The Slap by Tsiolkas delivers exactly that to reader

As an Australian reading an Australian-Greek author, I expected cringe-worthy cultural familiarities and uncomfortability when I picked up The Slap from my bookshelf. And I got them. In abundance. But that is Tsiolkas' intention, whether you are an Ozzie reader or not.

Plot
A man slaps an unruly child that is not his own front of extended family and friends at a bbq. Was it right or wrong? The book thankfully does not provide an answer, but nine characters over nine chapters have to deal with the consequences of the act that are greater reaching for their families, loved ones and friends.

For reading it
It's a courageous attempt by the author to address the diversity of Australian culture, of any multicultural culture, and he pretty much pulls it off excluding the typecasting of some minor characters into their cultural box. The prose is fluid, verbose, explanatory but it works and my eyes skimmed easily and patiently through the chapters, reading it like a soap opera with a whiff of erudition on the outstanding question of: who is in the right? Particularly for the teenage Connie and grandfather Manolis chapters: this is Tsiolkas in his element. It is also a modern day shot of the less-noble side of Australian culture which screams of moral compasses lost, begging questions of transformation to be raised.

Against
The meticulous effort put into building up tension between the families and characters is overshadowed by Tsiolkas' black and white treatment of his characters, their flippant and capricious changes in mood and behavior and slapping overdoses of sex, infidelity and drugs. But Tsiolkas would argue, this is modern day Australia in the 2000s and he wouldn't be wrong. However, the characters are shot in their stasis and they transform little, in part because of their two dimensional roots (excl Connie, Manolis, Anouk, maybe Richie) and on-off dispositions. The author tends to opt for the extreme to elucidate behaviors and thoughts that would be better handled with care and subtlety. In fact the characters get the equivalent of an author slap, but more than one, and even Richie, celebrating his zenith moment in the final chapter, opts to blow his brains out on speed and ecstasy on a dance floor for the book's closure, something that to me, reeks of non-foreclosure (unless we are a going for a sequel?)

Take-away
There are some real gem moments, writing and characters in here, kudos for author bravery and courage in the endeavor which hits many of its marks, and you could read it on those grounds alone, but I took little away from this other than rich insights into Greek-Australian culture, some eloquent youth and female character writing, and relief that the 2000s are over for my country.