I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted on a Library of America (LOA) Story of the Week. I usually "do" a few a year, but this is the first for 2019, even though I've identified several that I've wanted to do. However, when Lafcadio Hearn popped up last week - and with a Japanese story … Continue reading Lafcadio Hearn, Yuki-Onna (#Review)
20th century literature
Monday musings on Australian literature: 1930s, moving beyond “gumleaf and goanna”
Time for another post inspired by Trove, this one, as often happens actually, discovered while researching something else. What I discovered was the discussion that went on in the 1930s about Australian fiction's coming of age - and the fact that much of this was down to the women writers of the time (about which … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: 1930s, moving beyond “gumleaf and goanna”
Louise Erdrich, The bingo palace (#BookReview)
When I bought Louise Erdrich's The bingo palace in 1995, I never expected it to take me 24 years to read it but, there you go. Time flies, and suddenly it was 2019 and the book was still sitting on the high priority pile next to my bed! Truly! It took Lisa's ANZLitLovers Indigenous Literature Week … Continue reading Louise Erdrich, The bingo palace (#BookReview)
Mary McCarthy, The group (#BookReview)
My reading group has a few loose "rules" for choosing our reads, but one of the more rigid ones is that each year we like to read at least one classic. This year's first classic - yes, another is coming - was Mary McCarthy's The group. As I wrote in last week's Monday Musings, it … Continue reading Mary McCarthy, The group (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Books banned in Australia
This week, my reading group will be discussing an American classic, Mary McCarthy's The group. Published in 1963, it sat on the New York Times best-selling list for five months. It also has the honour of having been banned in Australia! I realised that I've never done a Monday Musings on banned books, so now … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Books banned in Australia
Nadine Gordimer, Harald, Claudia, and their son Duncan (#BookReview)
There are authors I read long before blogging whom I really want to document here, in some way. One of these is Nobel Laureate Nadine Gordimer who first came to my attention in 1983 with her memorable, confronting 1956 short story collection, Six feet of the country. Nadine Gordimer, as I'm sure you know, had … Continue reading Nadine Gordimer, Harald, Claudia, and their son Duncan (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Two Aussie writers in 1965
Continuing last week's 1965 theme, this post discusses two articles on two Aussie writers who published books that year. I chose them because I think they are instructive examples of book reviewing. Thomas Keneally Thomas Keneally, born in 1935, is a prolific Australian author with a long (and still continuing) career. He was shortlisted for … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Two Aussie writers in 1965
Monday musings on Australian literature: Literary visitors in 1965
Last week's Monday musings surveyed Australian literature in 1965. As I researched that post in Trove, I came across some fascinating newspaper articles from the year, which I thought worth sharing in separate posts. I've divided them into two groups - one on overseas visitors (today's post) and the other local writers (next week's, probably!) … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Literary visitors in 1965
Monday musings on Australian literature: 1965 in fiction
1965 as a topic? What the?! Those familiar with the lit-blogosphere will probably guess what inspired this post, but for everyone else, I'll explain. Over the last week of April, bloggers Kaggsy (Kaggsy's Book Ramblings) and Simon (Stuck in a Book) ran a 1965 Reading Week, the latest in their series of reading weeks focusing … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: 1965 in fiction
Marilynne Robinson, Gilead (#BookReview)
Once again I have reason to start a book post with a discussion of the title, this time Marilynne Robinson's 2005 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Gilead. Gilead, in the context of this novel, has a literal and metaphorical meaning, literal because it takes place in the fictional Iowan town of Gilead, and metaphorical because "gilead" … Continue reading Marilynne Robinson, Gilead (#BookReview)
Whispering Gums 