Most readers here know the origins of the the Stella Prize. I have written about it many times before, but it was in my post on the inaugural longlist in 2013 that I described its origins and goals in a little detail. I wrote then that: The award was created by a group of 11 … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Stella Book of the Month
Month: February 2024
Karen Viggers in conversation with Alex Sloan
When Colin Steele emailed out the schedule, to date, for this year's Meet the Author series, I immediately marked in my calendar those events I could attend. There weren't many, as life is busy with yoga, tai chi, reading group and concert subscriptions, but the first I could attend was local author Karen Viggers (who … Continue reading Karen Viggers in conversation with Alex Sloan
Vale Marion Halligan (1940-2024)
Such sad news. I have just heard that Marion Halligan, one of Australia's literary treasures, died yesterday. She has been frail for some time, but the last time I saw, and spoke briefly to, her was at the 2023 ACT Book Awards in December. She was her usual engaged self, though also frustrated with the … Continue reading Vale Marion Halligan (1940-2024)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Lothian Book Publishing Company
As I research for my 1924 Monday Musings series, I am coming across articles that don't neatly fit into 1924-dedicated posts but that I want to document. The most recent one concerned the Lothian Book Publishing Company. It was about a specific initiative, which I will discuss at the end of this post, but I … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Lothian Book Publishing Company
Lucy Mushita, Chinongwa (#BookReview)
Where to start with this complex, unusual and gorgeously written novel that manages to convey the horrors of child marriage, of colonialism, and of patriarchal cultures, without eulogising or demonising the characters involved? It's quite a feat, and it made this book a deeply involving read. The place to start, I suppose, is the beginning, … Continue reading Lucy Mushita, Chinongwa (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Forgotten writers 3, Marion Simons
Back in 2021, I started a Monday Musings sub-series on forgotten Australian writers, but to date have only written on two - Helen Simpson and Eliza Hamilton Dunlop. I have been intending to get back to it and with this year's slight revamp of Elizabeth Lhuede's and my contributions to the Australian Women Writers blog, … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Forgotten writers 3, Marion Simons
Duane Niatum, Crow’s sun (#Review)
Duane Niatum's "Crow's sun" is the tenth story of fourteen in the anthology, Great short stories by contemporary Native American writers, and moves us into the 1990s, where we will remain for the next two stories before ending up in the early 2000s. Duane Niatum Anthology editor Bob Blaisdell provides more information about Niatum than … Continue reading Duane Niatum, Crow’s sun (#Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Secrets from the Green Room
I have planned to write about the Secrets from the Green Room podcast series pretty much since it started in late 2020, but for one reason or another time has got away from me and here we are, some four years later ... and I'm finally there. The good thing is that it is still … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Secrets from the Green Room
Six degrees of separation, FROM Demon Copperhead TO …
I am back in the land of the Wurundjeri Wandoon people of the Greater Kulin Nation, which means I'm back in my part of Melbourne for our family's annual February birthday season. (Three have their birthdays between the 3rd and 9th, inclusive.) It all starts today, that means, but I did have time to prepare … Continue reading Six degrees of separation, FROM Demon Copperhead TO …
Barbara Kingsolver, Demon Copperhead (#BookReview)
Barbara Kingsolver's latest - and multi-award winning - novel, Demon Copperhead, was inspired, as I'm sure most of you know, by Charles Dickens' autobiographical novel, David Copperfield. Indeed, Demon Copperhead opens with an epigraph from that novel: “It’s in vain to recall the past, unless it works some influence upon the present.” This could be … Continue reading Barbara Kingsolver, Demon Copperhead (#BookReview)
Whispering Gums 