Crime Scene: MATTHEW CONDON The Toe Tag Quintet and Three Crooked Kings. Reviewed by Annette Hughes
History, mystery, truth and fiction; these two books expose the underbelly of south-east Queensland. In complete control of the genre, Matt Condon adds his own secret herbs and spices to his collection of murder mysteries: an uncanny knack for writing great...RICHARD DAVENPORT-HINES An English Affair: Sex, Class and Power in the Age of Profumo. Reviewed by Peter Corris
Lies, puritans and hypocrites: England’s class system and the notorious Profumo Affair of the early 1960s. I can safely say I’ve never read a book with as many hyphenated names in it as this. As the author, with his own double-barrelled name, plots the comings...DAMON YOUNG Philosophy in the Garden. Reviewed by James Tierney
This book invites readers to drink from a beautifully blended philosophical cup. Philosophers occupy a diffident space in Australian public life. No antipodean philosopher dominates debates here in the manner of Europeans like Slavoj Žižek or Bernard-Henri Lévy,...Crime Scene: JOANNE DRAYTON The Search for Anne Perry: The Hidden Life of a Bestselling Crime Writer. Reviewed by Paula Grunseit
Crime novelist Anne Perry began her life as Juliet Hulme, who in 1954 was convicted of murder. Heavenly Creatures, Peter Jackson’s eerie film about the Parker-Hulme murder (starring Kate Winslet) is not easily forgotten. Set in 1954 in Christchurch, New Zealand, it...VICTORIA GLENDINNING Raffles and the Golden Opportunity. Reviewed by Peter Corris
This colonialist seized his chance and became known as the man who founded Singapore. Raffles and Singapore go together like a horse and carriage; it is impossible to think of one without the other. Thomas Stamford Raffles was an unlikely empire builder. Born into...Crime scene: PAMELA BURTON The Waterlow Killings: A Portrait of a Family Tragedy. Reviewed by Tom Kelly
This sensitive account of a family tragedy details the terrible consequences when the mental health system fails. How’s this for a great horror/who-done-it plot? Nick Waterlow is a world-renowned art curator, past director of the Biennale, with an Order of...SARA MAITLAND Gossip from the Forest: The Tangled Roots of our Forests and Fairytales. Reviewed by Folly Gleeson
The forests of Britain entwine with retellings of Grimms’ fairytales in Sara Maitland’s imaginative investigation. This book is definitely for the bedside or the beach, perhaps for life. It offers a long leisurely exploration under the guidance of a sort...NEIL YOUNG Waging Heavy Peace; PETE TOWNSHEND Who I Am. Reviewed by Toby Creswell
Neil Young reveals and Pete Townshend conceals in these contrasting rock & roll memoirs. The rock & roll confidential has occupied one of the least edifying shelves in the bookstore. The hazy memories of too many girls and too many drugs were shaped by...NEAL STEPHENSON Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing. Reviewed by Matthias Schreck
This book of essays and stories adds new perspective to Stephenson’s interests and plot devices. Reviewing a collection of essays is a tricky task at the best of times, since they have often been written over a long period, with differing levels of...RICHARD GILL Give Me Excess of It. Reviewed by Tony Bremner
This memoir is a passionate account of a conductor’s lifetime enthusiasm for music. Give Me Excess of It is an immensely enjoyable book. Richard Gill and I are much of an age, both NSW Conservatorium students (though we never met there), and so many of his...MINKY WORDEN (ed.) The Unfinished Revolution: Voices from the Global Fight for Women’s Rights. Reviewed by Sophie Read-Hamilton
According to Germaine Greer, the revolution for women’s equality hasn’t even begun. Whether you agree with Greer or not, The Unfinished Revolution: Voices from the Global Fight for Women’s Rights makes it abundantly clear that the revolution is nowhere near...
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