I have mentioned the National Biography Award before, but have never dedicated a post to it. Since this Monday musings coincides with the announcement of the 2014 award, I thought it would be a good time to write a little about this award. The National Biography Award was initially endowed by Geoffrey Cains, with support … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: National Biography Award
The meeting of art and literature, at the Singapore Art Museum
Mr Gums and I have had a busy few months, with, unusually for us, two overseas trips in less than four months. Both were family-inspired: Canada in April-May to visit our daughter, and then last week Koh Samui to help Mr Gums' sister and husband celebrate their 40th anniversary. We decided to spend a few days … Continue reading The meeting of art and literature, at the Singapore Art Museum
Monday musings on Australian literature: The novel in Australia, 1927-style, Part 2
Today's Monday Musings is Part 2 of my two post series discussing Nettie Palmer's article, "The novel in Australia", that was published in The Brisbane Courier, 15 October 1927. As I did in last week's post, I'll use her headings to share her view on Australia's great novels. A novelist abroad Here she discusses Australian writers who wrote … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: The novel in Australia, 1927-style, Part 2
Roslyn Russell, Maria returns: Barbados to Mansfield Park (Review)
A week or so ago my local Jane Austen group had a guest speaker at our meeting, Roslyn Russell, the author of Maria returns: Barbados to Mansfield Park. Russell is a local historian who has written this historical novel based on Jane Austen's novel, Mansfield Park. She is also a lapsed member of our group, … Continue reading Roslyn Russell, Maria returns: Barbados to Mansfield Park (Review)
Eleanor Dark’s Juvenilia (Review)
Eleanor Dark was quite a star in Australia's literary firmament of the 1930s to 1950s, and has left an important legacy, not only in her most famous book The timeless land but also in the fact that her home Varuna in the Blue Mountains is now one of Australia's most significant and loved writers' retreats. It's … Continue reading Eleanor Dark’s Juvenilia (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: The novel in Australia, 1927-style, Part 1
Nettie Palmer was one of Australia's leading literary critics, not to mention essayist and poet, through the 1920s to 1940s. I have mentioned her several times in this blog, including in my post on Australia's literary couples. She also mentored younger women writers such as Marjorie Barnard and Flora Eldershaw. However, what I want to discuss today … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: The novel in Australia, 1927-style, Part 1
Bangarra Dance Theatre’s Patyegarang
This year is Bangarra Dance Theatre's 25th anniversary. For those of you who don't know, Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Indigenous Australian contemporary dance company that was established - obviously - in 1989. Its artistic director since 1991 has been Stephen Page. His brother, David Page, does the music. These are two very talented brothers … Continue reading Bangarra Dance Theatre’s Patyegarang
John Updike, The lovely troubled daughters of our old crowd (Review)
I have an old-friend-cum-ex-colleague who has been asking me for longer than I can remember to read John Updike. He even, a year or so ago, sent me a link to a Kindle special for Rabbit, Run. I obediently bought it, and I do intend to read it, I do. However, I recently reorganised my Kindle and … Continue reading John Updike, The lovely troubled daughters of our old crowd (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Indigenous writers recommend …
Last week, to commemorate the beginning of NAIDOC Week, I devoted Monday Musings to Anita Heiss's series of interviews with indigenous Australian writers, In conversation with BlackWords. I said then that this week's post would also draw from the series - and so here it is. I'm not 100% sure of Heiss's process, but I … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Indigenous writers recommend …
Tara June Winch, Swallow the air (Review for Indigenous Literature Week)
Tara June Winch's Swallow the air is another book that has been languishing too long on my TBR pile, though not as long as Sara Dowse's Schemetime. For Swallow the air, it was a case of third time lucky, because this was the third year I planned to read it for ANZLitLovers Indigenous Literature Week. Like the … Continue reading Tara June Winch, Swallow the air (Review for Indigenous Literature Week)
