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Rocky Road
Rocky Road: The incredible true story of the fractured family behind the Darrell Lea chocolate empire | Robert Wainwright
4 posts | 4 read
In the early 1930s, the Australian family confectionery company Darrell Lea was a sensation, its shops stacked with delicious chocolates, marshmallows, nougat and much more in line with the company's motto to 'Stack 'em high, watch 'em fly'. It was at this time that Montague Lea met the vivacious teenage 'ticket writer' Valerie Everitt. Monty fell hard for her and, despite strong family opposition on both sides, they would marry. Valerie was keen to have a large brood and, though her pregnancies were difficult, she gave birth to four children. But they were not enough and in 1947 she adopted the first of three more children who were designated to be playmates for her own. It was a social experiment that would end in tears, as would the fortunes of the iconic company, destroyed by the glue that once bound it together - family. Rocky Road is the story of this chocaholic clan and the creative and eccentric woman who dominated it. Behind the irresistible sweetness of Darrell Lea lay a family who made bitter sacrifices to succeed in the candy business.
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review
Teresereading
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Mehso-so

This was a marathon read for me - the ebook bounced back to @taslibrary several times. Focussing predominantly on the reflections of the adopted Lea children, it was a difficult read in parts. The demise of the iconic @DarrellLea brand paralleled the fracturing of a family.

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LittleMummyMe
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Pickpick

An interesting book. Tells the story of a broken family and in the end, a broken business.

Makes me want to eat those choc orange balls...(bb's)

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Eva_B
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Pickpick

At first I thought that the author was a little harsh about the matriarch of this family. She was Mother to 6 children and worked full time in the family business. However, the more I read, the more eccentric and strange the whole family‘s situation became. Her motives for adopting 3 more children as ‘playmates‘ for her biological children and then ultimately turning her back on them is truly disturbing. A sad but enthralling read

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Eva_B
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Started this one today and it‘s hard to put down so far! Fascinating. I‘m pretty sure I will finish this one very quickly