The inspiration for these Monday Musings posts comes from all sorts of places, but mostly from online sources and print media. Today's, however, comes from a catch-up I had last week with my group of litblogger mentees (at which Angharad and Emma from 2017 met Amy from 2018.) It was delightful. You won't be surprised … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Reading Victoria
Vale Andrew McGahan (1966-2019)
My reading group was only talking about Andrew McGahan (1966-2019) this week. We knew he was terminally ill, but little did we know that his end was so near. How very sad, then, to hear today that he died just yesterday, at only 52 years of age. Now, I know that Lisa (ANZLitLovers) has written … Continue reading Vale Andrew McGahan (1966-2019)
Six degrees of separation, FROM Fight Club TO …
Kate has chosen a doozy for this month's Six Degrees of Separation meme (about which you can find more if you click on her blog name: booksaremyfavouriteandbest). Meanwhile, assuming you have done that or that you already understand the meme, I'm getting on with the show. Like last month, we are starting with a book that I … Continue reading Six degrees of separation, FROM Fight Club TO …
Trent Dalton, Boy swallows universe (#BookReview)
Two books came to mind as I was reading Trent Dalton's debut novel Boy swallows universe. One was Steve Toltz's out-there book about fathers and sons, A fraction of the whole (my review), and the other was Tim Winton's Breath (my post), which explores what it is to be a good man, but more on these … Continue reading Trent Dalton, Boy swallows universe (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian Media Hall of Fame
When I was a young twenty-something library student, I learnt a new word - serendipity. It, means, essentially, finding things by accident, and was apparently coined by Horace Walpole back in 1754. It's one of the best things about research I think - unless, of course, you are so focused you have no time for … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian Media Hall of Fame
Deborah Hopkinson, Ordinary, extraordinary Jane Austen (#BookReview)
Writing biographies for young children - like, for example, Deborah Hopkinson and Qin Leng's Ordinary, extraordinary Jane Austen - is an interesting concept. Interesting, but not new. So, when I was given this gorgeous Jane Austen one for Christmas, I decided to research the topic - and what I discovered is that the picture book biography … Continue reading Deborah Hopkinson, Ordinary, extraordinary Jane Austen (#BookReview)
Jennifer Down, Pulse points (Guest post by Amanda) (#BookReview)
Amanda is on a roll, reading several Aussie women writers, so when she offered me a review of Jennifer Down's collection of short stories, Pulse points, of course I said yes. I love her opening explanation of why she loves short stories - I couldn't have said it better myself. Amanda's review I love short … Continue reading Jennifer Down, Pulse points (Guest post by Amanda) (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Older women protagonists
This post was inspired by Book Word's "older women in fiction" project, which involves her reading and posting reviews for books with older women protagonists as well as encouraging others to read these books and sharing them with her. She has quite a list on the page I've linked above, and is adding to it … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Older women protagonists
Capel Boake: Three short stories
Having written about Capel Boake in my last Monday Musings, I couldn't resist checking out some of her short stories. Bill's AWW Gen 2 Week concluded yesterday, but I hope he'll accept this post as a contribution. Boake's stories are easily accessible in Trove. In fact, I was spoilt for choice, so just picked three at random. … Continue reading Capel Boake: Three short stories
Louise Mack, Girls together (#BookReview)
Well, that was, surprisingly, genuinely enjoyable. Louise Mack's Girls together is a sequel to her novel Teens (see Bill's review), and features protagonist Lennie (Elinor) Leighton. It shouldn't have been a surprise, given I know something about Mack, through my Monday Musings on her and my review of her debut novel The world is round, but it was, … Continue reading Louise Mack, Girls together (#BookReview)
Whispering Gums 