He is recounting a history which is both still vital and yet already finished. In that sense he is directly aligned with the reader and as this extraordinary novel progresses, the reader has the sense that perhaps, in some way,…
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A review of The Goldseekers by Greg Bastian
Although there is drama and some dark moments in the story, The Goldseekers is never overwhelmed by them. This is a novel which a good reader as young as six (my six year old enjoyed it greatly) would enjoy and gain from,…
A review of Candy by Luke Davies
Candy is an easy book to read, but not an easy one to deal with. It leaves the reader feeling shattered, as if he or she had been through a similar experience. The verisimilitude in characterisation, setting, and in the…
A review of Wolves of Memory by Bill James.
Among crime writers – among writers in general, come to that – Bill James is something pretty special. Out of a novel about a grass (or, in American parlance, a stool pigeon) trying to resettle into a new life, he…
A review of Ludmila’s Broken English by DBC Pierre
The extraordinary way in which the brothers find their way to Ludmila and the convoluted machinations which everyone takes to get from the beginning to the end of this novel is enough to keep the reader reading, as is the…
A review of Gladiss and The Alien by Warren Thurston
Suspense is built slowly and effectively, as the reader is caught up in Sally’s desperate search for her horse, and the complications of storm and the bad guys. The question of how Gladiss became a mooer instead of a neigher…
A review of Schizophrenia Poetry by M. Stefan Strozier
Some of the poetry is subtly humorous, such as the cleverly written “The Graveyard,” a poem written in 69 rhyming, heroic couplets. At first glance this looks like an anachronistic, and chaotic wandering in the clichéd landscape of Ancient Greek…
A review of King Street Blues by Denis Fitzpatrick
The story is rooted in both the Melbourne and Sydney street life, and rich with the detail of finding food, places to sleep, and coping with law and ignorance while trying to remain artistically productive. It is an honest, and…
A review of The Tent by Margaret Atwood
This is an interesting collection, as much for the quality of Atwood’s writing, which, in itself, never falters, as for what she tries to say. But it never reaches full fruition. It needs more synthesis, more culling, and more development…
The Music of the Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers, featuring Ronnie, Rudy, and Marvin Isley, with support from Ernie Isley and Chris Jasper, recorded Brother, Brother, Brother, an album in which three of the eight songs were written by Carole King, whose record-breaking Tapestry album had man an impression on many performers of the time. Brother was released in 1972 by T-Neck, and re-released in 1997 by Sony. The collection, with notes by poet Nikki Giovanni about Cincinnati and Lincoln Heights (which she shared with the Isleys), contains “Work to Do,” a song written by the Isleys about the sacrifices (and understanding) required to accomplish a task, a song radio still plays. The Isleys give Carole King’s “It’s Too Late” a ten-minute workout: slowed-down, anguished, with mournful piano and screaming guitar.