Above all this book is the story of a journey – both for Bronson, and perhaps more powerfully, his mother, and their transition from disabled victims trying to get by, to super-abled victors changing the system and creating art and meaning in ways that open doors for others.
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A review of The Well-Fed Writer: Financial Self-Sufficiency as a Commercial Freelancer in Six Months or Less by Peter Bowerman
The book is pitched in such a way that it can be used by those who are just starting out, people who will want to follow it’s step-by-step approach from cover to cover, or those more experienced, who can gain ideas and inspiration from what is working well for Bowerman and his colleagues.
A review of The City & The City by China Miéville
China does a terrifically moving job of making the two detectives distrust then come to admire each other, in their own way. Brilliant. Generally, an author has his work cut out to describe one unique city so that the reader believes they are there, but here two cities are created in the same spot. Excellent and original.
A review of the moon, the snow by Nan Weizenbaum
At this point I really must comment on Weizenbaum’s prose: it’s excellent. So, too, is the parallel drawn between the frigid landscape and Aurora’s emotional white-out. Despite the fact that Weizenbaum must have spent hours agonising over every sentence the narrative is seamless. Almost every page has a gem.
A review of Take the Monkeys and Run by Karen Cantwell
A semi-finalist in the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award content, Take the Monkeys and Run obviously pleased a few readers. While this is no literary masterpiece, it is essentially well-written with engaging, often larger that life characters, and most importantly is laugh out loud funny.
A review of The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann
In refusing to take Time for granted, but continually analyzing it in its different manifestations, the way it seems to pass, I think The Magic Mountain is indeed in the modern category. In this connection, I can’t help thinking of Einstein, who — also early in the 20th century — was making us look at Time in a whole new way.
A review of Parrot and Olivier in America by Peter Carey
Parrot and Olivier in America is full of Carey’s humanism, coupled with an examination of the compelling power of Art that featured strongly in My Life As a Fake, coupled with deep seated explorations of identity, truth, friendship, and democracy. Above all, this is a wonderful, ribald, and satisfyingly powerful tale that takes the reader through many journeys.
A review of Music’s Spell by Emily Fragos
You will find it difficult to decide on favourites herein. Close to the top must come David Wojahn’s poem about the meeting between Dylan and Woody Guthrie at the Brooklyn State Hospital. Then there is Tomas Transtromer’s poem about Haydn (‘Allegro’), which is quite sublime.
A review of Russian Poets edited by Peter Washington
There is an abundance of that much vaunted Russian soul – spiritual and cynical, sometimes both at once; continually celebrating and kvetching about creation – in this fine collection.
Interview with Ouyang Yu
The author of On the Smell of an Oily Rag talks about his latest book, about the “pen-notes fiction” genre he uses, perhaps for the first time in English, the value of fragments, his feelings towards Australia, forthcoming work, and more.