The trope of the regional Australian town has been done to death. Rosalie Ham’s “The Year of Farmer” stands well above the malaise.
Rashomon meets underground punk in Jeff Jackson’s “Destroy All Monsters”
Destroy All Monsters is an island powered by its own high-concept vibrancy. Jeff Jackson should be saluted and castigated in even measure.
Deep Time Dreaming – Billy Griffiths on Indigenous Australia
In Deep Time Dreaming, Billy Griffiths examines Australia’s coming-to-terms with its Indigenous past. Hyperbole aside, it is the most important analysis of who we were in a very long time.
Exile on Front Street: My Life as a Hells Angel – George Christie
George Christie’s version of his life as charter president of the Hells Angels is as verbally grandiose as it is proudly grim. Consider it a literary chain across one’s face.
Megan Abbott’s “Give me your hand” – Far more than it promises to be
Don’t be fooled by the cover, Megan Abbott’s book is a true powerhouse, flitting between two vivid timelines. Go read it.
Difficult protagonist, difficult to put down: Michael Robotham – The Other Wife
‘The Other Wife’ follows a crime trail walked by a protagonist with Parkinson’s. It is difficult to let that path go cold.
The tense psychological character study that is Lynne Vincent McCarthy’s “Lonely Girl”
Lynne Vincent McCarthy’s stunning debut novel is a grating example of a character gone awry. It’s terror visited under glass, and well worth an examination.
The search for lost innocence breathes in Jonathan Ames’ “You Were Never Really Here”
Jonathan Ames’ book moves at a quicksilver pace, a homage to actioners that is deep enough to not be shallow. Consider it a casual punch to the face.
Ponti – Sharlene Teo’s debut a visceral analysis of intergenerational disconnect
Sharlene Teo’s opus articulates the challenges three generations of women face in the same city. A staggering debut.
The charming, fleeting season of Isabel Allende’s book ‘In the Midst of Winter’
Parting as it is said, is such sweet sorrow. That certainly goes for the fantastic In the Midst of Winter, a lovely season gone too soon.
The Lucky Galah – An Australian classic from a very Australian viewpoint
Rarely does a book come along that articulates Australia so wonderfully, and very rarely does it come from the mouth of a galah.
Michael J Seidlinger’s ‘Standard Loneliness Package’ an exercise in love lost
Michael J Seidlinger’s Standard Loneliness Package is a compound of beautifully broken, wasted relationships. Bitterly, it forces you to examine your own failures.
The tale of twin narratives: The Missing Girl by Jenny Quintana
In the hands of Jenny Quintana, ‘The Missing Girl’ is a real page-turner that steps between past and present, effectively evoking the struggle of the 1980s middle class in Britain.
“Dyschronia” the stunning debut novel that charts our doom
While Jennifer Mills’ stunning debut novel addresses the end of everything, it does so in a very familiar place: home.
Book blends extremes in Samantha Irby’s “We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.”
Samantha Irby’s book scythes into the bone of the modern experience. Blows of emotion batter the reader long after the final page.
The Sparsholt Affair: Hard to define, even harder to put down
Alan Hollinghurst’s searing novel The Sparsholt Affair is a beast of many forms, where the words within shift with the changing eras the narrative flows through.
Investigatory podcast journalism meets in murder in Kathleen Barber’s “Are You Sleeping”
The effects of a true-crime podcast on the victim’s family are the first steps of Kathleen Barber’s book, which examines the stock we place in casual justice.
The first steps of genius – Danya Kukafka’s “Girl in Snow”
‘Girl in Snow’ approaches a murder from three distinct perspectives, but it is the weight and brilliance of those narratives that sets Kukafka apart. A superb debut.
Book review: The unfaithful narration of Michael Chabon’s “Moonglow”
Michael Chabon’s “Moonglow” is a stylistic hybrid of fiction and memoir, all in an effort to mislead the audience. Ballsy, yet fantastically done.
Book review: The Sellout – Paul Beatty’s satire on US racism
An appropriate read for the times we find ourselves in, Paul Beatty’s The Sellout takes on institutional racism and the comfortable social definitions we welcome.
Book review: Swing Time – Zadie Smith
“Swing Time” tackles female friendship, motherhood and celebrity, however it is author Zadie Smith’s keen eye for the human condition that will make it a classic.
Book review: The Permanent Resident – Roanna Gonsalves
Roanna Gonsalves’ book of short stories is a brilliant chronicle of migrant experiences, but is it better or worse for being limited to one tiny subset of the Indian community?