Broadly speaking, Melissa Lucashenko's latest novel, Edenglassie, does for southeast Queensland what Kim Scott's That deadman dance does for Noongar country in southwest Western Australia. Both tell of the early days of their respective colonies from a First Nations perspective; both are written in a generous spirit but with absolute clarity about the dispossession that … Continue reading Melissa Lucashenko, Edenglassie (#BookReview)
Review
Myfanwy Jones, Cool water (#BookReview)
When I was a little girl, I was allowed to watch a limited amount of television, and what I loved - yes, you can laugh at me - were the singing cowboys, like Roy Rogers and Gene Autry. We are talking the 60s and I was constrained by what was on at the times I … Continue reading Myfanwy Jones, Cool water (#BookReview)
Hell Herons, The Wreck Event
In late June I attended the 2024 ACT Literary Awards which were held in the Canberra Contemporary Art Space. In my post on those awards, I shared the MCs' acknowledgement of CCAS's ongoing sponsorship. They made the point that this space is an appropriate venue because there are links between all artists, including the fact … Continue reading Hell Herons, The Wreck Event
Charlotte Wood, Stone Yard devotional (#BookReview)
Charlotte Wood's most recent novel, Stone Yard devotional, is set in the Monaro, a region just south of where I live. It's a landscape that is much loved by many of us, including Nigel Featherstone, whose My heart is a little wild thing (my review) is also set there. The Monaro is expansive country, a … Continue reading Charlotte Wood, Stone Yard devotional (#BookReview)
Eli Funaro, The dog pit (#Review)
Eli Funaro's "The dog pit" is the twelfth of fourteen stories in the anthology, Great short stories by contemporary Native American writers. Like the previous stories by Thomas King and Duane Niatum, it was written in the 1990s. Eli Funaro Anthology editor Bob Blaisdell provides very little information about Funaro, and I have to say … Continue reading Eli Funaro, The dog pit (#Review)
Sean Doyle, Australia’s trail-blazing first novelist: John Lang (#BookReview)
Sean Doyle's literary biography, Australia's trail-blazing first novelist: John Lang, provides insights not only into this "idiosyncratic" man, but into two colonial societies - Australia and India - through the early to mid nineteenth-century. Doyle's is not the first biography of John Lang, but it's the first I've read. However, Lang (1816-64) himself is not … Continue reading Sean Doyle, Australia’s trail-blazing first novelist: John Lang (#BookReview)
Thomas King and Natasha Donovan, Borders (#BookReview)
Earlier this year I posted on Thomas King's short story "Borders" from Bob Blaisdell's anthology, Great short stories by contemporary Native American writers. The story was written in 1991, but as I noted in my post, it has also been adapted into a teleplay for the CBC, and turned into a graphic novel for younger … Continue reading Thomas King and Natasha Donovan, Borders (#BookReview)
Gail Jones, Salonika burning (#BookReview)
Australian author Gail Jones' ninth novel, Salonika burning, is a curious but beautiful novel, curious because she fictionalises four real people for whom she has no evidence that they met or knew each other, and beautiful because of her writing and the themes she explores. The novel is set during World War 1, but its … Continue reading Gail Jones, Salonika burning (#BookReview)
Anton Chekhov, The lottery ticket (#Review)
Back in April I posted on Majorie Barnard's short story "The lottery" for Kaggsy's and Simon's 1937 Year Club. Commenting on that post, my American friend Carolyn said that in looking for Barnard's story she found Chekhov's "The lottery ticket", written fifty years earlier in 1887. Of course, I had to read it too. There … Continue reading Anton Chekhov, The lottery ticket (#Review)
Michael Fitzgerald, Late (#BookReview)
Australian author Michael Fitzgerald's novel Late owes something to what is known as the alternate (alternative) history genre, or what I call "what if" novels. Here, the underlying story is, what if Marilyn Monroe had not died in 1962 but, instead, had instead escaped Hollywood's oppressive celebrity culture and moved to Sydney, Australia? It's hard … Continue reading Michael Fitzgerald, Late (#BookReview)
