The Literary Sofa
Australia
Book Review – Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas
This article contains strong language. I think it would be reasonable to describe The Slap, the controversial global bestseller by Greek-Australian Christos Tsiolkas, as a hard act to follow. Five years on his latest book Barracuda has been greeted with commensurate interest and expectation. Somehow Tsiolkas manages to deliver more of the same – it’s … Continue reading
Book Review – The Engagement by Chloe Hooper
When compiling my two main listings of the year I always like to include fiction from different parts of the world. The vivid sense of both urban and rural Australia in Chloe Hooper’s novel The Engagement is one of many qualities which earned it a place in my Fiction Hot Picks for 2013. Unlike most of … Continue reading
Top 10 Summer Reads 2012
Welcome to my Top 10 Summer Reads 2012. Competition has been fierce and the list could have been five times longer, but I hope my selection has something to suit all tastes: from literary to light, a cracking thriller, different periods in history and a wide range of settings from Australia to Canada and many places in between. I’ve read most … Continue reading
Book Review – The Light Between Oceans by M L Stedman
Sometimes you just get a feeling about a book. As I mentioned in a recent post Book Titles – (Don’t) Call It What You Like, I wanted to read The Light Between Oceans from the moment I heard the title: it is original, it conveys the theme and gives a real taste of the beauty … Continue reading
A World Away – Geographical Settings in Fiction
Every time I write a new piece for my blog I end up with ideas for two or three more! I’m now compiling my Top 10 Summer Reads listing (coming 18 May) and I’m aiming to include a wide variety of settings from Australia to England; coastal, city, country. This got me thinking about how important … Continue reading
Book Review: The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas
Repellent characters, foul language, horrible sex… More than three years after it was published, The Slap continues to reverberate, not least in its native Australia where the TV series is currently being broadcast. This book has quite a reputation. When it came out in the UK in 2010 (and made the Booker longlist) a book group in … Continue reading
My new novel SCENT – out in paperback on 19 May 2022
The Literary Sofa 