Once again, as I've been doing for most to the Year Clubs, I am using it as an opportunity to read an Australian short story, usually from one of my anthologies. For 1952, however, the anthologies came up empty, but I did find one via AustLit, and then tracked it down in The Bulletin. The … Continue reading Kylie Tennant, The face of despair (#Review, #1952 Club)
Monday musings on Australian literature: 1952 in fiction
Once again it's Karen's (Kaggsy's Bookish Rambling) and Simon's (Stuck in a Book) "Year Club" week. This week, it is 1952, and it runs from today, 21 to 27 April. As for the last 7 clubs, I am devoting my Monday Musings to the week. The 1950s represent the main period of the Baby Boomer … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: 1952 in fiction
Helen Garner, The season (#BookReview)
In 2023, The New Yorker published a piece on Helen Garner. Written by Australian journalist, Helen Sullivan, its title, "The startling candor of Helen Garner", captures exactly what I like about Garner, as does this a little further on: Her writing is elegant but colloquial, characterized by an impulse to say and share things others … Continue reading Helen Garner, The season (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Vale Kerry Greenwood
I was sorry to hear a few days ago that the Australian writer Kerry Greenwood (1954-2025) had died on 26 March, at the too-young age of 70. Her death was only publicly announced week ago, which is fair enough. Families have a right to grieve their loved person in private if they so desire. It … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Vale Kerry Greenwood
Jane Austen, Emma (Vol. 1, redux 2025)
As long-time readers here will know, my Jane Austen group did a slow read of Austen's novels over several years, starting in 2011. In 2022, we decided it was time to repeat the exercise, and are again reading them chronologically, one each year, making 2025 Emma's turn. Our slow reads involve reading and discussing the … Continue reading Jane Austen, Emma (Vol. 1, redux 2025)
Irma Gold in conversation with Karen Viggers
The Canberra launch of Irma Gold's latest book, her second novel Shift (my review), was a joyful affair that reminded me of other launches of books by Canberra writers, such as Karen Viggers' Sidelines and Nigel Featherstone's My heart is a little wild thing. Canberra is a comparatively small jurisdiction so when one of our … Continue reading Irma Gold in conversation with Karen Viggers
Monday musings on Australian literature: UNESCO Cities of Literature
A year before I started this blog, Melbourne was designated as a UNESCO City of Literature, something I briefly mentioned in a 2010 post on the Victorian Literary Map. The City of Literature program is part of UNESCO's wider Creative Cities Network which was launched in 2004, and which itself grew out of UNESCO's 2002 … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: UNESCO Cities of Literature
Irma Gold, Shift (#BookReview)
If Australian writer Irma Gold suffered from Second Book Syndrome while writing her second novel, it certainly doesn't show. Her debut novel, The breaking (my review), is well-written and a great read. However, in Shift, I sense a writer who has reached another level of confidence in fusing her writing, story-telling, and the ideals and … Continue reading Irma Gold, Shift (#BookReview)
Six degrees of separation, FROM Knife TO …
And so the year rolls on. It's the first Saturday in April, so here I am again with another Six Degrees. It's autumn here and we are starting to feel the change in the air. Time to get out my cool weather wardrobe again, more's the pity! Now, I'll get onto it ... but first, … Continue reading Six degrees of separation, FROM Knife TO …
Monday musings on Australian literature: Tasmanian Literary Awards
While some state literary awards are well established - such as the NSW and Victorian Premier's Literary Awards - others seem to struggle to gain and maintain traction. But, where there's a will, there's usually a way, as we saw in Queensland in 2012 when new premier Campbell Newman cancelled the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards. … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Tasmanian Literary Awards
Whispering Gums 