Scribe Publications, 9781921844140, July 2011, Australia Melanie Joosten’s debut novel is a taut and intimate psychological thriller. Clare meets Andi while on a working holiday in Berlin and they immediately share a strong attraction. At Andi’s behest, Clare decides to delay travelling on to Dresden, but their intense connection quickly morphs into a more sinister … Continue reading Guest review: Portia Lindsay on Berlin Syndrome by Melanie Joosten
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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
David Carlin’s Our Father Who Wasn’t There
Scribe February 2010 9781921640254 (Aus, US) David Carlin was six months old when his father, Brian, ‘went to sleep and never woke up’. His mother kept a photo of him on the bedside table, but otherwise, not much was spoken of his existence to David and his two older siblings, until they were much older. … Continue reading David Carlin’s Our Father Who Wasn’t There
Cate Kennedy’s The World Beneath
Scribe September 2009 9781921372964 (Aus, Grove US) There’s no doubt Cate Kennedy is one of Australia’s most perceptive writers. Her short stories, which can be found in various journals and the collection Dark Roots, are rich in character and often contemplate moments of connection, all the misfires and failed connections, and their consequences. In The World Beneath, Rich wants to … Continue reading Cate Kennedy’s The World Beneath
Eric Garcia's The Repossession Mambo
9781921372810 Scribe 2009 (Australia) (and Harper US) In the near future, artificial organs (artiforgs) can be bought to save a person's life - or simply enhance life's quality. From kidneys to central nervous systems, the expensive artiforgs can be bought on credit, and if you miss too many payments, they can be repossessed. When we … Continue reading Eric Garcia's The Repossession Mambo
Poetry Readings, Launches, and Parties Galore
This week was again full of events, book buying, inspiration, parties, and somehow reading and writing amongst it all. Here's a bit of a round-up: Rebecca Clare Page launched her chapbook full of short-sweet gems Teacups and Birds.You can email her for a copy - rebeccaclarepage [at] hotmail [dot] com. Here's a sample ((c) Rebecca Clare … Continue reading Poetry Readings, Launches, and Parties Galore
Capitalism is funny – a review of Max Barry's Company
Company, Max Barry, Scribe, 9781921215643, 2008 (Aus, US) Jones joins Zephyr as an enthusiastic employee, without even knowing what the company does. This doesn't seem to be an odd thing at Zephyr, where Jones' coworkers in the Training Sales department just accept that Zephyr is a ‘holdings' company, and get on with their menial, perpetual … Continue reading Capitalism is funny – a review of Max Barry's Company
The Miernik Dossier by Charles McCarry
Scribe, February - Trade Paperback, 9781921215605 (Aus, US) Scribe have wisely decided to reinvigorate cold war spy novel The Miernik Dossier , which centres around paranoia, suspicion and misconceptions. A mixed band of secret agents (American, British, African and suspected Soviet) travel from Switzerland, through Eastern Europe to the Sudan. American spy Paul Christopher attempts … Continue reading The Miernik Dossier by Charles McCarry
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