Black Glass Meg Mundell Scribe, March 2011 9781921640933 (Aus) In Meg Mundell’s dark and stylish debut, two sisters and a cast of characters from different tiers of society fight for survival, recognition and connection in near-future Melbourne. The novel is in some ways about maintaining some kind of hope or dreams in a fractured, controlling … Continue reading The moody city: Meg Mundell on Black Glass
Month: February 2011
Social media marketing & bringing back the letter
Those two things might seem incompatible, but they are two things I have spoken about and written on lately... Recently I was a guest of the Australian Publishers Association at the Social Media Marketing seminars in Sydney and Melbourne. There were all sorts of speakers - writers, booksellers, publishers, a 'guru' and someone like me … Continue reading Social media marketing & bringing back the letter
And the winner of the Hide & Seek: Melbourne books is…
Richard Goodwin, of Perth. The winner was drawn randomly. Richard had this to say about his favourite hidden place: 'When we’re visiting Victoria, we love to go to a place called Kyo down on the Bellarine Peninsula. It’s a warehouse full of old furniture, fittings, fabrics, work equipment and art/craft items from northern Asia, the … Continue reading And the winner of the Hide & Seek: Melbourne books is…
Guest review: Matthia Dempsey on What the World Will Look Like When All the Water Leaves Us by Laura van den Berg
Scribe Publications, February 2011 (Aus, US, UK) 9781921640896 Reviewed by Matthia Dempsey Laura van den Berg has particular skill in capturing the strangeness that can come at times—the sense of being a stranger to your own life and the world. For many of the women in her stories this feeling is the result of a … Continue reading Guest review: Matthia Dempsey on What the World Will Look Like When All the Water Leaves Us by Laura van den Berg
Recent reads: Perth Writers Festival special
The following three books are some of the new ones I've read in preparation for Perth Writers Festival (5 to 7 March). I'll be chairing panels featuring the authors. Find out more about those panels on this post. The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog and of His Friend Marilyn Monroe by Andrew O'Hagan Faber, 9780571215997 … Continue reading Recent reads: Perth Writers Festival special
More bite-sized book reviews
Here’s the second batch of mini reviews I commissioned from some of my Twitter followers. They get a free book, I retweet the review to my followers and publish it here (slightly edited). It can be over two tweets. Enjoy! @toria_jayne: Kate Atkinson's Started Early, Took My Dog is a clever crime novel with a complex … Continue reading More bite-sized book reviews
Review of Yearn by Tobsha Learner up at Fancy Goods
I recently reviewed Tobsha Learner's new collection of sexy short stories, Yearn: Tales of Lust and Longing, for Bookseller+Publisher. They've put it up now on their Fancy Goods blog. 'Yearn is a collection of fun, imaginative and sexy stories by the author of Tremble and Quiver, Tobsha Learner. Learner’s stories are not purely erotic, but romantic and … Continue reading Review of Yearn by Tobsha Learner up at Fancy Goods
20 classics in 2011 #2: The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
I’m reading 20 classic, modern-classic or cult books in 2011. Read more about this project here. ‘A great many people give me the impression of never having for a moment felt anything’ – Isabel Archer, The Portrait of a Lady. Why did I want to read it? Well, first of all, Henry James is one of the ‘great’ novelists … Continue reading 20 classics in 2011 #2: The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
Guest review: Lisa Down on Making News by Tony Wilson
Murdoch Books July 2010 9781741969238 (Aus) reviewed by Lisa Down Remember the old saying, ‘Write what you know’? It’s an adage former AFL player, author and columnist Tony Wilson must have taken to heart. His latest offering, Making News, revolves around, well… a retired soccer player, an aspiring young columnist and an author, who … Continue reading Guest review: Lisa Down on Making News by Tony Wilson
