Last year, some of you will remember, I was a mentor for the ACT Writers' Centre ACT Lit-bloggers of the future program. It was great fun, and I really enjoyed working with Angharad and Emma over the six-months the program lasted. I wrote a couple of posts about the program, but if you'd like to … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: New Territory 2018
Author: Whispering Gums
My literary week (12), some art, a film, and an unseen play
Much as I'd like to, I don't have time to write full posts on the three "events" I'm writing about today, but I do want to at least document them. I don't, in fact, document every film, show or exhibition I attend but I have particular reasons, which will hopefully become obvious, for wanting to … Continue reading My literary week (12), some art, a film, and an unseen play
Randolph Stow, The merry-go-round in the sea (#BookReview)
Randolph Stow is a writer I've been meaning to read for the longest time - since, would you believe, the 1970s? Embarrassing, really, given his significance. My plan had always been to read his Miles Franklin award-winning novel To the islands first. However, the first I actually bought was The merry-go-round in the sea - back in … Continue reading Randolph Stow, The merry-go-round in the sea (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: VerityLa
I've mentioned the literary blog-cum-journal, VerityLa, a few times before here, partly because one of its founders is local writer, Nigel Featherstone. For those of you who haven't come across it, however, it is, in its own words, "an on-line, no-way-for-profit, creative arts journal, publishing short fiction and poetry, cultural comment, photomedia, reviews, and interviews." I … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: VerityLa
Jan Wallace Dickinson, The sweet hills of Florence (#BookReview)
There are several reasons why I enjoyed Jan Wallace Dickinson's historical novel The sweet hills of Florence, the first being Florence itself. I fell in love with Italy in Florence. Brunelleschi's dome, Giotto's belltower, the Uffizi and all the other gorgeous places of art and architecture, not to mention the food, combined to capture my heart. … Continue reading Jan Wallace Dickinson, The sweet hills of Florence (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Grace Gibson
Today's post was inspired by a tweet, yesterday, from the Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB). Using the hashtag #OTD (On This Day), they promoted their entry on Grace Gibson who was born on 17 June (in 1905.) Not only was that tweet a blast from my working-life past, but it also introduced an aspect of … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Grace Gibson
Miles Franklin Award 2018 Shortlist
Having posted this year's Miles Franklin Award Longlist I decided I may as well keep on with it! After all, it is, probably, Australia's most watched award. The shortlist was announced in Canberra tonight - not that I was invited! Here is the list: Felicity Castagna's No more boats (Giramondo) (Lisa has reviewed) Michelle de … Continue reading Miles Franklin Award 2018 Shortlist
My literary week (11), in the theatre
I thought I'd join the world of fake news - why not? - and make my post title a lie, a double lie in fact. It's not really "literary" (though it has its moments) and it's not about a week (spanning, in fact, May 24 to June 13). However, the lies end here, as this … Continue reading My literary week (11), in the theatre
Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian literature in Australian schools
As I was trawling my little collection of ideas for Monday Musings, I lit upon a paper by the late educator Annette Patterson titled "Australian literature: culture, identity and English teaching". Bingo! I had my answer, because it will contribute to a discussion I took part in on Guy Savage's His futile preoccuptions blog. The … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian literature in Australian schools
Elizabeth Jolley, Poppy seed and sesame rings (#Review)
In her introduction to Learning to dance: Elizabeth Jolley, her life and work, a book that was intended to comprise only non-fiction to create a sort of autobiography, literary agent Carolyn Lurie wrote that Jolley would sometimes "draw so directly on her life" for her stories "that it seemed illuminating to include a small selection of … Continue reading Elizabeth Jolley, Poppy seed and sesame rings (#Review)
Whispering Gums 