A House Built on Sand is a multifaceted story about the devastating reality of early onset dementia, complex family dynamics, unearthing family secrets and unconditional love.
At the age of 58, Maxine receives a devastating diagnosis of early-onset dementia, leaving her daughter, Rose, who is grappling with her own anxieties and claustrophobia, to take care of her. Maxine’s bizarre insistence on returning to their family’s summer house becomes a focal point in which Rose begrudgingly obliges her mother’s wishes.
It is within the confines of this cherished summer home that Maxine and Rose ultimately discover the profound answers they seek, with each step of the journey unravelling the deeper meaning of their personal and shared experiences. As Maxine’s condition deteriorates, truths are revealed through her fragmented ramblings, vivid visions and unpredictable behaviours.
The story unfolds gradually through flashbacks that feel unnecessary. It introduces characters connected to Maxine and Rose’s past and present, which can obscure the point of the story. The book alternates between chapters narrated in the first-person by Maxine, revealing her declining mental state, which makes it difficult to follow some chapters. Rose’s chapters are narrated in third-person, which can make it challenging to connect to her issues.
However, Shaw has achieved an insightful glimpse into the heartbreaking realities of early-onset dementia and the power of unconditional love between a mother and daughter, even after Maxine’s greatest secret comes to light.
Reviewed by Chandra Hazebroek
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
My upbringing was idyllic. Our family had a farm at Matangi, outside of Hamilton, in the Waikato. Our farm comprised about 60 acres, and my father ran mostly cattle, and raised thoroughbred horses. My brother and I both learned to ride on a pony Dad got for that purpose.
We had a swimming pool, with a dolphin made of tiles on the bottom. With the dry, hot Waikato summers, it was a lifesaver. My mother kept a large vegetable garden, and we also had donkeys. We used to get ‘Sunday day trippers’ stopping at the fence on the main road to talk to our donkeys. In those days, donkeys were a rare sight in New Zealand.
My family, on both sides, were country people. On my mother’s side, they were Irish, while my father’s side hailed originally from England.
From an early age I wanted to be a writer. My very first stories were published on the children’s page of the NZ Herald. As a teenager, I used to subscribe to Islands and Landfall, and fell in love with literary fiction.
After leaving school, I didn’t really know what to do with myself, so tried a variety of things. There was a stint in London as a waitress. A time spent being a freelance photographer, with my own dark room and Haselblad camera. Another period when I worked for a newspaper reading company called Chong’s Media Bureau.
My daughter was born in 1987, and as I was based at home, I was able to start concentrating on my writing. I began with short stories – being short, they are an excellent way to learn one’s craft. Eventually, I won an award for one of my stories.
Over the years, I have been fortunate to receive fellowships because of my writing: Buddle Findlay Sargeson Fellowship, Auckland during 1999, the Creative New Zealand Berlin Writers’ Residency (2000-01), and the University of Waikato Writer-In-Residence in 2005.
I live in Taupo, New Zealand, with my partner and our dog Monty.
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