this is an incredibly important topic to cover, it is not well integrated into the novel and sticks out awkwardly, like it is there to fulfil a social quota.
The book’s exploration into queer trauma can at times be emotionally exhausting. I found it hard to feel for certain characters as I was overwhelmed by the onslaught of traumatic experiences they face, often written in descriptive detail.
A little emotional pruning to allow key devastating events to hold more emotional and literary weight for our characters could have helped.
Furthermore, the amount of side characters felt unnecessary and dulled the intended gut-punch of the pain they face. Again, a little condensing of characters would allow the story to breathe a bit easier.
Overall, Hardcastle has created a feat of queer literature, the deliciously beautiful prose and deep dive into queer love and heartbreak will undoubtedly speak to the hearts and experiences of many a reader.
Despite some literary shortcomings, it is an exciting debut for the Aussie author and shows incredible promise for what they will create next.
Featured image: A Language of Limbs book cover and background. Created by: ClarkSimon10
