CARMEN MARIA MACHADO Her Body and Other Parties. Reviewed by Carmel Bird
Machado’s stories twist and turn and startle and shock. The first piece in this exhilarating collection of eight unconnected short stories begins with a beguiling instruction to readers suggesting that, if they are reading the text out loud, there are certain...
The Godfather: Peter Corris on YouTube #2
Here is a further list of YouTube selections I play fairly often, sometimes when I hear of the deaths of the artists or I am reminded of them for one reason or another: ‘Blueberry Hill’ by Fats Domino. I once had an EP – that is, an extended-play 45-rpm record with...
ADA LANGTON The Art of Preserving Love. Reviewed by Kim Kelly
Ada Langton’s The Art of Preserving Love is a carefully controlled, rambling rose bush of a tale. From the opening chapter title of this delightful debut, it’s clear this is historical fiction told with warmth and a hint of mischief: Early in the...
Summer 2018 Giveaway #6
Our final giveaway in this series … To win all four books, simply email us at editors@newtownreviewofbooks.com.au by 6pm Thursday 1 February 2018 with Summer #6 in the subject line and your name and address in the body of the email. As...
KEN HILLMAN A Good Life to the End: Taking control of our inevitable journey through ageing and death. Reviewed by Suzanne Marks
Ken Hillman gives us a practical, wise and compassionate analysis of the physical and mental challenges of approaching death. Despite the certainty that we will all face it, we live in a death-denying society and most of us are ignorant of the realities of...
Summer 2018 Giveaway #5
To win all four of these books, simply email us at editors@newtownreviewofbooks.com.au by 6pm Tuesday 30 Jan 2018 with Summer #5 in the subject line and your name and address in the body of the email. As we cannot afford to post giveaway bundles...
The Godfather: Peter Corris on YouTube #1
Last year I wrote a column about our meagre CD collection and gave an account of some of my favourite recordings and their significance to me. These days, of course, it’s no longer necessary to own the discs because the works are available through YouTube and...
JM GREEN Too Easy. Reviewed by Karen Chisholm
Too Easy continues an absolutely terrific series that falls on the noirish side of comic farce. In 2015 JM Green’s debut novel Good Money launched social worker – and accidental detective – Stella Hardy onto the mean streets of Melbourne’s inner suburbs. It was...
Summer 2018 Giveaway #4
Keep cool through the summer heat with these fab books. To win all four, simply email us at editors@newtownreviewofbooks.com.au by 6pm date 2018 with Summer #4 in the subject line and your name and address in the body of the email. As we...
MANAL AL-SHARIF Daring to Drive: The young Saudi woman who stood up to a kingdom of men. Reviewed by Kathy Gollan
One of the pleasures of al-Sharif’s book is the insight it gives into how women negotiate their way through chinks in the wall of oppression. This enthralling autobiography begins, as many books do, with its most dramatic moment: ‘The secret police...
Summer 2018 Giveaway #3
More great reads for these long summer days … To win this bundle of four titles, simply email us at editors@newtownreviewofbooks.com.au by 6pm Tuesday 23 January 2018 with Summer #3 in the subject line and your name and address in the...
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