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)
Post-apartheid
Karen Jennings, Crooked seeds (#BookReview)
Crooked seeds is the third novel I've read by South African writer Karen Jennings, and she continues to intrigue and impress me, because she seems to be quietly bubbling away in her little corner of the world writing books that grapple with the difficult questions. Unfortunately, I didn't read her Booker-longlisted novel, An island (2020), … Continue reading Karen Jennings, Crooked seeds (#BookReview)
Damon Galgut, The promise (#BookReview)
Damon Galgut's Booker Prize winning novel, The promise, is one of those novels that grabbed me intellectually and emotionally from its opening pages. The plot, itself, is straighforward. It concerns a White South African family's promise to give a house on their property to their Black maid, whom their grandfather had acquired "along with the … Continue reading Damon Galgut, The promise (#BookReview)
Nadine Gordimer, Harald, Claudia, and their son Duncan (#BookReview)
There are authors I read long before blogging whom I really want to document here, in some way. One of these is Nobel Laureate Nadine Gordimer who first came to my attention in 1983 with her memorable, confronting 1956 short story collection, Six feet of the country. Nadine Gordimer, as I'm sure you know, had … Continue reading Nadine Gordimer, Harald, Claudia, and their son Duncan (#BookReview)
Karen Jennings, Finding Soutbek (Review)
Finding Soutbek (Courtesy: Holland Park Press) I don't, as a rule, accept review copies of books by non-Australian authors, but when New Holland Press offered me Finding Soutbek by South African writer, Karen Jennings, I was intrigued. Intrigued because of connections in our countries' respective histories, and because I've read several books set in South … Continue reading Karen Jennings, Finding Soutbek (Review)
Disgrace-ful
Well, I finally got to see the film adaptation of J.M. Coetzee's Disgrace today. Before seeing it, I was a little surprised that it only had an (Australian) M rating. From my memory of the book I was rather expecting an MA rating. I was slightly disappointed in the film: it's not that I want to watch … Continue reading Disgrace-ful
Whispering Gums 