Emily Paull

Congratulations to NOELLE CLARK- AUTHOR who is the winner of a slightly pre-loved copy of The Freudian Slip! Noelle, if you would be so kind as to use the CONTACT ME tab on this blog to send me your postage details, I will mail the book out to you soon.

The Australia Day Blog Hop is hosted by Book'd Out - my first stop for all things review-y goodness. Thanks to Book'd Out, this Australia Day long weekend you have tonnes of chances to win great books by Australian authors.  All you have to do- as the name suggests- is to hippity hop from blog to blog as listed on Shelleyrae's website today and participate in the fun and games to be had on any blog you so choose! As for me, I will be giving away a slightly pre-loved copy of Marion von Adlerstein's novel, The Freudian Slip - a tale of advertising, sexism and revenge in 1960s Sydney.  For your chance to win, simply answer the following question in the comments below. What state is Jasper Jones author Craig Silvey from? *Hint!  I live here too!* Best of luck to you!  Don't forget to check back here on the 29th when the winner will be announced.

The first Bookshelf Tour for 2014 is exciting stuff, and I am proud to welcome Tracy Farr to the blog to show us her books.  Tracy's debut novel, The Life and Loves of Lena Gaunt came out in 2013 and has since been a local hit (at least in MY bookshop!).   You can read my review here. Like most things in my life, my bookshelves are a mixture of compulsive order and flagrant disorder. We have dysfunctional shelves in the junk room upstairs, with too many books crammed and jammed in, double- and triple-shelved; it ’ s impossible to find any one book without unpacking almost all the others. Hopeless. But the wall of shelves in our living room is reasonably functional, and rather beautiful. Picture Credit: Liane McGee On these shelves there ’ s a rough divide into fiction and non-fiction, although they overlap and intermix. The non-fiction books are a mixed bag. There are plenty about science — Antarctica (my partner ’ s interest and career), seaweed (my interes...

Shame and the Captives Tom Keneally Vintage Publishing 9780857980991 First of all, when did Tom Keneally stop being published under Thomas?  Was it before or after The Daughters of Mars?  I can't remember... and truthfully, other than this novel, I have never read any of his work before.  All I know is that the whole of Australia seems to think that he is wonderful.  Perhaps he is... but Shame and the Captives  was rather disappointing for me, and this is why. Shame and the Captives is a creative transposition of the Cowra outbreak during the Second World War to the made up town of Gawell.  It follows the points of view of several characters living in and around the Gawell internment camp, which is home to Japanese, Korean and Italian prisoners of war who have been captured in other parts of the world (and Darwin which by comparison is rather close) and brought to Australia to be kept an eye on.  The characters we follow are: Alice, a farmer's w...

A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing Eimear McBride Text Publishing 9781922182234 There is nothing particularly new about novels of illicit love, sexual awakening, and the mental unravelling of a girl in a difficult situation.  What is new about A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing  is it's style.  This short novel is written entirely as a stream of consciousness; it is a jumble of thoughts, feelings and speech as well as impressions on the part of the unnamed female narrator.  Peppered throughout the text are moments of higher lucidity which serve to orient the reader.  At first, this style is alienating and even somewhat annoying.  It is a book that requires patience and concentration- but not only that.  This is a book which deserves your patience and understanding.  As Anne Enright from the Guardian is quoted as saying on the front, McBride is a genius, and this book is an 'instant classic.' To read my synopses and analysis of the book (contains spoi...

Landscapes of the past; white dunes, crystal beaches The golden thread of the horizon This place of my childhood forever tied to you Days in your asymmetrical house In the woodshed; in the upstairs bathroom Dropping the face-washer down the laundry chute- a magic trick! Your feet and face the only visible pieces As you floated on your back in Granny’s Pool Afterwards, walking the reef in rubber shoes White whiskers, flannel hat blown into the sea and dried over the railing of the veranda Your house; our house; morning tea after a morning swim Watermelon juice a sticky trail on my hands and face Playing in the ‘shops’ you’d transformed our trees into Using pieces from the woodshed- bits of fence, abandoned projects The vegetable garden; the rocking chairs; the wooden sunroom All bathed in summer sunlight And bathed in the light of fond memories The landscape of my past

I forgot to mention that last year I achieved my goal of reading and reviewing at least 10 books by Australian Women Writers as part of the challenge of the same name.  This is such a great cause!  Women writers in Australia are so fantastic and anyone who avoids them purely due to their gender is missing out- I hate the assumption that because a writer is female their work will be less literary or substantial.  It was great to see that this year a woman won the Miles Franklin award (Michelle de Kretser) and a woman won the Man Booker (Eleanor Catton).  The inaugural Stella Prize was also a very exciting event! To read my reviews from last year, click here. This year I am participating again and I aim to read and review at least ten books by Australian women.

I don't believe in New Year's Resolution anymore... someone very wise often says to me that if you have the intention to improve yourself, why wait until January 1 to begin?  And that's absolutely right, but one thing I believe very strongly in is setting goals. So here are some I have set for 2014. 1. Read 110 books 2. Write every day 3. Enter 12 competitions/ submit to 12 journals 4. Finish up more products (i.e. make up) 5. Go to the gym at least once a week What are your goals?  Will you help keep me accountable?