OCTOBER ~ Rose Tremain, an English novelist and short story writer

RESTORATION

KRIS:

Robert Merivel, son of a glove maker, gives up his medical studies to take a position at the court of King Charles 11 as the keeper of his dogs. He easily takes to the life of luxury and idleness, enjoying the women and the wine so much a part of these times.

When the king asks him to marry one of his young mistresses in return for an estate and a generous income, his life seems perfect. The one proviso was not to fall in love.

When this occurs and his love is rebuffed, all he has known is taken from him.

Up until now, Merivel has seemed like a very weak character, and his new situation will test this.

Kris loved the story, and especially the descriptions of the countryside.

CHARIS:

Charis thought it a good story and although it petered out at the end, it all seemed to end well.

She thought Tremaine was a good writer, but couldn’t bring herself to like the character Merivel due to his bawdiness and lustiness.

JUDY J:

Judy found the first part of the book difficult to get into because of the lack of much storyline. But once Merivel’s downward slide had begun, she found it much more interesting.

 Merivel eventually falls and loses everything. He ends up working in a Quaker madhouse as a physician in the Fens. He also moves back to London and experiences the plague of 1665 and the fire of 1666. Along the way, there are moving and funny experiences, and many other interesting and well-described characters that he comes across.

JOAN:

Joan’s initial comment was that she ‘couldn’t put it down’. She loved the characterization, describing Merivel as a man of his time and such an interesting character. Charles11 was the much-loved king in power and the story takes place during his reign including the time of the fire and plague.

The author has written a sequel called Merivel; a Man of his Time.

NATALIE:

Natalie thought it was quite interesting going back into that time in history. Many great descriptions of people and places.

JUDY DE:

She also took awhile to get into it, but once she did, she loved it! She enjoyed it enough to go on and read the sequel.

JO:

In the beginning Merivel was a horrible character. But he grew when he lost everything and found himself working in the mental hospital.

She enjoyed reading about society of this time.

 

AMERICAN LOVER

LESLIE:

This is a book of short stories all with very different subject matter. They cover a  variety of emotions and characters, some flawed and some with major issues. But there is a gentleness in many people and the author writes in a gentle way about them.

Some stories bring in true characters from history in a very clever way.

She thoroughly enjoyed them!

JULIA:

There are 13 stories in this book, published in 2014. The first 3 were sad, but very soon she was ‘hooked’ on her writing. There were stories in different formats, eg a diary and some tackled modern issues and contemporary settings while others were told with a wry sense of humour.

Julia thought they were a really good read.

 

THE ROAD HOME

ROSEMARY:

Rosemary described the book as a ‘hugely enjoyable read’. She thought the characters were quirky and individual. Although it was published in 2008 the story is still relevant to the current situation of refugee immigrants. She felt she could identify with the struggles they faced to come to a foreign land. For her, the ending may have been a bit abrupt.

TAM:

The book tells the migrant experience of one man, coming from an undisclosed Communist country, his wife has died and his child is sick. He heads off to London with the hope of a better life there to support his family. He befriends people and along the way, people help each other.

Tam found it really interesting to try to understand the modern migrant, the endless mindless jobs they are prepared to do and what it takes to succeed.

She couldn’t put it down.

WENDY L:

Wendy also was very enthusiastic about the book, describing Rosie Tremain as a terrific writer.

Even her minor characters were interesting. The emotions she described were so authentic, you really felt for him. She writes so well about the harshness of the environment, finding places to stay, some people were helpful while others were so hard.

PRUE:

Like several others before her, Prue commented that she was a new author to her. She thought she had fantastic characters and language, and you really could understand the difficulties he had with the language and accents.

She thought it was very clever the way in this book also she had introduced a character from history, this time being Hamlet.

CONNIE:

Connie felt as though she really knew the people. She particularly appreciated how the author described London, the city, the dingy cafes, the river, the suburbs and no mention of major landmark buildings that were irrelevant to the story.

She ended up liking all the characters.

JOAN:

Joan identified themes of loss, separation, mourning and melancholy through the book. She thought it really described what it was like to be a foreigner in a big city. He had a dream and knew how to achieve it through hard work. A wonderful story.

WENDY J

She enjoyed the writer’s style and was fascinated by her characters.

 

GUSTAV SONATA

PAULINE:

Set in Switzerland after the war, a young Jewish and a gentile boy begin a friendship. The story of their lives is told in 3 parts, their time at school, during the war and in old age.

Flashbacks, sometimes in the form of dreams are used to fill in the background details.

Pauline found it quite melancholy at times, and maybe this was why she didn’t enjoy it as much as some other books she had read by this author.

BEV:

She really enjoyed reading this, especially with the very happy ending.

ANNE:

Anne also loved it. Although the main story revolves around Gustav and Anton, there were many other interesting characters in their lives, young and old, men and women.

The flashbacks to fill in details of their lives were integral to the story.

THE COLOUR

DIANE:

Set in New Zealand in the nineteenth century, it is the story of an emigrant from the UK who finds gold. From that time on, everything that happens is bad. There is not one nice or good character you could sympathize with. Everything in the story, literally and emotionally collapses.

Not a book she enjoyed!

 

MUSIC AND SILENCE

PAT:

Pat found the book hard to get into with so much chopping and changing. But by half way through things were starting to connect.

She didn’t love it or hate it, it just didn’t grab her. The frivolity of the court also annoyed her.

She too thought she would read another book by Rose Tremain, one that had been more favourably reviewed.

SHEILA:

She loathed it, even though she only read 15 pages. It was depressing and she found it difficult to stomach some attitudes of the times, particularly the treatment of ordinary people as scum.

Sheila likes to read for enjoyment, so would not bother with this book.

VAL:

Val also didn’t enjoy it. She found the writing style difficult to understand in places. The story was depressing and every character was ‘over the top’. They had problems and many flaws. The story hopped from one character to the next.

After listening to comments by others, she would like to read another more favoured book by this author.

THE CUPBOARD

Diann:

An 87 year old lady climbs into a cupboard to die on her mother’s old clothes. The story goes back to the beginning of her life to explain how she came to be in this situation.

Diann found it gory, hard to read, too descriptive and with no flow. She certainly wouldn’t recommend it.

NOVEMBER BOOK CLUB ~ Australian author Nevil Shute

DECEMBER BOOK CLUB ~ The best book you’ve read this year!

SEPTEMBER, 2017 - AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGERS

Bushranging began soon after British colonization of Australia.  Desperate convicts escaped and lived off the land, being supported by or stealing from free settlers. The Australian bushranging period spanned nearly 100 years.  Some were seen as Robin Hood figures but others were very brutal.


JULIA:   FRANK GARDINER BY ALEX MORRISON

Julia loves Australian history.  In regard to Frank Gardiner, she loved the fact that he went from being a bushranger to a businessman.  He spent ten years in Darlinghurst gaol and then emigrated to California. She said it was a really good book.

CONNIE:  BEN HALL, THE BUSHRANGER BY FRANK CLUNE

Connie enjoyed this book.  It was said the author fictionalized the story too much.  Ben Hall was a son of convicts.  He sorted himself out, leased a property, bought sheep and did well for himself. He sometimes gave shelter to bushrangers and when his wife ran off with one of them, he was heartbroken. He eventually joined the bushrangers when his farm was burnt down by the police. He was well liked by the settlers. The author, Frank Clune was a popular writer in the 40's and 50's.  He wrote books for men to read.

BEV:  HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGING BY CHARLES WHITE

Bev read the story about Ben Hall.  When his wife left, she took the children as well.  Ben Hall became a bushranger but he was considered a good bushranger.  He looked after the locals.  He was an excellent horseman who knew the bush whereas the troopers were not good at navigating their way through the bush. They also had inferior horses.

SHEILA: BEN HALL - AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGER SERIES BY JANE SMITH


This book is part of a series made by the Dyslexic association.  The book has actual facts about bushrangers.  Ben Hall died just before his 28th birthday when he was shot.  Bushrangers were usually children of convicts and were usually uneducated.  The police were usually uneducated. Apparently he was a nice type of fellow.  Sheila thought it was a good book.

DIANE:  AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGERS BY ROBERT COUPEE

This book tells the stories of Australian bushrangers from early colonial days to the Kelly Gang in 1880. Di said some of the bushrangers were horrible.  Some chopped each other up and some were cannibals.  It was a brutal dictatorship.

JO:  NOT YOUR USUAL BUSHRANGER BY PETER MACINNIS

Jo said "besides the famous bushrangers, this book has bushrangers you have never heard of".  People travelled by coach and bushrangers would rob them and tie them to trees.  The bushrangers would also go to settlers houses and terrorize them.  One gang raped a pregnant woman after killing her husband. They were brutal times.  The book had a lot of interesting facts about the time.  Jo also liked the colonial songs in the back of the book.

VAL:  NED KELLY DVD WITH TONY ROBINSON

Val said she learned quite a bit about Ned Kelly from this DVD.  At twelve years old Ned lost his father.  Val expressed he was a drunken "so and so". Ned Kelly was at a crossroad - he could go one way or the other.  He started with horse stealing.  He was put into prison for three years and in that time he was brutalized.  He was hanged at age 26.

WENDY (1):  THE HUNT FOR NED KELLY BY SOPHIE MASSON

This book was about an eighteen year old girl and her brother who are orphans.  They go in search of Ned Kelly . They are helped by two people who happen to be Ned Kelly and Steve Hart.

Wendy also read HEROES AND VILLAINS BY EDGAR PENZIG.  She said it was supposed to be true facts but it was badly written.  The anecdotes are amusing.

PRUE:  TRUE HISTORY OF KELLY GANG BY PETER CAREY

The narrative is in first person, from Ned to his daughter.  It uses words of the period and colloquialism.  It has Irish and Australian influence and humour. The characters are well developed.  You felt like you could see it and feel it.  It described the harshness of the time and the brutality of the police. She said she really enjoyed it and said it was fantastic. Peter Carey thought we were a nation of orphans.
Prue also read BAD NED. Ned is a bit of a bad boy who makes trouble. This is a junior book.  Prue enjoyed it and she thought it was a good book for introducing kids to Ned Kelly.

CHARIS:  IN SEARCH OF CAPTAIN MOONLITE BY PAUL TERRY

There is controversy over the spelling of  Moonlite.  His real name was George Scott. He was born in Ireland and emigrated in the 1860's.   He was a popular pastor in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria when things went haywire and he got caught up in a bank robbery.  Charis said he was more of a conman than a bushranger.  He cheated people out of money.  Charis said it was a good book.

JUDY A.:  OUT OF THE MISTS, HIDDEN HISTORY OF JESSIE HICKMAN
BY DI MOORE

This is the hidden history of Jesse Hickman, a female bushranger.  She was born near Oberon.  At eight years old she was given to the circus by her mother.  She eventually moved to the Denman area and took up horse and cattle rustling.  She died of a brain tumour at age nineteen.  The narrative is non fiction first person.  The story didn't gel with Judy and she found the dialogue stilted but interesting.

ROSEMARIE:  THE LADY BUSHRANGER BY PAT STUDDY- CLIFT

This book is about Jessie Hickman, a female bushranger.  There were three female bushrangers.      One was part aboriginal called Black Mary.  Jessie had a rough childhood.  She moved to the Rylstone/Kandos area where her brother lived.  She stole cattle.  She could survive well in the bush and was an excellent horserider.   She married Ben Hickman. She had two gaol terms.  Rosemarie said the book was not very enjoyable.

JUDY DE:  THE HISTORY OF THE AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGERS BY GEORGE BOXALL

Judy said it was a bit boring as it was just facts.  It is mainly documents and police records. She is only part way through but said it would be a good resource book.

ED:  AUSTRALIAN BUSHRANGING BY BILL WANNAN

Ed chose a story about Captain Thunderbolt who was in the New England area.  His real name was Fred Ward.  He had a Robin Hood reputation.  He was born in 1836 in Windsor.  He was sent to Cockatoo Island for cattle stealing.  He swam across Sydney Harbour to escape and went to Hawkesbury, later to Cessnock.  

DIANN:  BUSHRANGERS, THE STORY OF AUSTRALIA'S WILD COLONIAL BOYS
BY KENNETH MUIR

This book is divided into different types of convicts.  Bushrangers are a part of factual history.  Unfortunately they became folk heroes to lower levels of society.  Circumstances dictated what happened to them.

PAT:  As Pat didn't have time to read a book this month she gave us some interesting facts about bushrangers.  They were usually sons of convicts.  Frank Gardiner was part of the Wild Colonial boys and was not a nice man.    Bold Jack Donahue, who was also part of the Wild Colonial Boys, had  a Robin Hood style. The discovery of gold brought a new type of convict.  In 1865 an Act brought bushrangers under control.  Bushrangers could be shot without a trial.

LESLEY told us that the first bushranger was a black slave called Black Caesar.  He was a huge man with an enormous appetite. Governor John Hunter put out a reward of 5 gallons of rum for Black Caesar's capture. She also told us that there were 2000 bushrangers through the 1800's.  They had a cultural impact on places, plays, songs, books, movies and art.

KRIS:   THE SECRET OF THE BLACK BUSHRANGER BY JACKIE FRENCH

This book is for older children.  It's the 3rd in a series that explores the secret history of Australia. 
It's written in the 1st person by Barnie Bean.  He and Elsie are both orphans living with the chaplain, Mr Johnson and his wife and family.  He is the chaplain to the colony in N.S.W. in 1790.  There is also a young indigenous girl, Birrung living with the family.  The chaplain and Barney help Australia's first bushranger escape.  He was a slave of African descent who was sent out on a ship
from England, arriving in Australia in 1788.  He was called Black Caesar.  Although the book is fiction, Black Caesar did exist and the Johnsons were real characters as well.  Kris enjoyed the book.

Next month, October, we are reading a selection of books by the author Rose Tremain - "Restoration",  "The Road Home" or "Music - A Silence".    Kris

AUGUST, 2017 - "SHERLOCK HOLMES" NOVELS BY ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

The author, ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE was born in Scotland in 1859 and died in 1930.  He was best known for his detective fiction featuring Sherlock Holmes. Holmes was partially modelled on his former university teacher, Dr Joseph Bell. Doyle was originally a physician.  In 1887 he published A Study in Scarlet, the first of four novels about Sherlock Holmes and his assistant Dr Watson.

WENDY:  THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES - SHORT STORIES

Wendy liked his style and characterizations.  She didn't get a whole picture of Sherlock Holmes or Watson (narrator) and there weren't huge plots in the short stories.  She found them amusing to read.

ROSEMARY:  THE COMPLETE SHERLOCK HOLMES SHORT STORIES

Rosemary read the first story "Scandal in Bohemia".  She had read it before and enjoyed going back to it this time.  The book was given to her by her grandfather when she was a child. She saw the similarities in characterization in the television show "Elementary".

HOUNDS OF THE BASKERVILLES 

ANNE  didn't like his writing and found it stilted.   She also noted that his books aren't very long.

JUDY A. saw the movie as a child and was terrified.  She enjoyed the book and said it was like a Boys Own Adventure.  Judy also said that Holmes conclusions were always backed up by fact.  Arthur Conan Doyle was taught about occupational stigma by Dr Joseph Bell. An example would be that soil on a shoe may only come from one particular area.  Sherlock Holmes was the first non professional sleuth.

BEV really enjoyed it.  She had never read any of his books before.

DIANE D. had not read it before.  She loved it.  She said that before Holmes and Watson go out to a case they make sure they have the revolver in their bag. 

JULIA said there wasn't much else to say except that she enjoyed the book and it brought to mind the movie version.

PRUE:  CONAN DOYLE STORIES

Prue found them enjoyable.  There were many short stories but no Sherlock Holmes.  She said they were not all mysteries and were written in the style of the area.  They were very descriptive.

PAT:  SHORT STORIES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

Pat said she was impatient as it took too long to get to the point.  She preferred watching the movies or series rather than reading the books.

DIANN:  SHORT STORIES, VOLUME 4 - THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

Diann wasn't sure of this author.  She also felt impatient and said it was too slow for her.  She did like the bibliography at the back.  It had the important dates in the life of the author, Arthur Conan Doyle.

A STUDY IN SCARLET

PAULINE said she doesn't usually like detective novels.  There were two murders and half way through the murder is solved.  Then in part 2 there is a separate story set 30 years earlier in the U.S.A.  It gives the explanation of why it all happened.  She said it was well written and she liked the second part better than the first.  She found Sherlock a bit arrogant.  Pauline said she is not sure she will read another one.

CHARIS said the murderer was identified after 71 pages using deductive analysis.  The second half was told from the position of the murderer.  Sherlock solved the crimes but gave the credit to the detectives.  She said it was readable, although confounding in the beginning.  

CONNIE enjoyed the first half better than the second.  The murder was solved in the first part.  She said the second half was not enjoyable and a bit unbelievable.

KRIS:  THE VALLEY OF FEAR

This story is also told in two parts.  The first is set in England.  Holmes received a coded message warning of danger to a Mr.Douglas of Birlstone House in Sussex.  Before Holmes can act,  Mr.Douglas is found dead.  The second part goes back in time and is set in the American coal valleys.  The first part was very interesting but the second part was not enjoyable and perhaps a bit unbelievable.

PAMELA:  THE WHITE COMPANY BY ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

This is not a Sherlock Holmes novel but  historical fiction published in 1891.  It is set in England, France and Spain during the 100 years war.  Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a lot of historical novels and was very interested in the medieval period.  This book was very popular in WWII and was Arthur Conan Doyle's favourite book. It's well researched.  Pamela said it may appeal more to male readers as it is about war, although it does have episodes of humour.

JO:  THE ILLUSTRATED SHERLOCK HOLMES TREASURY

Jo read four of the stories.  She found them interesting.  She enjoyed what she read and liked the powers of observation of Sherlock Holmes.  This book has many good illustrations of people of that era.

JUDY DE:  THE ADVENTURES AND MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

This book is written from Watson's point of view.  Judy loves the way he writes and she likes the characterizations.  She said Sherlock is very observant and she  likes the way he works out the occupation of the murderer or whether he rides a horse. Judy read the stories as a child and enjoyed them just as much now.

CLAURENE didn't read Sherlock Holmes as she had been away.  She read TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE BY MITCH ALBOM.  She said it was a beautiful book based on a true story about a young man and an old man and life's basic lessons.  The author was the student of the older man.  When he hears the older man is dying, he contacts him and the story is about their connection.

VAL:  MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES - ADVENTURES OF SILVER BLAZE

Val enjoyed it but said it was written for a different world and time, a simpler time.  It's about a prize winning racehorse in Devon.  The horse disappears and the trainer is found dead.  When Sherlock is interviewing the trainer's wife he comments that he met her at a ball wearing a beautiful gown. Watson wonders what he is up to but then it is  revealed that it wasn't his wife, but his girlfriend.  You will have to read the book to find out the ending.

ED:  SIGN OF FOUR

In the beginning Sherlock hasn't got a crime to investigate so he injects himself with morphine.  Ed was really surprised.  She was also surprised about Watson falling madly in love very quickly.   Jewels go missing and now Sherlock Holmes has an interesting case to investigate.   Ed had never read any of the books before and enjoyed reading this one.


We would like to welcome our newest member, Debora and look forward to hearing her comments at our next meeting.

 In September we are reading about Australian Bushrangers.

Kris

JULY, 2017 NOVELS BY THE AUTHOR JANE AUSTEN

We read various titles by the author Jane Austen. It is stated that her novels critique and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century but her understanding of family relationships and human nature make them timeless.  They are also an interesting observation of social customs, manners and morals at the time.

 EMMA

VAL read this at school.  She found it very boring, tedious and very convoluted and disliked the character Emma.  After reading an article that stated you had to look beyond Jane Austen's stories to see the social commentary, Val's admiration grew for the author.  

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

BEV read this at school.  She is not really a Jane Austen fan but found it easier to read this time.  She noted the social commentary about marrying off daughters.

MANSFIELD PARK

JO found it very boring.  The story is about a girl from a poor family who is taken from her home and given to her aunt and uncle.  She said all they worried about was whether a girl was good enough for a man and if the man had enough money.  She read it all with great difficulty.

DIANN only read 70 pages.  She enjoyed Emma and Pride and Prejudice but this book made her angry.  It's about a minister and his family who took their niece in as her family was very poor.  They expected her to be educated up to their standard very quickly and there was no compassion from the minister. 

PRUE read them all earlier so didn't re-read any. She just told us a little about the author.  Jane Austen wrote for family entertainment.  It was exposure of society at the time.  She didn't publish under her name.  The author was just listed as a lady.  Sir Walter Scott, who was a popular author at the time, was more difficult to read.  Jane Austen was a lighter read.

ROSEMARIE told us some fun facts about Jane Austen.  Jane was the 7th child.  Her mother, Cassandra was of a higher social standing than her husband.  Jane completed six novels, four of which were  published before her death.  Many authors criticized her. The earliest recorded use of the word "baseball" in an English novel was Northanger Abbey. There are fourteen kisses in her novels. The whole family was literary but only Jane became an author. 

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY

JUDY DE enjoyed the book.  She had also watched the television series.  She said a lot of the characters have intelligence but not empathy.

PERSUASION

PAMELA loves Jane Austen for her innovate speech.  She writes with such irony and sets up a character quickly. The main character is Anne.  Her father is Sir Walter Elliot.  His favourite book is the Baronetage, indicating how he looks into the past.  He had the idea that a gentleman had to be a man of property and this idea was already outdated.  Sir Walter and his eldest daughter are so different from Anne.

CHARIS said it was obvious that Jane Austen supported the Navy. The main character, Anne was to marry Captain Wentworth from the Navy, but was persuaded otherwise.  She is now eight years older and it is time to make a decision and not to carry her anger into this second opportunity to marry him.

JUDY J said she was more of a watcher than a reader of Jane Austen.  Judy said the book was almost biographical.  It was published after her death.  She was going to call it the Elliots but was encouraged to call it Persuasion.  Jane Austen's brother was also in the Navy and his wife lived on the ship. 

JULIA found it boring.  She felt she was over Jane Austen. 

JUDY A enjoyed this book. The main character, Anne is engaged to Frederick Wentworth who is in the Navy. She is persuaded by an older female friend to end the engagement.  Ten years later Anne comes in contact with him again when he visits his brother, who was also in the Navy.  She has never stopped loving Captain Wentworth.  Anne's father and eldest daughter, Elizabeth are both very class conscious.  Anne's other sister has married into the Musgrove family who are very down to earth.

KRIS thoroughly enjoyed it second time around.  Her novels explore the dependence of a woman on marriage for economic security. The story is about Anne Elliot who was betrothed to a poor naval officer, Frederick Wentworth.  She breaks off the engagement when she is persuaded by her friend, Lady Russell that it is an unworthy match.  It causes her long lasting regret as she still loves him.  They meet again many years later when his position and wealth have improved, but will an opportunity present itself again? 

DIANE said she relished every word and enjoyed it because of all the news at the present regarding the anniversary of Jane Austen's death.  She said it was about the social mor'es that kept women in their place.

NORTHANGER ABBEY

CONNIE appreciated the language and the grammar.  She could understand the social comment but felt all her books were alike.  In her other books, Connie felt Jane Austen was in the book.    What interested Connie in her writing was that she's telling you, the reader, what she thinks.  It's called indirect discourse narration. 

WENDY has read Jane Austen before and felt she had come home.  She loved it.  The first four pages explains Catherine and her family to a "T".  Catherine is a dopey teenager.  In circumstances she grows and the person she marries helps her to grow.  Her husband is mature, intelligent and brings out the best in Catherine.  Austen talks to the reader all the time.  The second part of the book is a real parody of Gothic novels.  Wendy found it very amusing, had great character development and was a clever commentary on the time.

TAM enjoys Jane Austen a lot.  She loved the old world language.  She said it was good to go back to such beautiful language.  The character development was good and it was good to look at the social commentary.
 


 After this month's Book Club meeting, we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas in July at the Cornerstone Cafe in Windsor.  This was organized by our hard working co-ordinator, Julia.  

Kris 

June : Australian Classics

PRUE:   The Hanging Garden by Patrick White

The draft of this book was found on Patrick White’s desk after his death in 1990 and was eventually published in 2012. It had been left largely unfinished and is thought to be initially one of 3 parts. It tells the story of 2 children who are brought to a wild garden on the shores of Sydney Harbour to shelter from the Second World War. The boy's mother has died in the Blitz. The girl is the daughter of a Sydney woman and a Communist executed in a Greek prison. In wartime Australia, these two children form an extraordinary bond as they negotiate the dangers of life as strangers abandoned on the far side of the world.

Prue thought it a beautiful story, difficult at first to read but pleased she persevered with it.

VAL:   Coal Creek by Alex Miller

Although the author was born in England, he migrated to Australia as a 16 year old, and grew up droving in both Australia and New Zealand.

The story is the Australian outback of the 1940s. Tough people with a gentle core are misunderstood and read incorrectly when the new police officer, with a sense of self-importance, driven by a sense of superiority, is determined to shape up the town. An illiterate boy of 20 narrates the story making it seem appropriate to the tough and unforgiving landscape that is so important to the story.

A sad but beautiful book, said Val.

Ed:   Jessica by Bryce Courtney

Jessica is based on the inspiring true story of a young girl's fight for justice against tremendous odds.
A tomboy, Jessica is the pride of her father, as they work together on the struggling family farm. One quiet day, the peace of the bush is devastated by a terrible murder. Jessica is the only one able to save the killer from the lynch mob, but will he receive justice in the court?

There are many other side stories that make this one of the author’s most popular books.

Judy #1   We of the Never Never by Aeneas Gunn

Published as a novel, it is the account of the author’s experiences in 1902 at Elesey Station in the Northern Territory. She was the first white woman to settle in the area, and at first the people on and around the station resented her, eventually winning their affection and respect.

Published in 1908, the book is significant in that it described the things that made Australia different from anywhere else – life in the outback.

CLAURINE:  Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

Set in the summer of 1965 in a small rural town in Western Australia.

Jasper Jones is an older, rebellious, mixed race boy who seeks the help of his younger friend Charlie. Keen to impress he follows Jasper into the bush. After finding body of Jasper’s girlfriend the two of them try to find out who had done it. Small town prejudices and understanding the truth make this an interesting novel. Not a ‘who done it’ but more a ‘who will tell’ said Claurine.

 

JO:   Five Ring Circus by John Cleary

Set in Sydney in the lead up to the 2000 Olympic Games, it is the 15^th book featuring the detective Scobie Malone. He investigates murder, conspiracy and corruption taking place during the preparations for the Olympics.

Jo described it as a good read and enjoyed the references to familiar places.

DIANN:  Daughter of Australia by Harmony Verna

This is the story of 2 children who grow up in an orphanage in Western Australia and develop a strong bond to each other.

This is only broken when the girl is adopted by a wealthy American couple and the boy, by relatives from Ireland who have emigrated to claim him.

When they later meet again, their lives have taken very different courses!

Diann believes this will be a future classic.

DIANE:  The Bush by Don Watson

The author grew up on a dairy farm and had previously been the scriptwriter for Paul Keating. But in this book he explores the bush, the way it had been and how it is now. He writes about the characters, the mistakes that have been made, the horrors and the beauty of the bush. He writes about the character of mateship, the stories from the shearing shed, and the knowledge the aborigines possess but which is generally ignored. He writes in an amusing way.

Diane believes that if this isn’t a classic, it should be!

CONNIE:  Swords, Crowns and Rings by Ruth Park

This is the story of a boy born a dwarf in 1906 and it follows his life until 1932. He is from a poor family but forms a lasting friendship with a girl from a rich and ambitious family who frown on the relationship.

There are moving descriptions of life during the war and the Depression, very hard times to live through.

A well-written and very emotional book.

PAT:  Breath by Tim Winton

Set in a small coastal town in Western Australia, the story is narrated by Bruce "Pikelet" Pike, a divorced, middle-aged paramedic and takes the form of a long flashback in which he remembers his childhood friendship with Loonie. The main action of the novel takes place in the 1970s.

The boys are mentored by an older surfer who encourages their risk taking. He then reflects how this affected his life later on. The choices they made in their youth followed them all their lives!

CHARIS:  A Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Charis thought this was a classic piece of writing. Set during The Plague in England it described how one woman coped and survived. The author’s humane approach comes through especially as she writes about life and death.

March also by Geraldine Brooks is a retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s novel Little Women from the point of view of Alcott's protagonists' absent father.

A feature of both books is the author’s meticulous research.

 

DENISE:  The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea by Randolf Stow

Set in Geraldton, Western Australia in the 1940s, the story revolves around two main characters, Rob and Rick, over a span of 8 years. Rick is Rob's older cousin who leaves to fight in WWII. Rob is a five-year-old little boy who adores him.

Rick comes back after the war, a changed man, having been captured and spent time in prison camps in Singapore and Thailand. Rob doesn’t understand why he has changed as he has spent his growing up time in the countryside.

It is certainly one of Denise’s favourite books!

BEV:   Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay

The plot focuses on a group of female students at a private school in 1900 that inexplicably vanish at Hanging Rock while on a picnic. It also explores the repercussions the disappearances have on the school and local community.

Bev thoroughly enjoyed it and thought it the best book she had read all year!

JUDY #4:  A Fortunate Life by A B Facey

This is the extraordinary life of an ordinary man. He faced so many tragedies yet he thought his life was fortunate.

Judy described the book as being written in a simple and unadorned fashion, without a whiff of sentimentality.

WENDY:  Getting of Wisdom by H H Richardson

Set in 1890’s where Laura who comes from a struggling rural family is sent to boarding school in Melbourne. She doesn’t fit in, she’s poor, cocky, willful and intelligent.

Wendy thought the ending was ambiguous; Laura had grown apart from her family and had to conform to be accepted.

The book raises the question of girls who were educated in these times, where did they go from there?

A great little book!

ANNE:  Aunts Up The Cross by Robyn Dalton

This is the story of a young girl who, in the 1920s lives with her aunts and a few uncles in the gentile end of Kings Cross. There are great characters coming and going in the house and all told with a rye sense of humour.

JULIA:  Magic Pudding by Norman Lindsay and Snugglepot and Cuddlepie by May Gibbs.

Both of these are favourites of Julia and her children. Great for reading aloud and sharing the beautiful illustrations.

ROSEMARY:  A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute

This is a novel in 2 parts. The first tells the fight for survival by number English women in Malaya who have been captured by the Japanese during World War 11.

The second is a love story. It takes place six years later when a newly wealthy English woman returns to Malaya to build a well for the villagers who helped her during war. Thinking back, she recalls the Australian man who made a great sacrifice to aid her and her fellow prisoners of war. She has to find him.

The book has a happy ending and was much enjoyed by Rosemary.

 

TAM: Shearer’s Colt from an Anthology by A B Patterson

A rich boy (an Earl’s son) is sent over to Australia, and he meets up with a shearer who has made money in the goldfields. They team up to go into the horseracing business together.

It’s good fun and a good read. Tam’s comment was that Patterson captures the Australia of the time in his characters.

KRIS:  The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas

Kris described the book as a modern classic!

She liked the idea of the story and it really made her think.

She found the behavior of people at the bar-b-que very annoying and some children particularly badly behaved.

While she thought the sex and the language were awful and people so objectionable, it must be good writing to bring up so much emotion.

JOAN:  Nine Parts of Desire, The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks

While a Foreign Correspondent in the Middle East, the author shared an office with a young woman who changed to Muslim fundamentalist. Why did she suddenly accept this old religious code?

The book seeks answers from Islamic women.

Joan found it very enlightening, written in a very good journalistic style and easy to read.

UPCOMING BOOK CLUB TITLES

JULY: any Jane Austen book (apart from Emma)

AUGUST:  A Sherlock Holmes novel by Arthur Conan Doyle

SEPTEMBER: Australian Bushrangers

OCTOBER: author Rose Tremain – Restoration, Music-A- Silence & The Road Home