Dressed by Iris

Mary-Anne O'Connor

Jun 2022 · Bolinda · Narrated by Holly Robinson

Audiobook

14 hr 3 min

Unabridged

Eligible

Want a free 15 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline.

Add

About this audiobook

1930. Seventeen-year-old Iris Mitchell dreams of designing clothes, but there's little spare cash for fashion in their shanty-town home. The gift of a single purple ribbon from her would-be boyfriend John Tucker, however, creates an unexpected opportunity ... and when Iris's brother joins the Sydney Harbour Bridge construction, the Mitchell family move to the city. Iris is torn away from John, but he's Protestant and she's Catholic, so perhaps it wasn't meant to be ... 1932. By day, Iris scrubs the floors at Caron's, an upmarket department store. By night, she designs and sews in her family's tiny, crowded house. Friendship with one of Caron's models allows Iris to show her skills, but will her talent be acknowledged ... or exploited? When John reappears, passions are reignited, and Iris must face not only their religious divide, but the apparent impossibility of having a career once married. Meanwhile, the Mitchells must navigate life in a city riven by corruption, dirty politics and gambling. Will their faith, determination and deep family bond save them when tragedy and adversity strike?

Discover more

About the author

Mary-Anne O'Connor debuted at #3 on the Australian fiction bestseller lists in 2015 with her breakout novel Gallipoli Street. Since then, she has gone on to produce continuous bestsellers, from her historical fiction novels surrounding Australia's explosive cultural upheaval during the 19th and 20th centuries, to her escapist English Christmas romance novels. Her novels include Gallipoli Street, Worth Fighting For, War Flower, In A Great Southern Land, Where Fortune Lies, Sisters of Freedom, Dressed By Iris, Never to Surrender and The Stowaway. She has also co-written two non-fiction books about art, A Brush with Light and Secrets of the Brush, with her father, well-known Australian traditional artist Kevin Best. O'Connor lives in a house overlooking her beloved bushland in northern Sydney with her husband Anthony and their two sons Jimmy and Jack. Her latest novel, Christmas Joy, came out in 2025.

Holly Robinson is a Sydney-based actress and voice artist. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts-Media degree from Macquarie University in 2014, before going on to study acting and voice at various other institutions in Sydney. She has since been mastering the art of voiceover through all mediums, including radio promos, voice acting, character work and long-form narration. Holly is a hugely versatile performer, also having a background in circus, dance, voice and theatre.

Rate this audiobook

Tell us what you think.

Listening information

Smartphones and tablets

Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.

Laptops and computers

You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.

Flag as inappropriate