Shambolic Living

Reading This Week – Sisters of Mercy – Caroline Overington

Janine — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 07:16:25 +0000

This year I am again taking part in the Australian Women Writers Challenge. This means I am committing to reading six books by Australian female writers and reviewing at least four of them. The first cab off the rank is Sisters of Mercy by Caroline Overington. Two sisters, raised apart unaware they had a sibling, are...

Reading This Week – Fishing for Tigers – Emily Maguire

Janine — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 20:43:23 +0000

Firstly, a disclaimer, I’m a prude. Even as a teenager I was a goody-two-shoes who was uninterested in what anyone was doing in regards to bedroom activity. Today, I continue to ignore the Fifty Shades of Gray phenomena. I haven’t even been able to bring myself to read The Bride Stripped Bare by Nikki...

Reading This Week – Floundering by Romy Ash

Janine — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Floundering is a first-time novel by Romy Ash. It’s the story of two boys who are reclaimed by their dysfunctional mother after a year of living happily with their grandparents, and taken on a mysterious and foreboding road trip. The novel starts strongly and incorporates some beautifully descriptive writing which evokes a clear sense of...

Reading This Week – Watercolours – Adrienne Ferreira

Janine — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 03:40:22 +0000

A gifted child, a quirky family, an inexperienced teacher, a mysterious death all jumbled together in a small, country town that’s the essence of Watercolours. This is the debut novel for Adrienne Ferreira and in it she creates an engaging story with a group of likeable characters. Watercolours is a gentle book which meanders through the...

Reading this Week – The Testimony – Halina Wagowska

Janine — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 23:57:23 +0000

As time passes The Holocaust of World War II moves further into the pages of history. The tragedies and atrocities are at risk of becoming facts, figures and statistics on a page taught to disinterested students who would rather be at the beach than in a stuffy classroom. Eighty-one-year-old human rights activist Halina Wagowska counters...

Australian Women Writers Challenge

Janine — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 01:47:12 +0000

In honour of 2012 being designated the national year of reading I’m signing up for a new challenge. This one is to read and review books by Australian Women Writers. I figure if I can’t be an Australian Women Writer I can at least support the ones who have toiled and struggled to finally get...