Well, folks, Trove has let me down, which is a very rare occurrence when I'm doing historical research. I looked for the phrase "world poetry day" and I looked for all the words "world", "poetry" and "day", but nothing apparently relevant appeared. Hmmm, because ... Interestingly, a Google search did retrieve a photograph on flickr of a … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: World Poetry Day
Author: Whispering Gums
Delicious descriptions: Fiona Wright on writing and hunger
In my recent review of Fiona Wright's Small acts of disappearance, I focused on her analysis and her experience of anorexia, but, as I mentioned in the review, she was, already, a published writer. An award-winning poet for a start: her poetry collection, Knuckled, won the Dame Mary Gilmore Award for a first collection. Her … Continue reading Delicious descriptions: Fiona Wright on writing and hunger
Fiona Wright, Small acts of disappearance (Review)
It would be a rare person these days, from Western cultures anyhow, who didn't have some brush with an eating disorder, whether through a friend, a family member, or personal experience. And yet it is one of our most misunderstood afflictions, which is where Fiona Wright's Small acts of disappearance: Essays on hunger comes in. Wright, born in 1983, is a … Continue reading Fiona Wright, Small acts of disappearance (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Save Trove
I don't make a practice of discussing politics in my blog, though regular readers are sure to have picked up my pro-social-justice values (which is why I love writers like, say, Thea Astley). My reason for being politics-lite here is that politics is a divisive game, and my aim here is to be inclusive. However, I do want … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Save Trove
Tony Birch, Ghost River (Review)
"Some people believe in religion. Well, I believe in stories." So says Ren to his friend Sonny late in Tony Birch's third novel Ghost River. Ren and Sonny are two young adolescent boys who live in Melbourne's old inner-city suburb of Collingwood. It is the late 1960s, when Collingwood was a largely blue-collar neighbourhood. Ghost River is a novel … Continue reading Tony Birch, Ghost River (Review)
Stella Prize 2016 Shortlist
Around a month ago, I announced this year's longlist for Stella Prize ... and now I bring you the short list. It must have been such a difficult choice and I'm sure all the books longlisted deserved to be shortlisted - but there can only be 6, and here they are: Six bedrooms by Tegan … Continue reading Stella Prize 2016 Shortlist
Monday musings on Australian literature: Spotlight on David Malouf
A couple of weeks ago I published the first of a number of posts which I'm planning to write using Annette Marfording's Celebrating Australian Writing: Conversations with Australian Authors as starting point. That post was on the first interview in the book, Robert Dessaix. I decided that my second post would be on one of my favourite Aussie writers - you could call … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Spotlight on David Malouf
Helen Macdonald, The human flock (Commentary)
I know, I know, I sound like I'm obsessed with Helen Macdonald. I'm not, but I am interested in nature and landscape, and she has thought and researched at length about the topic. I've called this post a commentary, because it's not a review. Rather, I'm going to draw on both an On Nature column she … Continue reading Helen Macdonald, The human flock (Commentary)
Delicious descriptions: Helen Macdonald on nature
Before I share the couple of quotes I saved for this post, from my review of Helen Macdonald's H is for hawk, I want to mention one more idea that I considered including in my ever-lengthening review, and that's the idea of a journey. I'm mentioning it now because Claire (of Word by Word) mentioned … Continue reading Delicious descriptions: Helen Macdonald on nature
Helen Macdonald, H is for hawk (Review)
My reading really has been rather odd lately. I've read a memoir about horse-racing (Gerald Murnane's Something for the pain), a novel about hedge-funds and investment banking (Kate Jenning's Moral hazard), and now a grief memoir focused on falconry (Helen Macdonald's H is for hawk). None of these are topics I would naturally pick up, but in … Continue reading Helen Macdonald, H is for hawk (Review)
Whispering Gums 