In my last review - that for Ali Cobby Eckermann's Ruby Moonlight - I shared the following lines: Jack knows the remainder of the conversation before it was spoke ya see any blacks roaming best ya kill 'em disease spreading pests ("Visitor", from Ruby Moonlight) Quite coincidentally, this point I was making, that it was not … Continue reading Larissa Behrendt, Under skin, in blood (Review)
Review – Short stories
Kate Chopin, A pair of silk stockings (Review)
Over the years, the Library of America's (LOA) Story of the Week has published seven short stories by Kate Chopin, and I've posted on four of them. Now comes my fifth. It was actually published in February. I noted it, printed it out, but have only now found time to sit down and read it, and of … Continue reading Kate Chopin, A pair of silk stockings (Review)
Washington Irving, The adventure of the German student (Review)
Washington Irving (1783-1859) is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" and "The legend of Sleepy Hollow", but in fact he was a prolific writer and, according to Wikipedia, is often credited as being America's first "man of letters". I was fascinated to read in Wikipedia that, as well as being a writer, he … Continue reading Washington Irving, The adventure of the German student (Review)
Edition de luxe: A collection of short stories
Last October, I wrote a Monday Musings post on writers-in-residence programs. The first one I listed, because I listed them alphabetically, was Accor Hotels MGallery Literary Collection. This is (or was?) a collaborative program with Melbourne’s The Wheeler Centre. Quoting what I wrote then, 'it involved providing eight award-winning Australian writers with a short residence … Continue reading Edition de luxe: A collection of short stories
Elizabeth Harrower, A few days in the country, and other stories (Review)
There's something about Elizabeth Harrower. I've just read her Stella Prize shortlisted short story collection A few days in the country, and other stories - and wow! Really, just wow! If you're a regular reader here, you've probably noticed that I'm not one to effuse excessively about books, anymore than I'm one to pan them. I'm … Continue reading Elizabeth Harrower, A few days in the country, and other stories (Review)
Tegan Bennett Daylight, Six bedrooms (Review)
I have just read Tegan Bennett Daylight's collection of short stories, Six bedrooms, in my quest to read at least some of the Stella Prize shortlist before the announcement of the winner on the 19th of this month. I haven't read Daylight before - she has written three novels, among other things - so I was glad … Continue reading Tegan Bennett Daylight, Six bedrooms (Review)
Paul McDermott, Fragments of the hole (Review)
"Paul McDermott DAAS" by Canley. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons. If you're an Australian, you are sure to know who Paul McDermott is. If you are not Australian, you may not, and this book in fact would not enlighten you, because nowhere on the book is it made clear that "this" Paul McDermott … Continue reading Paul McDermott, Fragments of the hole (Review)
Paddy O’Reilly, Peripheral vision: Stories (Review)
The title of Paddy O'Reilly's latest collection of short stories, Peripheral vision, comes from the story "Restraints", in which the narrator, standing in a robotics lab where things have gone awry, says: ... and I caught again a flicker in my peripheral vision. It's a good title for the book because the stories are about … Continue reading Paddy O’Reilly, Peripheral vision: Stories (Review)
Tony Birch and Ellen van Neerven in Review of Australian Fiction 10 (4)
I have been wanting to write about the oddly titled Review of Australian Fiction for some time. I say oddly titled because, contrary to what it might sound like, this does not contain reviews but short fiction. Established in 2012, it is published, electronically (or digitally), every two weeks. Each issue contains two stories by Australian authors: one by an established … Continue reading Tony Birch and Ellen van Neerven in Review of Australian Fiction 10 (4)
Sherwood Anderson, Adventure (Review)
As some of you will know, I started discussing books online in January 1997 when I joined a listserv-based international reading group. I was active in that group until around the time I started blogging, when I found I could no longer keep up with all my on-line presences. In the period that my involvement … Continue reading Sherwood Anderson, Adventure (Review)
Whispering Gums 