Monkey Grip James Jones and La Bella Principessa (Portrait

and La Bella Principessa (Portrait of Bianca Sforza)

savagery and ashen lyricism

The only thing to fear is loss of ambition

years of broken promises

people are facing the same problem - that we are born as individuals but are forced to conform to the rules of society if we want to succeed

Monkey Grip James Jones and La Bella Principessa (PortraitHelen Garner's gritty, lyrical first novel divided the critics on its publication in 1977. Today, Monkey Grip is regarded as a masterpiece the novel that shines a light on a time and a place and a way of living never before presented in Australian literature communal households, music, friendships, children, love, drugs, and sex.