CATEGORIES

A History of Books is in many ways a continuation of the musings of Gerald Murnane’s 2009 book Barley Patch. It’s a safe prediction that A History of Books will be unlike any other book published in Australia this year. It consists of a long series of anecdotes about a man and the books he has read and how they relate to his life and his memories. The work ranges back and forward in time and plays with subtle repetitions that might seem tedious to the casual reader but build to a very satisfying conclusion. It embodies the literary life, describing a man who ‘preferred to the visible world a space enclosed by words denoting a world more real by far’. The book also includes three shorter works of fiction that develop further the depiction of someone who ‘would seek in books what most others sought among living persons’. Murnane has an utterly unique vision and approach to writing fiction, but it’s not a vision that everyone will appreciate with its absence of plot and character development. To my mind there is no greater living Australian writer, however, it’s likely that his audience will remain a small one. (5 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

Despite the present-day profusion of literary magazines and outstanding short-story collections, the 21st century does not seem to be as hospitable to shor t-stor y writers as the 19th and 20th centuries were. It has often been said that few writers make a living from writing shor t stories today, or that the form only thrives in the independent sector, or in academia, or online. In this radically diminished landscape, Ryan O’Neill’s intriguing debut short-story collection is invaluable. In a style reminiscent of Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Egan’s A Visit From The Goon Squad, The Weight of a Human Hear t slides across characters, generations, decades, styles (we’re not talking first person vs third—this is venn diagrams, filled-in exam papers and page-long footnotes) and tones (from heart felt to the black humour of a headmaster/bishop, scissors in hand, pursuing long-haired schoolgirls in ‘The Saved’) in a mosaic of styles and voices. O’Neill’s well-crafted stories are vital in their dramatic situations and as subtle studies of the human character—everyday triumphs and tragedies are briefly illuminated, the secret places of relationships laid bare. In the hands of this able practitioner, the minor art form of the short story becomes major art. (4 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

We All Fall Down  is the second novel from Peter Barry, author of I Hate Mar tin Amisetal. Where Amis  focussed on the literary world, We All Fall Down  critiques the advertising industry through the story of Hugh Drysdale, a successful Sydney ad agent. At first glance Hugh appears to have it all: a high-paying job, a loving young family and a bright future. But like the industry in which he works, superficial appearances can hide deeper cracks. Work is demanding but Hugh reminds himself that working the extra hours is necessary to provide for his family. His wife doesn’t understand. She’s now stuck in their new country home, alone but for the two-year-old son she must raise on her own. It is in these depictions of family life, alternately hear t-warming and heartbreaking, that Barry’s writing is at its best. Where We All Fall Down fails is in the descriptions of life at the agency. It may have been a deliberate ploy to illustrate the shallow advertising world but the one-dimensional characters populating Hugh’s agency appear mere mouthpieces for Barry’s anti- consumerism views. It’s a pity, as there is much to like in We All Fall Down . (2.5 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

In 1961, Stanley Milgram, an ambitious 27-year-old associate professor of psychology at Yale University, conducted a series of controversial experiments designed to test the limits of obedience. He recruited over 800 volunteers and in the experiment the subjects were told to give electric shocks to a person they could hear screaming in pain in the room next door. Milgram’s experiments were set against a backdrop of cultural and political anxieties including the Eichmann trial (the first televised trial in America), the Cold War and the contemporary fear of America’s moral weakness after the capture and supposed brainwashing of American soldiers during the Korean War. Milgram’s results tapped into the zeitgeist of American fear at this time-they suggested that the average American could potentially become a torturer and that, in the face of authority, the human conscience is frail and malleable. Australian psychologist Gina Perry has meticulously researched Milgram and his controversial experiment, having been granted access to all 158 boxes of archival materials. She interviews Milgram’s wife, volunteers and staff who took part in these now infamous experiments and unpacks their moral implications, ethical issues and long-reaching effects, as well as the impact on social psychology studies. This book should appeal to readers interested in psychology and human behaviour. (3 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

The Tide family has fallen apart. It’s been 10 years since a sudden tragedy transformed the lives of Helen, Richard, Dora and Cassie, but no-one has been able to move on. When Dora discovers she is pregnant, she realises that in order to build a future she will need to confront the past. But this won’t be easy as each of her family members offers a different version of the truth. This is a very readable debut from UK-born, Sydney-based writer Hannah Richell, which attracted a bidding war and multiple translation deals. While some readers may dislike the way Richell repeatedly signposts key information, others will be swept away by the melodrama and the mystery. Suspense slowly builds as the narrative jumps backwards and for wards in time. The reader must piece together clues as more secrets are gradually uncovered and multiple points of vie w are explored. Fans of family sagas will enjoy Richell’s talent for capturing the little details (and big dilemmas) of family life, as well as the darkness and the tender and funny moments. (3 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

Diana is an Australian aid worker, writing reports for a disaster relief organisation bereft of the kind of disaster that grabs attention. She reconnects with her illusive friend Petra in Jakarta and a story of power, corruption and loss unfolds, as Diana becomes embroiled in the lives of siblings Petra, Paul and Isaak. The siblings are haunted by the past, as the narrative weaves the sad circumstances of their childhood in with present day revelations. In a city where they are chauffeured to school through streets teeming with protestors and then home to an austere marble mansion, where they clearly connect more with their nanny—who secretly schools them in mythology and mysticism—than with either of their distant parents, the children lead a life of both privilege and pain. The merciless bullying of Petra by the cruel young Bill Desta foreshadows a greater threat that has both personal and global ramifications, as the running dogs of the title run wild. Lyrical descriptions clash with harsh imagery to evoke a world of extreme privilege set among that of poverty, fear and political upheaval, where privilege and wealth are not enough protection from familial secrets and shame. Running Dogs is a powerful and nuanced debut novel. (4 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

It was a pleasure to read this debut from Australian film and television writer and producer Tony Cavanaugh. Promise is a sharply written and well-plotted crime novel, with mostly clear characterisations and the occasional flash of wit and even wisdom. It also evokes an excellent sense of place, reminiscent of Peter Corris’ ‘Cliff Hardy’ novels. The story is set in and around Noosa and the Sunshine Coast where a serial killer is on the loose and hunting teenage girls. Ex-homicide cop Darian Richards has moved up from Victoria to seek a quiet life. This is obviously not to be. The novel switches between two narrators: our hard-bitten hero Darian, and Winnie, the serial killer. This device both steps up the pace and allows us to see into the minds of both characters. While Darian is clearly troubled, Winnie is simply depraved; his chapters are unsettling, disturbing, even revolting. Readers of Val McDermott’s ‘ Tony Hill’ books will be familiar with these feelings. The best thing about this book is that it looks like there will be a second one. (4.5 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker

The mountain, the dominant image of Drusilla Modjeska’s ambitious new novel, is an imaginary peak in Australia’s nearest neighbour, Papua New Guinea. A young, recently wed Dutch photographer, Rika, and her English ethnologist husband Leonard arrive in PNG at the end of the 1960s, when the Melanesian country is still under Australian colonial rule. He is to study the remote tribal community of the mountain, and she is along for the ride. Finding herself quickly abandoned, however, Rika is drawn to an educated young Papua New Guinean, Aaron, and a lifelong love affair with him and his country begins. With elements of a family saga (the story ends in recent times), The Mountain is book about the enduring relationship between European and Melanesian in all its complexity: the ties that can bring people together and the mysteries that can confound them on both sides. Informed by the author’s many visits to PNG and by much historical research, the book’s strength is its lovingly detailed depictions of Papuan New Guinean life, culture and society. While PNG’s gaining of independence in 1975 is major event in the book, Modjeska’s focus is largely on the personal and emotional lives of her characters, rather than on the political (it is a novel, after all). As a conduit into a fascinating yet frequently misunderstood country on Australia’s doorstep, The Mountain has much to recommend it. (3 stars)

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (May 2012) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2012, Thorpe-Bowker