Next Year's Books Part 2

 Going on from last night's post, here are the next few books we will be reading for book group next year. 

May: The Labyrinth by Amanda Lohrey

I'm really glad this got up. It won the Miles Franklin and it's one of the more literary books of the field. 

Goodreads describes it as such:

"Erica Marsden’s son, an artist, has been imprisoned for a monstrous act of revenge. Trapped in her grief, Erica retreats from Sydney to a sleepy hamlet on the south coast, near where Daniel is serving his sentence.

There, in a rundown shack by the ocean, she obsesses over building a labyrinth. To create it—to navigate the path through her quandary—Erica will need the help of strangers. And that will require her to trust, and to reckon with her past.

The Labyrinth is a story of guilt and denial, of the fraught relationship between parents and children. It is also an examination of how art can be ruthlessly destructive, and restorative. Mesmerising yet disquieting, it shows Amanda Lohrey to be at the peak of her powers."

According to Deb, who put up the book, it is a masterpiece. I'm really looking forward to this one. 

June: Devotion by Hannah Kent

Blarney beat me me to it, as I was going to put this one one. I love Hannah Kent. Her Burial Rites is a masterpiece and I'm interested where this very personal book of hers will go. 

The Goodreads blurb states "1836, Prussia. Hanne is nearly fifteen and the domestic world of womanhood is quickly closing in on her. A child of nature, she yearns instead for the rush of the river, the wind dancing around her. Hanne finds little comfort in the local girls and friendship doesn't come easily, until she meets Thea and she finds in her a kindred spirit and finally, acceptance.

Hanne's family are Old Lutherans, and in her small village hushed worship is done secretly - this is a community under threat. But when they are granted safe passage to Australia, the community rejoices: at last a place they can pray without fear, a permanent home. Freedom.

It's a promise of freedom that will have devastating consequences for Hanne and Thea, but, on that long and brutal journey, their bond proves too strong for even nature to break."

It's a book that is partly about South Australia. How can we go wrong?

July: Bright Burning Things by Lisa Harding

Jonella recommended this one, and it was very popular in the group. Jonella has read it and recommends it, so I'm interested in what it is like. 

The Goodreads blurb states, "Sonya used to perform on stage. She attended glamorous parties, dated handsome men, rode in fast cars. But somewhere along the way, the stage lights Sonya lived for dimmed to black. In their absence, came darkness—blackouts, empty cupboards, hazy nights she could not remember.

Haunted by her failed career and lingering trauma from her childhood, Sonya fell deep into an alcoholic abyss. What kept her from losing herself completely was Tommy, her son. But her love for Tommy rivaled her love for the bottle. Addiction amplified her fear of losing her child; every maternal misstep compelled her to drink. Tommy’s precious life was in her shaky hands. 

Eventually Sonya was forced to make a choice. Give up drinking or lose Tommy—forever."

It looks interesting. 

And the last one for today: 

August: A Room Called Earth by Madelaine Ryan

Another one for me to get excited about. We regularly have books about the neurodiverse, but not many about women who are on the spectrum. This book got the most lolly votes off of the group. 

Goodreads describes it as, "An unforgettable story of a fiercely original young woman, whose radical perspective illuminates a new way of being in the world

As a full moon rises over Melbourne, Australia, a young woman gets ready for a party. And what appears to be an ordinary night out is--through the prism of her singular perspective--extraordinary. As the evening unfolds, each encounter she has reveals the vast discrepancies between what she is thinking and feeling, and what she is able to say. And there's so much she'd like to say. So when she meets a man and a genuine connection occurs, it's nothing short of a miracle. However, it isn't until she invites him home that we come to appreciate the humanity beneath the labels we cling to, and we can grasp the pleasure of what it means to be alive.

The debut novel from the inimitable Madeleine Ryan, A Room Called Earth is a humorous and heartwarming adventure inside the mind of a bright and dynamic woman. This hyper-saturated celebration of love and acceptance, from a neurodiverse writer, is a testament to moving through life without fear, and to opening ourselves up to a new way of relating to one another."

And it's a book about Melbourne. Yay. 

I'll let you know about the last four books tomorrow night after what is promising to be a long day at work in the office. 

Today's song: 

Next Year's Books Part 1

 We had our book group's annual book choosing yesterday, and it was awesome, as always. 

For a start, it was only the second time this year we has got to meet in person, lock downs meaning that an online meet up was better for us all. Being honest, I like the Zoom meetings - you can hear everybody speak and the booze is cheapter. 

And we had our annual lolly vote - which went well, other than being a warm afternoon, the clinkers melted a bit. Never to mind. We came, we saw, we championed our books, we stapped on a rubber glove and placed lollies on the books we wanted to read. 

And what a great book list we have. 

So here is what was chosen. 

The also rans include the following. Meg Mason's Sorrow and Bliss - still not sure how this missed out on being chosen.  Elle Baxter's New Animal intrigued me so much I went and bought a copy on the way home, even though we're not doing it for book group. Thirty pages in and I'm not disappointed, though it reminds me of Jessie Tu's A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing. And Mary Gibbons The Bermondsey Bookshop and Jock Serong's The Rules of Backyard Cricket didn't make it. 

Anyway, here is our book group's booklist for next year. 

January: Bird Summons by Leila Abuelela

Fee put this up and it intruiged me. Goodreads.com says it's about the following:

"In her adventurous new novel, New York Times Notable author Leila Aboulela delivers a lively portrait of three women who embark on a journey of self-discovery while grappling with the conflicting demands of family, duty, and faith.

When Salma, Moni, and Iman--friends and active members of their local Muslim Women's group--decide to take a road trip together to the Scottish Highlands, they leave behind lives often dominated by obligation, frustrated desire, and dull predictability. Each wants something more out of life, but fears the cost of taking it. Salma is successful and happily married, but tempted to risk it all when she's contacted by her first love back in Egypt; Moni gave up a career in banking to care for her disabled son without the help of her indifferent husband; and Iman, in her twenties and already on her third marriage, longs for the freedom and autonomy she's never known. When the women are visited by the Hoopoe, a sacred bird from Muslim and Celtic literature, they are compelled to question their relationships to faith and femininity, love, loyalty, and sacrifice."

It sounds great. 

February: The Island of See Women by Lisa See

The book's about Korean women who dive for food - they've done it for centuries. The author also wrote The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, which I wasn't overly enamoured with, but others loved it and this one got up. Jonella will be leading the discussion on this one. 

March: Scary Monsters by Michele de Kretser

I put up this one, admiring what de Kretser has done in other books, and loving the premise of this. 

The book jacket says. "Michelle de Kretser's electrifying take on scary monsters turns the novel upside down - just as migration has upended her characters' lives.

Lili's family migrated to Australia from Asia when she was a teenager. Now, in the 1980s, she's teaching in the south of France. She makes friends, observes the treatment handed out to North African immigrants and is creeped out by her downstairs neighbour. All the while, Lili is striving to be A Bold, Intelligent Woman like Simone de Beauvoir.

Lyle works for a sinister government department in near-future Australia. An Asian migrant, he fears repatriation and embraces 'Australian values'. He's also preoccupied by his ambitious wife, his wayward children and his strong-minded elderly mother. Islam has been banned in the country, the air is smoky from a Permanent Fire Zone, and one pandemic has already run its course.

Three scary monsters - racism, misogyny and ageism - roam through this mesmerising novel. Its reversible format enacts the disorientation that migrants experience when changing countries changes the story of their lives. With this suspenseful, funny and profound book, Michelle de Kretser has made something thrilling and new.

'Which comes first, the future or the past?'

The book comes in two halves - and the biggest dilemma the reader faces is which side of the book to start on - the white covered side, or the red covered side. 

April: Plum by Brendan Cowell

More Australian fodder, put on the list by Norty. 

The Goodread's blurb reads:

"The wildly impressive, raucously funny and deeply moving second novel from award-winning writer, actor and director for television, theatre and film, Brendan Cowell, confirming the talent he showed in his bestselling debut novel from 2010, How It Feels.

Peter 'The Plum' Lum is a 49-year-old ex-star NRL player, living with his son and girlfriend in Cronulla. He's living a pretty cruisey life until one day he suffers an epileptic fit and discovers that he has a brain disorder as a result of the thousand-odd head knocks he took on the footy field in his twenty-year-career. According to his neurologist, Plum has to make some changes - right now - or it's dementia, or even death.

Reluctantly, Plum embarks on a journey of self-care and self-discovery, which is not so easy when all you've ever known is to go full tilt at everything. On top of this, he's being haunted by dead poets, and, unable to stop crying, discovers he has a special gift for the spoken word. With spectral visits from Bukowski and Plath, the friendship of local misfits, and the prospect of new love, Plum might just save his own life.

From award-winning writer, director and actor, Brendan Cowell, Plum is a powerfully moving, authentic, big-hearted, angry and joyous novel of men, their inarticulate pain and what it takes for them to save themselves - from themselves. It's got a roaring energy, a raucous humour, a heart of gold and a poetic soul.

'Exploring masculinity and the healing power of language with great humour, grace and whimsy, Plum is a bighearted, raw and joyous take on what it means to be a man in modern Australia.' Sunday Times

'The audacious inclusion of literary outlaws ... the muscular viscerality of his language ... [Plum is] a Shire pastoral that yearns for a nostalgia fantasy of The Golden Days ... I wonder whether Plath was inspired by the great Peter Lum. Or if Whitman wrote Leaves of Grass observing a spear of summer grass while sitting in Shark Park one lonely Sunday afternoon.' Sydney Morning Herald (less)."

It looks like a good yarn and I'm looking forward to reading this. 

I'll provide details of the rest of the books over the next few days. It will give me something to write about. 

Today's song: 

Sunday Stealing: Fauxklore

 I'm just back from book group and our annual book choosing meeting. It was lovely just to be in the company of the wonderful women of the group (and one of the best behaved nine-year-old boys I've ever had the pleasure of meeting) The book list is now set for the year. 

And all is well with the world. 

Questions, as always, have been provided by Bev at Sunday Stealing. 

1. Have you ever been caught outdoors away from shelter during a thunderstorm?

Yes, quite a few times. I know the last time it happened I was going to dinner in town. A large thunderstorm hit the streets - I was about 200 metres from the restaurant. I arrived soaked through to the skin. 

2. Did you ever build furniture forts as a child?

Of course I did. I was a child of the seventies. It's what we did. Everybody used to do this on wet weekends. Furniture and blanket forts were the best. I wish we could build one now. 

3. Do you use any medicines daily? 

Just a blood pressure pill and HRT. Both are necessary. Both keep me ticking over well. The latter keeps me from going pyscho. 

4. When was the last time you used a disposable camera?

Probably about twenty years ago at a friend's wedding. I'm not sure you can still buy disposable cameras any more - most people use their phones to take photos. 

5. When was the last time you flew on a plane?

15 March 2020. I was coming back from a trip to Sydney. I really miss flying. So far I've got a trip to Adelaide booked for April, there may be one or two trips to Sydney for work if it can be winged and I can see myself going to Canberra for a funeral in the not to distant future, unfortunately. 

6. How many first cousins do you have?

15. Ten on Mum's side, five on Dad's side. And I get on well with nearly all of my cousins. I'm in regular contact with a few of them. I'm lucky like that. 

7. What’s the longest period of time you’ve gone without sleep?

About 48 hours. Normally when I've been taking long haul flights as I don't sleep well on planes. I sleep well that second night. 

8. Did the house you grew up in have a big yard?

I grew up on 40 acres of land, so is that big enough for you. When I was younger, we had a place in the suburbs of Adelaide, but that was a standard quarter acre block. When I was a young child, everybody had a back yard with a quarter acre block if  you lived in the suburbs. 

9. What has been the most difficult class you’ve ever taken?

That was probably physics, probably because the teacher was so crap. Physics is the one class I failed at school. 

10. What’s something that’s much more difficult than a lot of people realize?

My job. Technical writing. People are under the impression that anybody cab do my job. It is a lot harder than most people think it is - to do it really well, there are so many considerations which non-technical writers will never think about. 

11. What are some things a house would need to have for you to purchase it?

If I was to every buy a house or flat, it would need the following things: 

• Air conditioning
• A bath tub. 
• Ample cupboard space
• Either a small courtyard or large balcony
• Close to public transport
• Floorboards - not carpets
• Plenty of powerpoints
• Good fly screens to keep the flies out

I'm pretty practical when it all come down to it. 

12. Would you ever go out in public wearing pajamas?

I have done this a couple of times, but on those occasions I was either going to a pyjama party, or in the case of the last time I did this, I was off to a performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and I was going as Magenta, when she and Columbia were spying on Janet and Rocky. Easiest Rocky Horror Costume out there. 

13. Have you ever had a lemonade stand?

No. Sorry, I think this might be an American thing. 

14. Do you think you look older or younger than your real age?

I'm regularly told I look a lot younger than my current years. Normally ten years younger. This is a good thing. 

15. Where have you lived throughout your life?

Now let me see: 

From birth until I was eight we lived in the Southern Suburbs of Adelaide. 

From eight until 17, I was located at Myponga, South Australia., 

From 17 until 23, I was in Adelaide. 

From 23-31, I lived in London. 

And I moved to Melbourne when I was 31... with a few months on a Greek Island when I was 34. 

Don't ask me how many times I've moved house - that happened far too often in my London and early Melbourne days. 

Today's song

The Assessors

A house in the next street is having a party. There is the thrum of doof doof music. The party lights are illuminating the street. I'm not in the mood for this. 

This morning we had meditation. Other than commiting the terrible sin of being late, thanks to a laptop requiring rebooting, we then had a meditation on the sephirot of Gevurah. I've been going to meditation for over 15 years. We've been doing the same meditations for this time  - Kabbalah meditations, which cycle through over the years, so we won't repeat the meditation for another two years or so. 

Anyway, in today's meditation, we met the Assessors of Maat. This comes straight from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, where under the eye of the goddess Maat, we meet the 42 assessors, who assess our lives to see if we are allowed into heaven. You have to answer the questions truthfully. Theses are morality questions. Have you blasphemed, been an adulterer, have you been a glutton, have you killed or maimed. Fairly standard stuff, although these questions are there to trip you up and play on your conscience.

And then there is the last question. The question which trips me up every time. The question which cancels everything out and when Maat gets out her scales, reaches into your heart to bring out your essence and weigh against a feather, the scales will balance.

The question is "Is there anybody alive who is glad that you were born."

Hand on heart, I don't know how to answer that question. 

The best I get is a "I hope so." I like to think the answer is yes.

But it's been playing on my mind all day. Which is what it's supposed to do. 

Today's song: 

Ponyfish Island

 I've wanted to go here for well on twenty years. Ponyfish Island is a bit of an enigma - a bar situated on the Yarra under what I call Coathanger Bridge - which has another name (Evan Walker Bridge), but it looks like a big coathanger, so we'll call it that. I've just never had the chance to go there - or had the person to take there - others wanting to drink in more mainstream places. Of late, we've had the long lockdowns, or on Friday night, wehave tended to have a sneaky gin and tonic in the office, rather than going out for an end-of-week bender. Besides, being over forty, it's not something you do very often anyway. 

Thanks to a boss who wanted to go for a drink, dinner at six before a play and the desire to have a copule of gin and tonics, I got my wish. 

We had a long lunch before - after all, it is Christmas and the boss was down from Sydney, and after the last few weeks, it was well deserved break from the chaos. 

And a necessary long lunch and drink it was. 

I'd be quite happy to have stayed for more than two gin and tonics. I mean, one glorious Four Pillars Olive Leave Gin (with tonic and olives) and an Applewood Gin from the Adelaide Hills. I would have happily settled in. Ponyfish Island is a great place to put the world to rights. 

Alas, dinner reservations were set for 6.00 p.m. meant cutting things short. 

But it was a very pleasant evening indeed. 

It's just a pity the play was cancelled. I was looking forward to a fix of Shakespeare. But dinner was nice, and the tickets have been reschedule for next weekend and life feels a little bit better for the while. 

It's all we can want for. And something else has been crossed off the bucket list. 

Today's song: 

Lollybagging

I've done this every year for the last thirteen or fourteen years. The annualy book group lolly bagging for the annual book group book choosing. 

It involves obtaining a gross of lollies (or sweeties, or wrapped candies if you're American), some rubber gloves and baggies. 

Then, I sit on the couch, place 25 sweets in a bag with a rubber glove, recount the lollies, the seal the bags up. On the day of the book choosing, I have to make sure the lollies get to the book choosing destination - which will mean transporting them to the restaurant at lunchtime on Sunday. 

I remember one of the first times I did this. A friend was over - he wanted to know what the hell I was doing. From memory, he ate a lot of the lollies and I had to go find another bag of Jaffas to make the numbers even. (Nine people in book group - 225 lollies are required). 

This year I bought in Minties and a bag of mixed traditionals, and a bag of mixed wrapped lollies with some Australian favourites including what used to be called Redskins (a not very PC name, which has been changed to Red Rippers). And of course, I had to throw in a bag of Clinkers, because when you ask the book group, they want to vote with Clinkers. Clinkers are not wrapped. For hygiene purposes, that is why we have a rubber glove in the bag. When we vote on the books, we use the rubber glove so we can safely eat the lollies later. 

After the vote, those lollies which are not taken home are given to the wait staff. It goes down a treat.

The books are decided for the year. Everybody is happy. 

I've given up asking if anybody else wants to be book bitch - arranging the meetings, sending out reminders on our facebook group, arranging the lolly vote... it's not a bad job. 

And this year, I had help. 

All we have to do now is have to vote, which is being held over lunch on Sunday. The book list is set. I can't say nothing at the moment, that would spoil the fun for the book group members who occasionally read this blog. 

It gave me something different and relaxing to do last night.

Today's song: 

Give me some Christopher Walken

It wasn't a bad day by any stretch, but being the first day back in the office, being surrounded by people, I've come away from the day drained. 

There was the dentist appointment after work. Nothing bad, just the normal six monthly check up. It seems my dentist has just started with orthodontics. After the normal check and clean he had another poke around, asked me to close my teeth and swallow. 

It appears I'm a tongue thruster. That sounds quite rude.

He's been my dentist for over fifteen years. It's the first time he's mentioned my open bite. He said that the movement of my tongue is why the open bite is happening and we can do something about it. 

But why? My teeth are reasonably straight. I don't have jaw pain. I'm not a mouth breather. 

He says I could have a contraption that goes in my mouth that helps train my tongue not to go forward. It would maybe help correct the open bite and maybe alleviate the lisp I've had for fifty years. Of course, then there's the braces....

Ah, hard pass. I don't think I could cope with adult braces. Beides, do I really need them? Not really. 

But this was a strange conversation after a long day.

After the walk home, I came in to the news that a friend of mine is facing her second cancer battle. A different cancer to the last one. She's strong. She has a treatable cancer with good odds, but it's still a blow. For me, it's more that we're of similar age, both single, both of us live with our cats... the thoough of being being taken out like this for months of treatment is one of my biggest fears. We've been chatting over the evening. Her strength, outlook and grace are an inspiration. 

So with all that, I got home and needed a smile. 

I turned to Christopher Walken. Dancing.

Christopher Walken dancing fixes most things. 

I would love to dance like Christopher Walken. 

I love that he looks so happy when he dances. He's having fun. He's cheeky. And he's full of lanky charm. He makes me smile. 

It's all any of us need, really. 

Today's song: