Culture
Books
‘It breaks your heart’: How Geraldine Brooks turned her grief into a book of love
Her husband’s sudden death opened an abyss from which the Pulitzer Prize winner had to crawl to finish her latest novel.
- by Susan Wyndham
Latest
For a rising star with two novels, writing isn’t as glamorous as it may seem
Laura Elizabeth Woollett is 29, with a creative-writing degree, and has never had a full-time job. Like many writers, she patches together an income from casual work.
- by Jane Sullivan
Written by a 17-year-old, this much-hyped book fires on all cylinders
Leila Mottley’s Nightcrawling, which has a ripped-from-the-headlines premise about a young sex worker, sparked a fierce bidding war in the US.
- by Liam Pieper
Who’s to blame for my love of words? Mum
A frightening medical emergency leads David Astle to salute his “first teacher”: 90-year-old Heather Astle.
- by David Astle
The big brainwash: Hollywood has programmed our minds at the cinema
Hollywood’s Embassies unpicks the dream-factory business to reveal how studios transformed cinemas into “cultural embassies” around the world.
- by Tom Ryan
The top 10 books you should read in June
Get hooked by Adrian McKinty’s next gothic thriller, read Yassmin Abdel-Magied’s essay collection or dive into new books by Geraldine Brooks and Jhumpa Lahiri.
- by Jason Steger
The ‘other virus’ playing havoc with major Australian festivals
Event organisers are dealing with both COVID chaos and a rise in lethargy as ticket sales remain “patchy” across the industry.
- by Meg Watson
Too ‘blokey’ and cliched? Why Tim Winton has become one of our most divisive authors
Thirty years on from winning the Miles Franklin Award for Cloudstreet, Tim Winton’s work is more divisive than ever.
- by Millie Muroi
A tender meditation on life and the healing power of nature
After family tragedy, Indira Naidoo’s pathway to healing came from lessons learned in the natural world.
- by Jessie Tu
Yes, it’s speculative fiction – but not like you’ve ever read it before
The term itself is a catch-all for various forms of writing: horror, sci-fi, fantasy, utopias, dystopias, alternative histories. This particular collection is a world first.
- by Declan Fry
Superb visions of Tokyo at night from a modern Japanese master
Mieko Kawakami’s tale of geek romance and futuristic nightscapes leads this week’s wrap of new fiction and non-fiction reviews.
- by Cameron Woodhead and Fiona Capp