1) “Go Set a Watchman,” Harper Lee
2) “All the Light We Cannot See,” Anthony Doerr
3) “A Spool of Blue Thread,” Anne Tyler
4) “The Girl on the Train,” Paula Hawkins
5) “Stay With Me,” Maureen McCarthy
6) “A History of Loneliness,” John Boyne
7) “The Song Collector,” Natasha Solomon
8) “The Buried Giant,” Kazuo Ishiguro
9) “The Paying Guests,” Sarah Waters
10) “When There’s Nowhere Else to Run,” Murray Middleton
Oh Anne Enright, how masterful you are! You took a seemingly clichéd Irish scenario and turned it on its head to create a wonderfully insightful story of abandonment, loneliness and compassion. Yes, yes, on the surface it may seem that we’ve all been here before – dysfunctional family, talk of the priesthood, alcoholism, manipulative mothers, a small Irish town – but the author’s aphoristic prose will shock and delight in equal measure.
The novel is in two parts – Leaving and Coming Home. In ‘Leaving’ the chapters could easily stand alone as short stories, such is their evocation of time and place. It’s here we meet the Madigan family one by one at different points in their lives. The beauty of these fragments is that the reader gets to know each sibling better than they know each other and when finally they all gather for a Christmas reunion in ‘Coming Home” there is something quite delicious about having this knowledge.
Christmas Day does not go well. There is something missing in each of the children – an empathy, a willingness to love, a sense of feeling loved, – how do they fill that gap? Their mother Rosaleen is demanding and feels abandoned by her ungrateful children. Readers will recoil from her manipulations or will have sympathy for a woman who gave up her own dreams to rear a family. The interactions in this section read like a stageplay and everyone falls easily into their role – the adored prodigal son, the “put – upon” daughter, etc.
Is this book bleak and dreary? Not at all – there is a wry humour and an abundance of acutely observed situations that readers will find provocative and amusing. There is no neat tying up of loose ends but you will feel satisfied with the glimmers of love and better understanding.
-Julie
This weekend marks the twentieth anniversary of indisputable superlative Jane Austen adaptation, Amy Heckering’s 1995 classic “Clueless.” Arguably one of the smartest dumb movies ever, “Clueless” reimagines the confounding protagonist of “Emma” as a zeitgeisty MTV generation brat, the ludicrously named Cher. To celebrate this ingenious update on a much-loved novel, we’ve come up with a list of other classics that could do with a cinematic makeover.
Breakfast at Biffany’s: Society girl Holly Golightly becomes bored with the inertia of New York’s hipster scene and channels her existential malaise into an all-female underground fight club.
Anna Kalenina: Frustrated housewife Anna defies her oppressive husband by opening a paleo food café, running away with Pete Evans and promptly throwing herself under a train.
The Picture of Dorian Whey: Protein junkie and general bruss discovers that as he continues to dirty bulk, his Instagram selfies become increasingly scrawny.
The Great Catsby: Seemingly normal, twenty-something male buys enormous house in West End, proceeds to populate it entirely with designer felines.
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Flan: A youth rejects his Christian Brothers education in favour of becoming an artisanal baker.
Wuthering Oath: Emily Bronte’s Gothic classic set in Arana Hills. Heath, a member of a bikie gang outlawed under the Newman Government, bangs his head against a Jacaranda Tree whilst mourning the death of his high-school sweetheart, nail technician Kath.
Great Expectations: Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow star in…oh wait. No, this already exists.
It was with much apprehension that I read Go Set A Watchman. To Kill a Mockingbird has always been my favourite book, and I was scared, after hearing reports of a racist Atticus Finch, that my all time favourite literary hero had been knocked off his pedestal. But to forgo reading anything by the pen of Harper Lee was unthinkable, so, with great trepidation, I started to read. And I did not stop until I finished at 4am. I still cannot quite find the words to describe how I feel about this book, except to say that I fell in love with Harper Lee’s writing all over again.
1) “Brother of the More Famous Jack,” Barbara Trapido
2) “How to be Both,” Ali Smith
3) “Day Boy,” Trent Jamieson
3) “A Spool of Blue Thread,” Anne Tyler
4) “The Green Road,” Anne Enright
5) “Apple Tree Yard,” Louise Doughty
6) “The Festival of Insignificance,” Milan Kundera
7) “The Girl on the Train,” Paula Hawkins
8) “The Rosie Project,” Graeme Simsion
9) “Forever Young,” Steven Carroll
10) “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves,” Karen Joy Fowler
1) “Brother of the More Famous Jack,” Barbara Trapido
2) “All the Light We Cannot See,” Anthony Doerr
3) “Forever Young,” Steven Carroll
4) “How to be Both,” Ali Smith
5) “The Children Act,” Ian McEwan
6) “The Girl on the Train,” Paula Hawkins
7) “The Rosie Project,” Graeme Simsion
8) “Day Boy,” Trent Jamieson
9) “The Green Road,” Anne Enright
10) “The Secret History,” Donna Tartt
Mark is a Day Boy. In a post-traumatic future the Masters – formerly human, now practically immortal – rule a world that bends to their will and a human population upon which they feed. Invincible by night, all but helpless by day, each relies on his Day Boy to serve and protect him. Mark has been lucky in his Master: Dain has treated him well. But as he grows to manhood and his time as a Day Boy draws to a close, there are choices to be made. Will Mark undergo the Change and become, himself, a Master, or throw in his lot with his fellow humans? As the tensions in his conflicted world reach crisis point, Mark’s decision may be crucial. In Day Boy Trent Jamieson reimagines the elements of the vampire myth in a wholly original way. This is beautifully written and surprisingly tender novel about fathers and sons, and what it may mean to become a man. Or to remain one.
Trent Jamieson is a Brisbane author who deserves a little more attention. Readers might already be familiar with his Deathworks trilogy, set in Brisbane. Day Boy is a little more obscure in regards to setting. Jamieson writes in such a wonderfully subtle way that the reader is aware that this world is futuristic-western—but decidedly Australian—without having to be told. The same can be applied to the plot; it is a subtle narrative that navigates the confusing world between boyhood and adulthood, infused with action but not too much. This is the kind of book that stays with the reader once finished; one that does not dumb-down to its audience.
-Chloe
getriverbent 