Rural dreams is another collection of short stories from small independent publisher MidnightSun, and it's another good one. I hadn't heard of Margaret Hickey before, but her website says that she's won a number of awards and is a performed playwright. Relevant to this book is that Hickey grew up in small country towns in … Continue reading Margaret Hickey, Rural dreams (#BookReview)
Bernadine Evaristo, Girl, woman, other (#BookReview)
If ever there was a "zeitgeist" book, Bernadine Evaristo's 2019 Booker Prize winning novel, Girl, woman, other is it. It might be an English-set novel about black British women, "the embodiment of Otherness", but its concerns, ranging from ingrained inequality, racism and sexism to newer issues such as globalisation, are contemporary - and relevant far … Continue reading Bernadine Evaristo, Girl, woman, other (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: 1936 in fiction
As some of you will know Karen (Kaggsy's Bookish Rambling) and Simon (Stuck in a Book) have been running for some time "reading weeks, which involves their choosing, somewhat randomly, a year from which "everyone reads, enjoys, posts and shares wonderful books and discoveries from the year in question". The next one is 1936, and … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: 1936 in fiction
Six degrees of separation, FROM Shuggie Bain TO …
It is now autumn here Down Under, and, like our summer, it's a strange one - cooler and wetter than "normal". Oops, we need to get used to the fact that in this world of change, there is no "normal" anymore, "new" or otherwise. Anyhow, 'nuff said. Let's get onto our Six Degrees of Separation … Continue reading Six degrees of separation, FROM Shuggie Bain TO …
Jane Austen, Juvenilia, Volume the second (#Review)
Last November, my Jane Austen group read the first volume (my review) of Jane Austen's Juvenilia, with a plan to read the next two volumes during 2021. This month, we read the second volume, which contains pieces written, it is believed, between 1790 and 1793, when Austen was 14 to 17 years old. As with … Continue reading Jane Austen, Juvenilia, Volume the second (#Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Expressing the zeitgeist
At the end of last week's Monday Musings, I asked whether "saying something" was important to you, meaning, really, is it a top criterion when you choose what to read or when you talk about what you've read? For me, it is, as you can probably tell from the sorts of reviews I write. So, … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Expressing the zeitgeist
Stella Prize and Christina Stead Prize for Fiction 2021 Shortlists announced
With two shortlists being announced on the heels of each other, I thought I would combine them into one post, so here goes ... Stella Prize Shortlist The Stella Prize shortlist was announced this morning and is, I suppose, a bit of a surprise for me - though I haven't read the books so I … Continue reading Stella Prize and Christina Stead Prize for Fiction 2021 Shortlists announced
Leah Swann, Sheerwater (#BookReview)
I've been wanting to read Leah Swann's Sheerwater, having read and enjoyed, a few years ago, her short story collection, Bearings (my review). However, I didn't get around to buying a copy, so was pleased to see it available as an audio book when I was looking for listening matter for our recent Melbourne trip. … Continue reading Leah Swann, Sheerwater (#BookReview)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Peril, and Asian Australian literature
A decade ago, I wrote a Monday Musings post on Asian-Australian literature, in which I named, as I often do in such posts, 5 Asian Australian writers. Given the increasing problems of discrimination faced by Asian communities in western countries alongside, perhaps paradoxically, the increased visibility of Asian Australian writing here, I thought an update … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Peril, and Asian Australian literature
Garry Disher, Bitter Wash Road (#BookReview)
Garry Disher's Bitter Wash Road has been sitting on my TBR pile for over seven years. It was sent to me on spec but, as crime is not my preferred reading, I didn't feel obliged to read it - and yet, I hung onto it, just in case... So, when Kim (Reading Matters) decided to … Continue reading Garry Disher, Bitter Wash Road (#BookReview)
Whispering Gums 