The Cinnamon Gardens Nursing Home sleeps deeply on this summer night. The heat trapped in its brick walls radiates outwards, through the skin of its painted facade. Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens is set in an aged care home in Western Sydney. It's run by a Sri Lankan refugee, Maya and her husband, Zakhir. The … Continue reading Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens | Shankari Chandran #AWWfiction
Honeybee by Craig Silvey is my first book club read for 2021. It has taken Silvey over ten years to write this book, after the huge success of his second book, Jasper Jones back in 2009. “I put everything I have into writing Honeybee. It tore me up, but it filled me with joy. I’m enormously … Continue reading Honeybee | Craig Silvey #AUSfiction
Thanks to the 2015 Stella Prize, I picked up Ellen van Neervan's book, Heat and Light to discover the most extraordinary and eclectic collection of stories. I still think about them five years later. So I was thrilled when they published a book of poetry entitled Throat last year. It did not have an easy … Continue reading Throat | Ellen van Neerven #AWWpoetry
The series, A Fairy Tale Revolution, consists of four picture books from Vintage Classics, that 'remix and revive' well-known fairy tales and give them a modern, feminist twist. Featuring four amazing UK authors - Jeanette Winterson, Kamila Shamsie, Malorie Blackman and Rebecca Solnit - flexing their authorial muscles in a new format.Like most fairy tales, however, they … Continue reading A Fairy Tale Revolution
I had no intention of reading Such A Fun Age. The premise sounded mildly appealing/interesting: When Emira is apprehended at a supermarket for 'kidnapping' the white child she's actually babysitting, it sets off an explosive chain of events. Her employer Alix, a feminist blogger with the best of intentions, resolves to make things right. But … Continue reading Such A Fun Age | Kiley Reid #USfiction
I'm still trying to catch up on posts leftover from my magnificent Christmas reading binge. Girl, Woman, Other: A Novel by Bernardine Evaristo is the final one. It is certainly not the least though. In fact, it very nearly overtook The Yield as my favourite book for 2019. What stopped it from doing so? Mostly … Continue reading Girl, Woman, Other | Bernardine Evaristo #BookerWinner
Ordinary People by Diana Evans found its way onto my TBR pile thanks to its shortlisting in this year's Women's Prize. Evan's is quite magnificent in describing the daily grind of marital malaise for thirty-something's. We see two couples who have settled down with the one they happened to be sleeping with in their late twenties. … Continue reading Ordinary People | Diana Evans
I'm trying very hard to make a dint on my stupendous Mount TBR this year. Once a month or so, to keep me motivated, I thought I'd join in the current trend of A-Zing. However A-Zing my TBR pile is simply way too easy.So I will nominate a theme for each list. This month, it's DIVERSITY.We're … Continue reading An A – Z of Diversity in my TBR Pile
Part of the feeling of success and enjoyment that I had with this year's Readathon was mostly reading junior fiction, short stories and essays. It allowed me to switch between genres and feel that I was getting through books and pages. In previous readathons I would read through the pile of half finished books by … Continue reading Readathon Reads
I am truly delighted that George Saunders has won an award for his fabulous book, Lincoln in the Bardo. I loved it from start to finish and it deserves to be inundated with accolades and prizes.But I also loved Kamila Shamsie's Home Fire just as much, but for very different reasons (review still to come). … Continue reading Just Saying…
One of my recent #readathon reads was the delightfully eccentric Yours Sincerely, Giraffe by Megumi Isawa (ranslated by Cathy Hirano). When my eyes started to get tired and words began to blur on the page, the simple but fun illustrations from Jun Takabatake were just the eye candy I needed. The premise of the story … Continue reading Yours Sincerely, Giraffe | Megumi Iwasa
Kelly DiPucchio has won me over - head, heart and soul - with her two enchanting picture books about Gaston and Antoinette. They ooze charm, cuteness (but don't tell them!) and good humour.Antoinette continues the very chic tale, that began with Gaston, about these two adorably diverse dog families from Paris. Fee-fe, Foo-fo, Ohh-la-la and … Continue reading Antoinette by Kelly diPucchio
Circle is one of those amazing, gorgeous picture books that I love and adore...right up until the very last page.But that last page does my head in every single time I read it. Before I go into the final page, let me tell you all the reasons why I love and adore the rest of … Continue reading Circle by Jeannie Baker
Ruth Park (1917 - 2010) won the 1977 Miles Franklin Award with her penultimate adult novel, Swords and Crowns and Rings.Until it was republished under the Text Classics umbrella in 2012, I had never even heard of it, let alone read any reviews about it.I've been wondering how this was possible?I read and loved some … Continue reading Swords and Crowns and Rings by Ruth Park
I've been trying to write my review for The Hate Race over the past few days. The problem has been not what to say, but what not!The other thing I have found difficult has been taking myself out of this review to make it all about the book and what Clarke has to say rather than … Continue reading The Hate Race: A Memoir by Maxine Beneba Clarke
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