Monthly Archives: March 2022

Sydney Writers’ Festival 2022

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City of Parramatta Libraries is very proud to be hosting two author talk events for the 2022 Sydney Writers’ Festival in May. Bookings are limited for these FREE events so don’t miss seeing these amazing authors in person.

Louisa Lim in conversation
When: Thursday 19 May at 6.30pm.
Where: Wentworth Point Community Centre & Library
What: Join award-winning journalist and podcaster Louisa Lim in conversation with author Linda Jaivin. Louisa will be discussing her fascinating portrait of Hong Kong Indelible City, which mixes memoir and reportage and aims to put Hongkongers at the centre of their own story.
How: For more information and to book click here.

Alicia Jasinska in conversation
When: Sunday 22 May at 3.00pm.
Where: Epping Leisure & Learning Centre
What:  Join Alicia Jasinska as she discusses her latest fantasy The Midnight Girls in conversation with one of our Library staff members. The young adult book is set in a snow-cloaked kingdom where two enchantresses secretly compete for the heart of a prince, only to discover they may be falling for each other.
How: For more information and to book click here.

Stella Prize 2022 Longlist

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The Stella Prize is a major literary award celebrating Australian women’s writing. The $50,000 prize is awarded annually to one outstanding book deemed to be original, excellent, and engaging. Announcing the 12 exceptional books by Australian women and non-binary writers in the running for the tenth annual Stella Prize. The 2022 Stella Prize longlist includes novels, short fiction, memoir, social history, a book-length essay, a graphic novel, and – eligible for the first time in 2022 – poetry collections. Why not reserve one or more now and see if you can pick the winner before is announced Thursday 28 April.

Book Review An Isolated Incident

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An Isolated Incident by Emily Maguire

Summary

When 25-year-old Bella Michaels is brutally murdered in the small town of Strathdee, the community is stunned and a media storm descends.

Unwillingly thrust into the eye of that storm is Bella’s beloved older sister, Chris, a barmaid at the local pub, whose apparent easygoing nature conceals hard-won wisdom and the kind of street-smarts only experience can bring.

As Chris is plunged into despair and searches for answers, reasons, explanation – anything – that could make even the smallest sense of Bella’s death, her ex-husband, friends and neighbours do their best to support her. But as the days tick by with no arrest, Chris’s suspicion of those around her grows.

Comments

This book was not quite the psychological thriller we thought it was. It was more about the friends and family left behind after a loved one is murdered, violently. The love/hate relationship they have with the media. While we understand what the book was trying to get across, we felt it didn’t quite hit the mark. For the most part, the book was well written, and engaging despite the grim subject. The main characters we are little hard to connect with.  We sympathised with Chris, and felt her pain, but some of her actions were questionable.  We found ourselves reading to the end, wanting to know who did it, why they did it, and how many managed to get the victim in their own car in such a public space without being noticed.  

Rating 7.5/10

Book Review Breath by Tim Winton

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Breath by Tim Winton

Tim Winton’s Breath, winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award, is a story about the wildness of youth and learning to live with its passing.

When paramedic Bruce Pike is called out to deal with another teenage adventure gone wrong, he knows better than his colleague, better than the kid’s parents, what happened and how. Thirty years before, that dead boy could have been him.

A relentlessly gripping and deeply moving novel about the damage you do to yourself when you’re young and think you’re immortal.

Comments

We were unanimous in our assessment of this wonderful book by Tim Winton. A vivid depiction of a beautiful and largely unspoilt area of the south-western Australian coastline is the setting for this coming of age story. At first glance this is a novel about two bored young teenage boys in a small town seeking adventure and a hero to emulate. However, their relationship with Sando and Eva, a couple of outsiders new to the town, and the underlying problems in all their lives are the basis for a much darker scenario.

The boys, Pikelet and Loonie, and Sando are all dare devil surfers entranced by the wild danger of this area of the coast. Throughout the book the fear, exhilaration and challenge of surfing in ever more dangerous conditions is ever-present as one of the death-defying activities which induce an adrenaline rush. Other far darker exploits such as auto-erotic asphixiation, Sandos power over the very impressionable boys and Pikelet’s sexual encounters with the emotionally unstable Eva, all contribute to serious problems in later life.

A book which we agreed deserves a second reading just to admire again the wisdom and depth of this wonderful Australian novelist.

Read by Dundas Readers

Book Review Readers of the Broken Wheel Recommend

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Readers of the Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

Sara has never left Sweden but at the age of 28 she decides it’s time. She cashes in her savings, packs a suitcase full of books and sets off for Broken Wheel, Iowa, a town where she knows nobody.

Sara quickly realises that Broken Wheel is in desperate need of some adventure, a dose of self-help and perhaps a little romance, too. In short, this is a town in need of a bookshop.

With a little help from the locals, Sara sets up Broken Wheel’s first bookstore. The shop might be a little quirky but then again, so is Sara. And as Broken Wheel’s story begins to take shape, there are some surprises in store for Sara too.

Comments

We enjoyed reading The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend and the majority have either read the book twice or intend to read it again. Two people felt reading the book once was enough. The importance of relationships and the power of books to transform lives are explored in depth. Some friendships seem unlikely but lead to powerful and meaningful relationships that transform their lives and those around them. The small, dying community of Broken Wheel in Iowa is actually quite vibrant and embraces change and reveals depth to their commitment to each other that is inspiring. Some characters lack credibility; the affair between God-fearing Caroline and bi-sexual Josh. Amy dominates the book and our readers really looked forward to reading Amy’s letters. Amy reveals the power of the absent character, and she gives background information and shares wisdom.

“I’ve seen people completely caught up in their problems; they practically creep in beneath their skin and eat them up from within.” (p69)

Literature dominates; some characters avoid books whereas reading is Sara’s obsession.  She does not want to be a minor character. A balance is important; reading opens doors, but obsession hinders relationship opportunities. Balance is achieved in the novel, and everyone is enriched. Opening the bookshop revitalises the town and stirs the people to act as a community. Sara can suggest the right book for everyone.

We enjoyed the humour sprinkled throughout the book; Dewey, the library cat; are dreams subject to inflation and discussing the book triggered discussion about many things including how people change, apartheid, cancel culture and Stalin’s wine cellar.

Read by MJ Readers