The main protagonist is Natsuko. In part one, her sister Makiko and daughter Midoriko arrive in Tokyo. Midoriko hates her body, which seeps into hating her aging mother, who is considering breast implants. The condition of being female seems excruciating. In part two, we meet Natsuko eight years later. She wants a child, cannot tolerateContinue reading “Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami”
Review Archives
Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis
Cora Sabino’s father tells of a US government coverup about extraterrestrials existing amongst us for decades. In California, two Alien vessels arrive and abduct Cora. She discovers that her family is deeply involved, and Ampersand the alien wants to have aliens trapped on earth for 30 years returned. The difficulty of communication – “And weContinue reading “Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis”
In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami
Cynical Kenji is at the centre of this book, and so is loneliness. Frank is a serial killer who is vulgar in his demands of Kenji and the Shinjuku district. Kenji is hired to take him on guided tours but finds out more than he bargains for when he discovers he is on a rampageContinue reading “In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami”
Mishima’s Sword by Christopher Ross
Travels in Search of a Samurai Legend Yukio Mishima is one of the Japanese’s most sublime writers. He is sadly most remembered for cutting open his stomach and instructing assistance to behead him with his antique sword -“Mishimi, who was fastidious with language, preferred the term hara-kiri over seppuku despite its perceived vulgarity. “Ross travelsContinue reading “Mishima’s Sword by Christopher Ross”
Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima
Spring Snow is the first part of a four-part series. The story starts in 1912 when Meiji Japan sees aristocracy dissolve as westernization and democracy take over. Shigekuni Honda is study law and is friends with Kiyoaki Matsugae, who possesses samurai heritage. Honda is pragmatic and duty-bound. However, Kiyoaki becomes enamoured with childhood friend SatokoContinue reading “Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima”
The Paper Menagerie and other stories by Ken Liu Jack is central to the short story ‘The Paper Menagerie’. His mother immigrated to America from China, and Jack is bi-racial. Jack’s mother has created an origami menagerie of animals that comes alive with her breath. As he gets older, he becomes ashamed of his mother’sContinue reading
The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie
This story is a unique rewriting of Hamlet. The God of the silent forest and Mother of the Silent and the Raven and his bird rule Raden. Hill is a third God whose physical presence is a stone. The figurehead – the Raven’s Lease only has power and authority from the Raven because he isContinue reading “The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie”
A Room Called Earth by Madeleine Ryan
Madeleine Ryan takes us through her world for one night. Her perspective makes a lot of sense. She starts getting ready for a party and deciding what to wear. Her inner world carries us through each encounter until she meets and connects with someone. She takes him home and dances in the rain ““Dancing inContinue reading “A Room Called Earth by Madeleine Ryan”
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
In this story Adeline or Addie cuts a deal with the darkness to escape her mundane village existence. Henry is the only person who remembers her name. She explains to him everyone else forgets her the minute she walks away “Because”, she says, slumping back against the concrete wall. “I’m cursed”. Addie is born inContinue reading “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab”
Runaway Horses by Yukio Mishima
This second book in the classic tetralogy The Sea of Fertility was published posthumously and is the story of the second incarnation of Shigekuni Honda’s friend Kiyoaki Matsugae. Beginning in 1932, Honda, a judge, replaces a colleague at a kendo tournament. He meets a youth, Isao Iinuma, that has a mole pattern the same as Kiyoaki.Continue reading “Runaway Horses by Yukio Mishima”
1Q84 The Complete Trilogy by Haruki Murakami
The Christian Society of Witnesses, the doomsday cult Sakigake, The Dowager who supports domestic violence victims, her assistant martial arts instructor Aomame and Tengo the maths teacher and writer are all part of this book. This is mixed with parallel dimensions. The world Aomame arrives in via the staircase accessed from the freeway, at theContinue reading “1Q84 The Complete Trilogy by Haruki Murakami”
The Loudness of Unsaid Things by Hilde Hinton
This is an Australian novel that addresses the deeply complicated relationship the main character Susie has with her mentally ill mother. She is an outsider who moves to Melbourne with her father, leaving her mother behind. Miss Kaye is the works at a psychiatric hospital and tells of how you can live and not justContinue reading “The Loudness of Unsaid Things by Hilde Hinton”
Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben
Wohlleben claims trees have personalities, feelings and thrive as families. He also suggests fungi operate as fibre optic internet cables, transmitting signals from one tree to another exchanging news about drought, insects and other things. The term coined for this is ‘wood wide web.’ There are loner trees such as willows and the fungi areContinue reading “Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben”
Before the Coffee gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi.
In a little coffee shop in Tokyo, Fumiko is dumped by her boyfriend. He leaves for America, leaving her devastated. She revisits the place and enquires about a fabled magic chair that lets people time travel. A ghostly woman occupies the chair and only when she visits the powder room can you sit there, orContinue reading “Before the Coffee gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi.”
The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind
Jonathan Noel is a security guard that lives a perfectly ordered life in Paris. His life has been so uneventful that a thunderstorm is remembered as an occasion when things went awry. Just when he is about to buy his apartment, as he had planned for some time, things changed. The purchase was an attemptContinue reading “The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind”
Get off your High Horse by Cynthia Terelst
Terelst is a Fraser Coast local! This is a feel-good equestrian romance targeting young adults. Each chapter is told from a different character’s point view and allows the reader a first-person insight into their motivations. The story begins at the wealthy Brisbane polo grounds. There is a sweet romance between Frankie and a would-be prince,Continue reading “Get off your High Horse by Cynthia Terelst”
The Gam Namu by Kathleen V. McLennan
This novel has been written by a Mary River Press competition awardee! Based in Korea, it spans the twentieth century from 1901 to the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Misuk, the main character, was born in Korea in 1901. She was the eldest daughter of a poor farming family and was very cherished by her family. AContinue reading “The Gam Namu by Kathleen V. McLennan”
The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
Lewis Clark and his friends belong to the American Blackfeet Nation. They trespass into the elders’ Montana hunting grounds on an expedition. Lewis has trouble killing a young pregnant elk. Jump forward a decade and he is living with his wife Peta when the trauma of that event haunts him. His beloved dog Harley isContinue reading “The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones”
The Conspiracy against the Human Race by Thomas Ligotti
Ligotti eloquently clarifies the existential dilemma of being human. Although the philosophy he explores is not revolutionary, he discusses the points with clarity and relates them to horror fiction. He reframes philosophy, literature and neuroscience and presents it from the point of view of a horror writer. In the chapter ‘The Cult of Grinning Martyrs’Continue reading “The Conspiracy against the Human Race by Thomas Ligotti”
Trout Fishing in America by Richard Brautigan
This novel is hilarious. Laugh out loud irony is mixed with seeping sadness. Weaving through recollections of America is the search for the ideal fishing spot. Trout fishing is a metaphor for change. The desire for a return to a simple natural life is a constant theme. One of the funniest scenes is about TroutContinue reading “Trout Fishing in America by Richard Brautigan”
Sometimes a Great Notion by Ken Kesey
This novel was published in 1964 and the great notion was about committing suicide by drowning. The story chronicles the life of two loggers that work independently in the union-controlled town of Wakonda. Leland Stamper returns home on a revenge mission against his half-brother Hank. His father Henry is dying, and he is protecting hisContinue reading “Sometimes a Great Notion by Ken Kesey”
Perfume by Patrick Suskind
Kurt Kobain’s favourite book was Perfume. Set-in the stench of eighteenth-century Paris the book follows the life of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. His lack of odour makes him unique as does his exceptional sense of smell. This story conjures smells: ‘This scent had a freshness, but not the freshness of limes or pomegranates, not the freshness ofContinue reading “Perfume by Patrick Suskind”
High Valley by Charmian Clift and George Johnston
High Valley is set in China and Tibet. It embraces customs of the Tibetan valley community. The Valley of the Dreaming Phoenix is full of vivid colour: ‘Each day was a gem of ever-brightening lustre. He was enchanted by the beauty of the high pastures: it was loveliness of a quality he had never knownContinue reading “High Valley by Charmian Clift and George Johnston”
An Experiment with Time by J.W. Dunne
This is a paradigm shifting book written by aircraft designer, engineer and pilot, Lieutenant William Dunne. After a series of dreams that seemed to predict the future, Dunne began to search for a logical reason for this phenomenon. He dreamt that there was a volcanic disaster and 4000 people died. He then misread a fewContinue reading “An Experiment with Time by J.W. Dunne”
Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard
After forty years J.G. Ballard put his memories of a World War 11 Japanese internment camp into a novel. Jamie is a young British boy who lives in Shanghai with his parents. After the pandemonium of the Pearl Harbour bombing, Japan occupies the area in Shanghai where he lives and he is separated from hisContinue reading “Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard”
Burials Rites by Hannah Kent
Burial Rites is an historical fiction based on the 200-year-old story of the last woman executed by decapitation in Iceland. In 1829 Agnes Magnúsdóttir’s is sentenced to death but must wait for her killing at a farm at Kornsá with Margrét, Jón and their children. She had spent her childhood in this parish. Her motherContinue reading “Burials Rites by Hannah Kent”
The Whisper Man by Alex North
Tom Kennedy and his son Jake move to the country to escape the grief of losing Rebecca, their beloved wife and mother. They move to Featherbank, a village with a dark history of the serial killer “The Whisper Man”. Supernatural overtones and analogies with grief see this psychological thriller become very chilling. There is somethingContinue reading “The Whisper Man by Alex North”
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor
This dystopian book is set in the African desert and is a world fantasy award winner. It weaves a meandering story of magic, great emotional power and horror. Lyrical and clear prose propel the reader forward. Rape as a war crime is brought into stark focus as the story unfolds. Najeeba is raped and findsContinue reading “Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor”
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
This book investigates how people cope with the unspeakable. The character Eleanor is an authentic and lonely person who isolates on schedule. She slowly moves into the world of other people when a neighbour needs her help. “I was glad to help, glad to be moving away from Mummy-related conversation. There were various chores MrsContinue reading “Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman”
The Glass Bead Game (Magister Ludi) by Herman Hesse.
Set in the future around 25 AD this allegory is told from an historian’s perspective. It focuses on the 23rd Century and the main character is Joseph Knecht. Set in Castalia, the story is revealed through documents written by Knecht’s contemporaries. Further insight is gained through poems and short stories written by Knecht. Castalia isContinue reading “The Glass Bead Game (Magister Ludi) by Herman Hesse.”
The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante
This is a coming of age story about an Italian middle-class girl called Giovanna. She lives in Naples and the story opens with her questioning the unconditional love her father has bestowed on her. She overhears her parents talking. Her father blames her failing grades on her transformed likeness to ostracized Aunt Vittoria. This propelsContinue reading “The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante”
Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver.
Dellarobia Turnbow, is bored with her life as a farm wife. She sets out for a rendezvous with a younger man and is entranced by a hillside covered in orange monarch butterflies or King Billies. Although some consider this strange phenomenon a divine intervention, entomologist Ovid Byron determines it is due to climate change. KingsolverContinue reading “Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver.”
The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly by Jean Dominique Bauby.
Bauby, experiences a stroke at the age of 43. He is in the prime of his life, on the editorial staff at Elle and has two small children. After waking 20 days later, he could only blink his left eyelid. Suffering what is called locked-in-syndrome he dictates this novel through blinking this eye. The beautyContinue reading “The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly by Jean Dominique Bauby.”
Women and Madness by Phyllis Chesler
Chesler is an emerita professor of psychology and women’s studies at City University of New York. This text was first published in 1972. What Chesler does is validate that most mental illness in women is due to conditioned behaviour. “The cumulative effect of being forced to lead a circumscribed life is toxic. The psychic tollContinue reading “Women and Madness by Phyllis Chesler”
My Brother Jack by George Johnston
Each read of this fifty-six-year-old classic reveals more nuances about the Australian identity. Set in post-war Melbourne suburbs, this seminal piece is a retelling by David Meredith of his life. His mother is a nurse who houses Gallipoli invalids including Meredith’s father. Suffering PTSD, he is a brutal alcoholic who displays unpredictability and weakness. TheContinue reading “My Brother Jack by George Johnston”
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
Le Guin’s writing is beautiful, political and too immense for one genre. She intricately and quietly draws us through her compelling story about the twin worlds of Urras and Anarres. Anarres has split from Urras, is anarchist and the home of physicist, Shevek. He believes his studies on time, called the Principle of Simultaneity, canContinue reading “The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin”
Priest Daddy by Patricia Lockwood
Patricia Lockwood shares her memories of life growing up in the Midwest of America with her father who underwent “the deepest conversion on record”. His change from atheist to a catholic priest occurred after being locked in a submarine watching the exorcist while serving in the navy. The memoir tracks her return to her family’sContinue reading “Priest Daddy by Patricia Lockwood”
Circe by Madeline Miller
If you love Greek mythology Circe is for you. Madeline Miller creates a world based on the enchantress. Circe is the daughter of the sun god Helios and Oceanid nymph, Perse. Circe has long been an inspiration in literature. Homer and James Joyce wrote of her. She was a powerful sorceress who turned sailors intoContinue reading “Circe by Madeline Miller”
True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey
Papers transported to Melbourne inside a metal trunk are the basis of Carey’s story. Broken up into age brackets, it chronicles Ned’s life from his point of view. Events of his life show his humanity. After his father’s passing, Ned felt “there would never be a knot or a rabbit I skun or a horseContinue reading “True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey”
Stories: The Collected Short Fiction by Helen Garner
Monkey Grip, Helen Garner’s first novel, is raw. The portrayal of single mother Nora and heroin addict Javo’s life is now cemented as a classic. Written in 1977, it started her long career. She delves into authentic experiences of Australian life and disregards writing rules. She has mastery of the short story form. In 2017Continue reading “Stories: The Collected Short Fiction by Helen Garner”
The Cure for Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz
Told through the eyes of 15-year-old Beth, living in rural Canada, this novel is an intense sensory experience set during World War Two. She befriends the local Indian kids and the rich spiritual and natural world they share enables her to survive the sexual abuse and increasing violence her PTSD suffering father imposes on her.Continue reading “The Cure for Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz”
Kindred by Kate Legge
Gustav and Kate Weindorfer walked the Tasmanian bush in an historic yesterday where the sublime power and enchantment of the wilderness was untouched. Through the Naturalist’s Club, they found a sense of belonging and freedom from the confining strictures of civilised life. We first learn of the Tasmanian landscape when Kate’s love of botany isContinue reading “Kindred by Kate Legge”
The Enigma of Reason by Hugo Mercier, Dan Sperber
This book contends with the question of what makes us human by taking us through the history of philosophical ponderings from Descartes to Martin Luther King, from Hermann von Helmholtz to Nietzsche. The authors step us through their theory regarding the purpose of reason and why it developed in humans. Examples demonstrate why we workContinue reading “The Enigma of Reason by Hugo Mercier, Dan Sperber”
The Mint Lawn by Gillian Mears
Gillian Mears was born into a family of four girls and wrote about Grafton in her first novel. In this intensely sublime work of art ‘she writes like an angel’. Clementine has stayed in the small country town as her other ingenious and artistic sisters abandon her for the city, one by one. Her memoriesContinue reading “The Mint Lawn by Gillian Mears”
Middle Game by Seanan McGuire
This is a cross between Brave New World and mythology. The author’s lyrical prose slowly interlaces a malevolent drama with avarice. Power is apotheosized with children as causalities. The story begins as a slow burn that concludes in an explosion that provides hope and light. The main protagonist, James Reed, is a Frankenstein like creationContinue reading “Middle Game by Seanan McGuire”
The Solar War by A.G. Riddle
This is book two in the Long Winter Series. Our planet has been thrust into another ice age. Migration to the only habitable areas left has resulted in chaos, with people languishing in refugee camps with nowhere to call home. The dystopian view of the world mirrors earth. Technology and unity save humanity. Drones, AIContinue reading “The Solar War by A.G. Riddle”
The Whole Woman by Germaine Greer
This is a seminal book that will change your life. Germaine is able to eloquently describe things women experience in a way that makes you feel less alone and heard. Her research is undeniably impeccable, and her discussion is visionary. The media has lampooned Germaine. She very clearly describes the misogynistic and ageist way thatContinue reading “The Whole Woman by Germaine Greer”
Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe
This book allows you to reimagine pre-European Australia. Dark Emu is a factual explanation of pre-European Aboriginal agricultural practices.It puts to rest the simplification of the hunter-gatherer nomadic life of Aboriginal people and provides evidence of a complex land management system that sustained life for 40 000 years. The ignorance and arrogance of those whoContinue reading “Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe”