READING I finished The Goldfinch! Yes, only one year late. But still… 784 pages is a big commitment and quite frankly it’s taken me that amount of time to muster up the courage. To be honest, mid-way through, I did start to rush through it a bit. I did skim sections, yes I did. Every time I would lug The…
Buying books for kids is about as much fun as Christmas shopping gets. A book is fun, inexpensive, easy to store and – of course – educational. It ticks every gift-giving box I know. That said, the choice is extraordinary, so here are a few of my top picks.
We are officially only four weeks from the big day, so I think it’s safe to start talking about Christmas shopping. Needless to say, I think everyone’s stocking requires at least one book in it, maybe more. You know the old saying… Something they want, Something they need, Something to wear and Something TO READ! The last one, obviously, being…
Teenagers are so hard to buy for. Right? Well, I might just have solved at least one of your gift shopping issues for this Christmas. ‘Clancy of the Undertow’ is a brilliant piece of contemporary realist fiction (ie set in the here and now) which would be perfect for any girl (or nuanced boy) aged 15+. You can read more…
IN BRIEF:A beautiful cover is matched by terrific story-telling in this coming-of-age story of the smart and funny, Clancy. Funny and heartfelt and perfect for the over 15s.
READING: After struggling, really struggling to find something great to read, I discovered two highly enjoyable books – both by Australian authors. The first was The Near Miss, a work of contemporary fiction, set in Melbourne and revolving around a near-tragedy that ends up entwining the lives of three complete strangers. The marketing describes it as The Slap meets Love…
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about being the reading doldrums. I simply could not find a book that grabbed me. Then, I stumbled across The Near Miss. Oh, praise you reading-Gods. You always seem to deliver at the right time! The Near Miss was exactly what I was looking for – contemporary fiction, written by an Australian woman writer,…
If you end a book & think nothing could be improved-you’re a reader.
If you end a book & think everything could be improved-you’re a writer.
This was a tweet that came through on my feed last week and sparked an interesting conversation between several writers (including me), who largely disagreed.
READING: I am in the total reading doldrums at the moment. I can’t seem to be grabbed by anything! And I’ve tried. Really tried. I’ve tried some new literary things, some commercial ones, and I’ve even dipped my toe into some crime fiction. But nothing is doing it for me. I want to be captured. Entranced. Romanced. Hooked. Instead, I…
IN BRIEF:Funny, and at times heart-breaking, this is a memoir of one man’s efforts to understand why his parents didn’t love him in the way they should have.