Well, dear readers, we have turned the calendar to 2016 so I can now reveal my highlights for 2015. As usual, I won't be naming top picks. I find that too hard to do. Instead, I'll discuss highlights which combines best reads with those that were interesting for other reasons. I'd love to mention every book I read, as every one … Continue reading Reading highlights for 2015
Vincenzo Cerami, A very normal man (Review)
And now for something very different from my recent fare here, a modern Italian classic. Originally published in 1976, A very normal man was, the back cover blurb says, Vincenzo Cerami's first novel - and it brought him instant acclaim. I can see why. At least, this is the sort of writing that gets me in, but more … Continue reading Vincenzo Cerami, A very normal man (Review)
My encounter with Encounters
I rarely write about museum exhibitions, and when I do it's usually in the context of a travel post, but I do want to share with you our National Museum of Australia's current exhibition, Encounters. Subtitled "Revealing stories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Objects from the British Museum", it is described by the Museum as "one … Continue reading My encounter with Encounters
Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian Women Writers’ Challenge 2015
For the fourth year now, I'm devoting the year's last Monday Musings to the Australian Women Writers Challenge*. The challenge continues to be supported by a wide range of reviewers. This year we moved to a self-hosted site which enabled us to produce a single searchable database of all reviews logged since the challenge started in 2012. We now … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Australian Women Writers’ Challenge 2015
Eleanor Limprecht, Long Bay (Review)
One of the things that interests me about historical fiction, of which Eleanor Limprecht's Long Bay is an example, is why the author in question chooses to write his/her story as fiction rather than non-fiction. As I've written before, this is an issue with which Kate Grenville grappled when she wrote The secret river. That book was initially going to … Continue reading Eleanor Limprecht, Long Bay (Review)
Books given and received for Christmas, in 2015
I did a "books given and received post" last Boxing Day, and decided to do it again. It's a useful record for me to keep, and may just interest you, so, here goes. For Mr Gums, who is often up for a walk: Walking and cycling Canberra's Centenary Trail For Ms Gums Jr, in her … Continue reading Books given and received for Christmas, in 2015
Neel Mukherjee’s The lives of others, and those epilogues
When my reading group discussed The lives of others questions were raised about the meaning of the two epilogues, specifically in terms of what they contributed to the meaning of the book. Not having finished the book in time, I wasn't able to join in, so I'm having a go now. As I mentioned in my review, the … Continue reading Neel Mukherjee’s The lives of others, and those epilogues
Monday musings on Australian literature: Some Aussie lit links
Well, folks, I've been back in Sydney over the last four days working on my aunt's house. With that, and with Christmas looming, I've not have much time to think about Monday Musings for this week - or, more to the point, to spend time researching and writing it. I did have an idea, but … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Some Aussie lit links
Neel Mukherjee, The lives of others (Review)
Before I talk about Neel Mukherjee's Booker Prize short-listed The lives of others, I want to briefly mention the experience of reading it on the Kindle. I probably haven't told you my little reading rule of thumb before, which is that I aim to buy Australian books in print, and overseas books electronically. It's my measured foray into … Continue reading Neel Mukherjee, The lives of others (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Aussie writers name their pick reads of 2015
It's the month of the lists, and so, while I'll be saving my lists until the END of 2015, I thought today I'd share some of the lists that have already been published. I appreciate that there's value in publishing these lists now, as they might just help people with their Christmas shopping (or with compiling … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Aussie writers name their pick reads of 2015
Whispering Gums 