Captivating throughout. Australian poverty, drugs, prison, literature, mystery, addressing big questions like “What makes a good man?” And a splash of fantasy (although I don‘t think fantasy is a good enough descriptor).... all set in my neighbouring suburbs so very familiar. I‘ll be recommending this one to everyone and reading Dalton‘s newspaper columns.
#bookstagram #aussiebooks #aussieliterature #read #readinglife #aussiesrule2019

Book haul from the Lifeline Bookfair - $23 for this lot. Sorry you‘re upside down Allison Pearson!

A long way to go! #1001booksyoumustreadbeforeyoudie #latestedition #lifegoals

First book of 2019! A space voyage romp with a motley crew. If you enjoy tv shows Firefly & Star Trek (the modern ones) this will be in your wheelhouse. Same sex, inter-species and tech/human relationships were refreshing to see on the page and will also easily tick off one of your reading challenges!

I devoured this in two days. The only reason this is impressive is because I have toddlers and a job 😂 But I was completely invested in each character. I loved their stories. I loved their faults. I cried for them. I cried with them. This one is going to hang around with me for a while.

I had a solid crack at this novel and made it past the halfway mark but had to return it to the library after about 9 weeks. The writing has an ‘old school‘ English literature feel to it which I don‘t mind. I enjoyed meeting the quirky characters, including the fantasy creatures which I had no trouble suspending my disbelief to engage with. Ultimately there was something lacking in the relationships and the storyline that discouraged my investment

The Nazi‘s have invaded France and suffering prevails. Some embrace the invaders and the small amount of power and comfort this affords, others fight back. The costs are heavy. This book introduced me to so much I didn‘t know: the German concentration camps for female French rebels, the brutality and sheer indoctrination of ‘good‘ Germans and the overarching fear that grips EVERYONE. This one left me sobbing and I appreciated the female view.

Not the genre I usually go for but the good reviews tipped me over. Essentially killer mermaid type creatures from the darkest depths of the remotest part of the Pacific Ocean hunt humans on board a fancy ship. There‘s enough scientific explanation in it to get a non-science person (me) to believe that these things could exist. It read like a YA novel to me and had enough suspense to keep me turning the pages.

Margaret Mitchell broke my heart in the final chapters of this book. I think I‘m still in shock....

The last US election was one of the most bizarre experiences I‘ve witnessed as an adult. I‘m thankful to do so from the other side of the planet! Such a complex range of factors impacting the end result: foreign interference, domestic interference, cyber security, media, biased media, private information that shouldn‘t have been published and other information that should have. May the world learn from this experience!! An eye opener for me!

An absolute hoot. Love the witty, clever banter of the main character, particularly her inner monologue.
Some elements I struggled to believe, handsome millionaire please???? But overall I could believe the daily grind of survival and so pleased to see this perspective being published.

Bought a beautiful copy tonight ❤️

My op-shop book haul.
I‘ve had one attempt at Lincoln in the Bardo before but struggled with it in digital format on my phone... I loved Tenth of December - my favourite book of 2018 so far so I‘m crossing my fingers that LITB is just as good!!

I‘m sobbing, rubbing my eyes to get through the final pages. This is heart breaking! What a tale to bring to life.
#aussiesrule2018

I love Ove and would dearly love to meet him. Maybe cook him a meal and ask him to fix my dodgy light fittings. I find myself worrying about him even when I‘ve finished reading for the day. After Ove and Beartown I‘ve become a huge Backman fan... barely suspending disbelief, effortlessly engaged with the story, invested in the characters. Bravo to you Sir!

Well this is pretty grim so far....
The dark side of remote Australia. A solid reflection of harsh people living on harsh land.. #aussiesrule2018

All the feels of an Australian country town, the honourable, the racist, the evil and thunderous rain on tin roofs. I thoroughly enjoyed this one although Silvey sometimes took his time getting to the crux of the matter. Very believable. #aussiesrule2018

Aaaaannndddd I‘ve just been introduced to Scarlet O‘Hara for the first time. I‘m 33 - why did it take me so long to get here?
#yearofthechunkster

Phenomenal read. I can‘t stop thinking about it....

I love this movie but didn‘t really love the book....

Oh to be as intelligent and witty as Mary North! A girl can dream.
I enjoyed the dialogue throughout this one. It was fast, sharp and engaging. Although set in WWII there wasn‘t any depth or detail to the war or the complexities of how it came to be. No insight into the Nazis, atrocities, camps etc. This is more a take on the war from affluent British society. A messy love triangle, a criticism of class. Mostly fun with an underwhelming ending.

Shamsie‘s novel list reads like a poem. ❤️

After almost every short story in this collection my heart is racing and I need to take a few deep breaths... How does Saunders imagine these ideas? And then present them so uniquely? I can‘t believe what I‘m reading... I‘m so pleased to have found this.

Duggan!!!! 😦

Any parents out there? This quote resonated with me. As have the short stories I‘ve read so far in this collection.

Just coming up for air after finishing this. It‘s grim, gruesome, heart wrenching and leaves you on the edge of your seat. It is absolutely believable. Winters created an alternative reality where slavery still exists and it is brutal. I wouldn‘t be surprised if this is made into a film. I would watch it.

Lifeline Bookfest Book haul. A couple from Madrid - my last home city and a few that have been on my ‘to read‘ list for far too long! #needmoretime #yearofthechunkster

Call me Ishmael! I conquered Moby Dick and lived to tell the tale!! What a beast of a book! It took an Ahab effort (or just plain lunacy) to finish it. But here I am, equally reminiscing the beautiful passages throughout the novel and the many things they could mean and the detailed references! Melville was a genius. I‘m baffled by his knowledge base.

12 Aussie Books! http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/history-culture/2016/02/12-books-e... - I enjoyed a few on this list - but wasn‘t a fan of Narrow Road to the Deep North. #aussiesrule2018

Great finds at my local op shop!!
I picked up the Allende novels after listening to her interview by Roxanne Coady: https://player.fm/series/just-the-right-book-with-roxanne-coady/isabel-allende-f...
Anyone a fan?

@Marchpane can you tag the other Brisbane Litsy folk?? Anyone coming to the Lifeline Bookfest???

Anyone been through this list?!?!?

Half way through this epic tale and I‘ve finally seen the first sperm whale be taken down. It was as brutal as I expected but I feel The North Water prepared me well. This novel is an academic‘s, historian‘s and geographer‘s delight. I am none of these :) The detailed references to ancient explorers, biblical tales, exotic islands, sea channels, shipping, whaling milieu, historical marine artists (I could go on) is truly impressive. ‘Turn to!‘

Taking on Moby Dick with Ishmael and Queequeg for my first read of 2018!

Outstanding novel!!! Definitely one of my best reads of 2017. Backman gets to the core of every issue, of every feeling, of every character in every single paragraph. He had me in each moment; violent, tender, cultural, athletic, political and I could not look away. I was thinking of the characters between readings, completely invested in each of them. It‘s a difficult subject matter and Backman absolutely masters it! Bravo to you sir!!!

I‘m pretty excited about the library haul. What a great Summer holiday reading list! Now just to find the time...

Great idea but not a great delivery. It has a very busy, disjointed structure which constantly bombards you with new information. Maybe a deliberate tactic to empathise with the characters?? It has moments of inspired phrases and suspense but not enough to carry you through the entire storyline. I had to persevere to finish this one...

Hilarious moments through this one. Thoroughly enjoying watching a British couple attempt to integrate into Danish culture. Interesting facts to support the anecdotes and ultimately a few take homes for my own life.

Spot the typo?? Drives me crazy!

Undoubtedly a guilty pleasure and a fun way to learn about the Scottish Highlands. I‘m also enjoying the television series where the actor that plays Jamie Fraser is very easy to look at 😂 My only complaint is that the novel was a bit long and the books only seem to get longer in the series. This is number 2 and I believe the author is up to number 9!

World War II - in all its gruesome horror... Concentration camps, starvation, torture, surgical experiments, gas chambers... and all the mental and physical anguish that comes with it. The audio version is narrated by three women using accents (German, Polish, French, American) which adds a whole new level of realism. This novel is captivating and impressive - my preferred way to learn about history.

Such a subtle honesty in this novel. It sneaks up on you and then sits with you for the rest of the day.

I needed a highlighter at the ready for this one to mark all of the profound philosophical moments. So many learning moments and a fresh reminder that one‘s ‘position in society‘ does not always accurately reflect their intelligence or appreciation of beauty, art and food. At times I felt the philosophical moments prohibited my investment in the characters but I cared for them in the end.

I may or may not be hiding in different rooms of my house to avoid my infant children and secure some reading time with this novel. Amazing transitions through time in this one with chapters opening with cracking cliff hangers where you desperately want to find out how they got there.

While I relished in the truly beautiful paragraphs in this novel and appreciated the early feminism in championing education and equality for women, I still found the read to be quite a slog. A few 100 pages too long. There were some moments of being caught up in the mystery of the 'crimes' but mostly I was not invested in the characters or their odd scenarios. I enjoyed the flirtations and love interests which had a high society British flair.

As someone who knows next to nothing about art or the art world I was wary about this novel. But now I want to go to art galleries! I want to learn how painters from times gone by made colours. I want to know how art can be valued so highly; artistically and materially. This Aussie author somehow managed to make 17th century Dutch female painters into a page turner. Smith crosses time and country effortlessly. I'm glad to have read this!

My first Australian crime, murder mystery novel. An absolute fast-paced pleasure. Viskic adds interesting aspects to the traditional genre; the hardened PI is profoundly deaf and more dependent on sign language than he'd care to admit. His romantic partner is a strong, smart indigenous Australian woman #represent. So refreshing to have minority protagonists. I'll definitely be back for more in the series.

Kicking it old school with the intellectual ladies from Oxford.... I've just hit chapter three and Harriet (the mystery novelist) has just stumbled upon a 'clue' to a mystery in her real life.

I have been reading these short stories on the train in the mornings and find that they follow me around for the rest of the day.Each story is so different but still manages to build suspense and leave you hanging to see how it ends. There are some real gems in here! My favourites are the title story, The Quiet, Creed and The Travellers.

A distinctly Australian voice throughout this novel drives it forward alternating between an Aussie outback landscape and a cold British island. There is something sinister lurking in each chapter and I'm grateful for the scenery changes that give me a break from some heavy and challenging storylines. This book left me hanging with a few unanswered questions which may be clever but ultimately left me unsatisfied. Regardless, it sucked me in.