Having had my own rather traumatic experience of the American healthcare system back in the 1980s I was rather keen to read Lionel Shriver's latest offering, So much for that. And, I wasn't disappointed - or, let me rephrase that, I found it an interesting and engaging page-turner though not a top-ten-of-the-year one. First a … Continue reading Lionel Shriver, So much for that
Reading group book
Ian McEwan, Solar
I don't know whether I believe your story, but I've enjoyed it. So says McEwan's latest creation, Michael Beard, to a character he has "done wrong". This more or less sums up my feelings about Solar, the novel in which this statement appears. I am a McEwan fan and have greatly liked most of the … Continue reading Ian McEwan, Solar
M.J. Hyland, This is how
If you want to read a book that is quick (and seemingly simple) to read and yet satisfyingly complex, then MJ Hyland's This is how is for you. I've been wanting to read Hyland for a while and, having now done so, this won't be the last. So where to start? The novel is a … Continue reading M.J. Hyland, This is how
Louann Brizendine, The female brain
Beware - the F-word is coming! Yes, Feminism. It might be a dirty word in some quarters, but I regard myself as a feminist - 1970s style - and so I approached Brizendine's best-selling book, The female brain, with my cautionary antennae out. It's not the sort of book I would necessarily have chosen myself … Continue reading Louann Brizendine, The female brain
Eva Hornung, Dog boy
I first read Eva Hornung when she was writing as Eva Sallis. It was her second novel The city of sealions, which is a pretty passionate and evocatively written exploration of cultural alienation and dislocation brought about primarily by migration. In some ways Dog boy explores similar concerns, but its alienation is played out in a … Continue reading Eva Hornung, Dog boy
Andrea Goldsmith, Reunion
Reunion bookcover (Courtesy: HarperCollins Australia) I wanted to love Andrea Goldsmith's Reunion. And I expected to, as I remember enjoying the last book of hers that I read. But, somehow, I found it a bit of chore to read, though it did pick up towards the end. I think I understand why it was not listed … Continue reading Andrea Goldsmith, Reunion
David Malouf, Ransom
Words are powerful. They too can be the agents of what is new, of what is conceivable and can be thought and let loose on the world. (p. 61) Is risk-taking only the province of the young? Do desperate times call for desperate measures? Or, more to the point, can the impossible be made possible? … Continue reading David Malouf, Ransom
Sarah Waters, The little stranger
I'm not quite sure I know where to start with this one - the ghost story that isn't. Or is it? The little stranger is my second Sarah Waters' novel. I found The night watch riveting, and I did see and enjoy (but not read) her very Dickensian Fingersmith. Like The night watch, The little stranger was … Continue reading Sarah Waters, The little stranger
Martin Boyd, A difficult young man
Difficult but handsome (Courtesy: Sydney University Press) I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I certainly wasn't expecting the delightful sly wit I found in Martin Boyd's A difficult young man, which, I understand, is the second book in the "Langton Quartet". This novel though can clearly stand on its own - otherwise, why … Continue reading Martin Boyd, A difficult young man
Geoff Page, The scarring
Geoff Page (born 1940) is a Canberra-based poet who has been active in the Australian poetry scene for many decades now. He was also, for nearly three decades, an English teacher. Page has published several volumes of poetry and at least three verse novels, of which The scarring is his first. The scarring, which I … Continue reading Geoff Page, The scarring
Whispering Gums 