A bunch of workmen were lying on the grass of the park beside Macquarie Street, in the dinner hour. It was winter, the end of May, but the sun was warm, and they lay there in their shirtsleeves, talking. Some were eating food from paper packages. They were a mixed lot - taxi drivers, a … Continue reading Kangaroo | D.H. Lawrence
From the window of a hotel room in Paris: a view of rooftops, the brown river, a cobblestoned street, one corner of a scaffolded, burnt-out church. It is a morning in March 2020 and the air holds a breath of warmth. The sky is a pale, hopeful blue. I love it when a book takes … Continue reading The Sitter | Angela O’Keeffe
Glaston had been in the doldrums for forty years when I arrived. Not so much dead or dying as undecided. Worn down by branch closures and businesses leaving, by farming changes and the fickleness of markets; held up by a solid past and the confidence of those who saw beauty in it. It's streets are … Continue reading Glass Houses: A Novel | Anne Coombs #AWWfiction
Voss Readalong November 2022 Opening Lines: "There is a man here, miss, asking for your uncle," said Rose. And stood breathing. I love this opening. I can just see Rose, the hard-working, impatient, put-upon servant being asked to do something she doesn't normally have to do on a Sunday, and doing it huffily and with … Continue reading Voss | Patrick White #ReadtheNobels
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
In a basement bar on a university campus, a boy and a girl hold each other, their limbs loose with alcohol. First, an apology for being pretty absent in blogger land lately. I'm keeping up with AusReadingMonth posts (just) and that's about it. Post scheduling errors, computer updates that end up requiring some IT input … Continue reading Love & Virtue | Diana Reid
My dear son James has given me a task for my last years, or months, or whatever time I have left beyond the many years I have lived so far. Sometime in April or May last year, I was given an advance reading copy of Kate Grenville's A Room Made of Leaves. I was very … Continue reading A Room Made of Leaves | Kate Grenville
Sometimes a reading experience is not as straight forward as you might first think. There are some books that demand more of the reader. The Death of Noah Glass by Gail Jones was one of those books for me. I feel a little guilty about confessing that this was my first Gail Jones. One of … Continue reading The Death of Noah Glass | Gail Jones
Oh me, oh my! What a seductive, chilling, creepy, psychological family drama this is. Set in Sydney during the 1930's and 40's, The Watch Tower follows the young lives of Laura & Clare. Orphaned when first their father dies. Then abandoned by their incredibly selfish, self-absorbed, negligent mother who leaves them to go off & … Continue reading The Watch Tower | Elizabeth Harrower
From the Irish author of 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' comes a brand new novel, The Terrible Thing That Happened to Barnaby Brocket, set in Sydney, Australia. Barnaby Brocket is born into a very normal family. Mr & Mrs Brocket pride themselves on how normal they are...in fact, you could say, that they are … Continue reading The Terrible Thing that Happened to Barnaby Brocket | John Boyne
Delightful, funny, charming! The Women in Black was the tonic I needed this week. I could gush on and on and on about this gorgeous little story about a group of women who worked at Goode's Department Store in Sydney in the 1950's. Of course, Goode's was based on David Jones and the staff still … Continue reading The Women in Black | Madeleine St John
Cyclone wipes out all the eastern suburbs of Sydney. Hundreds dead; even more missing and injured! This is the horrific news headline that would best describe Libby Gleeson's latest novel for young teens, Red. After an unprecedented natural disaster Red wakes up covered in mud and scratches unable to remember who she is and what … Continue reading Red | Libby Gleeson
You know what you're going to get with a Jackie French novel. Her historical fiction is formulaic, but you know what? It's a formula that works. Nanberry is true to her usual winning style. It's easy to read, well-paced, with good dialogue. French finds the human-side to every period of history that she tackles.This time … Continue reading Nanberry | Jackie French
Very Very Pearlie is a bind-up of the first 3 stories written by comedienne Wendy Harmer. The colourful, exuberant illustrations by Mike Zarb complement the stories with a happy chorus of all things pink. They're a perfect match for the 6+ girl market. Each story has a blend of humour, mystery and drama. And they all … Continue reading Very Very Pearlie – Pearlie in the Park, Lost Doll & Opal | Wendy Harmer
The year began with the hanging of one man, and ended with the drowning of another. What a curious story is The Golden Day. Set in the 1960's with a hint of 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' about it. A group of schoolgirls are taken on an excursion to the local park by their teacher. … Continue reading The Golden Day | Ursula Dubosarsky
This Reading Life 