{"title":"Peta","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"wild-abandon","title":"Wild Abandon","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the second novel from Stella Award-winning author Emily Bitto. Bitto takes us on a wild American odyssey, from Australia to New York to Ohio, and home again. We follow Will as he opens himself up to whatever comes his way, running from a recent breakup. 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The novel can, in effect, be summed up in the powerful epigraph \"In the economy of nature nothing is ever lost\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet in Tasmania, the story follows young Ned as he navigates everything which comes his way, one long hot summer - a whale, a quoll, a boat. The significance of these, each a metaphor and a reality, is revealed gradually and as we learn, resonate througout Ned's life\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the first sentence, we are drawn into young Ned's world. he is sensitive, but also has a great sense of responsibility - to the land, the orchard, his family, the future. Each character is finely drawn; Ned's father is a powerful presence throughout, and even in absentia; Ned's two brothers are people we feel we know. This is a whole life journey yet told with skilled economy. The ending will stay with you well after you turn the last page.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eVendors Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe much-anticipated third novel by award-winning Australian author Robbie Arnott, \u003ci\u003eLimberlost \u003c\/i\u003eis a story of family and land, loss and hope, fate and the unknown, and love and kindness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the heat of a long summer Ned hunts rabbits in a river valley, hoping the pelts will earn him enough money to buy a small boat.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHis two brothers are away at war, their whereabouts unknown. His father and older sister struggle to hold things together on the family orchard, Limberlost.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDesperate to ignore it all-to avoid the future rushing towards him-Ned dreams of open water.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs his story unfolds over the following decades, we see how Ned's choices that summer come to shape the course of his life, the fate of his family and the future of the valley, with its seasons of death and rebirth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe third novel by the award-winning author of \u003ci\u003eFlames \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Rain Heron\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLimberlost \u003c\/i\u003eis an extraordinary chronicle of life and land- of carnage and kindness, blood ties and love.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Robbie Arnott","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42694541672607,"sku":"","price":32.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/products\/irh3YKyoWqKxD1p1bkV3Uf0-9khXtzWv9IZRAb-vELo-hg.jpg?v=1665629952"},{"product_id":"nimblefoot","title":"Nimblefoot","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaster Johnny Day, world champion pedestrian and winning Melbourne cup jockey all by the age of 14 then disappears from history. This is a perfect historical starting point for a fictional story to begin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDrewe's vivid and informed imagination is given free rein to what became of this boy prodigy. Day is running, but from what? As he traverses this vast country, he encounters the likes of Australian poet Adam Lindsay Gordon, English author Anthony Trolope and the infamous Lola Montez, just to name a few. The colourful eclectic cast of characters and glimpses of hidden moments of Australian history makes this  a joyful read that will have you checking Wikipedia at ever turn. Did Trollope really give a lecture on meat? Why was Montez's spider dance so enchanting? Did Wilson Bunting actually attend Hale School in Perth?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Day runs, time takes on a strange fluidity, a conflation of historical markers. Why? Why does Robert Drewe do this? Something for you to ponder as you read! A clever, intelligent and entertaining story. Both Johnny Day, and the landscape he traverses, will stay with you long after you turn the last page.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eVendors Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe untold story of Johnny Day, Australia's first international sports hero - a tale of mishap, adventure, chase, chance and luck - from one of Australia's finest writers.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAt the age of ten, and just short of four feet tall, a boy from Ballarat named Johnny Day became Australia's first international sporting hero. Against adult competition he wooed crowds across continents as the World Champion in pedestrianism, the sporting craze of the day.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA few years later, in 1870, he won the Melbourne Cup on a horse aptly called Nimblefoot, this time impressing British royalty and Melbourne's high society. And then, still aged only fourteen, this already-famous athlete and jockey disappeared without a trace.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRobert Drewe picks up where history leaves off, re-imagining Johnny's life following his great Cup win. Celebrations that night land him in the company of Prince Alfred himself and some key Melbourne identities. But when Johnny becomes a reluctant witness to two murders in the town's most notorious brothel, he finds himself on the run again - this time from the law itself.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn fear of his life he heads west, assuming different identities to outsmart his pursuers. Yet all the while Johnny fears his luck will soon run out.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJohnny Day is a character that couldn't be invented, but in the masterful re-imagining of his life Robert Drewe brings us an adventure story, a coming-of-age classic, a man-hunt, a thriller - but most of all, a rollicking good yarn. And in doing so, he lays claim to Johnny Day's rightful place in Australia's illustrious sporting history.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Robert Drewe","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42694620807327,"sku":"","price":32.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/products\/XhSBfdP9VJGyP9kzii8i9sUmTIrsy2eexhsMqzIkmW4Ng.jpg?v=1665631164"},{"product_id":"ordinary-gods-and-monsters","title":"Ordinary Gods and Monsters","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAward winning Australian author Chris Womersley depicts Australian suburbia so acutely you can almost recognise the street, or the house, or the backyard being described.  His sixth novel, \u003cem\u003eOrdinary Gods and Monsters, \u003c\/em\u003ehas been described as a “Mozart comic opera set in suburban Australia”.  It is dark, yet funny, Womersley always aware of the comic possibilities of each encounter and incident.  Another prominent theme pervading each of Womersley’s novels is how we navigate our way from youth to adulthood. In this novel Nick Wheatley is doing just that, traversing that fraught liminal period before taking the next step into adulthood.  His best friend Marion’s father has been killed in a mysterious hit and run. Visiting his local drug-dealer, the quirky Becky, to get something to cheer Marion up, Nick finds himself taking part in a séance. The result of which sets in motion a series of events both exciting and dangerous.  The cast of characters constitute those ‘gods and monsters’ which live in ordinary suburbia, and with whom Nick and Marion must navigate and negotiate with if they are to solve the mystery and indeed to survive.  Written with poise, this is a page turner of a novel.  You are with Nick and Marion at every turn.  What is perhaps most surprising is the tenderness and emotion conveyed in the some of the most ordinary moments. As Nick says, “Sometimes, it’s tenderness that cracks you open in the end.”  Well worth a read.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eChris Womersley's gods and monsters live in suburban backyards, bedrooms, playgrounds, cul-de-sacs and scraps of bush. Colouring this landscape with the vivid dreams and fears of childhood, he elevates it into a mythic realm, exciting and dangerous and a lot more. This novel is a work of magic. It's a note-perfect crime thriller for anyone who longs to see the world as new and to feel it as sharply as they did as a child.' \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chris Womersley","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44494628421791,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781761265921.jpg?v=1694503152"},{"product_id":"the-rest-is-history","title":"The Rest Is History","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn his magnum opus, \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eA History of the English-Speaking Peoples\u003c\/em\u003e (1956-58), Winston Churchill assures his reader: “It is all true, or it ought to be; and more and better besides.” Although he is referring specifically to the tales of King Arthur and his trusty knights of the Round Table, his words sum up perfectly the history so colourfully regaled by Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook in their book, \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Rest is History. \u003c\/em\u003eRespected historians and authors of many of their own magnus opuses, Holland and Sandbrook uncover obscure historical moments, settling those burning questions we never knew we wanted answered. For example, was Arthur real? Who was the Prussian general who died while pirouetting in a pink tutu? Why did Churchill’s hair appointment nearly alter the course of English history? And of course, what did make Alfred great?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you thought history was dull, then think again. Just as they do in their very successful podcast, Holland and Sandbrook provide us with history lessons we all wished we’d had at school. Even Churchill would have taken time out of his busy schedule to browse the pages of this highly entertaining read. At twenty-five the young Churchill’s CV was already impressive: an “MP, military hero, prominent war correspondent, and escaped prisoner of war.” In comparison, by the same age Rishi Sunak “was a junior analyst”, David Cameron was eyeing off a job at a communications company and Jeremy Corbyn “was wondering what to do with his abandoned degree in trade union studies.” And… it’s all true, or it ought to be; and more and better besides! A great book to have on your bedside table.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eMake room Herodotus, stand down Bede, pipe down Pepys there's a new history book in town.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eFrom the chart-topping podcast \u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Rest is History\u003c\/i\u003e, a whistle-stop tour through the past from Alexander the Great to Tolkien, the Wars of the Roses to Watergate. The nation's favourite historians Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook take on the most curious moments in history, answering the questions we didn't even think to ask-\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e- Did the Trojan War actually happen?\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e- What was the most disastrous party in history?\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e- Was Richard Nixon more like Caligula or Claudius?\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e- How did a hair appointment almost blow Churchill's cover?\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e- Why did the Nazis believe they were descended from Atlantis?\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhether it is sending historical figures to Casa Amor in a series of Love Island, ranking history's most famous eunuchs and pigeons (including Winkie, the unsung hero of the Second World War), or debating the meaning of greatness, there is nothing too big or too small for Tom and Dominic to unpick.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eSo run your Egyptian milk bath, strap up your best Spartan sandals, and prepare for a journey down the highways and byways of the human past. . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tom Holland","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44934684901535,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/restishist.jpg?v=1707982887"},{"product_id":"chloe","title":"Chloe","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e is to Melbourne what the Bridge is to Sydney.” (Peter Graeme, 1945)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHaving a drink with Chloé is always on the itinerary whenever I visit Melbourne.  Who is Chloe, you ask? \u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e is the famous nude portrait which has graced the walls of the infamous Young and Jackson Hotel since 1908. Measuring over 8 ft tall, \u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e cannot be ignored.  And to my untrained artistic eye, she is beautiful.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePainted by the French artist Jules Joseph Lefebvre in 1875, \u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e arrived in Australia in 1879 and was subsequently purchased by a Dr Thomas Fitzgerald. Upon Fitzgerald's death in 1908, the painting was purchased at auction by Henry Figsby Young, owner of the Young and Jackson Hotel, who installed the painting in the hotel’s saloon bar, now referred to as Chloé’s Bar.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e has been described as perhaps Australia’s most famous painting, and a nude version of the \u003cem\u003eMona Lisa\u003c\/em\u003e. The painting depicts the naiad from \u003cem\u003eMnasyle et Chloé\u003c\/em\u003e, a poem by the eighteenth-century French poet André Chénier. The model for the painting has been shrouded in mystery and the subject of much speculation. In his memoir \u003cem\u003eConfessions of a Young Man \u003c\/em\u003e(1886), the Irish writer George Moore included an anecdote about a Parisian artist model named Marie, a young woman he claimed was “Lefebvre’s \u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e.”  And it is this observation from which Katrina Kell creates her novel about this famous painting, and its enigmatic model, Marie.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnyone who loves art, history and intrigue, will love Kell’s story of the young woman who found a way to survive during a period of bloody revolution, and to defy class boundaries and convention. Kell has done extensive research in order to provide a narrative for Marie, the now infamous Chloé.  Do visit her next time you are in Melbourne!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you are interested in further reading about Chloe and her arrival in Australia, I suggest Katrina Kell’s article, \u003cspan\u003e‘Evanescence of an Artist’s Model: Jules Lefebvre’s \u003cem\u003eChloé\u003c\/em\u003e’, at URL \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/index-journal.org\/issues\/identity\/evanescence-of-an-artist-s-model-by-katrina-kell\"\u003ehttps:\/\/index-journal.org\/issues\/identity\/evanescence-of-an-artist-s-model-by-katrina-kell\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eA riveting novel based on the true story of the brave, enigmatic young woman who modelled for one of Australia's most famous paintings.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Katrina Kell","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45029892554911,"sku":"","price":32.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781760688547.jpg?v=1710132218"},{"product_id":"the-end-of-the-morning","title":"the end of the morning","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOf \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ethe end of the morning, \u003c\/em\u003eCharmian Clift writes that it is a “book about young dreams and young longings and …filled with sand and sea and sun and wind and seaweed draped on the front picket fence after a storm. …I don’t know what else I can say. The morning ends, and that’s the end of the book.” But the end of the morning does not end; rather, it is left in stasis, so that the reader, fully absorbed, is suddenly left to ponder what might come next.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ethe end of the morning \u003c\/em\u003eis, in Nadia Wheatley’s words, “only a fragment of an intended larger work [although] “it stands alone as a novella.” Clift worked on this unfinished work of autobiographical fiction for decades; but always in the shadow of her husband and the more prominent writer George Johnston, she struggled to progress beyond 150 pages.  Set in the small quarry town on the NSW south coast, and narrated by Clift’s alter ego, Cressida Morley, \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ethe end of the morning\u003c\/em\u003e vividly describes a childhood in which the “sound of the sea filled the mornings” and “the tunnel in the hill belched fumes like a dragon’s mouth” and when “the quarry whistle blew, the morning was smashed to smithereens.”  Although poor, the Morley children (Cordelia, Benedict and Cressida) never felt so; the beach was their nursery, they could swim like fish and fight like tigers, their father “the most remarkable man on earth,” while their mother kept her own quite reckless dreams centred not upon herself but on her children.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlthough unfinished, Charmian Clift believed this book to be her most significant work, describing it as having sat “like an owl on my shoulder for years.”  While it is incredibly sad that she was unable to complete the manuscript, for me the ending, like the quarry whistle which heralds the end of the morning, affirms Clift’s determination to move beyond the idyllic morning and show us why she is one of Australia’s most significant authors.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe never-before-published novel by Charmian Clift.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e‘In those days the end of the morning was always marked by the quarry whistle blowing the noon knock-off. \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eSince everybody was out of bed very early, morning then was a long time, or even, if you came to think about it, a round time — symmetrical anyway, and contained under a thin, radiant, dome shaped cover…’\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eDuring the years of the Great Depression, Cressida Morley and her eccentric family live in a weatherboard cottage on the edge of a wild beach. Outsiders in their small working-class community, they rant and argue and read books and play music and never feel themselves to be poor. Yet as Cressida moves beyond childhood, she starts to outgrow the place that once seemed the centre of the world. As she plans her escape, the only question is: who will she become?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe End of the Morning\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eis the final and unfinished autobiographical novel by Charmian Clift. Published here for the first time, it is the book that Clift herself regarded as her most significant work. Although the author did not live to complete it, the typescript left among her papers was fully revised and stands alone as a novella. It is published here alongside a new selection of Clift’s essays and an afterword from her biographer Nadia Wheatley.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Charmian Clift","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45203162726559,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/the-end-of-the-morning_1.jpg?v=1712273906"},{"product_id":"the-mission-house","title":"The Mission House","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWinner of the \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/em\u003e (London) Novel of the Year (2020), \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Mission House \u003c\/em\u003eby the Welsh writer Carys Davies, is a tender, beautifully written, compelling read. Set in a remote hill town in India, the novel follows 51-year-old Hilary Byrd, who, after a chance meeting, accepts an offer to stay in the presbytery’s vacant bungalow.  Welcomed by the Padre and his adopted daughter, Priscilla, Byrd finds pleasure in the apparent simple life he finds there. The narrative is filled with a collection of eclectic characters – Jamshed, the local rickshaw driver, who becomes Byrd’s personal chauffeur; Jamshed’s nephew, Ravi, an aspiring country and western singer in need of a horse; Ooly, the old black dog who stares at Byrd with “what seemed like frank, intense longing”, and Byrd’s sister, Wyn, still back in Petts Wood, who Byrd is in constant correspondence with. When asked by the Padre to teach Priscilla to read and write, Byrd reluctantly obliges. This soon leads to teaching her sewing, and baking and slowly Byrd realises he is falling in love with his eager young pupil.  But the Padre has other ideas, and so does Priscilla.  The Padre wishes Priscilla to marry a good Christian man, something Byrd is not, while Priscilla is determined to be with Ravi. And then there is Henry Page, the absent missionary, who will ultimately change the course of each character’s life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs the narrative unfolds, we come to know each character intimately, all with their own desires, anxieties, struggles and secrets. As Byrd’s feelings for Priscilla grow, so too does the relationship between Byrd and Jamshed. It is Jamshed who truly comes to know Byrd, and in the final scene, when Byrd takes Jamshed’s hand and whispers “stay”, the pathos of the friendship is laid bare. Davies writes, “What was it that Mann had written? \u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eA late adventure of the feelings…\u003c\/em\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile undoubtedly Davies is commenting on the legacy of British imperialism in India, this is in no way an overtly political novel. Rather it is about being human. About friendship and love and finding solace. A truly beautiful read.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eThe first full-length novel from one of this generation's greatest literary writers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFleeing the dark undercurrents of contemporary Britain, Hilary Byrd takes refuge in a hill station in South India. There he finds solace in life's simple pleasures, travelling by rickshaw around the small town and staying in a mission house beside the local presbytery, where the Padre and his adoptive daughter Priscilla have taken him under their wing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs his friendship with the young woman grows, Hilary begins to wonder whether his purpose lies in this new relationship. But religious tensions are brewing and the mission house may not be the safe haven it seems.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Mission House\u003c\/i\u003e boldly and imaginatively interrogates the fractures between faith and non-belief, young and old, imperial past and nationalistic present. Tenderly subversive and meticulously crafted, it is a deeply human story of the wonders and terrors of connection in a modern world.\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carys Davies","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45226988437663,"sku":"","price":29.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781922330635.jpg?v=1712878453"},{"product_id":"killing-for-country","title":"Killing for Country","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eDavid Marr was shocked to discover forebears who served with the brutal Native Police in the bloodiest years on the frontier. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eKilling for Country\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e is the result - a soul-searching Australian history.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThis is a richly detailed saga of politics and power in the colonial world - of land seized, fortunes made and lost, and the violence let loose as squatters and their allies fought for possession of the country - a war still unresolved in today's Australia.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'This book is more than a personal reckoning with Marr's forebears and their crimes. It is an account of an Australian war fought here in our own country, with names, dates, crimes, body counts and the ghastly, remorseless views of the 'settlers'. Thank you, David.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eMarcia Langton\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e' Marr is one of the country's most accomplished non-fiction writers. I was sometimes reminded of Robert Hughes' study of convict transportation, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Fatal Shore\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e (1987), in the epic quality of this book ... \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eKilling For Country\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e is a timely exercise in truth-telling amid a disturbing resurgence of denialism.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eFrank Bongiorno,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Age\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eKilling for Country\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e ... stands out for its unflinching eye, its dogged research, and the quality and power of its writing.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eMark McKenna,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAustralian Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'It's a timely, vital story.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eJason Steger,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Age\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'The timing of this book is painfully exquisite and it demonstrates perfectly how little race politics have changed in Australia.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eLucy Clark,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'This is a story about Marr's family darkness, yes. But it is also a book concerned with our collective shame. No one who reads his important and necessary account with an open mind could consider more decades of voicelessness an acceptable outcome for this nation's First Peoples.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eGeordie Williamson,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Saturday Paper\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eKilling for Country\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e ... shines a light into the dark shameful corners of our collective national experience. What we will find when we look and listen won't be pretty, but it is necessary to confront - not to be captives of history, but to learn from it and transcend it.' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eJulianne Schultz,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Conversation\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e'The family truth telling ... reminds us once again of the terrible cost of the colonisation of Australia' -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eHenry Reynolds,\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ePearls and Irritations\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWinner, 2024 Indie Book of the Year Award\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWinner, 2024 Indie Book Award for Non-Fiction\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eShortlisted, Small Publishers' Adult Book of the Year, Australian Book Industry Awards 2024\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eShortlisted, 2024 Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Non-Fiction\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ci data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eReadings Best Non-Fiction of 2023\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"David Marr","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45259204821151,"sku":"","price":39.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/killing-for-country_1.jpg?v=1713560285"},{"product_id":"the-wife-of-bath","title":"The Wife of Bath","description":"\u003cp\u003eEver since her triumphant debut in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the Wife of Bath, arguably the first ordinary and recognisably real woman in English literature, has obsessed readers — from Shakespeare to James Joyce, Voltaire to Pasolini, Dryden to Zadie Smith. Few literary characters have led such colourful lives or matched her influence or capacity for reinvention in poetry, drama, fiction, and film. In The Wife of Bath, Marion Turner tells the fascinating story of where Chaucer’s favourite character came from, how she related to real medieval women, and where her many travels have taken her since the fourteenth century, from Falstaff and Molly Bloom to #MeToo and Black Lives Matter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA sexually active and funny working woman, the Wife of Bath, also known as Alison, talks explicitly about sexual pleasure. She is also a victim of domestic abuse who tells a story of rape and redemption. Formed from misogynist sources, she plays with stereotypes. Turner sets Alison’s fictional story alongside the lives of real medieval women — from a maid who travelled around Europe, abandoned her employer, and forged a new career in Rome to a duchess who married her fourth husband, a teenager, when she was sixty-five. 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Her knowledge is superb; her writing a form of poetry itself...No-one can come away from this book still believing the Anglo-Saxons to have lived through the \"Dark Ages.\"' — \u003ci\u003eGet History\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e'In this wonderfully poetic journey through the Anglo-Saxon year, Parker offers a profound meditation on time and the world, nature and its seasons. 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Even though it is not safe to do so.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTender, luminous, meditative and powerful, Julian writes of her love for God, and God's love for the whole of creation. \u003ci\u003e'All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Written with\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003eprofound insight, spiritual and psychological, and a rare sensitivity to the everyday world of the fourteenth century, \u003c\/i\u003eI, Julian\u003ci\u003e is a brilliantly illuminating\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003ecompanion to one of the greatest works of spiritual writing in English.' - \u003c\/i\u003eRowan Williams, Magdalene College, Cambridge University\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eI, Julian\u003c\/i\u003e won an Award of Merit in the Fiction Category in the Christianity Today awards, 2023, and was a finalist in the Religious Fiction category of the 2023 International Book Awards.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe cover design for\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e I, Julian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e won an ECPA Top Shelf award in 2023.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Claire Gilbert","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45479949697183,"sku":"","price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/43260781-5830-45E7-967D-3A29C0B55726.jpg?v=1716964512"},{"product_id":"camille-s-bread","title":"Camille’s Bread","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher’s Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAfter too many nights of takeaway pizzas, Marita wants just one year off to look after her daughter, Camille. then she meets Stephen, a public servant in the complex process of reinventing himself, training as a shiatsu masseur. 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Despite her cloistered life she had strong, often controversial views on sex, love and marriage too - a woman astonishing in her own age, whose book of apocalyptic visions, Scivias, would alone have been enough to ensure her lasting fame.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn this classic and highly praised biography - first published by Headline in 2001 - distinguished writer and journalist, Fiona Maddocks, draws on Hildegard's prolific writings to paint a portrait of her extraordinary life against the turbulent medieval background of crusade and schism, scientific discovery and cultural revolution. The great intellectual gifts and forceful character that emerge make her as fascinating as any figure in the Middle Ages.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMore than 800 years after her death, Pope Benedict XVI has made Hildegard a Saint and a Doctor of the Church (one of only four women). Fiona Maddocks has provided a short new preface to cover these tributes to an extraordinary and exceptional woman.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Fiona Maddocks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45494256992415,"sku":"","price":32.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/BECA8F0C-481E-4B85-A5DD-1FDD15DAFF55.jpg?v=1717218169"},{"product_id":"there-are-places-in-the-world-where-rules-are-less-important-than-kindness","title":"There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eHaving been totally mesmerised by Sarah Perry’s new novel,\u003cem\u003e Enlightenment\u003c\/em\u003e, I was drawn, like Thomas Hart, to the stars, to the moon, to cosmic beauty.  Perry’s novel shows how over the course of our life, we do not stay the same. We change, as Perry says, in our religion, in our loves, our passions, indeed in so many ways. Thomas Hart begins by essentially just describing the moon to his readers, but by the end is talking quantum physics. Perry therefore felt she needed to study physics in order to understand the progress of Thomas’ growth. So she turned to Carlo Rovelli, the Italian physicist and poet. And so did I. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCarlo Rovelli has not only made a significant contribution to scientific knowledge and our understanding of space and time, but also to the way we see the world. \u003cem\u003eThere are Places in the World Where Rules are Less Important than Kindnes\u003c\/em\u003es, is a collection of short essays in which Rovelli reflects on atheism, black holes, psychedelic experiences, his love of poetry and philosophy, and those intellectual surprises which cause us to gasp in awe. Each essay is elegantly written and despite the often-heavy subject matter, totally accessible.  In the final essay Rovelli makes comment on the recent pandemic, stressing it was “not really anyone’s fault. It is not like war, triggered by human folly.” He ends by saying that we are not the masters of this world. We are mortal, we struggle, we make mistakes but ultimately, writes Rovelli, despite everything, life is beautiful, and trying to figure it out is half the joy. The closing lines of\u003cem\u003e Enlightenment\u003c\/em\u003e very much echo Rovelli. Perry writes: \"Perhaps this is wonder, Thomas, and this is the whole of the law: you are here. You are here.\" I may not be as conversant in quantum physics as Thomas Hart, but I am certainly enlightened and enriched having read Rovelli. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere are Places in the World Where Rules are Less Important than Kindness\u003c\/em\u003e is something which will stay on my bedside table. It is a book which can be picked up often, read and reread. Oh, and pick up a copy of Sarah Perry’s \u003cem\u003eEnlightenment\u003c\/em\u003e too!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eOne of the most inspiring thinkers of our age transforms the way we think about the world with his reflections on science, history and humanity\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne of our most beloved scientists, a fearless free spirit, Carlo Rovelli is also a masterful storyteller. In this collection of writings, the logbook of an intelligence always on the move, he follows his curiosity and invites us on a voyage through science, literature, philosophy and politics.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWritten with his usual clarity and wit, these pieces, most of which were first published in Italian newspapers, range widely across time and space- from Newton's alchemy to Einstein's mistakes, from Nabokov's butterflies to Dante's cosmology, from travels in Africa to the consciousness of an octopus, from mind-altering psychedelic substances to the meaning of atheism. Charming, pithy and elegant, this book is the perfect gateway to the universe of one of the most influential physicists of our age.\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Carlo Rovelli","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45642889396383,"sku":"","price":35.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9780241454688.jpg?v=1718328832"},{"product_id":"all-that-glitters","title":"All That Glitters","description":"\u003cp style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eArt heists have an air of glamour – swarthy men in tuxedos, women dripping in glittering jewels, all sipping champagne at some well-heeled party – but as Shakespeare reminds us, all that glitters is not gold. Orlando Whitfield’s new book \u003cem\u003eAll That Glitters\u003c\/em\u003e is in essence a memoir, a story of a friendship shattered by hubris. But it is also an inside account of the machinations of the art world, and how the basic driving force is not the love of a beautiful object, but pure greed. The love of money.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOrlando Whitfield and Inigo Philbrick met at Goldsmiths, University of London in 2007, both enrolled in an art history degree. Whitfield was drawn to Inigo like a moth to the light; a light that was, however, to eventually cast a dark shadow over Whitfield’s life.  By 2018 Whitfield found himself in a psychiatric hospital in suicide watch. By 2022, Philbrick was sentenced to seven years in prison for art fraud, estimated to be in the vicinity of US$86m. What happened in the intervening years leading to these events is told by Whitfield, who knows full well that in the telling, his friendship with Philbrick will be irrevocably broken. His story is effectively Whitfield’s catharsis, through which he tries to pick up the pieces of his life. He pieces the trail of fraudulent transactions together from emails and text messages from Philbrick, newspaper reports, art dealers and court transcripts. But the question below the surface becomes: is this Whitfield’s story to tell? Various interviews by Whitfield after the release of the book show that he remains deeply affected by the whole affair. Interestingly though, in the book’s final sentence, he writes that people, even failed art dealers, deserve a second chance; he writes of his “sincere wish that Inigo should have one too.” If you can believe the internet gossip, Philbrick is getting just that: out of prison, married to Chelsea socialite Victoria Baker-Harber, and planning his comeback to the world of art! I sense that we will be seeing another memoir soon, this time penned by Philbrick. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor anyone who likes a ‘who dunnit’ (although it is more of a ‘how dunnit’) and enjoys deep diving into the fascinating world of art, money, underhand double dealings and fraud, then \u003cem\u003eAll That Glitters\u003c\/em\u003e definitely fits the bill.  Whitfield gives us an intimate insight into a world of opulence, greed and ambition, in which the driving force is paint on a piece of canvas. A book that will certainly keep you engrossed till the last page.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGabi’s Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eOrlando Whitfield, the author of this biography, started dealing art with his enigmatic friend Inigo Philbrick while both were students at Goldsmiths University in the UK. Graduating in 2009, they worked as collaborators and associates around the art market for over a decade. Philbrick, whose personal success far eclipsed Whitfield’s, was arrested by the FBI in Vanuatu in 2020 and brought to the USA for trial. He was the pivotal player in one of the biggest art frauds in history, accused of duping art investors of $86m. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhitfield writes in a wide-eyed lamb guileless style as he describes his wild and ultimately reluctant association with the uber-charismatic, ruthless Philbrick. Both were highly credentialed young men (Whitfield’s father directed the auction house Christies, while Philbrick was the head of department at a museum in Connecticut). They were thus well placed to trade in the secondary art market, whose speculative assets require entrepreneurship, coupled with intense ambition and a salesman’s opportunism. But Whitfield could never have envisioned the high stakes compromises his partner was prepared to engage with. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs it unfolds, the story of the decade of their business interactions becomes increasingly astounding: from attempts to prise free Banksy’s work in absurd locations, to shady hotel cash exchanges and vast overvaluations for worthless creations. This exhilarating and always surprising read reveals the unregulated secondary art market as an asset bubble akin to the Wild West, and in which dealings with the world’s mega-wealthy defy belief, involving eye-watering sums of money and a confounding indifference to integrity. You couldn’t gift a more sensational story to the non-fiction lovers in your clan. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'One of the hottest memoirs of 2024' - Sunday Times Style\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Guardian 'Books to look out for in 2024' pick and a Financial Times 'What to Read in 2024' pick.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'An art world Great Gatsby, deliciously withering and dishy.' - Patrick Radden Keefe\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'Delicious, sharp and often breathtaking' - Megan Nolan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'A brilliant, devastating expose' - William Boyd\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDECEPTION IS A FINE ART.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen Orlando Whitfield first meets Inigo Philbrick, they are students dreaming of dealing art for a living. Their friendship lasts for fifteen years until one day, Inigo - by then the most successful dealer of his generation - disappears, accused of a fraud so gigantic and audacious it rocks the art world to its core.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA sparklingly sharp memoir of greed, ambition and madness, All That Glitters will take you to the heart of the contemporary art world, a place wilder and wealthier than you could ever imagine.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Orlando Whitfield","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45884942123167,"sku":"","price":39.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781788169950_737e11e5-cc78-482a-abac-60250e1bb1f6.jpg?v=1720602055"},{"product_id":"twelve-sheep","title":"Twelve Sheep","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta’s Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eAfter listening to Phillip Adams’ thoroughly absorbing interview with Irish author and farmer John Connell, I knew that\u003cem\u003e Twelve Sheep \u003c\/em\u003ewas a must-read for me. In the interview, Connell explained that after the success of his first publication, The Cow Book (2018), he suffered burnout, or what he describes as “soul-tiredness”. Knowing that he needed to heal, he decided to walk the Camino. Lore has it that you go on the Camino Walk with a question, you will find the answer, and this is what happened to Connell: towards the end of the walk, he came upon a shepherd and his flock, and he saw this as a sign to return to his family’s farm in county Longford, Ireland. He recalled Henry Thoreau’s belief in the “influence of the earth” to heal soul-weariness. Once home, he adopted 12 sheep — his “girls,” as he refers to them — nursing them through pregnancy and birth, then releasing their young lambs from the shelter of the lambing shed. The lessons the sheep taught him, and what they might teach us, Connell sees as fundamental: they challenge us to live in the present. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSheep are ancient beasts. In ancient Turkey sheep were worshipped as gods. They gave meat, milk and wool and asked for little in return. And of course, the shepherd’s crook is a religious symbol. Connell believes Ireland has an historically strong connection with the land and her animals. They are integral to Irish mythology: the legend of Queen Maeve and the brown bull of Cooley, of the Celtic hero Cuchulain, of the god Dagda, god of fertility, of St Brigid the patroness of livestock and poets, just to name a few. Connell’s family also has a strong connection to the land, farming the land in Longford county since the 1700s. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhy twelve sheep, you might ask? Well, Connell quips, there are 12 months in a year, there were 12 disciples, and there are 12 Zodiac signs. Plus, he says, it doesn’t seem like a greedy number.  Each of the twelve chapters outlines a lesson. In each chapter Connell draws on poets, philosophers and artists, such as Pliny the Elder, John Clare, Paul Coelho, Seamus Heaney, Bruce Pascoe, Carlo Rovelli and David Malouf, all of whom have a deep connection with nature and the land. For me the most powerful reference is to the painting Anguish (1878), by August Friedrich Schenck. The painting had a profound effect on Connell when he first viewed it. I had the same response. Do look it up: it is such a powerful image. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd what did the sheep teach Connell? He believes they have made him wiser. His “soul-tiredness” has been replaced by a physical tiredness, which Connell calls “a pleasing tiredness”. He feels rooted again in the land. His sheep have taught him “grace”. And me? As I read each lesson, I too considered my “soul-tiredness,” and what I could do to find some of the grace that Connell found with his sheep. A worthwhile addition to your bedside table reads, or a perfect gift for someone special.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher’s Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFor John Connell, the lambing season on his County Longford farm begins in the autumn. In the sheep shed, he surveys the dozen females in his care and contemplates the work ahead as the season slowly turns to winter, then spring.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe twelve sheep have come into his life at just the right moment. After years of hard work, John felt a deep tiredness creeping up on him, a sadness that he couldn't shrug off. Having always sought spiritual guidance, he comes to realise that, in addition to the soothing words of literature and philosophy, perhaps the way ahead involves this simple flock of sheep. In the hard work of livestock rearing, in the long nights in the shed helping the sheep to lamb, he can reflect on what life truly means. Like the flock that he shepherds, this book is both simple and profound, a meditation on the rituals of farming life and a primer on the lessons that nature can teach us. 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Wyld herself said in a recent interview that she is torn between the two countries, and also believes that her nostalgia for Australia stems from her Australian mother’s chronic ‘homesickness’ for her rural New South Wales hometown. Significantly then, each of Wyld’s novels is set in both a fictional Australian town and a British location. Her first three novels were published to wide acclaim, including winning the Miles Franklin Award for All the Birds Singing, and the 2021 Stella Prize for The Bass Rock.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWyld’s new novel \u003cem\u003eThe Echoes\u003c\/em\u003e shows her working at the peak of her craft as a writer and a storyteller. I think it’s her best yet. The story moves between the London flat where Max and Hannah live, and a rural working-class area in outback Australia. Max and Hannah are a thirty-something couple: he is a Creative Writing teacher, Hannah a barmaid at a local pub. The obvious tension between them stems mainly from the fact that Max wants children, while Hannah does not. There’s also the fact that Max is dead. The novel reveals from the outset that he’s been unable to cross over to the afterlife because he believes there is something he needs to discover. And discover he does, as he listens to Hannah’s conversations with her best friend Janey. He learns about how he died, Hannah’s abortion, and the trauma which haunts her life. Promise, no spoilers! But despite what he learns, he still cannot move on. He is stuck with the dust motes and spiders and the procession of tenants who come and go over the decades.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile the novel has a complicated structure, Wyld makes it accessible by using headings – After, Before, and Then – and making clear in each section who is speaking. She is particularly skilled at placing the reader in place and time. Sometimes a detail is enough: beginning a chapter with the news that the serial killer David Birnie has hanged himself not only places the reader in Perth during 1980s and 90s; it also chillingly suggests that something dark is about to happen. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe title \u003cem\u003eThe Echoes\u003c\/em\u003e is also crucial to an understanding of the novel. The concept of an echo, a device often used by writers, is used by Wyld to stunning effect. The novel’s concluding lines, for example, echo the end of its opening chapter. When I read the last few lines, I gasped, and immediately went back to the opening chapter, knowing there were many nuances I had missed on my first reading. \u003cem\u003eThe Echoes\u003c\/em\u003e is also the name of the land where Hannah grew up. There is also the echo in her empty flat as she closes the door for the final time. Look out, indeed listen for, other echoes as you read. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile \u003cem\u003eThe Echoes\u003c\/em\u003e is a tough read, it is extremely worthwhile. It is dark, but there are moments of humour and pure tenderness. An excellent choice for bookclubs, and for all lovers of beautifully written, thought-provoking novels. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher’s Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003eSet between rural Australia and London, The Echoes is a story about the weight of the past and the promise of the future.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMax didn't believe in an afterlife. Until he died. Now, as a reluctant ghost trying to work out why he remains, he watches his girlfriend Hannah lost in grief in the flat they shared and begins to realise how much of her life was invisible to him.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn the weeks and months before Max's death, Hannah is haunted by the secrets she left Australia to escape. A relationship with Max seems to offer the potential of a different story, but the past refuses to stay hidden. It finds expression in the untold stories of the people she grew up with, the details of their lives she never knew and the events that broke her family apart and led her to Max.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBoth a celebration and an autopsy of a relationship, spanning multiple generations and set between rural Australia and London, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Echoes\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is a novel about love and grief, stories and who has the right to tell them. It asks what of our past we can shrug off and what is fixed forever, echoing down through the years.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'This is stranger, darker and more brilliant than anything she's written before... a book that will stay with you for ever - both intimate and extraordinarily ambitious.' - OBSERVER\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*Books to Look Out For 2024*\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Evie Wyld","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46207087018143,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/E2100C6A-95CF-4BDE-93E8-1C81A7D4B17E.jpg?v=1722508288"},{"product_id":"the-voyage-home","title":"The Voyage Home","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishes 27\/08\/2024. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePeta’s Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ePat Barker’s third instalment of her \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eretelling of Homer’s\u003cem\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s6\"\u003eIliad\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e from the perspective of the women of Troy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e does not disappoint. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eHer first\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e two\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e books\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s7\"\u003eThe Silence of th\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s7\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ee Girls\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s7\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e(2018)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s7\"\u003eThe Women of Troy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s7\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e(2021)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003erecount the events of the ten-year war from the point of view of Briseis, Achilles\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ewar prize, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eand \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ethe cause of the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ebitter \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003efeud between Achilles and Agamemnon. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eThe war now over, Troy razed to the ground, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ethe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003emen and babies slaughtered, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ethe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewomen seized as slaves, the wind has finally \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003earrived\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and Agamemnon’s victorious army \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eis\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003efinally \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eon \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eits\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e way home. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eBarker tells this tale from\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003et\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ehree perspectives: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eRista\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eformally Briseis’ maid and friend, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003enow Cassandra’s mai\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ed\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e;\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e Cassandra, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eKing Priam’s daughter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, now Agamemnon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003es war bride\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e;\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eClytemnestra, Agamemnon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003es wife \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ewho\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eremained \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ewait\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eing\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eat home\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, having ruled Mycenae for the duration of the war. Clytemnestra is in mourning for the ritual killing, by Agamemnon, of their daughter Iphigenia. As a Priestess with the gift of prophesy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eCassandra knows that she and Agamemnon are fated to die at the hands of Clytemnestra. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eRitsa is powerless to stop the prophesy, or Clytemnestra’s rage.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eHomer’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s6\"\u003eIliad\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e is\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, I believe, the world’s greatest epic poem. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eI love\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ed \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eit \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ethe first time I read it\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e and have return\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eed\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e to \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eit \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003etime \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eand \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eagain. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eA copy \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ealways \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003esits on my bedside table\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eThemes of love, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003efamily, power, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003esuffering, loss, anger, pride\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eduty, are timeless.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eAlthough women in Homer’s story \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eseem to \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003einhabit it obliquely, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eif you read carefully, you will find \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ethey are\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e in fact\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003epowerfully present. Barker deftly gives these women a voice. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eFor me, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eRitsa is a person I would befriend, Cassandra a woman I would keep at a distance, Clytemnestra a woman I would admire, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eand whose pain as a m\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eother\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e I\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e understand\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eIf you have read the previous two books, you will love \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s6\"\u003eThe Voyage Home\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e.  If you haven’t\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e, Barker’s new book \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003ecan be read as a stand-alone story – but \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eonce you’ve done so, you won’t be able to \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eresist reading \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s6\"\u003eThe Silence of the Girls\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s6\"\u003eWomen of Troy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher’s Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003eThe exhilarating follow-up to Pat Barker's \u003ci\u003eThe Women of Troy \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Silence of the Girls.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAfter ten blood-filled years, the war is over. Troy lies in smoking ruins as the victorious Greeks fill their ships with the spoils of battle.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAlongside the treasures looted are the many Trojan women captured by the Greeks - among them the legendary prophetess Cassandra, and her watchful maid, Ritsa. Enslaved as concubine - war-wife - to King Agamemnon, Cassandra is plagued by visions of his death - and her own - while Ritsa is forced to bear witness to both Cassandra's frenzies and the horrors to come.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMeanwhile, awaiting the fleet's return is Queen Clytemnestra, vengeful wife of Agamemnon. Heart-shattered by her husband's choice to sacrifice their eldest daughter to the gods in exchange for a fair wind to Troy, she has spent this long decade plotting retribution, in a palace haunted by child-ghosts.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAs one wife journeys toward the other, united by the vision of Agamemnon's death, one thing is certain- this long-awaited homecoming will change everyone's fates forever.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Pat Barker","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46368540262559,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/78CF76D1-EE0A-4DD4-A29E-3119448CC666.jpg?v=1723107403"},{"product_id":"london","title":"London","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eTanya Dalziell is Professor of English and the current Chair of English and Cultural Studies at the University of Western Australia. She has written or co-authored several books on a range of subjects. Her first book, \u003cem\u003eSettler Romances\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cem\u003eand the Australian Girl \u003c\/em\u003e(2005), was awarded the Walter McCrae Russell Award. She and Karen Welberry edited the book \u003cem\u003eCultural Seeds: Essays on the Work of Nick Cave\u003c\/em\u003e (2009). Along with Paul Genoni, Tanya co-authored the marvellous \u003cem\u003eHalf the Perfect World: Writers, Dreamers and Drifts on Hydra, 1955-1964\u003c\/em\u003e; in 2019 it was the recipient of the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction. The book is an extensively researched, beautifully written and illustrated account of the Australian literary couple Charmian Clift and George Johnston, who established the fabled artistic colony on the Greek island of Hydra from 1955 to 1964. The book is currently being made into a feature film. In 2020 Tanya published \u003cem\u003eGail Jones: Word, Image, Ethics, a detailed exploration of Jones’ novels and her contribution to Australian literature\u003c\/em\u003e.  Tanya is also the author of over 50 academic essays. Her latest book is simply titled\u003cem\u003e London\u003c\/em\u003e. No, not the city London, but the Western Australian author Joan London.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJoan London is a highly acclaimed and much-loved short story writer and novelist. Her first short story collection, \u003cem\u003eSister Ships\u003c\/em\u003e, won the 1986 Age Book of the Year, while her second collection, \u003cem\u003eLetter to Constantine\u003c\/em\u003e, won the 1994 Steele Rudd Award and the West Australian Premier’s Award for Fiction. These two collections, along with a previously unpublished story, have more recently been released in a volume called \u003cem\u003eThe New Dark Age\u003c\/em\u003e. London’s first novel \u003cem\u003eGilgamesh\u003c\/em\u003e (2001) won the Age Book of the Year, while her second, \u003cem\u003eThe Good Parents\u003c\/em\u003e (2008) won the Christina Stead prize for Fiction. Her third novel \u003cem\u003eThe Golden Age\u003c\/em\u003e (2014) won the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction, the Kibble Literary Award, the Western Australian Premier’s Award for Fiction and the Queensland Literary Award for Fiction. In 2015 London was awarded the prestigious Patrick White Literary Award for her ongoing contribution to Australian literature. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn her book \u003cem\u003eLondon\u003c\/em\u003e, Tanya Dalziell carefully examines London’s literary career, explores each of her works and demonstrates why London is such a literary treasure, not only for her contribution to Australian writing and culture but to Australian women’s writing in particular. She believes that one of the strengths of London’s work, and the reason for its wide appeal, is her focus on relationships in their various contexts – intimate, familial, cultural, historical. London was an admirer of Anton Chekhov’s narrative focus on the familiar; the small things which happen to us and have both a profound and subtle effect on our lives. Tanya concludes the book with London herself taking the stage: a transcript of her speech given in 1987 to the Warana Writers’ Week entitled \u003cem\u003eWhy I Write What I Write\u003c\/em\u003e, and her address at the 2004 Adelaide Writers’ Festival, which speaks to her first novel \u003cem\u003eGilgamesh\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJoan London is for me without a doubt a literary treasure. I have read and loved all her short stories and novels and had the privilege of teaching \u003cem\u003eGilgamesh\u003c\/em\u003e for many years at UWA. It is a wonderful novel; one I have reread many times. If you admire London’s work too, do come along to my conversation with Tanya Dalziell at the Lane Bookshop in Claremont, on Tuesday 1st October, at 6pm. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA revealing portrait of Joan London's intimate writings about family, love and loss.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJoan London's remarkable body of work, including the award-winning novels and short fiction \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Golden Age\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eGilgamesh\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eSister Ships\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, tells everyday stories of family, love and loss, with her signature poetic vision. London's stories portray how ordinary people get caught up in extraordinary circumstances and come to live in a world of violence and fear, of beauty and hope.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eLondon\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Tanya Dalziell takes the reader through the literary career of the Western Australian living treasure, journeying through space and time to offer a unique insight into the development of Australian literature and women's writing across the past four decades.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLondon\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e engages deeply with Joan London's work to reflect on its artistry and the conversations it provokes with the changing times. Dalziell invites readers to traverse London's writing and discover the significant contributions she has made to the contemporary literary landscape.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tanya Dalziell","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46648885379231,"sku":"","price":30.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/LondonBookImage_002.jpg?v=1724984556"},{"product_id":"three-wild-dogs","title":"Three Wild Dogs and the Truth","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eAny devotee of history will know how dogs have featured prominently over the centuries, faithfully standing beside their master. Alexander the Great was accompanied on his conquering by his loyal Peritas. Henry VIII’s hounds Cut and Ball never failed him on a hunt; he provided them with velvet silver spiked collars as their reward. The all-conquering Napoleon was gazumped in the bedroom by Josephine’s jealous pug Fortune. On the collar of Edward VII’s pooch was engraved “I am Caesar. I belong to the King.” Mad, bad and dangerous to know Lord Byron erected a tomb in honour of his devoted Boatswain, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning dedicated several poems to her beloved spaniel Flush. And now we have the author Markus Zusak and the three wild dogs, Reuben, Archer and Frosty, who rescued him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs a dog tragic I was entranced by Zusak’s memoir, \u003cem\u003eThree Wild Dogs\u003c\/em\u003e, from the first sentence: “There’s nothing like having a punch-up with your dog on a crowded city street.” While the book is a radical departure from his previous historical fiction, Zusak knew for a long time that he had to write about his and his family’s beautiful, terrifying, comedic life with their pets (as well as the three dogs, there were Bijou and Brutus, the feline counterparts). In a recent interview, Zusak said he refers to Reuben, Archer and Frosty as “group home dogs” rather than rescue dogs because he believes that it was the animals who “rescued” him. Being the owner of several ‘pound dog people’ myself, I am acutely aware that they absolutely come with problems. However, they are worth every challenge they present. Yes, you do have to take responsibility for them, but as Zusak affirms, they offer us a beautiful, full life, providing us with moments which stay with us. We all need a little chaos in our life, don’t we? And as history shows, our canine companions give their unconditional loyalty. True visceral life experiences. Life after all constantly throws us curve balls. It is how we catch them, duck them, or overcome them, that matters.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThree Wild Dogs \u003c\/em\u003eis heartwarming, funny, and at times achingly sad. Zusak vividly describes the chaos, joy, challenges and tears he and his family experienced with Reuben, Archer and Frosty (not forgetting Bijou and Brutus). You do not have to be a dog-tragic to enjoy this story. There is something for everyone – adventure, fun and intrigue, as well as insights into Zusak’s writing process. I wholeheartedly recommend this book. A handsome hardcover, it will make a perfect gift for …well, anyone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThere's a madman dog beside me, and the hounds of memory ahead of us. It's love and beasts and wild mistakes, and regret, but never to change things\u003c\/i\u003e...\u003cspan\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat happens when the Zusaks open their family home to three big, wild, pound-hardened dogs - Reuben, a wolf at your door with a hacksaw; Archer, blond, beautiful, deadly; and the rancorously smiling Frosty, who walks like a rolling thunderstorm? The answer can only be chaos: there are street fights, park fights, public shamings, property trashing, bodily injuries, stomach pumping, purest comedy, shocking tragedy, and carnage that needs to be seen to be believed ... not to mention the odd police visit at some ungodly hour of the morning. There is a reckoning of shortcomings and failure, a strengthening of will, but most important of all, an explosion of love - and the joy and recognition of family. From one of the world's great storytellers comes a tender, motley and exquisitely written memoir about the human need for both connection and disorder; a love letter to the animals who bring hilarity and beauty - but also the visceral truth of the natural world - straight to our doors and into our lives, and change us forever.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Markus Zusak","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46765042696351,"sku":"","price":36.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/blank__1_ca0cadad-0978-4e43-b8c9-a01ee5792e01.jpg?v=1728539475"},{"product_id":"dusk-1","title":"Dusk","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eI had no hesitation in immediately picking up Robbie Arnott’s latest novel, \u003cem\u003eDusk\u003c\/em\u003e, as soon as it arrived in the bookshop. For me, Arnott is one of Australia’s best writers; the number of awards his books have received supports my rather bold claim. His debut novel \u003cem\u003eFlames \u003c\/em\u003e(2018) was longlisted for the 2019 Miles Franklin Award, and nominated for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction. Arnott was named a Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Novelist. His second novel \u003cem\u003eThe Rain Herron\u003c\/em\u003e (2020) won The Age Book of the Year Award, as well as being shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award. \u003cem\u003eLimberlost \u003c\/em\u003e(2022), his third novel, won The Age Book of the Year Award, was shortlisted for the 2023 Miles Franklin Award, and won the 2023 Voss Literary Prize. It was also longlisted for the 2024 International Dublin Literary Award. I rest my case.  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the heart of Arnott’s fourth novel, \u003cem\u003eDusk\u003c\/em\u003e, are the twins Floyd and Iris Renshaw. Raised by drunken convict parents and orphaned at the age of seventeen, Floyd and Iris are now in their early thirties. They have had to learn to survive by whatever means possible. The key is their fierce protectiveness of each other, an unspoken vow taken as they watched their parents drowned by the ferocious river rapids. Both characters are shown as tough, resourceful and capable. In many respects Iris is the stronger, because her brother suffers daily from a past injury. However, he is also keen-eyed, alert to any approaching danger. When news of the huge bounty on a puma reaches them, they both see this as a chance to make enough money to provide them with a more secure future. So they set off to hunt the last remaining puma, known widely as Dusk. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eArnott’s new work has elements of a western, an antipodean gothic, a quest narrative and a historical novel. While some critics have described it as a colonial novel, Arnott has left its historical setting ambiguous, allowing \u003cem\u003eDusk \u003c\/em\u003eto speak to and engage with several mythical narratives. The most obvious are the stories of Tasmania’s last Thylacine and the violence of Australia’s colonial past. Arnott also subverts a realist notion of setting: the Tasmanian landscape that many of us will recognise - fossilised bones, pumas, black cockatoos, deer, kangaroos, and a Patagonian hunter - becomes suspended in a place, as well as a time, of our own imagining, affirmed by the novel’s conclusion. This beautiful ending asks us to reflect not only on the immediate situation but also on our capacity to love, our ongoing fight for survival, the endurance we need to grow, and the preciousness and fragility of the environment. I know it is an old cliché, but do yourself a favour and read this wise and lyrical novel. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the distant highlands, a puma named Dusk is killing shepherds. Down in the lowlands, twins Iris and Floyd are out of work, money and friends. When they hear that a bounty has been placed on Dusk, they reluctantly decide to join the hunt. As they journey up into this wild, haunted country, they discover there's far more to the land and people of the highlands than they imagined. And as they close in on their prey, they're forced to reckon with conflicts both ancient and deeply personal. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Dusk\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003eis a sublime novel of loss and redemption, fight and surrender, that left me in absolute awe. Robbie Arnott's prose is incandescent, his storytelling mythic and filled with a wisdom that extends beyond the page. With \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eDusk\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, he asserts himself as one of Australia's finest literary writers.' - Hannah Kent\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Magnificent' - Tim Winton \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Robbie Arnott","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47543646748831,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/dusk_3_49064757-6df9-4ffa-bef2-163e186915c7.jpg?v=1729827627"},{"product_id":"the-season","title":"The Season","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTwo of my great passions are reading and AFL footy (I know a discombobulating pairing for many people to understand). And so, my excitement spilled over when I heard that one of my favourite writers, Helen Garner, was writing a book on her immersion in AFL footy! The book, \u003cem\u003eThe Season\u003c\/em\u003e, is part memoir, part coming-of-age story. Realising her youngest grandson, 16-year-old Amby, is on the cusp of manhood, Garner decides to accompany Amby to his weekly football training sessions and to game day each Sunday. Garner is no stranger to AFL football. A longtime supporter of the Western Bulldogs, she says her passion for the game peaked during the pandemic. Throughout the long period of lockdowns in Melbourne, football kept her alive. She began to see the game as “a kind of poetry, an ancient common language between strangers, a set of shared hopes… .” Amby has played football since he was 5-years-old, and so Garner realised that being involved and interested in his football training and playing was the perfect way to be near him, and hopefully get to know him better before it was too late. To form an unbreakable bond. Amby is more than happy for his Nanna Garner to be on the sideline, a silent observer for a season.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor those who might disregard Garner’s new book, not at all interested in boot meets leather, I assure you, \u003cem\u003eThe Season\u003c\/em\u003e is so much more than a detailed account of Aussie rules. In his review in The Weekend Australian, Peter Craven writes that, rather it is an honest exploration of a grandmother and her love of her grandson. A memento mori, it also is a self-exploration by Garner of herself, as she realises the precariousness of her advancing years and the gradual, frustrating decline of her body. Garner poignantly writes, that The Season is “a little life-hymn.” It is a record of a special time she and Amby spend together, before she writes “he turns into a man and I die.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Season \u003c\/em\u003eis beautifully written. It is vintage Garner – sharply observed, raw, full of warm humour and distinctive Garner wit. Even if you know nothing about football, we all know about the special bond between grandparents and their grandchildren, and the importance of team-spirit and how good it feels to reach a goal. A great Christmas gift for young and not-so-young alike.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGarner's first new work in a decade is a tender portrayal of the relationship between grandmother and grandson, and of that moment on the cusp of adulthood when a boy is both child and man.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt's footy season in Melbourne, and Helen Garner is following her grandson's under-16s team. She not only goes to every game (give or take), but to every training session too, shivering on the sidelines at dusk, fascinated by the spectacle.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eShe's a passionate Western Bulldogs fan (with an imperfect grasp of the rules) who loves the epic theatre of AFL football. But her devotion to the under-16s offers her something else. This is her chance to connect with her youngest grandchild, to be close to him before he rushes headlong into manhood. To witness his triumphs and defeats, to fear for his safety in battle, to gasp and to cheer for his team as it fights for a place in the finals.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWith her sharp eye, her generous wit and her warm humour, Garner documents this pivotal moment, both as part of the story and as silent witness. The Season is an unexpected and exuberant book- a celebration of the nobility, grace and grit of team spirit, a reflection on the nature of masculinity, and a tribute to the game's power to thrill us.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePRAISE:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e'One of Australia's foremost authors, admired by writers as different as Raymond Carver and Elizabeth Jolley.'\u003cspan\u003e - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eIndependent\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Not long ago I read Helen Garner for the first time and was so stunned that I wanted to run around the block; how strange, how wonderful, that a book can still make me feel that way.'\u003cspan\u003e - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eRumaan Alam\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'There are very few writers that I admire more than Helen Garner.'\u003cspan\u003e - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eDavid Nicholls\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A voice of great honesty and energy.'\u003cspan\u003e - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eAnne Enright\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Over one footy season, Garner observes her youngest grandson's U16 team at training and games, but of course, brings her vivid attention to masculinity, family, weather, ageing, our bodies, and much more.'\u003cspan\u003e - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eMatilda Bookshop\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Is there anything more thrilling than reading Helen Garner on everyday things such as haircuts, the Melbourne skyline, ageing, AFL tactics, friendship and half-time oranges? A book for all seasons-not just the footy one!' -\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eGleaner\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Helen Garner","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53825404436639,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/the-season.jpg?v=1732775438"},{"product_id":"all-the-bees-in-the-hollows","title":"All the Bees in the Hollows","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"Neither the honey nor the bee for me.\" (Sapphṓ | fr. 146 Voigt)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/em\u003eThis is a fragment preserved from the proverbs of the ancient Greek poet, Sappho (circa 620 BCE). Bees have been mentioned in mythology and folklore for centuries. Many religions believe bees are the spirit that resides in us; a manifestation of the divine intellect, possessing knowledge of Nature’s secrets and the secrets of creation.  At the centre of each hive is a queen, a sacred feminine centre from which fertility emanates. The queen bee is fecundity: she represents the Earth, a powerful symbol of fertility and production.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor centuries, beekeeping has been a domain in which women have been able to participate, to gain some autonomy and become financially independent. My fascination with bees began in earnest when I saw at the Napoleon Exhibition at the NGV in 2012, the Empress Josephine’s stunning coronation gown adorned with hundreds of tiny gold bees. Napoleon chose the bee as the emblem to represent his status as Emperor because they symbolised industrious habits, hard work, diligence and orderliness. Some cultures, ancient Lithuania in particular, worshipped a bee goddess. According to mythology, this goddess was called Austeja; and it is her fascination with this mythological goddess which set Lauren Keegan on a journey of discovery, resulting in her debut novel, \u003cem\u003eAll the Bees in the Hollows\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSet in 16th century Lithuania, \u003cem\u003eAll the Bees in the Hollows\u003c\/em\u003e follows two women, Maryte, a bereaved widow, and her eldest daughter, Austeja. After the sudden death of her husband, Maryte she must prove to the Duchy authorities that she can continue as keeper of the family allotment of hives. Austeja, however, has little interest in the family business and dreams of escaping the claustrophobia of the close-knit beekeeping community. Her life is derailed one day when she stumbles on the eviscerated body of the Duchy’s Hollow Keeper (a sort of tax man of 16th century Lithuania). While much of the novel’s plot is basically a ‘whodunnit,’ Keegan also beautifully explores the nature of bees, traditional values under threat from the spread of Christianity, and the strength and importance of the mother’s work in maintaining these precious creatures. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eAll the Bees in the Hollows\u003c\/em\u003e offers a new voice in Australian literature. If you like being transported back to another place and another time, this debut novel is a perfect choice. If you like a good crime mystery, Keegan delivers on this front as well. Her research is impressive; I for one have made some notes to follow up on various references. Bees are vital for our survival, and they demand our respect. Highly recommended. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"subcategory-data--data pb-0 mb-0\"\u003eAn atmospheric, original, folkloric mystery set in a remote Lithuanian beekeeping community in the 16th century, from debut author Lauren Keegan. For fans of Hannah Kent's Burial Rites and Kate Forsyth's Bitter Greens.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"row subcategory-data mt-4\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"row\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"col pb-0\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pb-0 mb-0 subcategory-data--label\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"subcategory-data--data pb-0 mb-0\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eBees choose their masters. Bees don't sting good people.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eMaryt is a devoted beekeeper. She lives by the old rules: work with fellow beekeepers, be a good Christian and a good harvest will follow. These rules help her cope with her grief when she inherits her husband's tree hollows. But as harsh conditions and tax increases threaten the harvest, Maryt begins to question her faith, her community and her own sanity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere is little help to be had from her eldest daughter. Austeja is no worker bee. She takes risks, speaks her mind and dreams of escaping their isolated community. As her mother works, she finds refuge in the ancient forest and the old beliefs instilled in her by her defiant grandmother.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen Austeja discovers the mutilated body of the Hollow Watcher and uncovers a honeycomb of lies and betrayal, she is intent on finding the truth and protecting her family. Will mother and daughter overcome their differences, learn the truth behind the murder and complete the honey harvest?\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Lauren Keegan","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54113358413983,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781923022850.jpg?v=1733302513"},{"product_id":"ethel-carrick","title":"Ethel Carrick","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eEthel Carrick\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eNational Gallery of Australia, Canberra\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e7th December 2024 – 27th April 2025\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNow showing at the NGA in Canberra is a major exhibition of the life and work of the painter Ethel Carrick (1872-1952). The NGA has amassed a total of 140 of Carrick’s paintings from state art galleries and private collections to offer the first retrospective of her work in over 50 years. The exhibition is another one of the Gallery’s \u003cem\u003eKnow My Name\u003c\/em\u003e initiatives, designed to highlight and celebrate the work of women artists who have contributed to Australia’s cultural history and society.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEthel Carrick was born in Britain and lived and worked in France and Australia. In 1905 she married the Australian artist Emanual Phillips Fox; the couple lived in Paris until 1913, at which time he brought Carrick to Australia. They travelled and painted together, until Fox died after only ten years of marriage. After her husband’s death, Carrick became the custodian of his legacy, and also began two decades of travel that took her through the Middle East, South Asia and Europe. She returned intermittently to Australia to exhibit her work and go out on painting expeditions around the country, until her own death in 1952. While the painting techniques of she and her husband diverged in many ways, their work focused on women, especially working women.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI have long been a fan of Ethel Carrick, not only of her paintings but also for her pioneering work promoting women’s art and artists. One obituary noted how right till her death, Carrick maintained her keen interest in promoting and supporting the work of the younger generation of Australian artists, especially women.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA student at the Slade School of Fine Art, Carrick is one of the first post-Impressionist painters. It’s her use of colour and movement which captivates me the most. She vibrantly documents daily life, especially women at work and children at play. Two of my favourite pieces are Christmas Day on Manly Beach (1913) and The Market (1919). As Exhibition curator Dr Deborah Hart writes of the latter: \u003cem\u003eThis remarkable painting, with its mastery of dappled light, dress details, and depth and richness of colour convey[s] an overall sense of the joy in being alive.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCarrick’s paintings are vibrant, colourful and full of movement. Her canvasses reveal broad strong brush strokes, spacious foregrounds, clusters of people engaging in daily activities, and movement which feels like it extends beyond the parameters of the canvas. Her use of light and dappled shade shows that there is light even in the shadows.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you have the opportunity to travel to Canberra before April, a visit to the exhibition would be an absolute treat. But if this isn’t possible, buying the accompanying publication is perhaps the next best thing. With an extensive Foreword by curator Dr Deborah Hart, seven essays by Carrick historians and hundreds of reproductions of Carrick’s paintings, it is a virtual visit to the NGA which you can enjoy from the comfort of your favourite armchair.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eEthel Carrick\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eexplores and celebrates this remarkable artist who contributed significantly to Australian and international art for over 50 years. Carrick's work radiates with luminous light, colour and energy; predominantly focusing on crowds, in all their diversity and interconnection. This publication will accompany the National Gallery exhibition\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eEthel Carrick\u003c\/i\u003e, which will be the first retrospective of her work in over 40 years, the most comprehensive to date, and will shine new light on her life and works.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCarrick (18721952) was a truly transnational artist who was born in Britain and lived and worked primarily in France and Australia. She was one of the first post-impressionist artists to exhibit in Australia, and yet her significant artistic contributions and amazing life story are not known to a wide audience.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDeborah Hart, Head Curator, Australian Art, passionately guides the reader through an absorbing, thorough and richly visual exploration of Ethel's life and art. Supported by seven focus essays, expert contributors cover such diverse topics as her affectionate and iconic portrayals of Manly Beach and the modern surfer girl, her North African travels, and her remarkable artistic records and philanthropy during World War II. This publication includes new research illuminates an artist who has been too long overshadowed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBursting with the vibrant colour that so characterises her work, this gorgeous volume is designed with Carrickesque modernity. Very generously illustrated large reproductions and details of paintings allow the reader to appreciate their stunning detail to full effect.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"National Gallery of Australia","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55257975554207,"sku":"","price":79.95,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/blank__17.jpg?v=1736226864"},{"product_id":"father-son-and-other-animals","title":"Father, Son and Other Animals","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta’s Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eSometimes books seem to find you. This is definitely the case with Zo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eë \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eSadokierski’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eFather, Son and Other Animals \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e(2024)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eI think it was the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eengaging \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eillustration of the emu with two chicks on the cover which drew me to it\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eFather\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eSon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eOther Animals\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e is published by Cordite Books, an independent \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003enot-for-profit \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003esmall press\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eZoë Sadokierski\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e’s\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ework as a\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e designer, writer, creative producer and professor in Visual Communication at the UTS School of Design\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eaccounts for the wonderful illustrations in the book. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eThrough a combination of illustrations and anecdote\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003es\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eFather\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eSon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eOther Animals \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eexplores the issues of climate change and species extinctions through the lens of parenting\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and the recent Covid experience. Aware of the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eplanet’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003elooming environmental crisis \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eand despite \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eher growing anxiety about the future, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eSadokierski\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewanted to find hopeful stories to tell her young son. Throughout the book she\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003epays\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eclose \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eattention \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eto the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ebonds that humans share \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewith the natural world.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e As a parent, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eshe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003efinds herself looking back on her own childhood, a time of tooth fairies, flying reindeer and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ethe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003esheer joy \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eof \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ehearing the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewarble of currawongs at dusk. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eWhile \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eSadokierski\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e’s concern with impending environmental catastrophe might make the book sound bleak, this certainly isn’t the case. She offers \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ebeautiful moments of tenderness, reminiscences of her father’s connection with the animals and wildlife on their \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003efarm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e touching moments \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewhen \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003edrawing with her young son Raph. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eAcclaimed environmental writer \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eJames Bradley\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e’s\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e Introduction \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003epraises the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ebook’s complexity and intelligence\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, describing it as one that \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eshows us \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ehow\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e “\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ewe need to find ways to live and celebrate as well as to mourn and rage\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eFather\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eSon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s5\"\u003eOther Animals \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003eis a gem of a book, or \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003ein\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e Bradley\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e’s words\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e, “a small marvel\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher’s Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I want more books with the complexity and intelligence of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eFather, Son and Other Animals\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e. Not just because we're going to need them if we're to find ways of processing and commemorating the transformation of the world, but because we need to find ways to live and celebrate as well as to mourn and rage.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003eThe book's sophisticated interweaving of text and image, grief and humour, wisdom and bafflement does just that, capturing not just the dislocation of our historical moment, but also the bonds of love and care that bind us to each other. Simultaneously painful, funny and profound, it is a small marvel of a book. \u003ci\u003eFather, Son and Other Animals \u003c\/i\u003eallows us to glimpse the degree to which the slow catastrophe of the pandemic and its reshaping of our world was not an isolated incident, but part of a larger derangement of both human and non-human life that is being driven by human activity.' - James Bradley\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Zoe Sadokierski","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55753628221599,"sku":"","price":20.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/father-son-and-other-animals.jpg?v=1737079144"},{"product_id":"the-defiance-of-frances-dickinson","title":"The Defiance of Frances Dickinson","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eBut the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/em\u003eGeorge Eliot’s closing words in \u003cem\u003eMiddlemarch \u003c\/em\u003epoignantly articulate the fate of so many women in the nineteenth century, and indeed of women throughout history. Thankfully historians and literary scholars have begun to search those unvisited tombs, and through their diligent research and commitment, have been able to give voice to many of the women who made a significant difference to their communities and to the wider society. One such recovered voice is that of Frances Dickinson, a young woman trapped in an abusive marriage. Refusing to accept her lot, Dickinson boldly fought society, the law and the disfavour of her family and friends in order to free herself from further cruelty at the hands of her husband, John Geils. And it is quite the story.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWendy Parkins tells the story of eighteen-year-old Frances Dickinson, who impulsively married Lieutenant John Geils, leaving her home and her widowed-mother to live with John’s family in Scotland. However, wedded bliss quickly turned into the cruel and coercive behaviour of her husband.  Dickinson suffered miscarriages, beatings, sodomy and the humiliation of her husband’s many dalliances with various household servants. After her pleas to John, his family and even her mother to be released from the marriage went unheard, she decided to take legal action. The trial, Geils v. Geils (1846 – 1848) was a sensation: newspapers reported daily court proceedings and town gossip ran rife. Dickinson was vilified by a public that accused her of everything from deception to immorality, on the assumption that no virtuous woman would surely make such allegations against her husband. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut she stood strong. In 1848 she was granted a judicial separation from her husband, the most beneficial outcome for women then available under English law. Not satisfied, however, and wanting full custody of her four daughters, she then applied for a full divorce in Scotland. When the divorce was finally granted in 1855, she travelled extensively. She married Gilbert Elliott, Dean of Bristol, in 1863 and under the pseudonym Frances Minto Elliott, wrote a series of popular history and travel books. She numbered among her good friends the novelists Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens and Anthony Trollope. She died in Italy in 1898, aged 78. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThankfully, due to Wendy Parkins’ excellent research, this courageous woman does not rest in an unvisited tomb. The novel \u003cem\u003eThe Defiance of Frances Dickinson\u003c\/em\u003e is a testament to Parkins’ diligent and methodical work. She has used original court documents, newspaper reports and extant witness depositions to flesh out the story of Dickinson’s life and court battles. \u003cem\u003eThe Defiance of Frances Dickinson\u003c\/em\u003e is a well-researched, well-written account of an extraordinary woman who braved humiliation and vilification in order to expose the truth of her brutal marriage. An excellent book club choice.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eA woman who braved public disgrace to expose a brutal marriage.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e1838, England: When eighteen-year-old heiress Frances Dickinson impulsively marries Lieutenant John Geils, she soon discovers there is much about her husband she did not know. A cruel and violent man, John keeps Frances in isolation on his family's estate in Scotland, while spending her fortune and preying upon their maids.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrances yearns to break free from her marriage but the law is not on her side. Only when John's abuse escalates can she set in motion a daring plan to secure her freedom.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA story of gaslighting, control and one woman's fight, \u003ci\u003eThe Defiance of Frances Dickinson\u003c\/i\u003e reveals the truth behind one of the most sensational divorce trials of the nineteenth century.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Wendy Parkins","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56012024578207,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781923135031.jpg?v=1737616422"},{"product_id":"boy-from-the-sea","title":"Boy from the Sea","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGarret Carr is the author of several YA novels, and this debut adult novel \u003cem\u003eThe Boy from the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e is a gem. A teacher in creative writing at the Seamus Heaney Centre at the University of Belfast, Carr is also a frequent contributor to \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Irish Times.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Boy from the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e begins in 1973, with the arrival of a baby boy, washed up on the shore of a little Irish fishing village called Killybegs. The baby is discovered by Mossey Shovlin, the village itinerant, who we are told by the unnamed narrator carried the baby through the village as if this was his sole purpose in life. The baby soon becomes the focus of the village, passed from family to family, until it is adopted by Ambrose Bonnar and his wife. Ambrose names the baby Brendan, after the saint known as the Navigator, the patron saint of sailors. However, the family is not entirely blessed; from the outset, the Bonnar’s son Declan regards the baby as an interloper, and as time passes, we can see that his growing resentment will not necessarily bode well.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story of Brendan’s growing up is also the story of how a small community tries to contend with the modern world. 1973 was the year in which Ireland joined the European Union, and what followed was a decade of economic hardship. As the “we” of the novel – the narrative the voice of the community - tells us: “So far the 1980s weren’t treating many of us well.” But for the people of Killybegs, community is everything: resources are pooled and mucking in is just what you did. Brendan is no ordinary boy, either, becoming for the villagers a kind of secular saint, appearing to give blessings to the villagers in need. He is just what the villagers need to reassure them all will be well. It is this particular strand of the narrative which gives the book its magic and lightness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you enjoyed Claire Keegan’s \u003cem\u003eSmall Things Like These\u003c\/em\u003e, then \u003cem\u003eThe Boy from the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e is a must read. It is a warm, tender novel about people you will come to care about, willingly walk, struggle and rejoice with. Yes, life does throw us curve balls, but we catch them together. I could smell the sea, feel the wind and hear the waves: Killybegs is now on my destination wish list!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Compulsive reading. Compassionate, lyrical and full of devilment' - Louise Kennedy, author of \u003ci\u003eTrespasses\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1973. In a close-knit community on Ireland’s west coast, a baby is found abandoned on the beach. Named Brendan Bonnar by Ambrose, the fisherman who adopts him, Brendan will become a source of fascination and hope for a town caught in the storm of a rapidly changing world. Ambrose, a man more comfortable at sea than on land, brings Brendan into his home out of love. But it’s a decision that will fracture his family and force him to try to understand himself and those he cares for. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBookended by the arrival and departure of a single mesmerizing boy, Garrett Carr's \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Boy From the Sea\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is an exploration of the ties that make us and bind us, as a family and community move irresistibly towards the future.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Garrett Carr","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57924041605279,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/blank__215.jpg?v=1739493358"},{"product_id":"anne-dangar","title":"Anne Dangar","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnne Dangar (1885-1951) is probably a name many people wouldn’t recognise. But thankfully, with the National Gallery of Australia staging the largest-ever Australian retrospective of Dangar’s work, this will soon change. Opening in December last year in conjunction with the Ethel Carrick exhibition, the Dangar exhibition features more than 136 of her works, as well as sketches and letters detailing her life and legacy. The exhibition is another of the \u003cem\u003eKnow My Name\u003c\/em\u003e projects, initiated by the NGA, designed to highlight and celebrate the work of women artists who have contributed to Australia’s cultural history.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSo, who was Anne Dangar? NGA’s curator of Australian art, Rebecca Edwards, tells us that “Anne Dangar is among the very few Australian artists to work alongside the European avant-garde in the 20th century,” embracing cubism in her works. Dangar was an artist working in a variety of mediums, from paper to textiles to ceramics. Born in 1885 in the coastal town of Kempsey in NSW, she studied at the Julian Ashton Art School in Sydney. In 1926 she travelled to France with her friend and fellow artist, Grace Crowley, becoming captivated by the rising Cubist and Modernist art movements they witnessed. However, returning to Sydney three years later, she found strong resistance to the progressive European movements, and so in 1930, she travelled back to France and joined the artists’ commune founded by Albert Gleizes, artist, philosopher and self-proclaimed founder of Cubism. Dangar continued to correspond with Grace Crowley, describing the new modern artistic practices in Europe. Fortunately for future generations, Crowley kept all of Dangar’s letters to her, eventually donating them to the State Library of NSW. After various trips abroad, in particular to Morocco, Dangar eventually settled at Moly-Sabata, an artist commune in the south of France. She died in 1951 and was buried there. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile living mainly in Europe, Dangar never forgot her Australian roots. As with many artists living abroad, Dangar was still a dedicated advocate and promoter of modern art in Australia. Arguably the first artist to exhibit Cubist art in Australia, she can be credited with profoundly influencing the development in this country of abstraction, along with contemporaries such as Crowley and Dorrit Black, Grace Cossington Smith and Margaret Preston.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe publication which accompanies the Exhibition is a beautiful record of this important exhibition. It is comprised not only of stunning images of Dangar’s works, letters and family photos but also offers a comprehensive overview by curator Rebecca Edwards of Dangar’s life, works and legacy, as well as five focus essays by Dangar scholars. As I said in my earlier review of the Ethel Carrick publication, if you cannot travel to Canberra to view the Exhibition, then this stunning book is an absolute must for your coffee table.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Australian cubist and potter Anne Dangar (18851951) has occupied a unique position in art history as one of the country's most important yet underacknowledged modern artists. The National Gallery is honoured to present\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eAnne Dangar\u003c\/i\u003e, a publication accompanying a major retrospective exhibition celebrating Dangar's life and art through previously unknown works, new scholarship and perspectives on her practice.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRebecca Edwards, Curator, Australian Art, provides a detailed and engaging account of Dangar's art and life, tracing her beginnings in Kempsey, NSW, her studies in Sydney and Paris, and her subsequent journey to Moly-Sabata, Sablons, France. There she established her international reputation as a cubist artist. Featuring contributions by Elena Taylor, Angela Goddard, Anne O'Hehir, ADS Donaldson and the late Peter Brooke, the publication surveys Dangar's art, networks and legacy.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWith over 150 of the artist's works reproduced, as well as previously unpublished archival material, this richly illustrated book is a comprehensive record of Dangar's impressive artistic output and impact on Australian modernism.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"National Gallery of Australia","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57935697084575,"sku":"","price":79.95,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/blank__16.jpg?v=1739497438"},{"product_id":"lolly-willowes","title":"Lolly Willowes","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eSometimes reading can be serendipitous, opening a window onto an undiscovered treasure.  This happened for me when reading Harriet Baker’s\u003cem\u003e Rural Hours\u003c\/em\u003e, a beautiful exploration of three unconventional women who were profoundly changed after moving to the country.  The women are Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), Sylvia Townsend Warner (1893-1978) and Rosamond Lehmann (1901-1990), all three of whom kept extensive dairies of their time in the country, recording their impressions of the landscape and the quiet rhythm they felt in their country homes. In her essay ‘The Essex Marshes,’ Warner writes that in the country she experienced the “mysterious sensation of being where [she] wanted to be, socketed in the universe, and passionately quiescent.” Feeling “socketed” by a writer I confess I was unfamiliar with, I began my deep dive into her life and work.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSylvia Nora Townsend Warner was born in Harrow, in the UK, in 1893. Her oeuvre comprises seven novels, a biography of the English writer T.H. White (best known for his novels about the Arthurian legend), countless short stories, translations, poetry collections and a music score. Moving from London to Dorset, she met and fell in love with the poet Valentine Ackland. The couple set up house in “Miss Green's cottage” in 1930, moving in 1937 to a cottage in Maiden Newton, where they remained for the rest of their lives. Known as the “leading Communists of Wessex,” the couple collaborated extensively on essays and other political writing, and both came under the continued scrutiny of the authorities. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWarner’s novel \u003cem\u003eLolly Willowes\u003c\/em\u003e, published in 1926, was shortlisted for the Prix Femina Award, establishing her as a new literary talent. The first of her seven novels,\u003cem\u003e Lolly Willowes\u003c\/em\u003e tells the story of Laura Willowes, a middle-aged woman who, on the death of her father, is taken in by her brother Henry and his wife Caroline. To their children she is “Aunt Lolly.”  Henry and Caroline earnestly introduce Laura to eligible men in the hope that she will marry one of them, but Laura is determined not to marry at all. One day, about to buy some flowers, she has an epiphany: she imagines herself walking somewhere in the countryside, breathing the fresh country air and feeling the soft breezes on her skin.  So instead of flowers, she buys a map, studies it closely and decides she will move to a tiny village in Buckinghamshire, where she intends to live modestly, and more importantly, on her own. Her family, predictably, think she is mad, but also certain that she will see the error of her decision and promptly return home. But settling in a small cottage in the tiny village in Great Mop, Laura gradually finds herself. And far from meeting an eligible bachelor, she meets Satan! You’ll have to read the book to find out what becomes of her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLaura Willowes defies Edwardian social traditions and conventions. Despite the hardship she faces relocating to a new home, she has never felt more free and more true to herself.  In Great Mop she finds herself among women who “know their own hearts … how incalculable, how extraordinary they are.”  Laura is prepared to defy society with these women and determine her own path forward.  Although the novel might initially strike you as genteelly Edwardian story about an unmarried woman, in fact it has impressive depth. Warner presents an astute commentary on the seismic changes happening in Europe after WWI, and foreshadows the impending war and the human cost that will result. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eLolly Willowes\u003c\/em\u003e is a tender, funny, poignant story.  As \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e describes it, the novel “subverts every theme it touches on: gender roles, family love, social convention, religious propriety.”  I am finding that reading Warner’s novels concurrently with those of Virginia Woolf’s extremely satisfying.  Both writers found solace and healing in country life, so much so that they began pushing boundaries in both their writing and personal lives. I am feeling both “socketed” and extremely grateful to have stumbled across such a strong, independent female writer like Warner, who not only defied social norms but gave us the delightful Laura Willowes. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIntroducing Little Clothbound Classics- irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas and essays from the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLolly Willowes, so gentle and accommodating, has depths no one suspects. When she suddenly announces that she is leaving London and moving, alone, to the depths of the countryside, her overbearing relatives are horrified. But Lolly has a greater, far darker calling than family- witchcraft.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sylvia Townsend Warner","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61958775636127,"sku":"","price":22.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/oxCT22xklgm7qNE7PH2vH6eceapPp-zozCxDg6C6oxOcUQ.jpg?v=1741223275"},{"product_id":"perspectives","title":"Perspectives","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eThe setting is Florence,1557. The painter, Jacopo Pontormo, is found dead in the church of San Lorenzo. A hammer is found next to the body and a chisel has pierced his chest.\u003cbr\u003eWho killed Jacopo? And why has someone painted over a section of his unfinished frescos? Enter the main players Cosimo de Medici I (Duke of Florence), his wife Eleanor, his daughter Maria, their page boy Malatesta, and a host of other characters: Giorgio Vasario, Benvenuto Cellini, Catherine (Queen of France), the exiled Michelangelo, Jacopo’s apprentice Bronzino and colour grinder Marco, as well as two nuns on the run: Sister Plautilla and Sister Catherine.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe result is, to quote \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e review, “a dazzling Renaissance romp.” An Agatha Christie meets Dan Brown. From the first to the last page, I was there in Florence on the Hercule Poirot vanguard to uncover Jacopo’s killer. Along the way more mystery, intrigue and scandal are revealed, secret passages are uncovered and pornographic images are unveiled. Like all good crime dramas, the story ends with resolution, an exegesis, the players exiting stage left, the lights going down and the curtain closing. Utterly satisfying. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003ePerspectives \u003c\/em\u003eis an epistolary novel, so the point of view is constantly changing. It is up to the reader to keep up, because the letters pile up at a breakneck pace. The novel’s title signals the importance in both art and life of the angle or viewpoint from which we observe experience. In art, perspective is the technique used by painters to represent a three-dimensional space or object within a two-dimensional frame; it allows the artist to create an illusion of something which is not real, just as a letter can create a perspective, or an illusion of truth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003ePerspectives\u003c\/em\u003e, a historical novel, is very much a departure from two of Binet’s previous novels, \u003cem\u003eHHhH \u003c\/em\u003eand \u003cem\u003eCivilisations\u003c\/em\u003e, both of which are highly cerebral and set in contemporary times. You get the feeling that Binet really enjoyed writing this new thriller. Published originally in French, \u003cem\u003ePerspectives \u003c\/em\u003eis superbly translated by Sam Taylor. This is a novel bristling with fascinating characters and entertaining antics. It will satisfy lovers of both art and crime fiction, and anyone who enjoys a well-written, rollicking narrative. Highly recommended. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA brilliant reinvention of the detective novel, set in Renaissance Florence and packed with art, scandal, murder and scheming - from the author of the international bestseller \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eHHhH\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFlorence, New Year's Day 1557. As dawn breaks, a painter is discovered lying on the floor of a church, stabbed through the heart.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAbove him, the paintings he laboured over for more than a decade. At his home, a hidden painting scandalously depicting Maria de Medici, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Florence, as a naked Venus. Who is the murderer? Who is behind the painting? As the city erupts in chaos, Giorgio Vasari, the great art historian, is picked to lead the investigation.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLetters fly back and forth carrying news of political plots and speculation about the killer's identity - between Maria and her aunt Catherine de' Medici, the queen of France; between Catherine and her scheming agents in Florence; and between Vasari and his friend Michelangelo. Meanwhile, the Pope is banning books and branding works of art immoral. And the truth, when it comes to light, is as shocking as the bold new artworks that have made Florence the red-hot centre of Europe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBursting with characters and colour, \u003ci\u003ePerspectives \u003c\/i\u003eis a mystery like no other that shows us Renaissance Florence as we've never seen it before - a dazzling, hugely entertaining novel of court machinations, murder and art.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Laurent Binet","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61998348992671,"sku":"","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/perspectives.jpg?v=1742526472"},{"product_id":"always-home-always-homesick","title":"Always Home, Always Homesick","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn a land of ethereal beauty, within a culture soaked in myth, a young woman discovers the story that will change her life. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Indie Book Awards is a unique because it celebrates the best of Australian writing as judged by the Australian independent booksellers. Independent bookstores, and their sellers, are key to the fostering of Australian writers and publishers. Each year the awards highlight the incredible depth of Australian literary talent, covering a wide range of genres, and voices that might otherwise be overlooked by other literary awards. I was fortunate to be part of the judging panel this year and impressed by the quality of books shortlisted across the various categories. Last Monday I had the privilege of announcing the winner of the non-fiction category winner of the 2026 Indie Awards. The winner of the award is Hannah Kent, for her memoir \u003cem\u003eAlways Home, Always Homesick\u003c\/em\u003e, published by Picador Australia. The other winners were:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e•    Book of the Year and Fiction category: \u003cem\u003eWild Dark Shore\u003c\/em\u003e by Charlotte McConaghy (Penguin Australia)\u003cbr\u003e•    Debut fiction category: \u003cem\u003eWhen Sleeping Women Wake\u003c\/em\u003e by Emma Pei Yin (Hachette Australia)\u003cbr\u003e•    Illustrated Non-Fiction: \u003cem\u003eWild by Design\u003c\/em\u003e by Tim Pilgrim (Murdoch Books)\u003cbr\u003e•    Young Adult: \u003cem\u003eEleanor Jones is Playing with Fire\u003c\/em\u003e by Amy Doak (Penguin Australia)\u003cbr\u003e•    Children’s: \u003cem\u003eSilverborn: The Mystery of Morrigan Crow \u003c\/em\u003eby Jessica Townsend (Lothian Children's Books)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCongratulations to all the winners and their publishers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHannah Kent’s Burial Rites remains one of my favourite novels.  The popularity and high regard evidenced in the latest RN Top 100 books, where it was voted in at number 6. I can remember the sensation of overwhelming cold as I read it, and my deep connection with Agnes, taking every step with her to her execution place. So to read Kent’s new memoir, \u003cem\u003eAlways Home, Always Homesick\u003c\/em\u003e, about her experiences in Iceland and the genesis of Burial Rites, was both moving and revealing.  Even though I have heard Kent speak at many Writers’ Festivals about her time in Iceland, I learnt new things, and remain in awe that she managed to survive the whale blubber meal: I would have called time immediately and caught the next flight home! I enjoyed hearing about her visit there 20 years later and especially delighted to learn how much she was welcomed by her host family and the wider Icelandic community. One moment which stands out for me was her hunger in the early weeks in Iceland for English-language books, finding comfort and inspiration from the likes of Thomas Hardy, Margaret Atwood and Virginia Woolf (\u003cem\u003eTo the Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e is one of my favourite novels too and so I absolutely share Kent’s assessment). \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI didn’t know much about Kent’s private life, so it was lovely to glean snippets of her love and life with Heidi and the children.  It would be great to think that as a family they could travel back to Iceland and live one day. I am sure the children, Anouk and Rory, would garner memories that will be with them for life, just as their mother will always have a little bit of Iceland in her. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAlways Home, Always Homesick\u003c\/em\u003e is a beautifully presented book. Kent’s reflections on her time in and relationship with Iceland are absorbing and beautifully told. Congratulations Hannah. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeta\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Blurb\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e'In my brief breath of life, might I find a way to fit light to paper?' \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn a land of ethereal beauty, within a culture soaked in myth, a young woman discovers the story that will change her life. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn 2003, seventeen-year-old Australian exchange student Hannah Kent arrives at Keflavík Airport in the middle of the Icelandic winter. That night she sleeps off her jet lag and bewilderment in the National Archives of Iceland, unaware that, years later, she will return to the same building to write \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eBurial Rites\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, the haunting story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman executed in Iceland. The novel will go on to launch the author's stellar literary career and capture the hearts of readers across the globe. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlways Home, Always Homesick\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003eis Hannah Kent's exquisite love letter to a land that has forged a nation of storytellers, her ode to the transcendent power of creativity, and her invitation to us all to join her in the realms of mystery, spirit and wonder.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Hannah Kent","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62147659825311,"sku":null,"price":36.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/always-home-always-homesick_4.jpg?v=1747362442"},{"product_id":"honours-mimic","title":"Honour's Mimic","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHonour’s Mimic combines the authentic Greek setting of Charmian Clift’s travel memoirs with the fine writing that has caused her to be described as Australia’s greatest essayist.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePeta's Review\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAlthough first published in 1964, Charmian Clift’s \u003cem\u003eHonour’s Mimic\u003c\/em\u003e unfortunately disappeared from bookstore shelves, until now, thanks to Nadia Wheatley. Wheatley is an award-winning author, critic and historian. Her biography of Clift, The Life and Myth of Charmian Clift (2001) was named The Age Non-Fiction Book of the Year and the NSW Premier’s Australian History Prize. It is also recognized, by the author and critic Peter Craven, as \"one of the greatest Australian biographies\", and remains the definitive account of Clift’s life, work, and her much mythologised legacy. In 2022 Wheatley published Sneaky Little Revolutions, a curated anthology of over 80 essays by Clift, originally published in the 1960s, selected and introduced by Wheatley. In 2024, Wheatley edited, and published for the first time, the end of the morning, which is Clift’s unfinished autobiographical novel. Set in the small quarry town of Kiama, on the NSW south coast, it is narrated by Clift’s alter ego, Cressida Morley. Although working on this work for decades, being constantly in the shadow of her (in)famous husband, George Johnston, she never managed to finish it. However, Wheatley writes that although “only a fragment of an intended larger work… it stands alone as a novella.” While it is incredibly sad that she was unable to complete the manuscript, after reading it, it is evidence, to my mind, why Clift is one of Australia’s most significant authors.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnd now, thanks again to the efforts of Wheatley, \u003cem\u003eHonour’s Mimic\u003c\/em\u003e has been brought back into the spotlight. In her insightful afterword, Wheatley explains that it was unfortunately first published at the same time as her husband, George Johnston, published what was to become the Miles Franklin winning \u003cem\u003eMy Brother Jack\u003c\/em\u003e. As a result, \u003cem\u003eHonour’s Mimic\u003c\/em\u003e, while receiving some positive reviews, was completely overshadowed by Johnston’s critical acclaim. Interestingly, Wheatley believes that the lack of success of Clift’s novel was not, however, just the coincidence of \u003cem\u003eMy Brother Jack\u003c\/em\u003e reaching the bookshelves at the same time, but because, writes Wheatley, “[it] disobeyed the genre rules of the woman’s romance”, and because “the Greece that provides it authentic setting was not the Greece that is beloved by tourists.”  It therefore challenged the reader expectations, and argues Wheatley, probably still does today. Yes, I agree, it resists easy answers, but for me that is its power. I assure you; it is worth the challenge.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSet on the rugged Greek island of Kalymnos, where Clift, Johnston and their two children lived before relocating to Hydra, the story follows Kathy, an Australian woman recovering from a car accident and a stifling marriage, moves to Kalymnos to convalesce with Demetrius and Milly. Demetrius is a wealthy sponge merchant on the island, while Milly is his very pregnant English wife. While Demetrius is handsome, educated and heir of Kalymnos’ most successful sponge merchant business, Kathy finds herself instead drawn into an unlikely romance with Fotis, a poor, local sponge diver. He is also married and father of eight children, with another on the way. Their relationship breaks every rule. Both come from vastly different worlds, Kathy, educated and foreign; Fotis, illiterate and economically bound to the dangerous occupation of sponge diving. She is escaping from her stultifying middle-class marriage, he from poverty and from, writes Wheatley, “one of the most dangerous, terrifying and poorly paid trades on earth.” But their bond is powerful, reaching such intensity that even “honour becomes mimic”, as the title suggests. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe title of the novel, Honour’s Mimic, is drawn from John Donne’s metaphysical poem “\u003cem\u003eThe Sun Rising\u003c\/em\u003e” (1633):\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePrinces do but play us; compared to this,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAll honor's mimic, all wealth alchemy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDonne tells us that the love between the speaker and his beloved is more real and significant than the artifice of wealth and power. For Donne, and by extension, Kathy and Fotis, believe that worldly honour is merely an imitation of the raw, powerful love they share. The strength of their connection, Kathy believes, is that they have each experienced a brush with death, Kathy in a car accident, Fotis in a diving misadventure. Both incidents now consume them with a fear they cannot shake. Caught in a storm one day, Fotis reveals to Kathy how terrified he was “when the shadow of the huge black manta ray hung above him as he crawled through the weeds of the sponge-bed… .” At that moment he “knew the uncoloured and lightless texture of death.” Kathy recognises that Fotis, like her, is another “desperate one.” Like the couple in Donne’s poem, Kathy and Fotis develop an all-encompassing love, as Donne powerfully writes in the poem, “Nothing else is.”  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eClift renders the doomed love between Kathy and Fotis compellingly. She masterfully uses the rugged, evocative landscape of Kalymnos to mirror the emotional terrain between Kathy and Fotis, raw, exposed and visceral. Their love is completely outside the bounds of conventional society. As I mentioned previously, Clift refuses to conform with any genre rules. What Clift gives us in \u003cem\u003eHonour’s Mimic\u003c\/em\u003e is a meditation on the fragility of human connection. The potent sense of inevitability is present from beginning to end. However, because of Clift’s masterful storytelling, I never saw the relationship of Kathy and Fotis as anything but completely convincing and authentic. Of course, there cannot, we know, be a ‘happy-ever-after’ for Kathy and Fotis. The ending is gut-wrenching, even though we know as readers that Kathy and Fotis can never be together. Regardless, I felt the stone hit hard, unlike Kathy who “scarcely felt [it] when it hit her.” I had to catch my breath before I closed the book. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOn reflection, I believe the power of the novel is because, as Wheatley puts it, Clift is “neither exposing nor endorsing the cultural mores of a society that survived economically on the machismo of men who engaged in what, at that time, was one of the most dangerous, terrifying, and poorly paid trades on earth.” Rather, what Clift does is give to us the story of two desperate people who recognise in each other the need to escape the stultification of their lives. I embraced Kathy and Fotis.  I hope that others will too. I also hope that Wheatley will turn her efforts next to republishing Clift’s other out-of-print novel, \u003cem\u003eWalk to the Paradise Gardens\u003c\/em\u003e, first published in 1960. We can only hope. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher's Review \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWe are alike, Kathy thought. You are a desperate one, too. She was incredulous that she could be so happy when it was so perfectly clear that the situation was impossible, could not possibly last, and that in any case this man was doomed already.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn this novel, Charmian Clift broke the rules of the romance genre by her representation of a relationship between a middle class Australian woman and a Greek sponge diver who is an outcast even within his own society. Both are 'desperate’ – trapped in loveless marriages and overcome by a sense of nameless dread. But when these twin souls fall in love in the ruins of an ancient citadel above the port-town of a remote and poverty-stricken Greek island, ‘honour’ becomes 'mimic' – a false imitation of itself – and is cast aside, together with unhappiness and fear.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHonour’s Mimic combines the authentic Greek setting of Charmian Clift’s travel memoirs with the fine writing that has caused her to be described as Australia’s greatest essayist.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'Charmian Clift broke the rules of the romance genre with this representation of a relationship between a middle-class Australian woman and a Greek sponge diver who is an outcast even within his own society.' – Readings Monthly\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'The [writing] is but it is distinctive in its potency, and for the way the love story is interwoven with the brutal realities of class, immigration, and mid-century morality. We devoured it.' – The Paris End\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'Honour's Mimic is a superbly realised portrait of the links between true love and mortality. It is about how being in another country can unmoor and perhaps free you to find \"a passionate affirmation of that old lost desire to face challenge and danger, to be brave, to dare for the truth\".' – Declan Fry\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Charmain Clift","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62436059480223,"sku":null,"price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/Honour_sMimic.jpg?v=1754016553"},{"product_id":"mary-shelley-in-bath","title":"Mary Shelley in Bath","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ebrand-new collection of Mary Shelley’s work, all written during, and inspired by, the short yet influential time she spent living in the historic literary city of Bath.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Lane Bookshop has recently acquired beautifully bound titles from Manderley Press, including gems like Rosemary Sutcliffe’s Sun Horse, Moon Horse and The Armourer’s House; Katherine Cecil Thurston’s The Fly on the Wheel; Henry James’ Washington Square; and Mary Shelley in Bath. Each title comes with an Introduction by authors such as Colm Tóibín, Alexander McCall-Smith and Fiona Sampson. Manderley Press was established in 2021 by Rebeka Russell and derives its name from the house in Daphne du Maurier’s 1938 classic Rebecca.  Russell’s mandate is to revive forgotten books inspired by specific places, and that the cover of the book should be as captivating as the story within. Each title is beautifully produced as quarter hardbacks, printed on high quality paper. These are perfect as a gift, and for collectors, or anyone who appreciates the aesthetic beauty of a book.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhile it’s hard to think of the city of Bath without thinking of Jane Austen, it was also home for a relatively short but important time for the nineteenth-century author, Mary Shelley (Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin as she was then). The book is introduced by the renowned historian and the author of the biography In Search of Mary Shelley, Fiona Sampson; it explores the months from September 1816 to January 1817 that Shelley spent in Bath when she was nineteen years old. With her was her nine-month-old child William, nursemaid Elise Duvillard and her half-sister Claire Clairmont, heavily pregnant with the poet Byron’s child. Mary’s lover and the father of her child, the poet Percy Shelley, did not settle with the women in Bath but travelled to and from London, where he found lodgings at 5 Abbey Church Yard, next door to the famous Pump Room, prominent in Austen’s Bath novel, Northanger Abbey (posthumously published 1817). Although 5 Abbey Church Yard no longer stands, a plaque was unveiled there in 2018, proclaiming that the novel “Frankenstein was written on this spot in 1816-17.” But in fact, only Chapter 4 was completed there. This correction is included in Mary Shelley in Bath, along with Mary Shelley’s diary entries, four of her short stories, her letters to Percy Shelley, and her varied and extensive reading list, including Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, Cervantes’ Don Quixote, Caroline Lamb’s Glenarvon, Johnson’s Rambler, Rousseau’s Emile, and Milton’s Paradise Lost, from which Mary would take the epigraph to Frankenstein. She also attended various public lectures on experimental science and galvanism, given by Dr. Wilkinson at the Kingston Lecture Room, and took up drawing lessons in the evening. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDuring her time in Bath, Shelley endured the suicides of her half-sister Fanny Imlay and Percy Shelley’s estranged wife Harriet Westbrook. The death of Westbrook meant that Mary and Percy were free to be married, which they did in a private ceremony in Bath on 30th December 1816. Claire Clairmont’s daughter, Allegra, was born on 12 January 1817, although Shelley curiously does not record this in her diary. Her diary entry of 24 January 1817 offers the general comment that sums up her time in Bath: “Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change.” Shelley returned to London on 26 January 1817, two days after William’s first birthday, and pregnant again. The child, a daughter, Clara, was born on 17 September 1817, but would tragically die one year later when the Shelleys travelled to Venice to evade financial creditors and social scandal. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMary Shelley in Bath is a highly engaging and informative account of a time when Mary Shelley struggled with devastating personal loss and societal disapproval, as well as being open to new ideas in science. It offers us insights into how her experiences and state of mind influenced her future writing, particularly the gothic classic Frankenstein, which explores the use and abuse of science, and is imbued with a profound sense of melancholy and pessimism. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMary Shelley in Bath is also a pleasure to look at. Its specially commissioned cover was designed by artist Eleanor Macnair, who based it on Richard Rothwell’s 1840 portrait of Shelley housed in London’s National Portrait Gallery. Macnair photographed Rothwell’s painting and printed it on cloth with head and tail bands, to create an image of the author sculpted from Play-Doh. It’s a visually inventive and delightful cover for a highly readable book. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMary Shelley in Bath is now available in the Lane Bookshop.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePeta\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eA \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ebrand-new collection of Mary Shelley’s work, all written during, and inspired by, the short yet influential time she spent living in the historic literary city of Bath.\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe acclaimed poet and historian Fiona Sampson - also the author of the biography In Search of Mary Shelley - has written a fascinating introduction to the book; and it is illustrated by the local-to-Bath artist Eleanor Macnair.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eStep into the intriguing world of Mary Shelley's transformative time in Bath, a period that deeply influenced her literary genius. In Mary Shelley in Bath, we will explore the personal and creative evolution of the renowned author during her stay in this elegant Georgian city.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAgainst the backdrop of Bath's grand architecture, bustling social scene and serene countryside, Shelley grapples with personal loss, burgeoning ideas and the societal constraints of her era.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYet during her time in the city, Shelley finds solace and inspiration, leading to the creation of her iconic novel, Frankenstein.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"Bath, for Mary, was both a refuge and a place of intense sorrow. Here, amid the society of strangers, she faced the devastating loss of those closest to her, and it was within these elegant streets that her private griefs shaped the darkest corners of her imagination.\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e- Miranda Seymour, in Mary Shelley (2000)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis collection of her journals and letters - as well as the chapter of Frankenstein that Mary penned during her stay in Bath, and additional short stories inspired by her time living there - reveals to us the true nature of her closest relationships, the influence of the city's intellectual circles on her work and the profound impact of Bath's haunting beauty on her imagination.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"Bath, with its air of elegance and refinement, offered little comfort to Mary. Here, amidst its superficial gaiety, she was confronted by the shadows of death and despair, with each tragedy pressing more heavily on her fragile spirit.\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e- Muriel Spark, in Mary Shelley (1951)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMary Shelley in Bath thus explores how a place can shape a writer's life and work, offering readers a deeper understanding of the woman behind one of literature's most enduring masterpieces. Discover through her work the city that helped to forge a literary legend.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis book has been beautifully illustrated by Eleanor Macnair, who used one of the portraits of Mary Shelley in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London, as inspiration for her own composition of the author sculpted from Play-Doh.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Mary Shelley","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62495533596831,"sku":null,"price":39.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/MaryShelleyinBath.jpg?v=1757572773"},{"product_id":"a-month-in-the-country","title":"A Month In The Country","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA haunting novel about art and its power to heal, published as a Penguin Essential for the first time.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI was listening to an episode of The Secret Life of Books a few weeks ago. One of the presenters, Jonty Claypole, mentioned that one of his favourite works of fiction was J.L. Carr’s novel A Month in the Country. I had not read the book, or even heard of the author. I immediately ordered a copy. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFirst published in 1980, A Month in the Country was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won the Guardian Fiction Prize in the same year. It was republished in 2010, as part of the Penguin Decades series, and has been in print ever since. Literary critic Ingrid Norton wrote in her 2010 review in Open Letters Monthly that “Carr’s great art is to make it clear that joy is inseparable from the pain and oblivion which unmake it.” In her Introduction to the 2000 edition, Penelope Fitzgerald wrote that “Carr… has the magic touch to re-enter the imagined past”, arguing that the narrative is more complex than “one of straightforward remembering or… of straightforward nostalgia, or even an acute sense of the loss of youth.” Rather, the novel evokes nostalgia for something we have never had: “a tugging at the heart – knowing a precious moment has gone and we were not there.” At the end of the book, the narrator asks himself that if he had stayed in Oxgodby, whether he would always have been happy. He concludes: “No, I suppose not. People move away, grow older, die, and the bright belief that there will be another marvellous thing around each corner fades. It is now or never, we must snatch at happiness as it flies.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJ.L. (Joseph Lloyd) Carr was born in 1912 in Thirsk, North Yorkshire. He was a teacher, then an officer in the RAF in West Africa. Between 1963 and 1992 he wrote eight novels, including A Month in the Country. In 1964 he established and ran the Quince Tree Press, which has been a Carr family-run business ever since. The publishing house focuses on Pocket Books: small selections from the great poets, as well as idiosyncratic dictionaries, wood engravers, volumes of fabled sayings and small histories. Carr also published his own novels. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Month in the Country is what I would call quiet storytelling. Set in the small parish village of Oxgodby, the novel encourages reflection, many years later, on the summer spent there by the narrator in 1920, when he was hired to help carry out restoration work on a medieval mural in the local church. He’s joined by Charles Moon, an archaeologist and, like Tom, a WWI veteran. A strong friendship develops between the two men, both desperately in need of healing from the traumas faced on the Front. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOne of the most poignant passages for me is Birkin looking back on his time in Oxgodby: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“We can ask and ask but we can’t have again what once seemed ours for ever—the way things looked, that church alone in the fields, a bed on a belfry floor, a remembered voice, a loved face. They’ve gone and you can only wait for the pain to pass.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis, for me, captures the book’s central themes of memory, loss, and the aching longing for moments that feel irretrievably past.  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn her review in The Guardian (2010), Natasha Tripney says of Carr’s writing:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“He also subtly evokes lost rural customs and ways of living that, even at the time, had begun to fade from view: cart rides and seed cake and honey-thick accents that had not yet been filed down by mass communication.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI am very glad that Jonty Claypole recommended this book to me.  It is a deceptively simple story that will linger with you long after you finish. I liken it to the fading medieval fresco buried under layers of paint and plaster, waiting to be uncovered. Birkin remembers:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“I was beginning to see what the painter had intended. It was no peasant dauber but a master, someone who could take his time, who had the skill and the vision to make the Last Judgment not a threat but a promise.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis is exactly what Carr does in this tender, elegant novella. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e(In 1987 the novel was adapted to film, starring a very young Colin Firth and Kenneth Brannagh. Unfortunately, try as I might, I haven't been able to find it on any streaming platforms.)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePeta\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Month In The Country\u003c\/em\u003e is available to order now. We will have copies in store in early October.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e'That night, for the first time during many months, I slept like the dead and, next morning, awoke very early.'\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOne summer, just after the Great War, Tom Birkin, a demobbed soldier, arrives in the village of Oxgodby. He has been invited to uncover and restore a medieval wall painting in the local church. At the same time, Charles Moon - a fellow damaged survivor of the war - has been asked to locate the grave of a village ancestor. As these two outsiders go about their work of recovery, they form a bond, but they also stir up long dormant passions within the village. What Berkin discovers here will stay with him for the rest of his life . . .\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"J.L Carr","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62502542278815,"sku":null,"price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/Monthinthecountry.jpg?v=1758173439"},{"product_id":"seascraper","title":"Seascraper","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSEASCRAPER is a mesmerising portrait of a young man confined by his class and the ghosts of his family's past, dreaming of a bigger life.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e*LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2025*\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePETA'S REVIEW\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eBeyond the shifting cold twilight,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eFurther than laughter goes, or tears, further than dreaming,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere'll be no port, no dawn-lit islands! \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThose lines from Rupert Brooke’s poem, ‘Day That I Have Loved’, echo powerfully throughout Benjamin Wood’s Booker Prize longlisted novella, \u003cem\u003eSeascraper\u003c\/em\u003e. Set in the fictional coastal town of Longferry, the book tells the story of young shanker Thomas Flett, who lives with his mother, taking on the family’s shrimping business after his grandfather’s death. Each morning Thomas rises at dawn, tacks up his faithful horse, and heads to the beach where he spends hours scraping the shingled sands for shrimp. His only pleasures are spending afternoons playing his guitar, and catching a glimpse of Joan Wyeth, with whom he has been enamoured for years but has never had the courage to ask out. The Guardian review astutely positions Thomas in the Hardyesque tradition of young men such as Jude Frawley and Gabriel Oak, who tend the land or work with their hands, have moral integrity, are loyal, and patiently endure life’s vicissitudes. And while Thomas accepts his simple, humble life, he has not given up on his dream that one day he will play his guitar and Joan will notice him. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHowever, one day he returns home to find a stranger speaking with his mother. An American, Edgar Acheson, tells them he is a film director and who, as part of his new project, wants to film Thomas shanking on the beach. Edgar says:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eI feel I’ve got the strongest sense of what this beach could give the picture. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere’s a mood out here – it’s absolutely right. I mean, it’s like I’ve been \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eout here before. It’s so strange, when you read a book and you can picture \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eall the places in it so completely, even though they’re built from someone \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eelse’s life and you’re just like a tourist in the writer’s scenery, you know …\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI felt exactly the same. Wood’s vivid descriptions of Longferry’s sea mists, the soft glow of the lamps on the pier, Thomas harnessing his horse or tuning his guitar, his mother cooking a fry-up, create a sensorially rich world. You hear the “strange, spasmodic crunch each time the wheels pass over razor shells and gnarls of driftwood … undulating sand that gives beneath the wheels as readily as butter.” But for all the beauty of this world, Edgar’s presence upends Thomas’s quiet existence, promising glamour and opportunities in life beyond Longferry’s boundaries. While Wood doesn’t present Edgar as a saviour figure, offering easy answers to the complexities of life, he does make Thomas ask pertinent questions, and encourages him to imagine a life beyond Longferry, the sea and his everyday routine.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe novella is divided into three sections: ‘First Low Water’, ‘Second Low Water’, and again ‘First Low Water’. Each section differs in tone and contains some unexpected twists. The first section establishes a sense of the new in Thomas’s world. The second section, when Thomas is lost in the fog, desperate to the avoid the sinkholes in trying to find Edgar, is both a gripping and ethereal read, full of tension and uncertainty about what is real. A strange woman arrives and rescues Thomas. Or does she? The third section takes another surprising turn with the arrival of Edgar’s mother, Mildred; her revelations about disturbing details from Edgar’s past leave Thomas having to choose between following Edgar’s path in life or forging his own. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eSeascraper \u003c\/em\u003eis a beautifully written novella. The language is atmospheric and poetic, evoking the harsh realities of life in a remote coastal town, and both the beauty and confronting power of nature. The novel adroitly transforms the quotidian into the poetic and shows the healing power of art. Thomas is a beautifully realised character. He, like his Hardy predecessors, Jude and Gabriel, is defined by his honesty, stoicism, integrity, connection to nature, and quiet strength. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe book’s Acknowledgements provide a link to Benjamin Wood’s webpage, where you can hear one of Thomas Flett’s poignant songs. It’s certainly worth listening to, to add to the pleasure of reading the book.  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eSeascraper\u003c\/em\u003e is now available in an elegant hardback in the Lane Bookshop.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePUBLISHER REVIEW\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'Benjamin Wood is a magnificent writer and I intend to read everything he has written' DOUGLAS STUART\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThomas lives a slow, deliberate life with his mother in Longferry, working his grandpa's trade as a shanker. He rises early to take his horse and cart to the grey, gloomy beach to scrape for shrimp, spending the afternoon selling his wares, trying to wash away the salt and scum, pining for Joan Wyeth down the street, and rehearsing songs on his guitar. At heart, he is a folk musician, but it remains a private dream.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen a striking visitor turns up, bringing the promise of Hollywood glamour, Thomas is shaken from the drudgery of his days and begins to see a different future. But how much of what the American claims is true, and how far can his inspiration carry Thomas?\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHaunting and timeless, this is the story of a young man hemmed in by his circumstances, striving to achieve fulfilment far beyond the world he knows.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Benjamin Wood","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62508461555871,"sku":null,"price":35.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9780241741344.jpg?v=1758689182"},{"product_id":"a-far-cry-from-kensington","title":"A Far Cry From Kensington","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003e'An outstanding novel . . . A Far Cry From Kensington has an effortless, translucent grasp of the spirit of the period' \u003c\/strong\u003eObserver\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeta's review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 0cm;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnticipating the release of the new biography of Dame Muriel Spark by Frances Wilson, I thought I would reacquaint myself with the Dame’s creative work. Spark was a prolific writer, producing 22 novels, beginning with The Comforters, published in 1957, and ending with The Finishing School, published in 2004. Most of her novels have been republished by Virago Modern Classics; I decided to begin with Spark’s A Far Cry From Kensington, since the Lane had a copy in stock. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAfter working in Intelligence during WWII, Muriel Spark began her writing career as editor of the London-based journal The Poetry Review. However, her time there was short, as her characteristic outspokenness rankled the older established members of the board. She went on to write several biographies, including those of William Wordsworth and Mary Shelley. Around that time Spark also converted to Roman Catholicism, a decision which seems to have been her impetus for writing novels; according to contemporary novelist Penelope Fitzgerald, “it wasn't until [Spark] became a Roman Catholic ... that she was able to see human existence as a whole, as a novelist needs to do.” Spark's first novel, The Comforters, features strong evidence of the influence of Catholicism. Perhaps Spark's best known novel, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961) is the most explicit example. It endorses the Roman Catholic Church’s mysteries of free choice and the Holy Spirit, in contrast to Miss Brodie’s Calvinist self-belief as the arbiter of her “chosen” students’ destinies. While the influence of Catholic themes is less overt in her later novels, Spark's faith continued to inform both the action of her characters, and an overarching search for a universal moral truth. In the process, her novels typically combine sharp wit, bleak insights and uproariously dark humour. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Far Cry From Kensington is set in post WWII London and follows the life of Mrs Hawkins during her stay in a boarding house in Kensington. Mrs Hawkins, or Nancy as we are later told, is a twenty-eight-year-old war widow who works as an editor in a rather dodgy publishing house. Wise beyond her years, Nancy recounts the comings and goings of the boarding house residents, and the difficulties of navigating the world of publishing. When she is unceremoniously discharged from her job after calling a talentless writer a “pisseur de copie” (a urinator of journalistic copy), she refused to apologise, loses her job and has great difficulties in securing another one in publishing. Throughout her travails, we continue to warm to her principled, perceptive and unflinchingly honest character, and her authoritative yet endearing voice, as well as to her often humorous but practical advice to colleagues and fellow lodgers. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eRobert Plunkett’s review of the novel in the New York Times (1988) deftly captures its charm. He writes that \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ethe best way to convey the pleasure this novel gives \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eis to compare it to a wonderful old Alec Guinness movie\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e … it follows the rules of art right down the line and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eilluminates the human condition, etc. But it also meets\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e a trickier challenge, that of being superb entertainment.\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI’m now looking forward to reading Frances Wilson’s biography of a writer whose life was often unconventional, if not tumultuous life. Electric Spark: The Enigma of Dame Muriel, has been recently shortlisted for the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003ePeta\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eI can't help it. Sometimes the words just come out and I can't stop them. It feels like preaching the gospel.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWhen publishing assistant and war widow Nancy Hawkins tells Hector Bartlett he 'urinates frightful prose', the repercussions are swift. Losing not one, but two, much-sought-after literary jobs, Mrs Hawkins finds herself embroiled in a mystery involving anonymous letters, quack remedies and blackmail. Years later, and a far cry from Kensington, she looks back with a sharp and mischievous eye at the cost of telling the truth.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eIntroduced by Ali Smith.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'Mercurially funny, playful and mischievous' Ali Smith\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'I was in heaven reading this book. . . just blissful' Stephen Fry\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'Funny, astringent, shrewd, her take on life is wonderfully bracing' William Boyd\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'Wonderfully entertaining' Sunday Telegraph\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'An outstanding novel . . . A Far Cry From Kensington has an effortless, translucent grasp of the spirit of the period' Observer\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e'The divine Spark is shining at her brightest . . . Pure delight' Claire Tomalin\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Muriel Spark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62533918359711,"sku":null,"price":22.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9780349019581_1.jpg?v=1760063926"},{"product_id":"horsie","title":"Horsie","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAcerbic, pithy and vibrant, Dorothy Parker's writings capture the dizzying decadence of Jazz Age New York. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePETA'S REVIEW\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Lane presently has an array of wonderful new titles. There are the fabulous Fairlight Moderns, of which the haunting Blue Postcards is one.  Then there is the beautifully bound Manderley Press series, which are both gorgeous to read and to adorn your bookshelf. For anyone who enjoys authors like Barbara Pym and Muriel Spark, the new series by Virago Modern Classics is a must-have. We now have a selection of titles from Penguin Archives, which offers 90 classic titles celebrating 90 years of Penguin Books. The books in this collection feature unique red and white cover designs that incorporate elements from Penguin’s history. They include a wide variety of genres, such as ghost stories, philosophical essays, poetry collections, science fiction and feminist texts.  Some of titles which have caught my eye include Bram Stoker’s The Burial of the Rats, Virginia Woolf’s The New Dress, Katherine Mansfield’s A Dill Pickle, Muriel Spark’s The Driver’s Seat and Dorothy Parker’s Horsie, the focus of my review.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHorsie is a collection of Parker’s short stories and poems.  With her typical acerbic, pithy and vibrant wit Parker captures the decadence, hypocrisy and posturing of the 1920s New York Jazz Age. As a reader you always need to be aware of ‘the sting in the tail, and ‘Horsie’ is a great example. The story centres on the nurse, Miss Wilmarth, who is assigned to the Cruger family to assist Camilla after the birth of her daughter. Gerald Cruger gives Miss Wilmarth the cruel nickname of ‘Horsie,’ believing her appearance to be “tall, pronounced of bone, and erect of carriage… her face truly complete with that look of friendly melancholy” resembling that of a horse. Gerald was sure she would whinny one day. Parker deftly highlights the superficiality of the Crugers compared to the simple honesty of Miss Wilmarth. The ending certainly contains the sting. Parker’s quintessentially biting and incisively humorous style is wonderfully evident in this gem of a book. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIf after reading Horsie you need to read more Dorothy Parker, I suggest you pick up a copy of her The Constant Reader: New York Columns 1927-28. It contains 34 of her contributions to The New Yorker and is full of her sharp one-liners, such as: “I hate almost all rich people, but I think I’d be darling at it,” and one of my favourites about Hemingway: “He discards detail with magnificent lavishness.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePUBLISHER REVIEW\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e90 classic titles celebrating 90 years of Penguin Books\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhat can you say, when a man asks you to dance with him? I most certainly will not dance with you. I'll see you in hell first. Why, thank you, I'd like to awfully, but I'm having labor pains.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAcerbic, pithy and vibrant, Dorothy Parker's writings capture the dizzying decadence of Jazz Age New York. Though Parker refuses to be swept along- she gleefully deconstructs its hypocrisy, prejudice and taboos with style and precision.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Dorothy Parker","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62568623603871,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9780241747322.jpg?v=1762397473"},{"product_id":"dandelion-wine","title":"Dandelion Wine","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoPlainText\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAn endearing classic of childhood memories of an idyllic midwestern summer from the celebrated author of \u003cem\u003eFarenheit 451\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePETA'S REVIEW\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eMention the author Ray Bradbury and many people will immediately recall reading his classic \u003cem\u003eFahrenheit 451\u003c\/em\u003e, first published in 1953 and not out of print since. \u003cem\u003eFahrenheit 451\u003c\/em\u003e is a MUST read: prescient at its time of publication, and still chillingly perceptive in our contemporary social-media saturated world. Bradbury insists that books are not a luxury, but a necessity: valuable repositories of history, philosophy, critical thinking and social commentary. Barack Obama lists it as one of his favourite reads, writing that “Ray Bradbury’s gift for storytelling reshaped our culture and expanded our world.” I would add that it continues to do so today. \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWhile Obama highlights Bradbury’s skill as a storyteller, what shines most for me is Bradbury’s engaging and emotionally affecting prose. The language is evocative and metaphorically rich, but at the same time accessible and entertaining, with a talent for making the mundane compelling. So it is not surprising that his memoirs \u003cem\u003eDandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e (1957) and \u003cem\u003eFarewell Summer\u003c\/em\u003e (2006) are also must-reads. \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eDandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e, in its blend of real memories and imagination, follows the magical summer of 1928 with 12-year-old Douglas Spaulding. It is a reflection by the older Bradbury of leaving his childhood behind. Set in the fictional town of Green Town, Illinois (based on Bradbury’s hometown of Waukegan), Dandelion Wine is filled with friends and family who have remained with Bradbury, and who were instrumental in forming the adult he became. None more so than his Grandfather, who offers Douglas and his younger brother Tom homespun wisdom, and who instils in them the importance of appreciating the simple things in life. The dandelion wine his Grandfather makes each summer is a perfect symbol for the magic of his childhood summer; as he reflects: \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eJune dawns, July noons, August evenings over, finished, done, and gone\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003e forever with only the sense of it all left in his head. … And if he should \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eforget, the dandelion wine stood in the cellar. He would go there often …\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003ehe would close his eyes and consider the burned spots, the fleeting \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003escars left dancing on his warm eyelids… So thinking, he slept.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWritten some 50 years later, \u003cem\u003eFarewell Summer\u003c\/em\u003e recounts the summer of 1929, a time when Douglas and his friends become aware that their childhood is disappearing. Lead by Douglas as commander, the gang of Green Town boys embark on an imaginary civil war with the town elders, who they believe are stealing their youth. A coming-of-age narrative, it depicts Douglas’s first kiss and his shame in defying his Grandfather’s wishes.  The town clock represents the boys’ inevitable progression to adulthood, which they wished could be stopped at all costs. In his Afterword, Bradbury writes of his pleasure hearing again “the deep gongs of the courthouse clock”, and the thrill of being “kissed by a girl for the first time.” \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eBoth \u003cem\u003eDandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eFarewell Summer \u003c\/em\u003eare beautifully written explorations of the fleeting nature of a happy childhood, and how important it is to remember that time in one’s life. It reminded me to slow down and savour the small moments. Douglas’s making dandelion wine with his Grandfather each summer is the perfect symbol for the magic of those seemingly endless summer days. A fabulous read for everyone, young and old.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eBoth titles are now in store in limited stock.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePUBLISHER REVIEW - DANDELION WINE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAn endearing classic of childhood memories of an idyllic midwestern summer from the celebrated author of \u003cem\u003eFarenheit 451\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"He stood at the open window in the dark, took a deep breath and exhaled.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe street lights, like candles on a black cake, went out.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eHe exhaled again and again and the stars began to vanish.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eDouglas smiled. He pointed a finger.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere, and there. Now over here, and here…\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eYellow squares were cut in the dim morning earth as house lights winked slowly on. A sprinkle of windows came suddenly alight miles off in dawn country.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e'Everyone yawn. Everyone up.'\"\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the backwaters of Illinois, Douglas Spaulding's grandfather makes an intoxicating brew from harvested dandelions. \u003cem\u003eDandelion\u003c\/em\u003e Wine is a quirky, breathtaking coming-of-age story from one of science fiction's greatest writers. Distilling his experiences into \"Rites \u0026amp; Ceremonies\" and \"Discoveries \u0026amp; Revelations\", the young Spaulding wistfully ponders over magical tennis shoes, and machines for every purpose from time travel to happiness and silent travel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBased upon Bradbury's own experiences growing up in Waukegan in the 1920s, \u003cem\u003eDandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e is a heady mixture of fond memory, forgiveness, magic, the imagination and above all, of summers that seemed to go on forever.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePUBLISHER REVIEW - FAREWELL SUMMER\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA poignant and brilliant sequel to Dandelion Wine from the author of Fahrenheit 451\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Green Town Illinois, Douglas Spaulding is in the midst of a small civil war with the old pitted against the young in this, the second book in Bradbury’s semi-fictionalised account of his childhood. As the school board’s figure of authority Mr Calvin C. Quartermain attempts to outwit the boys at every turn, their antics increase and become ever more daring and mischevious. Once the shadow of winter draws across Green Town, the boys quickly realise that their enemy is not so much the senior members of their own community, but rather time itself which is ever ebbing away, just beyond the reach of their most daring trick yet: a bold attempt to sabotage the town’s clock.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoPlainText\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ray Bradbury","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62702163296415,"sku":null,"price":22.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/dandelion-wine-1.jpg?v=1772084639"},{"product_id":"may-we-feed-the-king","title":"May We Feed The King","description":"\u003cp\u003eAn unnamed curator, an archivist, a king and a 750-year-old castle may not seem like the ingredients for a gripping novel, but Rebecca Perry brings them together superbly in her debut novel \u003cem\u003eMay We Feed The King\u003c\/em\u003e. In the final pages the Curator warns the waiting visitors to the castle to \"[l]isten for everything and, above all, pay attention.\" It's advice readers need right at the beginning! This is a novel which requires your full attention to every tiny, even seemingly insubstantial detail. Like the Curator, we need to be fully immersed in piecing together the life of this unnamed King who, we discover, while only being a footnote in history, was in fact a person who loved and felt and longed, just as we do.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the 750th anniversary of a medieval castle approaches, an unnamed, non-gendered Curator, overcoming some recent personal grief, is tasked with dressing each room, recreating 'just left the room' scenes for public viewing. The castle Archivist, also unnamed and non-gendered, is appointed to assist the Curator with sifting through the extensive historical records to find a 'gateway' to bridge the gap between then and now.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMay We Feed the King\u003c\/em\u003e is a tactile, sensual novel narrated in short vignettes. An award-winning poet, Perry creates prose that's evocative and lyrical. Her narration is also oblique: nothing is fully revealed; instead we are encouraged to peer through keyholes, curtained windows, doors slightly ajar. Characters are obscured by shadows, conversations are heard in snippets, letters are only partly revealed. Like the Curator and the Archivist, we must find a way of 'knowing' the King: his likes, dislikes, predilections, desires and what makes his life meaningful. The King's reign is short; in fact, it occupies just a single page of text in the castle archives. The Curator tells us that '[i]t's important to say that I cried, I wept, when I saw it. What a reduction of a life.' But there is something in this brief record which spurs the Curator's imagination. Moreover, this King begins to be more than a figure lurking in the shadows; he becomes a physical reality for the Curator. Boundaries begin to blur; the past becomes vividly present. What happens in the King's final days, however, remains a mystery. Like the Curator, we are left without a resolution. But this is far from being an unsatisfactory ending; as the review in the Guardian puts it: 'The vacuum where an ending should be is what keeps his [the King's] memory alive and breathing.'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne of the novel's most powerful metaphors is that of food. As the novel's title suggests, while this young King is powerless to do anything of his own accord or without surveillance, his one weapon is the refusal of food. The King has no appetite for ruling, no appetite for deciding the fate of his subjects, no appetite for being a pawn in the Court's gambit. But instead of being a symbol of his confinement, the control of his appetite ultimately becomes a symbol of the nourishment needed for his survival.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs with poetry, what remains unsaid in the novel is vital; it is within those quiet gaps and silences that we as readers find the bridge to understanding. As I read the final sentence, I took a deep breath and realised that I needed to have listened to every single clue and paid attention to each detail, no matter how insignificant they seemed. A challenging read, but entirely worthwhile.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rebecca Perry","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62739484803231,"sku":null,"price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0394\/7236\/5727\/files\/9781803513867_1.jpg?v=1774595351"}],"url":"https:\/\/lanebook.com.au\/collections\/peta.oembed?page=4","provider":"The Lane Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}