Category Archives: Fiction

December 18, 2023 · 5:52 pm
Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens – Shankari Chandran

As you all know, this was the 2023 Miles Franklin winner. I listened to various people talking about it on the ABC (Book Shelf maybe?) and decided I should read it. I actually ended up listening to it (Audible had it for free for a while).

Here’s the blurb …

Welcome to Cinnamon Gardens, a home for those who are lost and the stories they treasure.

Cinnamon Gardens Nursing Home is nestled in the quiet suburb of Westgrove, Sydney – populated with residents with colourful histories, each with their own secrets, triumphs and failings. This is their safe place, an oasis of familiar delights – a beautiful garden, a busy kitchen and a bountiful recreation schedule.

But this ordinary neighbourhood is not without its prejudices. The serenity of Cinnamon Gardens is threatened by malignant forces more interested in what makes this refuge different rather than embracing the calm companionship that makes this place home to so many. As those who challenge the residents’ existence make their stand against the nursing home with devastating consequences, our characters are forced to reckon with a country divided.

Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens is about family and memory, community and race, but is ultimately a love letter to story-telling and how our stories shape who we are.

I think the title and the cover are very misleading. From them, you expect a cozy story – maybe an elderly person is going to embark on an adventure! However, that’s not this book. There are some brutal depictions of torture and at times it is just sad. However, it is beautifully written and it a lovely, moving tribute to Sri-Lankan culture, in particular, Tamil culture. As a culture they value literacy, education and stories. It also highlights the plight of immigrants in Australia, how they are expected to be grateful. There are funny moments as well. All in all it was a lovely, enlightening read.

A review.

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December 14, 2023 · 3:20 pm

Apeirogon – Colum McCann

Apeirogon – Colum McCann

I decided I needed to know more about Israel and Palestine and this book was on a lot of lists of recommendations. I found a copy at the library.

Here’s the blurb …

Colum McCann’s most ambitious work to date, Apeirogon–named for a shape with a countably infinite number of sides–is a tour de force concerning friendship, love, loss, and belonging.

Bassam Aramin is Palestinian. Rami Elhanan is Israeli. They inhabit a world of conflict that colors every aspect of their daily lives, from the roads they are allowed to drive on, to the schools their daughters, Abir and Smadar, each attend, to the checkpoints, both physical and emotional, they must negotiate.

Their worlds shift irreparably after ten-year-old Abir is killed by a rubber bullet and thirteen-year-old Smadar becomes the victim of suicide bombers. When Bassam and Rami learn of each other’s stories, they recognize the loss that connects them and they attempt to use their grief as a weapon for peace.

McCann crafts Apeirogon out of a universe of fictional and nonfictional material. He crosses centuries and continents, stitching together time, art, history, nature, and politics in a tale both heartbreaking and hopeful. Musical, cinematic, muscular, delicate, and soaring, Apeirogon is a novel for our time.

This novel had an interesting structure. Lots of little, seemingly unrelated facts, mixed in with the stories of the two men (Bassam and Rami). It’s beautifully written – I find it comprehensible that people can go on when their child has died, but both of these men are determined to create a better world (I hope their OK given the current situation).

I feel I know a little bit more about the situation, so I do recommend reading this novel.

A review

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December 10, 2023 · 2:33 pm

The Dressmakers of Yarrandarrah Prison – Meredith Jaffe

The Dressmakers of Yarrandarrah Prison – Meredith Jaffe

I have this book in Kindle and paper format and in the end I listened to it! I am not sure what caused the delay, because in the end I really enjoyed it.

Here’s the blurb …

Can a wedding dress save a bunch of hardened crims? The Full Monty meets Orange is the New Black in a poignantly comic story about a men’s prison sewing circle.

‘This is a deft and unlikely story in an uncommon setting about an estranged daughter, her jailed father and a very bad idea about a dress. It all makes for a warm, funny union of foes and a lovely encounter with what matters.’ Rosalie Ham

Derek’s daughter, Debbie, is getting married. He’s desperate to be there, but he’s banged up in Yarrandarrah Correctional Centre for embezzling funds from the golf club, and, thanks to his ex-wife, Lorraine, he hasn’t spoken to Debbie in years. He wants to make a grand gesture – to show her how much he loves her. But what?

Inspiration strikes while he’s embroidering a cushion at his weekly prison sewing circle – he’ll make her a wedding dress. His fellow stitchers rally around and soon this motley gang of crims is immersed in a joyous whirl of silks, satins and covered buttons.

But as time runs out and tensions rise both inside and outside the prison, the wedding dress project takes on greater significance. With lives at stake, Derek feels his chance to reconcile with Debbie is slipping through his fingers …

A funny, dark and moving novel about finding humanity, friendship and redemption in unexpected places.

This felt very Australian – perhaps that was just the accent of the narrator, but there was definite Australianisms – Dezza for instance. I really enjoyed all of the references to needlework and how needlework can be calming and provide a useful distraction in tough times.

I have a cushion from Fine Cell work (the UK based charity Connecting Threads is based on)

Here it is blocking

I thought the characters and the dialogue were brilliant.

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December 4, 2023 · 5:16 pm

Cat’s Eye – Margaret Atwood

Cat’s Eye – Margaret Atwood

I read this years ago – before my blog, and then it popped up on Borrowbox, so I thought I would listen to it.

Here’s the blurb…

Cat’s Eye is the story of Elaine Risley, a controversial painter who returns to Toronto, the city of her youth, for a retrospective of her art. Engulfed by vivid images of the past, she reminisces about a trio of girls who initiated her into the fierce politics of childhood and its secret world of friendship, longing, and betrayal. Elaine must come to terms with her own identity as a daughter, a lover, and artist, and woman—but above all she must seek release from her haunting memories. Disturbing, hilarious, and compassionate, Cat’s Eye is a breathtaking novel of a woman grappling with the tangled knots of her life.

I like all of Atwood’s writing, but my favourite are (what I call) her women’s novels (Blind Assassin, Alias Grace, etc). I like being inside their heads and following them through life. For me, this one was about female friendships and how the effects ripple through a life. As you would expect, the writing is beautiful.

A review

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November 29, 2023 · 4:31 pm

The Black Moth – Georgette Heyer

The Black Moth – Georgette Heyer

My summer of Heyer has begun. My plan is to read the novels (just the romance ones) in publication order. First up – The Black Moth (first published in 1921).

Am I the only one who thinks it’s weird that there is a still from an Emma adaptation on the cover?

Anyway, this novel is set in the 1750s, so Georgian and not regency. It has many of the characteristics that would later define a Heyer novel; attention to detail, impeccable research, witty dialogue and strong independent heroines. However, she definitely improved with time. This one feels a bit flabby and I think it could do with some editing. Also, I am probably not a fan of Georgian fashion – all of those wigs! Although I do like an embroidered waistcoat and stockings with clocks!

Stocking with clocks (it’s the decorative bit on the ankle)

Image from Fashion History Time Line.

Here is the blurb…

Diana Beauleigh is caught between two men.

Seven long years ago, Jack Carstares, the Earl of Wyncham, sacrificed his honour for his brother and has been in exile ever since.

Returning to England, Jack pretends to be a gentleman named Sir Anthony Ferndale but makes his living in a most ungentlemanly fashion, as a highwayman and a gambler.

When Jack encounters his nemesis, the Duke of Andover, in the midst of kidnapping Diana Beauleigh, the two old enemies come to blows.

Can Jack save the beautiful Diana from rakes, kidnap and ruin.?

This was lots of fun, probably not my favourite Heyer novel, but I am glad I read it. Next up Powder and Patch. I am looking forward to reading These Old Shades where ‘the black moth’is redeemed (although I think he is re-named).

A review.

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November 21, 2023 · 3:33 pm

Stone Yard Devotional – Charlotte Wood

Stone Yard Devotional – Charlotte Wood

I read The Natural Way of Things and I wasn’t sure if I would read anything else. However, this one had such interesting reviews that I was intrigued. Plus I booked in to hear her speak at Beaufort St Books, so I thought I should read the novel. She was a fabulous speaker – honest, vulnerable and generous.

Here’s the blurb …

A deeply moving novel about forgiveness, grief, and what it means to be ‘good’, from the award-winning author of The Natural Way of Things and The Weekend.A woman abandons her city life and marriage to return to the place of her childhood, holing up in a small religious community hidden away on the stark plains of the Monaro.She does not believe in God, doesn’t know what prayer is, and finds herself living this strange, reclusive life almost by accident. As she gradually adjusts to the rhythms of monastic life, she finds herself turning again and again to thoughts of her mother, whose early death she can’t forget.Disquiet interrupts this secluded life with three visitations. First comes a terrible mouse plague, each day signalling a new battle against the rising infestation.Second is the return of the skeletal remains of a sister who left the community decades before to minister to deprived women in Thailand – then disappeared, presumed murdered.Finally, a troubling visitor to the monastery pulls the narrator further back into her past.With each of these disturbing arrivals, the woman faces some deep questions. Can a person be truly good? What is forgiveness? Is loss of hope a moral failure? And can the business of grief ever really be finished?A meditative and deeply moving novel from one of Australia’s most acclaimed and best loved writers..’Wood joins the ranks of writers such as Nora Ephron, Penelope Lively and Elizabeth Strout.’ THE GUARDIAN UK

For me this book was not really about the plot, but about the voice of the narrator (unnamed). She could be talking about paint drying and I would be fascinated. The book is really an exploration about what it means to be a good person.

A review

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November 16, 2023 · 2:18 pm

In A Thousand Different Ways – Cecelia Ahern

In Thousand Different Ways – Cecelia Ahern

I borrowed the audio book of this one from the library (I am not sure where I first heard of it).

Here’s the blurb …

Finding your way is never a simple journey…

Alice sees the worst in people.

She also sees the best.
She sees a thousand different emotions and knows exactly what everyone around her is feeling.
Every. Single. Day.

But it’s the dark thoughts.
The sadness. The rage.
These are the things she can’t get out of her head. The things that overwhelm her.

Where will the journey to find herself begin?

At first I was fascinated by this story, but by the final third I wondered where it was going and I thought it could definitely do with a bit of editing. The portrayal of the dysfunctional family was very well done, and I enjoyed the relationships with her school friend and Naomi, but once she was settled with Andy, I was ready for it to be over.

A review

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November 14, 2023 · 3:25 pm

Mrs Hart’s Marriage Bureau – Sheena Wilkinson

Mrs Hart’s Marriage Bureau – Sheena Wilkinson

This was a birthday present.

Here is the blurb …

April McVey hasn’t a romantic bone in her body. So how has she found herself at the door of Mrs Hart’s Marriage Bureau, job application in hand? Matchmaker Martha hopes the lively Irish girl will breathe fresh air into a business struggling to keep with the times amid the tumult of 1930s Britain. So when lonely widower Fabian arrives at the bureau, the pair’s matchmaking skills – and professionalism – meet their first true test. Mrs Hart’s Marriage Bureau is a charming and witty romantic comedy about friendship, loneliness, and the unexpected places where we find fulfilment

This novel had a lovely 1930s feel to it. It reminded me of novels like Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day or something by Dorothy Whipple (or any of the Persephone authors). April is a modern woman not interested in marriage, Mrs Hart is a war widow who wants to find veterans and other lonely people a suitable partner. Enter some clients (some nice some decidedly not nice) and we have a fun story. There are some dark patches – a man assuming April is a prostitute and Jewish refugees arriving from Germany, but mostly it is a light-hearted romantic comedy. It also touches on women’s role in society – what is expected of them, but also what they might want for themselves.

A review.

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November 8, 2023 · 1:50 pm

Dirty Thirty – Janet Evanovich

Dirty Thirty – Janet Evanovich

I have been eagerly awaiting this book. If you have read any of the Stephanie Plum books, then you know what to expect.

Here’s the blurb …

Stephanie Plum, Trenton’s hardest working, most underappreciated bounty hunter, is offered a freelance assignment that seems simple enough. Local jeweler Martin Rabner wants her to locate his former security guard, Andy Manley (a.k.a. Nutsy), who he is convinced stole a fortune in diamonds out of his safe. Stephanie is also looking for another troubled man, Duncan Dugan, a fugitive from justice arrested for robbing the same jewelry store on the same day.

With her boyfriend Morelli away in Miami on police business, Stephanie is taking care of Bob, Morelli’s giant orange dog who will devour anything, from Stephanie’s stray donuts to the upholstery in her car. Morelli’s absence also means the inscrutable, irresistible security expert Ranger is front and center in Stephanie’s life when things inevitably go sideways. And he seems determined to stay there.

To complicate matters, her best friend Lula is convinced she is being stalked by a mythological demon hell-bent on relieving her of her wardrobe. An overnight stakeout with Stephanie’s mother and Grandma Mazur reveals three generations of women with nerves of steel and driving skills worthy of NASCAR champions.

As the body count rises and witnesses start to disappear, it won’t be easy for Stephanie to keep herself clean when everyone else is playing dirty. It’s a good thing Stephanie isn’t afraid of getting a little dirty, too.

This was a weekend read. It’s a lot of fun, laugh out loud funny, and the Ranger/Morelli tangle is heating up.

A review

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November 7, 2023 · 4:34 pm

Old Babes in the Wood – Margaret Atwood

Old Babes in the Wood – Margaret Atwood

I am a Margaret Atwood fan although I haven’t read many of her short stories.

Here’s the blurb …

A dazzling collection of short stories from the internationally acclaimed, award-winning author of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments, stories that look deeply into the heart of family relationships, marriage, loss and memory, and what it means to spend a life together

Margaret Atwood has established herself as one of the most visionary and canonical authors in the world. This collection of fifteen extraordinary stories–some of which have appeared in The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine–explore the full warp and weft of experience, speaking to our unique times with Atwood’s characteristic insight, wit and intellect.

The two intrepid sisters of the title story grapple with loss and memory on a perfect summer evening; “Impatient Griselda” explores alienation and miscommunication with a fresh twist on a folkloric classic; and “My Evil Mother” touches on the fantastical, examining a mother-daughter relationship in which the mother purports to be a witch. At the heart of the collection are seven extraordinary stories that follow a married couple across the decades, the moments big and small that make up a long life of uncommon love–and what comes after.

Returning to short fiction for the first time since her 2014 collection Stone Mattress, Atwood showcases both her creativity and her humanity in these remarkable tales which by turns delight, illuminate, and quietly devastate.

I listened to this (borrowed from Borrowbox) and some of the stories were narrated by Atwood herself. My favourite story was My Evil Mother. Impatient Griselda is hilarious (particularly in a post-Covid world). All of the stories are excellent and I suspect the Nell and Tig stories (the seven stories about a married couple) might be autobiographical.

Here’s an interview with the ABC.

A review

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