CATEGORIES

I’m not afraid to say that I’m a fan of Kerry Greenwood’s Phryne Fisher crime novels. They use the historical background and social currents of 1920s Melbourne to great effect. Private detective Phyrne herself is, of course, larger than life. Rich and beautiful, dressed in the most fashionable clothing (and indeed judging others by the style of their clothes) she has had an adventurous life with many lovers along the way. In Raisins and Almonds, Phryne is hired by the father of her latest beau, Simon Abrahams, to investigate the poisoning of a young Jewish man in an Eastern markets bookstore owned by Sylvia Lee. Sylvia has been locked up for the murder by the reliable, but slightly thick, Inspector ‘call me Jack’ Robinson, but as Phryne soon discovers, Sylvia is quite innocent. The trail leads into the dark alleyways and backstreets of Jewish politics, mysticism, poison and alchemy. While a bit darker than the usual Phryne Fisher novel, Raisins and Almonds still maintains a high standard of intrigue and fun. Kudos to Bolinda Audio for its commitment to bringing Australian books to the audio market. This is read by the engaging Helen Daniels, who brings the text to life with verve and aplomb.

Shane Strange is a bookseller at Paperchain Bookstore, Canberra

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine (April 2009, Vol 88, No 6.) is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2009, Thorpe-Bowker.

A recently released book, In Someone Else’s Shoes by Joseph Assaf was endorsed and discussed by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at the recent Ethnic Business Awards.

Link to speech:

http://www.pm.gov.au/media/speech/2008/speech_0631.cfm

Fifteen-year-old Courtney Marlow didn’t exactly think it through. She thought the offer to have her life broadcast on national television was the perfect solution to her family’s financial troubles. She was wrong. Mackenzie Dahl, the show’s producer, promised to show Australia a real teenager. Courtney was going to be a positive role model, someone on television without a boob job and an eating disorder. But as events in her life are deviously manipulated to create drama, Courtney begins to realise that ‘ordinary’ does not translate to ‘entertaining’. Everyone wants their 15 minutes of fame via a little bit of Courtney – especially her conniving friend Katie, and her stepmother, Lola. But Courtney is not the pliant teenager everyone seems to think she is…A funny, edgy, completely compelling novel.

Here’s a free extract from the book:

http://www.loathinglola.com/Loathing_Lola_William_Kostakis_-_The_Waah-Waahs_extract.pdf