Fiction Book Reviews
Up There Mike Brady by Noel Delbridge2 February, 2007Great biographies need great stories. Surprisingly, perhaps, there are many to be found in Up There Mike Brady. Pigeonholed by the public as the man who wrote the Australian Rules’ football anthem, ‘Up there Cazaly’, Mike Brady’s eventful life is intriguing and bittersweet.
Malicious Intent by Kathryn Fox2 February, 2007The first book by Kathryn Fox, a Sydney general practitioner, centres on Anya Crichton, a forensic pathologist and physician.
Malaria Frontline by Tony Sweeney2 February, 2007During World War II the hidden killer, malaria, was one of the most powerful enemies of Australian troops in the south-west Pacific.
Undine by Penni Russon2 February, 2007First-time novelist Penni Russon has brought together fantasy, friendship, family, contemporary coming-of-age and a touch of romance-a combination that should appeal particularly to female readers. Undine (‘sea nymph’) lives in Hobart with her mother and young brother, and next-door to her best friend, Trout, and his brothers.
Two Summers by John Heffernan & Freya Blackwood2 February, 2007Readers of his earlier picture book, My Dog, will know already that award-winning author John Heffeman tells a moving tale with insight and restraint.
Tumble Turn by Doug MacLeod2 February, 2007Doug MacLeod's new novel is a humdinger. Like The Diary of Adrian Mole, which it resembles, this epistolary novel uses wit and the viewpoint of troubled innocence to comment on unsavoury adult behaviour and the travails of growing up.
Loz and Al by Julia Lawrinson2 February, 2007Loz and Al is a sensitive account of life as a 12-year-old and the pressures that family life can place on friendship.
Love and Clutter by Mirka Mora2 February, 2007Love and Clutter is Melbourne artist Mirka Mora's love letter to the possessions and memories that narrate her extraordinary life.
Lost in Transmission by Jonathan Harley2 February, 2007Is a story worth dying for? How do you harden yourself against suffering? How far would you go in pursuit of a good story? After all, ‘bad news is news’.
Living by the Sword by Tom Frame2 February, 2007Dr Tom Frame was a naval officer for 14 years before ordination in 1993 and is now the Anglican Bishop to the Australian Defence Force.
Levin's God by Roger Wells2 February, 2007In 1977 Levin is a young Melbourne tram conductor dreaming of starting a band.
Totem by Luke Davis2 February, 2007Better known as the author of such successful novels as Candy (1997) and Isabelle the Navigator (2000), Luke Davies is in the fortunate position in these cautious times of having a publisher willing to support his parallel career as a poet.
The Lemon Table by Julian Barnes2 February, 2007Life, like this old rhyme, is a nonsense. "So much work, talent, courage, and then everything is over", as Barnes's octogenarian composer puts it.
Too Many Pears by Jackie French & Bruce Whatley2 February, 2007Working on the principle followed by chocolate manufacturers, who allow new workers to eat as many sweets as they want, inducing a revulsion of chocolate, young Amy cures Pamela's obsession with pears.
Leaving Year Zero by Richard Lunn2 February, 2007As Richard Lunn writes in his introduction, the voice of Australia’s Khmer community is not one that is often heard among the many disparate cultural voices in our country, but it is a community with incredibly powerful stories to tell.
The Last Love Story by Rodney Hall2 February, 2007The Last Love Story is a novel that wears its heart on its sleeve.
Toccata and Rain by Philip Salom2 February, 2007What if you had a whole other life that you couldn’t remember? In this, Philip Salom’s second novel, a television story about the strange Gaudi-esque towers Simon has built in his suburban Melbourne backyard leads to the discovery of a wife and an alternate life in Perth. This in turn triggers a return to his ‘real’ life where he is Brian Tyrell, husband and property manager.
Lady Gregory's Toothbrush by Colm Toibin2 February, 2007"The greatest living Irishwoman", said George Bernard Shaw of Lady Augusta Gregory after she had fought the bans and directed his play, The Shewing-up of Blanco Posnet: A Sermon in Crude Melodrama, at the Abbey Theatre.
The Time of Dragons by Bruce Venables2 February, 2007Many people will recognise Bruce Venables’ well lived-in face from the numerous TV soapies and cop shows he has appeared in over the years, and his parts in films including Spider and Rose and Paperback Hero.
Krazy Hor by Stan Krasnoff2 February, 2007Stan Krasnoff was an infantryman who, as a lieutenant colonel, commanded the 3rd battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment after the Vietnam War.
Thora by Gillian Johnson2 February, 2007Mr Walters, rescues mother and baby by providing a houseboat from the village of Little Grimli and suggests a new career for Halla as a long-distance swimmer.
Just Six Numbers by Martin Rees2 February, 2007The author of this book, Sir Martin Rees, is the Royal Society Research Professor at Cambridge University and holds the title of Astronomer Royal.
Journey from the Centre of the Earth by Isobelle Carmody2 February, 2007The setting of this book is a fantasy world overgrown with strange, tangled vines and multi-coloured mushrooms, inhabited by weird creatures who resemble monsters from the deep, in an atmosphere that is cold, damp and alien.
This is Sweden Calling by Des Mangan2 February, 2007Most Australians avoid the Eurovision Song Contest like the plague. Some of us though, together with 600 million European fans, have happily embraced kitsch costumes, Europop tunes and unfathomable scoring systems.
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