Creative Differences

In Creative Differences Australian author, Graeme Simsion, has included eight short stories previously published in other sources and a short piece produced for Twitter. These short pieces make up the first section of the book. Two of the short stories involve Don Tillman, the popular character in the Rosie series of books. The short stories are followed by a novella entitled Creative Differences which was first written as an audio book.

Emily and Scott are authors who had success with a novel that they wrote together three years previously. Writing the novel also brought them closer together emotionally and they now live together but are working on separate projects. Scott's solo book was not a great success while Emily is suffering writer's block when writing her literary project. She eventually asks Scott for advice which results in regular sessions, usually with a drink or two, where they discuss writing techniques and brainstorm ideas. Life becomes more complicated when one of Emily's students invades their space.

Creative Differences provides an insight into the many styles and procedures involved in creating a story that others might want to read. The book also looks at the need a writer may sometimes have to just write in order to understand themselves and their relationships with others.

The Bellbird River Country Choir

The Bellbird River Country Choir by Sophie Green is the story of a group of women living in the small New South Wales town of Bellbird River in 1998. Some of the women including Victoria, Gabrielle and Janine have strong family connections to the town while Debbie and Alex have only recently arrived. Each of the these women is facing changes and challenges in their lives. However the joy of combining in song with others in a choir on a Tuesday evening allows the women to re-evaluate the current challenges  and to form new friendships.

Those who have read other books by Sophie Green including The Shelly Beach Ladies Swimming Circle, Fairvale Ladies Book Club and Thursdays at Orange Blossom House will especially enjoy reading this book.

Day's End

Set in 2021 in outback South Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, Paul Hirschhausen (Hirsch) carries out his duties as the only police officer in the small town of Tiverton, plus the many properties in the large surrounding area, though Hirsch reports to a larger police station in Redruth which is half an hour away by car. Hirsch makes it his business to get to know the residents in the community that he polices and spends much of the time assisting them when problems, big or small, arise.

Day's End is the fourth book in the Paul Hirchhausen series and the novel begins with Hirsch taking Janne Van Sant to visit the area where her son was last seen when he worked on a property in the region. They are informed that Willi and his girfriend had left the property to travel north. Janne is concerned as she has not heard from her son for several months. On the return journey to Tiverton they discover a body in a suitcase that has been set on fire. Janne confirms that Willi is not the body in the suitcase.

Meanwhile it soon becomes apparent that harassment via social media is taking place in the community as well as many sites in the community being vandalised with grafitti. Reports also start coming in about the validity of a recent hard rubbish collection. A variety of seemingly unrelated reports eventually cause Hirsch to decide that an extreme right wing group, propagating conspiracy theories, is being established in the community. The local First Nations community is one target as is the local doctor attempting to provide COVID-19 vaccinations.

Day's End was a book that I just had to keep reading. Another great addition to the growing genre of excellent Australian crime novels. 

Shortlisted for the 2023 Australian Book Industry Awards - General Fiction

And Away

In Australia we primarily know Bob Mortimer from his appearances on the television show - Would I lie to you? However his occasional appearances on this show make up only a fraction of of his show business life.

Problems with his heart in 2015, resulting in surgery, prompted the the author to reflect on events in his life as a shy, insecure, lad who studied to be a solicitor only to eventually become a successful comedian, especially when performing in partnership with his friend, Jim Moir (Vic Reeves).

Two chapters of the book have the chapter heading, 'Would I lie to you?' allowing Bob to recount stories that may, or may not, have happened during his life. The reader is left to decide the possible validity of each story.

Essentially this is the story about how a shy person learned to deal with life through forming close friendships and learning to make the best of opportunities that came his away. As you would expect humour is an essential part of the writing of this autobiography. The book also provides an outline of some British comedy shows over the years.

Still Life

1944 in Italy and a chance meeting between British soldier, Ulysses Temper, and art historian, Evelyn Skinner, led to an interrupted friendship spanning 35 years. 

After the war Ulysses returns to London to resume his life prior to the war. His friends Cressy, Pete and Col plus the parrot, Claude, welcome him home but there have been changes while he was away and many adjustments need to be made including accepting that his wife has had a daughter after meeting a U S soldier during the war. 

Still Life by Sarah Winman is a novel about special friendships, love and relationships. It is a story about hope as the characters adapt to change, including moving to a new country, and becoming aware of what is really important in life. It is also about the love and importance of art and music as well as the importance of history. Ulysses and Evelyn lead separate lives in England and in Florence until their paths eventually cross once more after the drastic floods in Florence in 1966. The time period covered in the novel provides an overview of some of the political changes that occurred during the post-war years.

The more of this novel that I read, the more I became involved with the variety of characters from several generations and their lives. Sarah Winman infuses the story with humour as she provides us with a glimpse of life in London and Florence after the Second World War.

The Flood in Florence, 4 November 1966 - It's Tuscany

The Ink Black Heart

The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith (J K Rowling) is number 6 in the Cormoran Strike series. Although this is a very readable crime novel, at more than 1000 pages is is a little long and is cumbersome to read, especially when attempting to read the book in bed. However it is worth perservering.

When Robin Ellacott is visited in the detective agency office by the creator of an online cartoon who is convinced that someone is out to kill her, Robin decides that the agency is not at that time able to take on the case. Several days later later Robin learns that Edie Ledwell had been murdered in the grounds of Highgate Cemetery. As Edie had mentioned that a person named Anomie had been harassing her, Robin and fellow private investigator, Cormoran Strike, decide to discover the identity of this possible killer.

Edie Ledwell and Josh Blay had created a cartoon, Ink Black Heart, published on YouTube. After several episodes, an online game relating to the cartoon was created by two fans. The cartoon and the game soon had an active, and ever growing,  fanbase. Initially the fans discussed the characters and plotlines of Ink Black Heart but then online trolls infiltrated the online discussion and the tone of many of the comments became threatening.

Robin and Cormoran and their team are working on a number of other cases, however they manage to reorganise the schedule for this case, especially when the agency becomes a target of members of a right wing group that has infiltrated the fan forums. Much of the investigation involves exploring posts on social media to try and locate any relevant information. Throughout the book the author includes pages of text representing text from forums, Twitter and other social media sites.

Much of the book is about social media and the way that a few people can create a forum of hate. During the week that I read the book there was a report about social media attacks on one episode of a television show that a few people decided that they did not like. An article in the newspaper yesterday was about fans attacking J K Rowling on a site where a game based on the Harry Potter franchise was about to be released. When I checked the Good Reads website today - a site for members of the public to write reviews of books - there were many negative posts about J K Rowling posted by people who have not read the book. As one of the reviewers noted it is ironic that all these people attacking JK Rowling online are demonstrating the online vitriol which is a key element of the plot.

Back to the book: Much of the plot is a continuation of the personal challenges faced by Cormoran and Robin as they reflect on their private, as opposed to professional, lives. It is also a study of the development of the working partnership between the two main characters. All in all this was an enjoyable, but over long, book to read.

Elizabeth & John

Elizabeth & John: the Macarthurs of Elizabeth Farm by Alan Atkinson is a scholarly study of the life and legacy of John Macarthur and his wife, Elizabeth, who arrived in Australia in 1790 and made their home in New South Wales. The Macarthurs are well known for their contribution to the establishment of the sheep industry in Australia plus John's active involvement / interference in colonial politics and business enterprises.

John arrived in the colony as an officer in the army regiment that was stationed in New South Wales. He quickly became involved in promoting the rights of free settlers in the convict colony and was often at odds with the men sent to New South Wales to govern the colony. He was also concerned about, in his opinion, the rights of former convicts (emancipists) to own land and hold administrative positions in the colony.

Alan Atkinson provides a generally readable account of the lives of the Macarthur family in Australia though, unlike other recent publications, he tends to favour John's role over the role played by Elizabeth, particularly when John was in prolonged exile in England on two occasions. The book, however does provide interesting background information about political and ethical thought at the time and how it may have influenced the thinking of John Macarthur. Having convicts in my family who lived in the colony at this time I found that the book provided useful information about life in the colony.

John Macarthur was definitely a complex character with many ideas for improving life in the colony, particularly for free settlers. Unfortunately he could not, or would not, concede that others may also have ideas that should be considered. Consequently he was often in conflict with other men when things did not go the way he wanted. Elizabeth was an intelligent lady who learned how to humour her husband and also promote her own ideas that might benefit the new community being established. When John was away in England, Elizabeth ran the family businesses efficiently and effectively and tried out some new ideas. Towards the end of his life it was recognised that John was insane and his last few years were extremely difficult for his family, and probably for him.

At the end of the book there is a detailed bibliography, footnotes and an index. There are also coloured images of the Macarhur family in the middle of the book.

I have recently read a number of books, fiction and non-fiction, concentrating on the life of Elizabeth Macarthur:

A room made of leaves by Kate Grenville (a novel)

Elizabeth Macarthur's letters edited by Kate Grenville

Elizabeth & Elizabeth by Sue Williams (a novel)