Pam of Travellin' Penguin blog read ML Skinner's short story "The hand" for a challenge she was doing, and, when I expressed interest in it, very kindly sent me a copy. "The hand" is a mysterious little story - and by little, I mean, little in that it takes up less than 7 pages of the anthology, … Continue reading M.L. (Mollie) Skinner, The hand (#Review)
Review – Short stories
Ben Smith Noble, The sands of time (#Review)
Ben Smith Noble is the second young writer I have reviewed here, the first being Leah A with her 10 silly poems by a ten year old (my review) which came to my attention via Son Gums. Ben Smith Noble's short story "The sands of time", on the other hand, came to me from Mother Gums … Continue reading Ben Smith Noble, The sands of time (#Review)
Carmel Bird, The dead aviatrix: Eight short stories (#BookReview)
Carmel Bird, whose latest short story collection, The dead aviatrix: Eight short stories, I'm reviewing here, has to be the consummate writer. She can turn her hand to fiction and nonfiction, to short and long form writing, to formal and more informal voices, and to both serious and witty or satiric tones. She's also an … Continue reading Carmel Bird, The dead aviatrix: Eight short stories (#BookReview)
Lynette Washington, Plane Tree Drive (#BookReview)
Lynette Washington's debut collection of short stories, Plane Tree Drive, reminded me a little of Rebekah Clarkson's Barking dogs (my review). Both are collections of stories revolving around a location, and in both the location is in the Adelaide region. There are differences though. Clarkson's book is a little grittier with an overall theme of … Continue reading Lynette Washington, Plane Tree Drive (#BookReview)
Amy Witting, Afterplay (#Review)
Amy Witting's first novel wasn't published until 1977, when she was 59 years old, which is why she appeared in my late bloomers post a few years ago. She went on to publish five more novels after that - two of which I read and enjoyed long before blogging - and she was an accomplished … Continue reading Amy Witting, Afterplay (#Review)
Stephanie Buckle, Habits of silence (#BookReview)
I have been champing at the bit to read local author Stephanie Buckle's debut short story collection, Habits of silence, ever since I attended its launch in August by John Clanchy at the Canberra Writers Festival. The readings that both Clanchy and Buckle herself gave from the book grabbed my attention and convinced me that … Continue reading Stephanie Buckle, Habits of silence (#BookReview)
Stephen Orr, Datsunland (#BookReview)
Two things I loved about Stephen Orr's novel The hands (my review) were its evocation of men, boys and their relationships, and its rural setting. And this is also why I liked Datsunland, his recent short story collection comprising thirteen short stories and a novella. It's a no-holds-barred exploration of the lives of boys and men. It is not … Continue reading Stephen Orr, Datsunland (#BookReview)
Karenlee Thompson, Flame tip: Short fictions (#BookReview)
Short story anthologies usually have some sort of organising principle - a theme, perhaps, such as Australian love stories, or a prize, such as the Margaret River Short Story Competition - but single author collections tend to be looser. Not so Karenlee Thompson's Flame tip which she describes as containing "creative writing pieces that weave in … Continue reading Karenlee Thompson, Flame tip: Short fictions (#BookReview)
Rebekah Clarkson, Barking dogs (#BookReview)
The best way to describe Rebekah Clarkson's debut book, Barking dogs, is that it's a portrait of a community undergoing social change. This community is Mount Barker on the outskirts of Adelaide. Once a farming community, it is now, says Wikipedia, "one of the fastest growing areas in the state", the province of developers, the aspirational … Continue reading Rebekah Clarkson, Barking dogs (#BookReview)
David Carlin and Francesca Rendle-Short (eds), The near and the far: New stories from the Asia-Pacific region (Review)
Anthologies, almost by definition, have a unifying theme, something that explains their existence. There are the "best of" type, as in best of a year or of a genre, for example. There are those drawn from a prize, such as The trouble with flying, and other stories (my review) from the Margaret River Short Story competition. And of course there … Continue reading David Carlin and Francesca Rendle-Short (eds), The near and the far: New stories from the Asia-Pacific region (Review)
Whispering Gums 