I was a little shocked this year when I realised that I had read none of the Miles Franklin shortlist. After a while I decided to wear it as a badge of honour, but then a friend who knows me well slapped a copy of the Labyrinth down and said; "You MUST read this."
And yes, it is that good, and I'm not surprised it won (noting that at time of writing I have not read any of the others!). Lohrey is a suburb writer, and the book is a gentle exploration of how to move forward when none of the straight paths will do.
I don't really want to say too much, as it would spoil the experience. The book isn't plot-centric though. The strength is in the slow meander: how we connect to others, and how those connections give us strength. There is little definitive here, the book just picks up at a moment in time and leaves off at one, but the distance travelled is greater than it seems.

(I did keep getting distracted by my ongoing wonder that Tasmanians actually swim in their freezing waters....)