Flora Eldershaw
Flora Eldershaw (1897-1956) was an Australian author known for her collaborative work with Marjorie Barnard under the pseudonym M. Barnard Eldershaw. Born in Darlinghurst and raised in the Riverina district, Eldershaw met Barnard while studying at the University of Sydney, leading to a productive literary partnership. Their notable early work, "A House Is Built," published in 1929, won first prize in The Bulletin novel competition and garnered positive reviews, establishing Eldershaw's confidence as a writer.
Following this success, they released several works, including "Green Memory," which drew comparisons to Jane Austen. The late 1930s marked a peak in their creative output, during which they became prominent figures in Sydney's literary scene. However, the onset of World War II impacted their collaboration, resulting in only one more novel together, "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow," published in 1947. Despite being misunderstood at the time, this work has since gained recognition as an underrated classic. Eldershaw passed away in 1956, leaving behind a legacy that reflects the cultural and literary landscape of early 20th-century Australia.
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Subject Terms
Flora Eldershaw
Writer
- Born: March 16, 1897
- Birthplace: Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
- Died: September 20, 1956
- Place of death: Forest Hill, New South Wales, Australia
Biography
Flora Eldershaw was born on March 16, 1897, in Darlinghurst, Australia, but grew up in the Riverina district and boarded at Mount Erin Convent in Wagga Wagga. Little is known about her childhood and family. While studying at the University of Sydney, she met Marjorie Barnard, an event that marked the beginning of a successful collaboration of books published under the pseudonym M. Barnard Eldershaw. The two women worked well together, and they planned each book in detail before anything was written down. Barnard’s talent was writing the initial draft, while Eldershaw had the most effective critical eye and was able to edit the myriad ideas into a coherent form.
One of their early novels, A House Is Built, was published in 1929, and it shared first prize in The Bulletin novel competition, a contest for Australian authors sponsored by a Sydney newspaper. It is a historical saga that follows the adventures of an English family as they settle in the rough colonial world of nineteenth century Australia. The novel received very positive reviews, and Eldershaw was encouraged enough to consider herself a “real” writer. M. Barnard Eldershaw’s next novel, Green Memory was published in 1931, and its publisher, Harcourt Brace, declared it the work of the next Jane Austen. The years between 1936 and 1939 were the most productive for Eldershaw and her coauthor. They published a few more novels, including The Glasshouse and Plaque with Laurel, historical studies that focused on aspects of life in early colonial Australia, and a collection of literary criticism.
Riding on their success, Eldershaw and Barnard threw themselves into the literary life of pre-World War II Sydney. They set up house together in Potts Point in a small flat where they managed to throw a party every week. Many of the leading literary and cultural figures of the day made their way to their little flat, including Miles Franklin, Katharine Susannah Pritchard, and Xavier Herbert. At about this time Eldershaw and Barnard formed a close relationship with the writer Frank Dalby Davison. Known as “the triumvirate,” they were for a time the leading lights of the Fellowship of Australian Writers.
The war changed the climate for everyone, and Eldershaw and Barnard collaborated on only one more novel, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, which was published in 1947. An apocalyptic book, this novel was poorly received and misunderstood. Eldershaw was heartbroken by the reception and did not write again. Although the novel was released again in 1983 and described as one of the most underrated novels of the century, Eldershaw did not live to hear its praise. She died on September 20, 1956, at Forest Hill, New South Wales, at the age of fifty-nine.