Reviewed by Clare Brook Writers are advised to begin a work with a strong ‘hook’ – an intriguing sentence designed to incite reader curiosity. Sarah Bluett has managed to do this in the title of her debut novel, The Other Side of Death, who among us would not want a peek behind that particular curtain.
Reviewed by Rod McLary ‘Soft serve’ as most readers would immediately recognise is a cultural reference to McDonald’s and the servings of soft ice cream available there. But here, in this charming debut novel by George Kemp, McDonald’s also serves [no pun intended] as the social hub of this small country town in which the
Reviewed by Rod McLary Who doesn’t love a good adventure story – especially when it is one set on the oceans with hardly a parent in sight? And that is exactly what Justin Somper has crafted in Missing at Sea – volume two in the Pirate Academy series. The cast is a group of eleven-year-olds
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke ‘Twas the night before Easter, the workshop was busy! There were baskets to fill and eggs to make pretty. There was so much to do for the Big Easter Quest. And the Bunny herself she was, honestly stressed. Tanya Hennessy’s bright picture book, Pink Easter, follows other books by this author
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke Sharon Dalgleish, once a teacher, now writes non-fiction and poetry books for children. To date she has published over fifty books for the education market as well as texts and resource books for current primary school teachers. Her latest book, Saving Shark Pup, is the true story of a great white
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke The creator of this book is Hana Kinoshita Thomson, a Japanese-American-Australian illustrator, designer and author. As well as creating her own hard covered rabbity books she is an in-house book designer at Allen & Unwin. This square children’s hard-covered picture book is dedicated to her parents and anyone who loves rabbits.
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke This hard-cover children’s book by Andrea Rowe and illustrated by Lisa Coutts tells the story of a young girl called Audrey who skips across the Melbourne skyline during a particular time in history. The story highlights good times and times when parents worry how they will pay the bills and people
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke Stolen Man on Stolen Land is written in the first person and follows a young Afro American couple who have decided to spend some years in Australia. The reader is given an insight into life in America for people of this culture and how others, not born in Australia, find life
Reviewed by E. B. Heath In his latest book, For the People: Fighting Authoritarianism Saving Democracy, Professor A. C. Grayling provides, in a clear accessible style, a well-researched exploration of the decline of democracy and the rise of authoritarianism. Grayling names four reasons why democracy is under pressure. The first is that it is not
Reviewed by Ian Lipke J.R. Lonie is a Sydneysider who is a screenwriter, author and playwright. His book, The Woman in the Spotlight is the novel of interest to this reviewer today. His story The Woman from Saint Germain was published in 2019, and his three novellas, Acts of Love, were published in 1996. Other
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke As a past educator I am aware that trying to change what a child has first learned is not easy. Yet I also know that children respond to and remember what is funny and even sometimes ridiculous. Information is more easily absorbed if it is related to the child’s activities. Author,
Reviewed by E B Heath There is no time without the place, and no place without the time. Dr. J. M. Field is a Gamilaraay man, his book The Eagle & The Crow is not an easy read, but it is beautiful. He explains the sophisticated kinship systems of the Gamilaraay, how they are anchored
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke It was lovely to return to Settlers Bridge and hear more about the residents I had encountered before in Léonie Kelsall’s books. I had read about Lachlan and Hamish MacKenzie and how Lachlan had met his partner schoolteacher Charity. Hamish is also prominent in the stories of others in and around
Reviewed by Antonella Townsend The Furphy Literary Award was established in 1992. It became a national competition for the first time in 2020 with the topic: Australian life in all its diversity. Out of this year’s seven hundred and fifty entrants, fifteen short stories judged to be the best of the best are presented here.
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders The cover and title give little away – police armed with bayonets facing men in civilian clothes with sticks and swords, all under an Australian Flag. But Riots is a very specific story about civil unrest that centred on soldiers freshly returned from supporting the British empire in World War 1.