tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79197757826425458482024-03-18T04:17:35.673-07:00Anthony Panegyres on writing and readingAnthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.comBlogger179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-73033977237245776362024-03-15T20:25:00.000-07:002024-03-16T16:52:04.632-07:00"An '80s Tenement Love Story' from Bourbon Penn 31 an Aurealis Award Finalist<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6UpMzRB3V-eqh6LPux3HrG0JMhG79MCeg9lL9j4taEkUyUe9hhyfiW36uO7sXdWl1MAM8YwnjcsrpBr0JcnpRYW47RfWeIfEca1mY65Uq6hTLvdP2Xtqs0TcI6EmIaR6uCdMhLinCFrl0v4MZioXZgn7npbRGlZQDNxGEHZwH8WqGiG_tuFbGzBQ2dk/s300/aurealis-awards-finalist-high-res.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6UpMzRB3V-eqh6LPux3HrG0JMhG79MCeg9lL9j4taEkUyUe9hhyfiW36uO7sXdWl1MAM8YwnjcsrpBr0JcnpRYW47RfWeIfEca1mY65Uq6hTLvdP2Xtqs0TcI6EmIaR6uCdMhLinCFrl0v4MZioXZgn7npbRGlZQDNxGEHZwH8WqGiG_tuFbGzBQ2dk/s1600/aurealis-awards-finalist-high-res.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>It's humbling to see my latest story "An '80s Tenement Love Story" recently announced as a finalist for an Aurealis Award. This is the second time I've had an individual story listed as a finalist, with the previous one being 'Reading Coffee' (<i>Overland Literary Journal 204</i>). I have been fortunate to have had stories in numerous finalist anthologies, including <i>Bloodlines</i> ed. Amanda Pillar (Ticonderoga Publications), which won the award. </p><p>Tehani Croft is to be lauded with all the background organisation relating to the Awards.</p><p>I'd like to congratulate all finalists. I'm a fervent supporter of the Aurealis Awards, and I especially like the fact that decisions are made via a panel of judges, rather than via a populist vote that can obviously go astray with the juggernaut that is social media along with online influencers. </p><p>Personally, I've always felt that all finalists are winners. So a huge 'huzzah' to all! Please see th<a href="https://aurealisawards.org/2024/03/15/2023-aurealis-awards-shortlist-announcement/">e link for finalist stories</a>. Hopefully, they'll help shape your TBR shelves. </p><p>And finally, a big shout out to Erik Secker at <i>Bourbon Penn </i>for choosing the story. <i>Bourbon Penn </i>is a world leader in literary stories from the slightly offbeat to the weird. He's a brave editor as there is always an eclectic mix of styles and voices, which I love to see as a reader. </p><p><b>Currently Reading</b>: Apart from my usual novelette and long short story reads, I've just finished <i>All the Light We Cannot See </i>by Anthony Doerr, which impressed, especially in a thematic sense in terms of what it privileged regarding humanity and the arts and learning. Be prepared for an emotional hit though; after all, it is a WW2 novel. And I'm currently reading <i>A Special Providence </i>by Richard Yates, who was one of the finest writers to put pen to paper. </p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-59279651804134672462024-01-01T19:44:00.000-08:002024-02-24T19:12:59.087-08:00Reading and Writing Review 2023<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <b style="text-align: center;"><span>Books Read 2023</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Bourbon Penn 31 </i>Ed. Erik Secker (journal/ anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Constantinople: The Last Great Siege 1453 </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Roger Crowley (history)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Russell B. Farr (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">This Immortal</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Roger Zelazny</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Palm Sunday </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Kurt Vonnegut (memoir/collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Physiognomy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Jeffrey Ford</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Saad Z. Hossain (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Fireheart Tiger</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Aliette de Bodard (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Lessons</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Ian McEwan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Not So Much, Said the Cat</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Michael Swanwick (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Beggars in Spain</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Nancy Cress (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Bourbon Penn 26 </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Erik Secker (journal/ anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Passenger </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Cormac McCarthy</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: Forty New Fairy Tales</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Kate Bernheimer (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Give Me Your Heart </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Joyce Carol Oates (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Tender is the Night </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">F. Scott Fitzgerald</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Factory Witches of Lowell</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">C.S. Malerich (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Things of the Hidden God: Journey to the Holy Mountain </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Christopher Merrill (memoir/expository)</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Yellowcake Summer</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Guy Salvidge</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Asimov’s Science Fiction September/October 2018 </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed Sheila Williams (journal/magazine)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">High Times in the Low Parliament </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Kelly Robson (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Nghi Vo (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Doctor Fischer of Geneva or The Bomb Party</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Graham Greene (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Porcupine </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Julian Barnes (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Ghosts of Sherwood </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Carrie Vaughn (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Coffee, Sex & Health: A History of Anti-Coffee Crusaders and Sexual Hysteria </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ian Bersten (history)</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">Doctor Rat </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">William Kotzwinkle</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I spent most of the year novella<i>ing</i>. I’ve always been a fan of the form, so one day I rocked up at Stephens Books in Perth and bought all the Tor novellas he had on offer. Lucky for me, all read so far have been entertaining.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On the short story front, I’ve read two editions of <i>Bourbon Penn</i> (<i>26 </i>& <i>31</i>) and four stories from <i>One Story;</i> both publish the longer version of short stories to an excellent standard (<i>Asimov’s </i>also had many wonderful longer stories). Although, I’m a proud lifelong subscriber to <i>Overland Literary Journal </i>and a fan<i>, </i>I do wish they’d include a few longer fictional pieces. In fact, Australia’s general word limits in literary journals are creating a false representation of the short story at a national level, which concerns me. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This list of standout reads this year will be short due to time and life parameters. Almost all the books I read over the course of the year are worth reading, with only one I’d warn readers to stay well clear of. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Publishing Front</b>: </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I had </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">‘An ‘80s Tenement Love Story’</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> published in</span><b style="font-family: inherit;"> </b><i style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Bourbon Penn 31</b>. Bourbon Penn is </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">a delightful place to have another story in. I can honestly say that all the accompanying stories have more than just merit, so to have a 30 odd pager in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Bourbon Penn</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> for the second time is a true privilege. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The curator of Auslit sent a lovely uplifting message with four simple words: "I loved this one", which made my day as I have no expectations that Auslit ever read my work with their enormous role. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Erik Secker and the <i>Bourbon Penn </i>team do a fabulous job supporting literature and genre, and that joyous area in which the pair meet. </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Bourbon Penn </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">is the kind of product that suits my own reading taste to a tee. The stories are layered, often meta, always entertaining, but also sublime in terms of the aesthetics of either a courageous narrative voice or controlled prose. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJIeqLUH5c6aXBqfHTimCFclnpaJZTEn4vv6iTZpiOK_NCzeYEvCBYFyp7-sv7vzKqv0Uen9MfGd_FXzxhBJD3z9AzlMuZn68iI0-723-Mt-Qqmmefk-pOoPQyPZ6hNEFqa2HybQpUomSh4W05hi0IfvXUcWZekjRblAERKqs3BS-nGSAyiSSRVa9pLhU/s4032/IMG_5530.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJIeqLUH5c6aXBqfHTimCFclnpaJZTEn4vv6iTZpiOK_NCzeYEvCBYFyp7-sv7vzKqv0Uen9MfGd_FXzxhBJD3z9AzlMuZn68iI0-723-Mt-Qqmmefk-pOoPQyPZ6hNEFqa2HybQpUomSh4W05hi0IfvXUcWZekjRblAERKqs3BS-nGSAyiSSRVa9pLhU/s320/IMG_5530.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">Planet Books </i><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">Mt Lawley </span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Most Enjoyable Reads</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m savagely limiting myself to one per genre, which is incredibly unfair on so many great books. I am also keeping it short this year too in terms of commentary. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">History: </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Constantinople: The Last Great Siege 1453 </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">by</span><i style="font-family: inherit;"> </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Roger Crowley</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Crowley's work is clearly reminiscent of Runciman’s classic </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Fall of Constantinople 1453, </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">and like the Runciman predecessor, Crowly</span><i style="font-family: inherit;"> </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">explores the huge siege of a once glorious city, and the small but valiant defence provided by those dying embers of the ‘New Rome’. The siege has ignited the imaginations of writers and readers for hundreds of years. Crowley ensures we understand its international elements and significance, and the fact that this siege had it all: land, maritime, and even underground elements, along with two inspirational leaders of the era in Constantine Palaiologos, and Mehmet, along with unheralded military weaponry. The event itself was a crucial turning point in history with the clear establishment of the Ottomans as a true superpower not only in The Middle East, but also in Europe, along with the demise of the Byzantines; many of who had already fled en masse to the Greek quarter in Venice along with Southern Italy, whereby they, in turn, provided a major impetus for The Renaissance. And there is plenty of irony in the Greek presence in Venice as no place did more damage to Constantinople than Venice itself with its egregious sacking of the city; a sacking from which Constantinople never recovered from. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Like Runciman before him, Crowley manages to focus on the narratives of the siege, rather than a raw bludgeoning of endless details. And it is Crowley’s capturing of these individual stories within the scope of the overall larger narrative, which make it a delight. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzHzqN3crd37eaGLVPM6WNuo16gWDzUmrF_2mXBQx8DjgC6zG2RrAfFPXziYxmBXTe2-b0eWQ1787swe-oRz1GbYjyBbBzLbh-K0v52gbRbnVQksXKEvnuODHcGQYmlVlCgxyKSrpxExN9LGP-KgOGxmJxosZPzyN6tCfFyK2HVhECw-BhS6Hbkc_N4Zk/s279/Unknown-11.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="181" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzHzqN3crd37eaGLVPM6WNuo16gWDzUmrF_2mXBQx8DjgC6zG2RrAfFPXziYxmBXTe2-b0eWQ1787swe-oRz1GbYjyBbBzLbh-K0v52gbRbnVQksXKEvnuODHcGQYmlVlCgxyKSrpxExN9LGP-KgOGxmJxosZPzyN6tCfFyK2HVhECw-BhS6Hbkc_N4Zk/s1600/Unknown-11.jpeg" width="181" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Anthology: <i>Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i>Ed. Russell B. Farr</b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b> </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i>Ed. Russell B. Farr (anthology) is made up of novelettes or novellas, depending on where you believe the arbitrary cut-off is. Each one of these novelettes is an entertaining read. Numerous were in my previous list of best stories read for the year. A couple of works draw on more traditional tropes, which I have no problem with as the execution is superb, while others are innovative and experimental in nature. But I admired each and every work. A consistently superb anthology.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikXB8rXT3dxIAj9ZnxYqaF6OI3SmU-AWCbFbeWqAetryZ8JeI3awIrwkXjnF7eRLe9HZK43GFWmzpwnTm9uBVM2gQs7vxOsYki4k9zfqnO1NcjeqwQ4r8isQuFs2bFRM4txDzPln_oyHdWTKveBDNiI5gdzHknA9Hjkj1Dgn5fzLbDOx7_2_ol7KuW7oY/s275/Unknown-12.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikXB8rXT3dxIAj9ZnxYqaF6OI3SmU-AWCbFbeWqAetryZ8JeI3awIrwkXjnF7eRLe9HZK43GFWmzpwnTm9uBVM2gQs7vxOsYki4k9zfqnO1NcjeqwQ4r8isQuFs2bFRM4txDzPln_oyHdWTKveBDNiI5gdzHknA9Hjkj1Dgn5fzLbDOx7_2_ol7KuW7oY/s1600/Unknown-12.jpeg" width="183" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><i>My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: Forty New Fairy Tales</i> Ed. Kate Bernheimer is also excellent. The anthology is incredibly eclectic with many wonderfully written stories.<span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Novel: <i>This Immortal </i>by Roger Zelazny</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This novel was awarded the Hugo along with <i>Dune</i> in 1966 in what was a tied place. And while <i>Dune</i> went on to become an iconic cult classic for many SF fans, the innovative, albeit chaotic, <i>This Immortal</i>, fell into relative obscurity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This was not the 'best' read of the year, but for a variety of reasons, I found it the most enjoyable. In <i>This Immortal, </i>post-apocalyptic Earth is in danger of completely collapsing, and it’s now a perilous tourist resort for blue Vegans (an alien people, not entirely different from today’s equivalent…). The hero of the story, Conrad Nomikos, is a mysterious survivor with a long history in the Aegean. He claims he is a <i>kallikantzaros </i>but he is an anthropomorph. But perhaps Conrad is even more than a <i>kallikantzaros,</i> and yesterday’s Pan? As a reader you are unsure at times as to whose side Conrad belongs to, but you can’t help but barrack for Conrad Nomikos, whose Greek island home is destroyed early on in the story along with his lover. Conrad is typical of a Zelazny hero: self-deprecating, cunning and elusive, irreverent, but also laden with hidden powers. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Not all will enjoy <i>This Immortal</i>, but Zelazny’s mish-mash of modern Greek folktale combined with Classical Greek mythology, combined again and with his own zany sci-fi world building is a treat. Zelazny also really understood the Greek cultural elements of the 1960s. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>This Immortal </i>will never enjoy the legendary status of Zelazny’s far more controlled <i>Lord of Light</i>, or the adventurous swashbuckling brilliance of <i>The Chronicles of Amber </i>work. Rather, <i>This Immortal</i> is more of a madcap ride through a chaotic wilderness. The seemingly unplanned adventure makes it a compelling read. Perhaps at the time of reading it, I was after something that was less polished, not superbly crafted, but raw and ambitious. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The subversive nature and courage of Conrad is also refreshing when compared to many of today’s almost apologetic heroes. I’ll confess that <i>Dune</i> has dated far less, yet part of the joy of <i>This Immortal</i> is that it <i>has </i>dated to a ridiculous extent. The unexpected unplanned nature of <i>This Immortal </i>is a reward in itself, especially when compared to the modern era of celebrating carefully sculpted works. The climax and lead up in <i>This Immortal</i> is all fairly psychotic. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>This Immortal</i> will undoubtedly divide readers, especially if they are going in with contemporary expectations of what good literature is. Characters in <i>This Immortal </i>come and go, scenes and enemies change without an abundance of logic, and there is also an expectation that you, as a reader, will have mountains of cultural capital, especially regarding modern and ancient Greece. All AOK with me, but be warned…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">If I were to be objective, I’d clearly state that this novel is stuck in a past era, but, for me at least, that made it refreshing. Although a personal highlight, I’ll provide a final caveat: unless you’re a time traveling sci-fi geek and lover of mythology, who can also deal with dated worlds and characters and random rolls, you may want to avoid <i>This Immortal. </i>And although I enjoyed it that’s a pretty specific caveat…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga3cjlSsWBdBXPN3cIbT_GciRW_4cXWVOCCIQIGNNotwslNkBlV4TTfNAEz9ZcLOJq6ooBcIczAuR_O0qscWzaIhHHgvdpc0wFjeCGhyphenhyphenMffRqwL_qin8l2sWuyoBWUZ4Ie7-9oT2nBMaCysh0tFJYPuyX28zwq1_CSYcKocyUz84qrdBjJCwFZBySbM-U/s288/Unknown-13.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="175" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga3cjlSsWBdBXPN3cIbT_GciRW_4cXWVOCCIQIGNNotwslNkBlV4TTfNAEz9ZcLOJq6ooBcIczAuR_O0qscWzaIhHHgvdpc0wFjeCGhyphenhyphenMffRqwL_qin8l2sWuyoBWUZ4Ie7-9oT2nBMaCysh0tFJYPuyX28zwq1_CSYcKocyUz84qrdBjJCwFZBySbM-U/s1600/Unknown-13.jpeg" width="175" /></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Memoir-collection </b></span><i style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: bold;">Palm Sunday </i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: bold;">by Kurt Vonnegut</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Like <i>This Immortal, </i>this is another text that will polarise readers. Some parts delight more than others, but as always, Vonnegut’s honesty and wit and conversational honesty won me over. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Vonnegut often uniquely manipulated and blended genre, and <i>Palm Sunday</i> is a wonderful example of this. It contains a bizarre collage of family histories, speeches, reflections on works, reflections on his marriages, reflections on his parents, reflections on his home life and children, stories of his own, thoughts on mental health and family, praise of creative types, letters, and even essays and… the list goes on. And a bit like Zelazny’s aforementioned work, at times <i>Palm Sunday</i> appears to have the structure of a randomly rolled die.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So, unless you’re a true fan like me, this may disappoint. Vonnegut meanders all over the place with a recklessness in a structural sense. But for a Vonnegut fan, the sentiment and quirkiness will win readers over, but for others, the sporadic, disconnected nature of the text and its many imperfections, will be just that, an imperfect disordered rambling discourse. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Yet, circling back to the fans, for those who like to sit back and hear Vonnegut chat away and digress all over the place, this will be a treasure chest. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For me, Vonnegut is a celebrated rarity: a truly hopeful cynic. Irony abounds…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXn0HBbSFY3loBcl3MnXj2RQt0EfXXq0aXo1tUfFfYm1_9ZYwozlaC3yypL8gseWy6LDMhlKE5Xo44DXH4nyoXra7_0AUkkFZpBk7xCpEkcR2WylpJzmqolTKUWZXVNeXP_56W3FtGj4pRccUKvcyk9g4BcK6JC3KZVLRNm9SqSW8BXlDU9WhCKnT2YIM/s277/Unknown-14.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="277" data-original-width="182" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXn0HBbSFY3loBcl3MnXj2RQt0EfXXq0aXo1tUfFfYm1_9ZYwozlaC3yypL8gseWy6LDMhlKE5Xo44DXH4nyoXra7_0AUkkFZpBk7xCpEkcR2WylpJzmqolTKUWZXVNeXP_56W3FtGj4pRccUKvcyk9g4BcK6JC3KZVLRNm9SqSW8BXlDU9WhCKnT2YIM/s1600/Unknown-14.jpeg" width="182" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Novella: <o:p></o:p></span><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday </i><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">by Saad Z. Hossain</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Many came close, but in the end I went with zany <i>The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday </i>by Saad Z. Hossain. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">After millennia, the mighty Djinn, Melek Ahmar the Lord of Tuesday, is awoken by a cunning retired Gurkha, Bhan Gurung. But those in the nearby city of Kathmandu have forgotten the mystic might of Melek Ahmar. The world Gurung returns Melek to has been ravaged by climate change, and myriad of other disasters. But nanotechnology and microclimates make Kathmandu inhabitable. Karma, the supreme ruler of Kathmandu, is an algorithm of sorts, who supposedly gives out points to its good citizens. Melek wants an old fashioned violent upheaval but modern humans are quite apathetic to his cause, plus the city’s tame inhabitants weirdly don’t share the same passion he has towards old fashioned boozing and brawling. The cunning puppet master, Bhan Gurung, has his own motives for keeping Melek’s outdated egomaniacal spirit alight and firing. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This is simply a fun read, blending the fantasy of Arabian Nights with nano-sci-fi-technology, all in a tale of vengeance that rivals Alexandre Dumas, but at a quarter of the length. <i>The Gurkha and The Lord of Tuesday </i>is a genre-blending mish-mash of entertainment.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QfsoYA9SY8gc8AQRvTvQn4qOFm8lN0VsWtI70RY-IIyvq0Nq9TCFOKKHwjLwTKvU7C3dhmhiki5f_oCiobeYj22bhhLPurlKgScLqL2g8TSfhtjfTtcNBJBdoCF0m-cModUDXYuyGIDJJWvVWLyPFwX2ZVf8biwBlFP48bzIWc1BEPLsLuSM2QLQ2wM/s284/Unknown-15.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="177" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QfsoYA9SY8gc8AQRvTvQn4qOFm8lN0VsWtI70RY-IIyvq0Nq9TCFOKKHwjLwTKvU7C3dhmhiki5f_oCiobeYj22bhhLPurlKgScLqL2g8TSfhtjfTtcNBJBdoCF0m-cModUDXYuyGIDJJWvVWLyPFwX2ZVf8biwBlFP48bzIWc1BEPLsLuSM2QLQ2wM/s1600/Unknown-15.jpeg" width="177" /></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><br /></span></p> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Collection: </b></span><b><i style="text-align: left;">Not So Much, Said the Cat </i><span style="text-align: left;">by Michael Swanwick</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Joyce Carol Oates’ <i>Give Me Your Heart</i> contains numerous superb stories, but the bleak overall thematic nature offers little in terms of hope, so <i>Not So Much, Said the Cat </i>by Michael Swanwick is the collection pick this year as the tone and nature of the stories allow for more versatility, and there is also a dose of humour, which can make any text more meaningful and rewarding. I find that Swanwick even at his worst is still a good read, which speaks volumes in itself. As expected, Swanwick has produced an amusing and innovative collection of stories here. It’s nice to know that there’s a writer like Swanwick around who you can turn to whenever you’re in the need for a good short read. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Vh8keATqXBRRdHAOUtgVFSBY5DCHHA9x-SxPAPt1cfmizvTJqhuf2XSaXZr56hHms4Jo3cT9nGN5xDHAOZsmruJ_r_DSaitQdwL38_TcaPEYx_cLU7bxy6-S_iJ12VHLB2M1DfcXrb696vn-BtfBJEyrHnHKlcY7A41rfoo9cM3TdN6P7lshMVwsFvQ/s279/Unknown-16.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="180" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Vh8keATqXBRRdHAOUtgVFSBY5DCHHA9x-SxPAPt1cfmizvTJqhuf2XSaXZr56hHms4Jo3cT9nGN5xDHAOZsmruJ_r_DSaitQdwL38_TcaPEYx_cLU7bxy6-S_iJ12VHLB2M1DfcXrb696vn-BtfBJEyrHnHKlcY7A41rfoo9cM3TdN6P7lshMVwsFvQ/s1600/Unknown-16.jpeg" width="180" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Happy 2024!</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Hope you all have a happy and meaningful and healthy year with plenty of good reads! </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-19312168265132626142023-12-26T04:24:00.000-08:002023-12-26T06:02:58.939-08:0025 Beautiful Stories and Novelettes from my 2023 Reads<p>Although I read a variety of genre, I'm quite choosy about what I read in the short form. My preferences also tend towards long short stories and novelettes rather than flash fiction. Over the last few years, I've ruthlessly made the yearly cutoff at twenty-five, but as per the norm many more stories beyond the twenty-five listed deserve praise (I'm also too careful about drawing from anthologies I've had stories published in as I have a natural bias towards these works). This year, I read exactly 100 stories. For me, these 25 stories are the very best of an excellent bunch I read this year. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrv3U9IDy24N86XO3LygB5mdhqs3kZrVFgU8uQ1bv4FmBvIcuaK4NwwMdYgRLzOWP2Ez7m6U5jaqlWeHq6w-Ctc5XON1qgE5OzaArr9d1h5sIC7eb0MeLgrc_eXuni0KqCm71c6QIDO4aQAeH-CCZT3h6sbEj5nlZX4oQHjR5HFpKpZ17n2K4WN_iKDoI/s279/Unknown-8.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="181" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrv3U9IDy24N86XO3LygB5mdhqs3kZrVFgU8uQ1bv4FmBvIcuaK4NwwMdYgRLzOWP2Ez7m6U5jaqlWeHq6w-Ctc5XON1qgE5OzaArr9d1h5sIC7eb0MeLgrc_eXuni0KqCm71c6QIDO4aQAeH-CCZT3h6sbEj5nlZX4oQHjR5HFpKpZ17n2K4WN_iKDoI/s1600/Unknown-8.jpeg" width="181" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Smother’ Joyce Carol Oates <i>(Give Me Your Heart </i>originally published in <i>Virginia Quarterly Review, </i>Fall 2005)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Bluebeard in Ireland’ John Updike (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Kate Bernheimer originally</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Afterlife and Other Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Mermaid in the Tree’ Timothy Schaffert (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Scarecrow’s Brow’ Michael Swanwick (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Not So Much, Said the Cat. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">First published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Fantasy & Science Fiction, </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">October 2008)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘With this Needle I thee Thread’ Angela Rega </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Russell B. Farr) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtGqTI3DrIolTOLnGdlB7XUuDFO1GbongBJ673yh1obpttKp8tYzkYJcLwrJCfoxItfHHPzuK-lMMuuoitWsL2-nY75lqvc1KSyvIIzQ1yNDOUlL-zIzDM-4YW24KgSJDUG-S8-ERvKotbYmPyx1DQ2rGnp6XG3_YzZWGiiYtUPdOzZ67b_7AOq9qNszg/s275/Unknown-9.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtGqTI3DrIolTOLnGdlB7XUuDFO1GbongBJ673yh1obpttKp8tYzkYJcLwrJCfoxItfHHPzuK-lMMuuoitWsL2-nY75lqvc1KSyvIIzQ1yNDOUlL-zIzDM-4YW24KgSJDUG-S8-ERvKotbYmPyx1DQ2rGnp6XG3_YzZWGiiYtUPdOzZ67b_7AOq9qNszg/s1600/Unknown-9.jpeg" width="183" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /> <o:p></o:p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Huntsman and the Beast’ Carrie Vaughn</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Asimov’s Science Fiction </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sep/Oct 2018</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">) </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">(only a slight subversion in terms of switching gender, but at the end of the day, it was an extremely entertaining story and does it really matter how deep and innovative the subversion is?)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘3-adica’ Greg Egan </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Asimov’s Science Fiction </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sep/Oct 2018</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Shatterglass’ Susan Wardle </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Russell B. Farr)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Nowhere’ Joyce Carol Oates </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Give Me Your Heart </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Dangerous Women </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">ed. Otto Penzler) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaMTVIKOdsOY69xDS-DyAyYbGfr1JfyRV2MA3R1HnsPvGHOIru1Hi88hcISi7J49AijV8TegVR19aqpRO3s5lsnU9suh1JLLi96s5TeX7jJJQkjsg1ef9OaL_BMCQC8SXVfUhwr7jjfeFBFOKYjEm27gaKNn5PxxhbgnqEOEsuIaE5dGV0R8oIz9GE6_c/s265/Unknown-10.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="265" data-original-width="190" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaMTVIKOdsOY69xDS-DyAyYbGfr1JfyRV2MA3R1HnsPvGHOIru1Hi88hcISi7J49AijV8TegVR19aqpRO3s5lsnU9suh1JLLi96s5TeX7jJJQkjsg1ef9OaL_BMCQC8SXVfUhwr7jjfeFBFOKYjEm27gaKNn5PxxhbgnqEOEsuIaE5dGV0R8oIz9GE6_c/s1600/Unknown-10.jpeg" width="190" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Strip Poker’ Joyce Carol Oates <i>(Give Me Your Heart </i>originally published in <i>Dead Man’s Hand </i>ed. Otto Penzler)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Mesdames’ Naomi J. Williams </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Bourbon Penn 31)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Lady Brilliana’ Lucy Sussex </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Russell B. Farr)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Story of the Mosquito’ Lily Hoang (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">) very simply told Vietnamese fairy tale. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Crucible’ Ian Bassingthwaighte (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">One Story #266)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘A Case Study of Emergency Room Procedure and Risk Management by Hospital Staff Members in The Urban Facility’ Stacey Richter (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Of Finest Scarlet was her Gown’ Michael Swanwick (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Not So Much, Said the Cat</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> First published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Asimov’s Science Fiction, </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">August 2014)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Halfway People’ by Karen Joy Fowler (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Beautiful’ Juliet Marillier </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Aurum: A Golden Anthology of Original Australian Fantasy </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Russell B. Farr)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Teague O’Kane and the Corpse’ Chris Adrian (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Louder I Call, the Faster it Runs’ E. Catherine Tobler </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Bourbon Penn 31)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘I’m Here’ Ludmila Petrushevskaya (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Ever After’ Kim Addonizio (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer.<span style="font-family: inherit;"> First appeared in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Fairy Tale Review: The Blue Issue, 2006</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Brother and the Bird’ Alissa Nutting (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Colour Master’ Aimee Bender (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Body-Without-Soul’ Kathryn Davis (read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me </i>Ed. Kate Bernheimer<span style="font-family: inherit;">) </span></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-27694653549473312652023-11-06T01:35:00.125-08:002023-12-21T00:15:16.777-08:00Latest Story News: 'An '80s Tenement Love Story' in Bourbon Penn 31<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">My latest story 'An '80s Tenement Love Story' has just been published in the hallowed pages of <i>Bourbon Penn</i>. This time in edition <i>31</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggBpx7_rFFZFBuFge-M8b8NDH0HTcezWcGLl43S6y2Snu1FBOBIgefunbi4UUxg0M2CokT8F1RRx3eRuxfsnHiKFmXS7w9uuGHUkRDrAhRgKJStb0hlDOxXVh-rFnW7QvMSxbuyZe2QF0c46wIwSq1oqg3GiBVBuX_3l58YRDBuaSt4dSSXJDWDBKvpk/s284/Unknown-4.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="177" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggBpx7_rFFZFBuFge-M8b8NDH0HTcezWcGLl43S6y2Snu1FBOBIgefunbi4UUxg0M2CokT8F1RRx3eRuxfsnHiKFmXS7w9uuGHUkRDrAhRgKJStb0hlDOxXVh-rFnW7QvMSxbuyZe2QF0c46wIwSq1oqg3GiBVBuX_3l58YRDBuaSt4dSSXJDWDBKvpk/w249-h400/Unknown-4.jpeg" width="249" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's only the second time that I've had stories in different editions of the same journal/magazine and it''s a fab feeling. The previous time was in <i>Overland</i>; a journal close to my heart in terms of provoking political discussion and sociocultural debate. 'Reading Coffee' was published in <i>Overland 204</i> and 'Submerging' in <i>Overland 214</i>, with different fiction editors: Jane Gleeson-White for <i>204</i> and Jennifer Mills for <i>214</i>. 'Reading Coffee' went on to be short listed for an Aurealis Award, and also reprinted in <i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror Vol. 2</i> and 'Submerging' was reprinted in <i>The Best Australian Stories 2014</i>. And the two stories have been very giving ever since with ongoing anthology homes, both in the the US and Australia. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-8YbsOP0t5vlySzQxOQoFEazEj6zrybGyPTKoNn5ECUOqgkg1QgrBiTBXJp4y0qgblc5-H-iQOi3rPSKIpGTfnbTqtzXEW8QZWBD2F_xAeGniapHIjHxkd1eLdlTPp7xXrgXX2HpYLrtmexOh3nWqQEVTOY2jKzSSuH6kupPa2talOypV77MH3Gxvqo/s260/Unknown-5.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="260" data-original-width="193" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-8YbsOP0t5vlySzQxOQoFEazEj6zrybGyPTKoNn5ECUOqgkg1QgrBiTBXJp4y0qgblc5-H-iQOi3rPSKIpGTfnbTqtzXEW8QZWBD2F_xAeGniapHIjHxkd1eLdlTPp7xXrgXX2HpYLrtmexOh3nWqQEVTOY2jKzSSuH6kupPa2talOypV77MH3Gxvqo/w148-h200/Unknown-5.jpeg" width="148" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9QRcvDK6yG74-9Jg9M5aCOnHelLaXkYnK45mh9Uv2YD_cu32bepRqbftl92x-xSWe8QM4aNlnrvqSZswQU2i0YTvhZvnb-zRoovBGYLY-S5F3X9xg0aeTGK879MMakrGCWIw1w09Tuyvl915oG9uMbQYjsLjYZv3PeW6XIVaJj0Ry1rPO1kFSXiV4us8/s270/Unknown-6.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="187" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9QRcvDK6yG74-9Jg9M5aCOnHelLaXkYnK45mh9Uv2YD_cu32bepRqbftl92x-xSWe8QM4aNlnrvqSZswQU2i0YTvhZvnb-zRoovBGYLY-S5F3X9xg0aeTGK879MMakrGCWIw1w09Tuyvl915oG9uMbQYjsLjYZv3PeW6XIVaJj0Ry1rPO1kFSXiV4us8/w139-h200/Unknown-6.jpeg" width="139" /></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)', my previous <i>Bourbon Penn</i> story in edition <i>25</i> was in Ellen Datlow's Recommended Reading List for the year, and also earned a mention in her introductory essay for her <i>Best Horror of the Year Vol. 14</i>. Ellen Datlow has an eclectic sense of the genre, which I think helps educate many beyond the misconceived notion that horror stories have to reflect either slasher films or gothic ghost hauntings. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For those interested in 'An '80s Tenement Love Story', it's another longish story at a little over 6000 words. And although <i>Bourbon Penn</i> is a US publication, the story itself is set in Perth, and there's also a small part set in the rural town of Northam.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Naturally, <i>This is a work of fiction and all characters portrayed in the story are fictitious</i>... but I'll have to divulge that I've broken the rule here: the dog in the story is based somewhat on a friend's canine, Jen Jansen's. So if you know or see Jen at all, a wonderful English teacher, who is often accompanied by her dog on her Swan River promenades, get Sandy to sign a copy by paw, claw or maw.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The editor of <i>Bourbon Penn</i>, Erik Secker, always provides innovative cover art and this time around the work is called 'On Va Fluncher' by arnus. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I'd additionally like to shout out a big congrats to the fellow contributing writers: Naomi J. Williams, author of the acclaimed novel <i>Landfalls</i>, whose short stories have appeared in numerous luminous 'literary' homes, including <i>Zoetrope, A Public Space, One Story, Ninth Letter,</i> and <i>The Southern Review</i>. Williams is Pushcart Prize nominee five times and also once a winner. E. Catherine Tobler, whose work has appeared in exceptional speculative fiction homes such as <i>Clarkesworld, F&SF, Beneath Ceaseless Skies</i> and <i>Apex Magazine</i>. Tobler has also been a finalist for the Nebula and Sturgeon awards, and currently edits <i>The Deadlands</i>. Alexia Antoniou (συγχαρητήρια) is a newcomer. It's always refreshing to read a writer's debut story, so kudos to Erik Secker on unearthing a new talent. Let's hope Antoniou has plenty more stories to come. Apparently Antoniou is also in member of the folk duo 'Gawain and the Green Knight'. Corey Farrenkopf, whose story homes include <i>Three-Lobed Burning</i> <i>Eye, Smokelong Quarterly, The Southwest Review</i> and, most importantly, in a previous edition of <i>Bourbon Penn </i>(<i>BP 22)</i>. Nico Montoya, who lives in Northeast Minneapolis, also has speculative stories appearing in a variety of homes. And Shane Inman has had a story in <i>The Forge</i> and a number of other places. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyone who knows me, knows the thrill I get in seeing writers who I have been anthology or journal mates with before, and this time around it's a privilege to have another story alongside E. Catherine Tobler. We miraculously shared story homes in <i>Bourbon Penn 25</i>. It's wonderful to touch base again. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRANkk7ZEvMPin1potl9cuv6fCav2zFxBfToqTNn30P-pwmzb1a6OLs83J89EzX1f5zA0owUHZp9RSqCdVEATDrsM78QwPCpLuy_jxSpkFn_8BJfUtc6RyYjWZbs5bZHVjxY0iJcg1ZXB3PVh_m-ah5SoQX9Uel9p_TjGt2V0lskNy1f1Aoos3JqTli4Q/s600/81NDwRSCynL._AC_UL600_SR600,600_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRANkk7ZEvMPin1potl9cuv6fCav2zFxBfToqTNn30P-pwmzb1a6OLs83J89EzX1f5zA0owUHZp9RSqCdVEATDrsM78QwPCpLuy_jxSpkFn_8BJfUtc6RyYjWZbs5bZHVjxY0iJcg1ZXB3PVh_m-ah5SoQX9Uel9p_TjGt2V0lskNy1f1Aoos3JqTli4Q/w200-h200/81NDwRSCynL._AC_UL600_SR600,600_.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Although an American publication, those good people at Planet Books in Perth (getting parochial now), stocked and sold out of <i>Bourbon Penn 25</i>, and guess what?.... Suppose it's a rhetorical question, but <i>Bourbon Penn 31 </i>willl also be on the shelves at both their Northbridge and Mt Lawley bookstores soon.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Bourbon Penn</i> is my favourite place for stories at present. But don't just listen to me, Jeffrey Ford stated that it's: 'One of my all time favourite magazines.' It's hard to find a better recommendation than that from the author of <i>The Shadow Year.</i> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The book details on Goodreads relate to <i>Bourbon Penn'</i>s quality:<i> "Stories from </i>Bourbon Penn<i> are regularly selected for Year’s Best anthologies and have been reprinted in Stoker Award, Shirley Jackson Award, and New York Times Notable collections."</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Currently Reading</b>: </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A collection by a veritable master of the narrative craft, Joyce Carol Oates, called <i>Give Me Your Heart</i>. As you might well imagine </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Give Me Your Heart </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">is replete with wicked tales of dark intrigue, suspense and mystery.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUammrad_NBz_8ZXIoQuAw4sqsG4YBkXxnVJS1jHIAu-lvRXIdaip6SP5pFGopc9fuu_afngcAJTJD75ftArsrK2_O6X9CXGIayxVgn57F2gkQbeQWzBZ5lKMuWq89wNrqP50PE8fNSxFApjHE38fR_wF0F_5m0mwNIdTWxhRURnsGXuy4_fyZbB7aEVw/s278/Unknown-7.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="181" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUammrad_NBz_8ZXIoQuAw4sqsG4YBkXxnVJS1jHIAu-lvRXIdaip6SP5pFGopc9fuu_afngcAJTJD75ftArsrK2_O6X9CXGIayxVgn57F2gkQbeQWzBZ5lKMuWq89wNrqP50PE8fNSxFApjHE38fR_wF0F_5m0mwNIdTWxhRURnsGXuy4_fyZbB7aEVw/w131-h200/Unknown-7.jpeg" width="131" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">And Constantinople: The Last Great Siege 1453</i><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"> by Richard Crowley is one for the history enthusiasts. It also brings back memories of reading Steven Runciman's elegant history </span><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">The Fall of Constantinople 1453</i><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">. I'm a keen reader of both Byzantine and Ottoman history and 1453 really is the terminal point of </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;">the Byzantine era, along with the Ottoman Empire clearly cementing itself as the European superpower of the time. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcJtBy2_QiLjp4MNrHG0FL8yVh5lKyoAU_MKZ08_OjqsyCHuT-6lKaUYLkYykCL4suywfBp7hYjk-AGukPqSvJeuJLT6Os_PcbzBormYSayPuY09CYd09aXuNxKqHTQqgzqRhXDnz_f4KVv_-oHjUzJ1m4T4TqYpbb2li4kz9-LPAon0I3MrizeIciIk/s500/s-l500.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="325" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcJtBy2_QiLjp4MNrHG0FL8yVh5lKyoAU_MKZ08_OjqsyCHuT-6lKaUYLkYykCL4suywfBp7hYjk-AGukPqSvJeuJLT6Os_PcbzBormYSayPuY09CYd09aXuNxKqHTQqgzqRhXDnz_f4KVv_-oHjUzJ1m4T4TqYpbb2li4kz9-LPAon0I3MrizeIciIk/w130-h200/s-l500.jpg" width="130" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>A Rare Sporting Interlude</b>:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>2023 AFL</b>: My footy team, The West Coast Eagles, received the wooden spoon this year. Yazz sings it all: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We've been broken down<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> To the lowest turn <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bein' on the bottom line <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sure ain't no fun<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">....Hold on, hold on, hold on, <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">oooh, ooh, ahh. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The only way is up, now, baby...' <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Three true champions of the era were farewelled: Norm Smith medalist and twice fairest and best, captain Luke Shuey, was a player which every forward would want to have the ball in his hands. Boots was an excitement machine, who weaved and raced through midfield packs and never surrendered. Ironically, although a grand final hero and a super finals-player in general, he was never rewarded an All-Australian guernsey, and he deserved more than a few. One of my earliest memories of Boots was at a live game at Subi Oval with my dad. Although midfielders are often judged by their possession tally, Shuey sprinted over 100 meters from the play to mark a player, who was three kicks away, which really was emblematic of his team-first mentality. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Shannon Hurn, the premiership captain, and one of the most lethal kicks in AFL history –and the other Eagle player who you wanted to have the ball in his hands– farewelled the side as twice All-Australian (and he was worthy of plenty more). Bunga also ended his career as the Eagles games record holder at a colossal 333 games. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And Nic Naitanui, whose physical presence around the ball was the fiercest I've seen. Although as ferocious as a Cape buffalo bull in ruck contests, his gentle hands were softer than eiderdown, allowing for wizard-like hitouts. Nic Nat retired with three All Australian guernseys, two best and fairests, and a mark of the year. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A huge thanks to all three for an abundance of highlight reels. Along with last year's retiree, Josh Kennedy, and current defender, Jeremy McGovern, they were really the best Eagles players of the modern era. Hopefully, Oscar Allen and Liam 'Flying' Ryan will continue to create mercurial moments for the next generation of players and fans. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Cricket</b>: The Ashes Test Series was cricket at its entertaining best. Whether you appreciate Bazball or not, the English strategy brought out some exquisite batting and bowling from both teams. Mitch Marsh's century in the Ashes, after being twelfth man for an eternity, was the stuff of myth. Let's hope his limited over form continues to reap dividends too. Speaking of limited overs, I'd love Stoinis a little higher in the batting order. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And elsewhere, the aging Indian stroke player, Virat Kohli, is still majestic to watch, and Rohit Sharma in the limited overs form seems able to hit boundaries off any ball. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Soccer</b>: The Matildas getting through to the semi-finals in The Women's World Cup was an epic moment, enrapturing the nation. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And I know this sounds like a terrible betrayal, deserving of walk-the-plank punitive measures, but I've jumped ship in the Premier League from Manchester United to follow Tottenham Hotspur (COYS!), and it's solely because of 'Big' Ange Postecoglou. I've tracked his career since his playing days at South Melbourne, and then his coaching career in Australia, Japan, Scotland and now the biggest league in the world. What a legend! But don't condemn me until you condemn Robbie Williams:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OlYMGCrTNg0" width="320" youtube-src-id="OlYMGCrTNg0"></iframe></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>And in the Natural World:</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the Dryandra Woodland and Perup Nature Reserve, numbats are clinging to survival. The Perth Zoo is doing a fabulous job in breeding this striking marsupial, and The Numbat Task Force, in turn, are performing marvels by both raising awareness and by aiding in conservation measures. Check the group out on their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/numbatTF/">Facebook</a> page</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Whether we like it or not, we are custodians of the natural world, and this gang are doing all they can to ensure that Australia's egregiously criminal extinction record won't include the numbat. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-1985076446000686112023-02-06T17:42:00.044-08:002023-11-06T05:20:58.195-08:00Books Read in 2022<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Hag-Seed </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Margaret Atwood</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">On Chesil Beach </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ian McEwan (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Come Rain or Come Shine </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Kazuo Ishiguro (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Last Byzantine Renaissance </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Steven Runciman (history)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Cleopatra </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Michael Grant (history)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Train Dreams </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Denis Johnson (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Barracuda </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Christos Tsiolkas</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Subtle Knife </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Philip Pullman</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Crescent and Star: Turkey Between Two Worlds </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Stephen Kinzer (expository</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Bourbon Penn 25 </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">(collection/lit mag) Ed. Erik Secker</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Book of Dave </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Will Self</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Folktales of Greece </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ed. Georgios A. Megas</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Sisters Brothers </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Patrick deWitt</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Dreamside </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Graham Joyce</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Nothing Holds Back the Night </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Delphine de Vigan (memoir)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Love of a Bad Man </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Laura Elizabeth Woollett (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Lies of Locke Lamora </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Scott Lynch</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Mother Tongue </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Bill Bryson (expository)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">How to Be an Author </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Georgia Richter & Deborah Hunn (expository)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Mythic Resonance </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ed. Stephen Thompson (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Prosper’s Demon</span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;"> K.J. Parker (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Island 139 </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ed. Matthew Lamb (lit. journal)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Fly Away </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Kathleen Jennings</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Black Dogs </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ian McEwan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Rubik </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Elizabeth Tan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Eternal Machine </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Carol Ryles</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Hill of Dreams </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Arthur Machen</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">To Paradise </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Hanya Yanigahara</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Griffith Review 68 Getting On </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Ed. Ashley Hay (lit journal)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><i style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">A Room Made of Leaves </span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; text-indent: 36pt;">Kate Grenville </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><b style="text-align: center; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-indent: 36pt;"><b style="text-align: center; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span> </span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">CONGRATS TO SOME KNOWN PERTH LOCALS</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center; text-indent: 36pt;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'll open with a warm congrats to a few Perthites first. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Carol Ryles has worked a long time on her steampunk novel <i>The Eternal Machine, </i>so it is heartwarming to see it published. The first fifty pages are absolutely impossible to put down. It's also a novel for readers who desire more from their magic than simply 'it exists'. <i>The Eternal Machine</i> has a rare and unique scientific sense of why and how magic works. Ryles has put a lot of real thought into an authentic and innovative steampunk world. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Deborah Hunn was a lecturer of mine, whose classes I loved, so it was also a thrill to read her work <i>How to be an Author,</i> which was written in collaboration with Georgia Richter. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And I had the good fortune of studying with the talented Elizabeth Tan, and finally read the inventive <i>Rubrik, </i>whose emotional launch I attended a few years ago. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And moving out of WA, I previously met Kathleen Jennings in Sydney in 2012 at the Aurealis Awards for 2011. We have shared a couple of anthology homes together, and we've also shared another four Yearly Recommended Reading lists in the back of Year's Best anthologies. Jennings is a wonderful artist, and she designed a beautiful cover for the Aurealis Award winning anthology <i>Bloodlines (</i>Ed. Amanda Pillar), in which we were also both story compadres. <i>Fly Away </i>is a unique rural Australian dark fantasy with distinct horrific elements. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And last, but not least, I read <i>Mythic Resonance </i>because<i> </i>Sue Bursztynski has a retelling of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves' within. Sue had my second story published, which happened to also be the second story I'd written, so I tracked this anthology down. And by chance, Alan Baxter has a story in it too. Bursztynski's story has the dwarves of the LOTR type, which is how I love my Khazad. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">THE SHORT FORM</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">In the short form, I only read eighty-nine stories, which is a far cry from my norm. I enjoyed a few stories from <i>Mythic Resonance (</i>Vicky Daddo's was my pick of the bunch, followed by Alan Baxter, <span>Sue Bursztynski, and Jen White's stories)<span style="font-size: small;">. </span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">A</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">nd although more for horror fans, Laura Elizabeth Woolett's dark collection </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">The Love of a Bad Man </i><span style="font-family: georgia;">was of a consistently good quality with strong entry and exit points. Think devotees to quality horror may unearth a real find here. All the narratives are written in first person present, and, as they're from the lenses of actual historical figures, it's a harrowing and nightmarish read. But I guess that's Woolett's intention. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Due to my limited reading, I'll just mention ten Greek folktales as standouts rather than my usual list of twenty five or so stories. All are from George Megas' collection. As stated last year, please keep the context of production in mind if you do track these folktales down: </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">‘Master Semolina’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center; text-indent: 36pt;">‘The Turtle and the Chickpea’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center; text-indent: 36pt;">‘The Seven Ravens’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: 36pt;">‘The King’s Godson and the Baldchin’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 24px;">‘The Navel of the Earth’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 24px;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">‘Cinderello’</span><span face="-webkit-standard"></span></span></p><p><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 24px;">‘The Two Neighbours’ </span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: 36pt;">‘What is the Fastest Thing in the World’ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 24px;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">‘Princess Plumpkin (Pachoulenia)’ </span><span face="-webkit-standard"></span></span></p><p><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 24px;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">‘The King and the Basket Weaver’ </span><span face="-webkit-standard" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">STANDOUT NOVELS AND NOVELLAS</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">NOVELS</span></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'm limiting the brief commentary to three from each form. As usual, I could mention many more, but I like to keep my posts a little briefer. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Hagseed</i> by Margaret Atwood</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZeI8XOBN2JE7KY_Sg76USZAN2TsDozkH3_9HBAWlZtzLlqhIHndsnnjpKmLqPvu6tVxZiIXlc22ajotEGrlYkLOeTRsQpKShudA1dOJGcv5_NFwcng4RCLn2zKSbLZLk7YxoPNGVkz_QR848ycEHt8m1TRwXdJcJQOI1PN5XWDLD9dAUdL_jqDczZ/s500/51nWWKWJB6L._SL500_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZeI8XOBN2JE7KY_Sg76USZAN2TsDozkH3_9HBAWlZtzLlqhIHndsnnjpKmLqPvu6tVxZiIXlc22ajotEGrlYkLOeTRsQpKShudA1dOJGcv5_NFwcng4RCLn2zKSbLZLk7YxoPNGVkz_QR848ycEHt8m1TRwXdJcJQOI1PN5XWDLD9dAUdL_jqDczZ/w247-h320/51nWWKWJB6L._SL500_.jpg" width="247" /></span></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This was the fourth novel in Hogarth's Shakespeare Initiative. Atwood has some riotous fun here, utilising caricatures for extra hilarity. The protagonist, our modern day Prospero, is the aging theatre director Felix, who although seriously flawed, we are positioned to barrack for. Felix, whose inflated air of self-importance would fuel a battalion of hot air balloons, is putting on <i>The Tempest; </i>partly to resurrect the memory of his own deceased daughter Miranda, who tragically passed away at only three years of age. Yet Felix with his over-the-top character reinterpretations, which include a transvestite on stilts and paraplegics on skateboards, is undone and sabotaged by Tony. Felix is fired, and flees to a hovel on the outskirts where he broods for many years in isolated squalor. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Eventually, Felix is drawn back into the real world by taking on an educational drama programme for the incarcerated. Felix, under cover, plans his revenge with the old play within a play routine. The retelling, acted out by a colourful array of inmates, while comedic, also explores various interpretations and perspectives of <i>The Tempest</i>. On the more magical-realist side, Miranda's ghostly presence both haunts and guides Felix at times. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This was my favourite read of 2023. My bookclub also loved <i>Hag-Seed. </i>It is a rambunctious playful read in the same cheeky style as Atwood's collection <i>The Stone Mattress. </i>I have been strongly drawn to books over recent years which utilise meta-elements in their narratives, and<i> Hag-Seed</i> falls into this category. It's an intelligent, hopeful and refreshingly fun novel. Rather than targeting the macabre, <i>Hag-Seed </i>is intended for readers who are after a light hearted, but still intelligent and meaningful work. Whereby Fowles looked at the dark side of <i>The Tempest </i>in his revered <i>The Collector</i>, Atwood's novel reflects the more comedic elements of the play, which is a brave move as so many readers expect these rewrites to be deep and dark and flooded with gravitas. Yet, when the original play was produced it was marketed as a comedy or tragi-comedy, and as such, Atwood has done the original play more than justice. It's a delight! </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Barracuda </i>by Christos Tsiolkas</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vfGypyIWJOZjNV_hp_YNX-eNtn9Zc5GInLN_bVpKlilVi8B9cGErOfc2uHxAY_StoVdSx-jjyxHxnPLQxXi1Nqy7F3NgkFh8Yy2f3QpiQFUjTMmkJ6-TagJVoZ5I_LYW4Nk0QK_SqswQkjkUKsr3JzcvJQjgJjnrZOFLw7tdXcj2YqfC4V9qTDXi/s500/9781760291358.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="327" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vfGypyIWJOZjNV_hp_YNX-eNtn9Zc5GInLN_bVpKlilVi8B9cGErOfc2uHxAY_StoVdSx-jjyxHxnPLQxXi1Nqy7F3NgkFh8Yy2f3QpiQFUjTMmkJ6-TagJVoZ5I_LYW4Nk0QK_SqswQkjkUKsr3JzcvJQjgJjnrZOFLw7tdXcj2YqfC4V9qTDXi/s320/9781760291358.jpg" width="209" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I have a confession to make, I really like Christos Tsiolkas: his interviews, his commentary, his articles, his work in <i>Overland, </i>but prior to <i>Barracuda, </i>I had not yet finished a novel of his. I often felt like the shock or the attempted-shock after shock after shock after shock lost its effect on me.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> Tsiolkas was a leading author in the innovative era of Australian 'grunge fiction'. I found, however, little to connect with in his other works, and I certainly didn't see too many of those enjoyable moments of characters connecting. For me, these connections and times of light allow dark fiction to resonate more so, but Tsiolkas' lights in my previous reading seemed pretty dim, or at least in the parts I got through.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">But <i>Barracuda</i>, although still imbued with the grunge elements of his other work, feels far more human, and there are moments of light, although not huge rays, throughout. This lengthy work is a winner. It captures the polarised class elements that exist within Australia: Tsiolkas explores self-loathing; notions of success and failure; and the loss of self with the search (and often failure) to realise one's place and identity not only within Australia but also within a broader global context. I also love Tsiolkas's inclusivity in terms of his repertoire of characters. In a sensitive writing and reading world, although Greek Australian, Tsiolkas is not fearful of portraying a broad array of characters, including a Turkish mother, another character of mixed Greek and Chinese background, a Hungarian swimming coach, both the privileged and the unprivileged, the upwardly mobile and the stuck, along with a broad spectrum of gay identities. The novel is insightful and gutsy and culturally very apt for the times. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Subtle Knife</i> by Philip Pullman</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJnLrHEmitrqYQyO1va6YXwHZAgaRkBxdA_-st5Q_hIBch2ce0kcAxfZ_YbjDeVmX3Ci8PLOWmFR-4HNi-qk5K3_kG8k3Vi4rGVF0mugb618Kf4aGMYBN8P5c_LJO7KTXSWqYBLwmoDMKmUAdFe6NuRFeZxdTjj1rwxBlQbPnYeZhym4THv2ke7AT9/s500/1407130234.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJnLrHEmitrqYQyO1va6YXwHZAgaRkBxdA_-st5Q_hIBch2ce0kcAxfZ_YbjDeVmX3Ci8PLOWmFR-4HNi-qk5K3_kG8k3Vi4rGVF0mugb618Kf4aGMYBN8P5c_LJO7KTXSWqYBLwmoDMKmUAdFe6NuRFeZxdTjj1rwxBlQbPnYeZhym4THv2ke7AT9/s320/1407130234.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The sequel to <i>The Golden Compass, </i>although not quite matching the stratospheric qualities of the first, is still a delightful piece of world building and storytelling. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">NOVELLAS</span></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The novella has become my favourite form along with novelettes and long short stories. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>On Chesil Beach </i>by Ian McEwan</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWnhvExrk4Re0sln7eAkc3KmZeVfl3RW5wbDHOymgugXWZIMj7HYLhk3rrJeFtvEEy0Ck_9B6D6LWsRO4f12dqCU8uVA1ewZMZD9QR9_CCsFHLwOv0_y5-4rGMdjUOgn_-cf87z2Hu8ZkLrNQH0777_4QiPNLSGKwlOs9QlqGdrvCepXvxUoAQSycZ/s570/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="371" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWnhvExrk4Re0sln7eAkc3KmZeVfl3RW5wbDHOymgugXWZIMj7HYLhk3rrJeFtvEEy0Ck_9B6D6LWsRO4f12dqCU8uVA1ewZMZD9QR9_CCsFHLwOv0_y5-4rGMdjUOgn_-cf87z2Hu8ZkLrNQH0777_4QiPNLSGKwlOs9QlqGdrvCepXvxUoAQSycZ/s320/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" width="208" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Once again, McEwan captures the times so well, and he also explores, in his typical manner, the grey areas of morality, or as I like to term it, 'McEwan's moral dilemma'. The structure is especially clever as the ending condenses time and breaks completely from the slowing down of a moment in the rest of the narrative. Another of his finest works. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">Come Rain or Come Shine </i><b>by Kazuo Ishiguro</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu9sIVDRscWeFNBJUWxOvGVaGTGfuLaqdYtkWBJk90AFlXwgEENa9MCrCY_rfnypm_M_WiLFtQfgcQBuHjc3rxlq-AH1rPdAPYb4zWQiVcMT6Gqvu6xZMfE88c-plKCF1Nc8wAMpWXTDOgEW_ql2QUXpvwmGnwOYvDQ1T44BJ_chMtCmsZl3BPdBWw/s400/9780571351749.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="277" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu9sIVDRscWeFNBJUWxOvGVaGTGfuLaqdYtkWBJk90AFlXwgEENa9MCrCY_rfnypm_M_WiLFtQfgcQBuHjc3rxlq-AH1rPdAPYb4zWQiVcMT6Gqvu6xZMfE88c-plKCF1Nc8wAMpWXTDOgEW_ql2QUXpvwmGnwOYvDQ1T44BJ_chMtCmsZl3BPdBWw/s320/9780571351749.jpg" width="222" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Humorous, clever and subversive.</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><i>Train Dreams </i>by Denis </span><b>Johnson</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih_Gs4zGAWc8FcdhcdpIh31j97WOISoI_zbyATPWW3wwpIYOAhp4v1y0sNkmr155UYH3qEyyJoUpuJD-ePOpftjHbqf9kFbD20BotfUjGf9YIkqWZWkUb24tleu1GvOG6RxdoRoJG5xgu-3THOQ4_18PfKXQFGBoegtCiXF_F14YIa5TGKYOP-TcqM/s592/811975867.0.l.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="592" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih_Gs4zGAWc8FcdhcdpIh31j97WOISoI_zbyATPWW3wwpIYOAhp4v1y0sNkmr155UYH3qEyyJoUpuJD-ePOpftjHbqf9kFbD20BotfUjGf9YIkqWZWkUb24tleu1GvOG6RxdoRoJG5xgu-3THOQ4_18PfKXQFGBoegtCiXF_F14YIa5TGKYOP-TcqM/s320/811975867.0.l.jpg" width="216" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Shades of Steinbeck, but with overt dreamlike elements. Unique and experimental, <i>Train Dreams </i>was short listed for the Pulitzer that was never awarded, and like Karen Russell's <i>Swamplandia</i>, it was worthy of the listing and more...</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">HISTORY & EXPOSITORY</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Last Byzantine Renaissance </i>by Steven Runciman</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2M3xYtT8atOivc8JTikXERGmxUKd7X8wdPh4cBcOhO_ziawmUS139ltLoZEFtaXcED0TygT33D6Of2vI3HxOUiomeWDRkLm1uq0kP9_nGBMVPHdLKvdTlGKxkPkSPsauM8QoPeLZiyM_Ow0Xe8g-rwau_8_9Ookg3XQhLgcTAGAXzeWZBUY5e8Z41/s284/Unknown-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="177" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2M3xYtT8atOivc8JTikXERGmxUKd7X8wdPh4cBcOhO_ziawmUS139ltLoZEFtaXcED0TygT33D6Of2vI3HxOUiomeWDRkLm1uq0kP9_nGBMVPHdLKvdTlGKxkPkSPsauM8QoPeLZiyM_Ow0Xe8g-rwau_8_9Ookg3XQhLgcTAGAXzeWZBUY5e8Z41/s1600/Unknown-1.jpeg" width="177" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">One for history buffs alone. Runciman explores a late flourishing of thought in a dwindling kingdom. While their empire diminished rapidly around them, Byzantine scholars managed to keep alive classical philosophy, scientific and mathematical inquiry, while also separating the spiritual side from the scientific. Not the easiest of Runciman's works but one of his most intriguing. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Cleopatra </i>by Michael Grant </span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1oqJoHQkL3LR_JuvQ3jR0OEkW_cAfv8HHxd-Vay9YbZIM6fo81ttNlxLOrVAcy9tXBPjW8WGW7JdZltqCk3Jtn6vhd1Ph1DquaPSz_3mhu5e5ITktmZKDrpBE_roezU-tIUlO88xAHcfq6PilADu9r6X57-XHShXLkTHGoyZ22nUQeXrJAbIuVuv/s500/176713.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1oqJoHQkL3LR_JuvQ3jR0OEkW_cAfv8HHxd-Vay9YbZIM6fo81ttNlxLOrVAcy9tXBPjW8WGW7JdZltqCk3Jtn6vhd1Ph1DquaPSz_3mhu5e5ITktmZKDrpBE_roezU-tIUlO88xAHcfq6PilADu9r6X57-XHShXLkTHGoyZ22nUQeXrJAbIuVuv/s320/176713.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">An enlightening read for those who want to truly understand the skills and diplomacy and navigation that Cleopatra used to strive to keep the Hellenistic kingdom of Egypt alive. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left; text-indent: 48px;"><span><b><i>Crescent and Star: Turkey Between Two Worlds </i>by</b><i> </i></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-indent: 48px;">Stephen Kinzer </span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLzxBj8rqQR8puLWQptIGjk0OKjc-TEQ7NeIsVhLKRrmA6-gzL_CkEaT8m_wXzkvldBqi6T34kY-VvYOth7t-mmqFxpee0MMDXERCUMKVNPNH4w3Brlgqxu01a0dvfreaAyCRixpGXNVRgz66-gfnzw01vI93ZyXJVuOsSNImCM3GoHO3amQUz3IFW/s269/9780374131432.OL.0.m.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="180" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLzxBj8rqQR8puLWQptIGjk0OKjc-TEQ7NeIsVhLKRrmA6-gzL_CkEaT8m_wXzkvldBqi6T34kY-VvYOth7t-mmqFxpee0MMDXERCUMKVNPNH4w3Brlgqxu01a0dvfreaAyCRixpGXNVRgz66-gfnzw01vI93ZyXJVuOsSNImCM3GoHO3amQUz3IFW/s1600/9780374131432.OL.0.m.jpg" width="180" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">My uncle told me that this is the best work on modern Turkey, and I happened to read it twenty one years later... It's fascinating to read the book and see where Turkey was and where it is today. For instance, at the time, the once mayor (and now president) Erdogan, did time in jail and became a mocked figure for being an Islamic extremist. Ironically, in the preceding generations, Islamic extremists were kept at bay by the army. My how things have changed... Kinzer's fears have been realised, and his hopes that he had: alliances with Greece with the earthquake aid (when the Turkish army failed to prove effective when the nation needed them most); potentially a nation that celebrates progressive elements and thinkers; and a member of a relatively modern part of the world rather than kowtowing to religion like many of its southern and eastern neighbours. Well, the hopefulness that Kinzer expresses here tragically hasn't eventuated. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kinzer furthered my understanding of Turkey so much, especially regarding his insight into the Kurds; but also topics like the the Korean veterans; journalists and writers and thinkers and how they are curtailed; the degree to which the former pro-Kemalist military prevented an over zealous religiosity in the country. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">However, Kinzer's insight into Cyprus is a lopsided Turkish perspective. For many years, Cypriot Greeks had been calling for <i>Enosis (</i>unification<i>) </i>with the 'Fatherland'. As far back as 1950 only 4% of Greek Cypriots voted against unification with Greece (with a voting turn out of 90%). Kinzer fails to acknowledge that the notion of enosis was long on the cards for the Cypriot Greeks, and he also fails to acknowledge or recognise or even vaguely understand the cultural history of the Cypriot Greek people. It's as if he's unaware that the national anthem of Cyprus is the same as that of Greece. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Regardless of his warped view of Cyprus, <i>Crescent and Star</i> is a beautiful work with a cutting and personal and confronting interrogation of modern day Turkey. Well, the Turkey of twenty years ago. Reading it now does not make it worse, in fact the parallels and downslide of Turkey become all the more apparent from understanding its recent past. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Happy 2023</b> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Nice to see the world so connected again with high vaccination rates and a less virulent COVID strain. There is still some work to do ensuring all parts of the world have the opportunity to vaccinate. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Like always, I hope we look after our wildlife, environment, and rich natural heritage, along with each other. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Wishing you all a meaningful year. </span></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><p></p></div>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-87752975651274010572022-11-30T05:49:00.009-08:002023-01-28T07:12:49.824-08:00"Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)" from Bourbon Penn 25 on Ellen Datlow's "Recommendations for Best Horror #14 Long List"; and Bourbon Penn praised in Datlow's Opening Essay/Review<p>It's nice to have "Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)" from <i>Bourbon Penn 25</i> on this renown and respected annual list from Ellen Datlow.</p><p>Ellen Datlow is arguably the world's leading editor of dark fiction in the short form, and her yearly Recommendation Lists, although long, are one of the best ways of promoting the genre to readers. </p><p>This year's list (<a href="https://ellendatlow.com/category/news/?fbclid=IwAR08tTyVxsHCm5X20iUJzKNWa8nQS_XtATCv9PcXkG6r-4FjQQ2byPEyHHo">Recommendations for Best Horror #14 Long List</a>) includes a few of my favourite short story writers with Joyce Carol Oates, Joe R. Lansdale, John Langan, and also includes Jeffrey Ford, who wrote one of my favourite novels, <i>The Shadow Year.</i> </p><p>And others on the list that I have shared anthology homes with include the Antpiodean clan: Kaaron Warren (<i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror Vol. 2 </i>& <i>Vol.6),</i> Lisa L. Hannett (<i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror Vol. 2 </i>& <i>Vol.6)</i>, Alan Baxter ((<i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror</i> <i>Vol.6, Dreaming of Djinn, </i>&<i> Bloodlines</i>), Lee Murray (<i>At the Edge);</i> and the Americans Seanan McGuire <i>(Bloodlines) </i>and Louis Evans (<i>Bourbon Penn 25 </i>& <i>Spawn of War and Deathiness</i>).</p><p>And congrats to another Aussie, Ben Peek, who I met in Sydney at The Aurealis Awards. </p><p>And although my lungs may burst, I'll make a trans-hemispehric shout-out to Erik Secker, the editor of <i>Bourbon Penn</i>, along with the other <i>Bourbon Penn 25</i> writers listed. There are actually three from only six stories in <i>Bourbon Penn 25 </i>on Ellen's list of recommendations; the two other works being Simon Stranzas' 'That House' and Louis Evans' 'Lazaret'. </p><p>And a heartfelt congrats to Simon Stranzas, Kaaron Waaren and Lee Murray who have made the eclectic and much shorter final ToC. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>Opening Essay/ Review of Ellen Datlow's <i>Best Horror of the Year Volume 14</i></b></p><p>And a friend just sent me a pic of the opening essay in Datlow's Best, which is now on my reading shelf. I am thrilled to see the <i>Bourbon Penn </i>and Erik Secker deservedly highlighted in Datlow's Year's Best:</p><p>Bourbon Penn <i>edited by Erik Secker is one of the best, regularly published small press magazines, mixing horror, sf, and weird fiction. It's supported by a Patreon and is well worth the investment. The best horror stories in the three 2021 issues are by Simon Stranzas, Louis Evans, Hamdy Elgammal, Willian Jablonsky, A.C. Wise, Charles Wilkinson, Chelsea Sutton and Anthony Panegyres. The Wise is reprinted herein. </i></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-85007103765066317082022-01-13T17:25:00.030-08:002022-11-01T04:53:00.568-07:00Books Read and Stories Published in 2021 and a Dash of Mad Opining<p style="text-align: center;"> <b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: center;">Books Read 2021</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i> </i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Winter of Our Discontent</i> John Steinbeck <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Grapes of Wrath </i>John Steinbeck <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Sula </i>Toni Morrison (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Outsider </i>Albert Camus (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Wisdom of Crowds</i> Joe Abercrombie <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Bourbon Penn 24</i> Ed. Erik Secker (lit mag/anthology) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Heroes </i>Stephen Fry (mythology/collection) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Bluest Eye</i> Toni Morrison (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Conetmporary Short Stories </i>Ed. Daniel Halpern (anthology) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Limits of Enchantment </i>Graham Joyce <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Toddler Brain: Nurture the Skills Today that Will Shape Your Child’s Tomorrow </i> Laura A. Jana (expository) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Cockroach </i>Ian McEwan (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Crome Yellow </i>Aldous Huxley (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Girl With No Hands and other tales</i> Angela Slatter (collection). <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Warriors 1 </i>Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois (anthology) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Devil You Know </i>K.J. Parker (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Hamnet </i>Maggie O’ Farrell <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Mystery Knight</i> George R.R Martin (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Hound of the Baskervilles </i>Arthur Conan Doyle <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Twilight Pariah </i>Jeffrey Ford (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>David Balfour</i> Robert Louis Stevenson <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Spawn of War and Deathiness </i>Ed. Tom Easton (anthology) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil </i>George Saunders (novella). <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Falling Woman</i> Pat Murphy <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>What the Family Needed </i>Steven Amsterdam <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Writing Book </i>Kate Grenville (expository) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Kidnapped </i>Robert Louis Stevenson <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Asimov’s </i>(March/April 2018) Ed. Sheila Williams (mag/journal) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Kassandra and the Wolf </i>Margarita Karapanou (novella) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Bury Me in the Rainbow </i>Bill Johnson (novella in <i>Asimov’s </i>March/April 2018) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Fox 8</i> George Saunders (chapbook) <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Prince Otto: A Romance </i>Robert Louis Stevenson <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>The Black Arrow </i>Robert Louis Stevenson <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i>Monkey Grip </i>Helen Garner <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b>Four Highlight Reads<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">Keeping my commentary to four highlight reads (although there were plenty more that I loved). And this time, for a change, they’re all classics, so I’ll be brief. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">Although neither compared to <i>East of Eden, </i>Steinbeck’s<i> The Winter of Our Discontent </i>and <i>The Grapes of Wrath </i>were the two clear standout novels. <i><o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i> </i></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><i>The Winter of Our Discontent </i>by John Steinbeck</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">Similar to <i>East of Eden, The Winter of Our Discontent</i> has quite a bit of humour. It does, however, differ in terms of scope and magnitude, and is a far smaller story, albeit equally sinister in parts. The protagonist, Ethan Hawley, is intelligent, witty and chatty, and the reader is immediately drawn into his world. Ethan is from old-world money and of a privileged aristocratic status, but now essentially works as a grocery clerk in a store he once owned. Although initially content, this warm family man is tempted to be more, both in terms of wealth and status, and he is also tempted in terms of fidelity. Without giving too much away, Ethan passes some of these ‘temptations’ and succumbs to others. Steinbeck cleverly creates a dichotomy of a likable character who ultimately performs some morally vulgar self-centred acts. Steinbeck does not necessarily privilege Ethan’s actions or thoughts, but asks the reader to evaluate. Rather than the larger events that Steinbeck’s epics <i>East of Eden </i>and <i>The Grapes of Wrath </i>explore, this smaller story is as equally meaningful, acting as an excellent critique of the trappings of US style capitalism and class, which in many ways is as relevant today as it was at the time of publication. As always, Steinbeck’s work is brave, but also very human. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg3-5hVcCCQ7X5NplShlFZjfyhnVCg3caxDZcqXm8yvnrNDoqGIf14WOrKwDdR56gQSZ6qBoEEi13T5FD2wZktkyI4rgQemthBI8_grvULvnDql34tZpgB6WX0GO_ryhw_3uHk9lk0nJFYbnnrRbfTXCntBI9tjBysZvoijL87qzGKhOgoGbvDFpQIc=s2342" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2342" data-original-width="1526" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg3-5hVcCCQ7X5NplShlFZjfyhnVCg3caxDZcqXm8yvnrNDoqGIf14WOrKwDdR56gQSZ6qBoEEi13T5FD2wZktkyI4rgQemthBI8_grvULvnDql34tZpgB6WX0GO_ryhw_3uHk9lk0nJFYbnnrRbfTXCntBI9tjBysZvoijL87qzGKhOgoGbvDFpQIc=s320" width="209" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><i>The Grapes of Wrath </i>by John Steinbeck</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i> </i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">There’s enough commentary out there on this without me adding anything to the oceanic pool. I will say that while brilliant, it lacks the bravado and humour of <i>East of Eden. </i>This grave story of the Oakies’ migration west is important, especially as it such a significant part of the USA’s history. Steinbeck gives the theme justice with a defiant work in both a cultural and political sense.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUbBgq5I0dzzek-XQKgE_4KlUCUCz7KHMmWbFLLNsS_Wy6wF5k-H749hDTZkBbqCkeZiSKrC6hMFJTuk8VHGVPf6O9GJuULcWkfdlmj_x0_5VF3a4VlQXPFxTU6YfgE449MH017LQeJbH5At-RO2Ja7JuKlVpT7OYkCfQ1RTzY72Fy75a6VD_-OuuA=s287" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="287" data-original-width="176" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUbBgq5I0dzzek-XQKgE_4KlUCUCz7KHMmWbFLLNsS_Wy6wF5k-H749hDTZkBbqCkeZiSKrC6hMFJTuk8VHGVPf6O9GJuULcWkfdlmj_x0_5VF3a4VlQXPFxTU6YfgE449MH017LQeJbH5At-RO2Ja7JuKlVpT7OYkCfQ1RTzY72Fy75a6VD_-OuuA" width="176" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><i>Sula </i>by Toni Morrison</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><i> </i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">While not <i>The Song of Solomon, </i>this is still a delightful little magical realist novella. <i>Sula</i> exhibits a beautiful voice throughout, capturing the time and place as only Morrison is able to. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">I had to laugh, when Morrison mentions “ the bull-necked Greeks and Italians” and then on the final page it’s the Greeks alone with the same phrase (‘the bull-necked Greeks’). I’m probably one of those ‘bull-necked Greek types’, and growing up, there seemed to be so many relatives and family friends just like that…<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsX4SPI3tolDuRk_l6IEr7QLpWSTPZuJlarcziMl7UuUIRjex-FlyZiAy7W-_YwfScWGDKq-WZ1Nl63GD7KDuYjoTNulu1XCTaK-kWPkrgQwUYGRXMlH_XSykuLxZGs6k_952mwrBGxGlFtE4q3PXPXyv6X6WGe6cijwjTQewM1ap-PNO1O3vLM183=s326" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="220" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsX4SPI3tolDuRk_l6IEr7QLpWSTPZuJlarcziMl7UuUIRjex-FlyZiAy7W-_YwfScWGDKq-WZ1Nl63GD7KDuYjoTNulu1XCTaK-kWPkrgQwUYGRXMlH_XSykuLxZGs6k_952mwrBGxGlFtE4q3PXPXyv6X6WGe6cijwjTQewM1ap-PNO1O3vLM183=s320" width="216" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><i>The Oustider </i>by Albert Camus (also called <i>The Stranger</i>)</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;">As with <i>The Grapes of Wrath, </i>my thoughts won’t add anything to what has already been discussed by a myriad of others. On the surface, this is a quick and easy read, but the morally grey areas will provide readers with some powerful reflection. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgP7zSZQ44MxahDUdGCv478sHWCI5A3KY4nnSV0vVPab6AftVOCpOfxyr5SEuOdt9KLx0-sFU7aK8JXq6nNrfsjgugS-I_MYlKwKB2KTw093TUxlSgnz1xFjg3TiqPC0nB2k1Ae6qkKtJTh4CHVc3iW2CcIHhFu8xPatUwOyprZvfB_BMbsYGjdzsR1=s500" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgP7zSZQ44MxahDUdGCv478sHWCI5A3KY4nnSV0vVPab6AftVOCpOfxyr5SEuOdt9KLx0-sFU7aK8JXq6nNrfsjgugS-I_MYlKwKB2KTw093TUxlSgnz1xFjg3TiqPC0nB2k1Ae6qkKtJTh4CHVc3iW2CcIHhFu8xPatUwOyprZvfB_BMbsYGjdzsR1=s320" width="210" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b>Publications<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">New story:<i> </i>“Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)” in <i>Bourbon Penn 25 </i><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is a delightful home for a story. <i>Bourbon Penn</i> privileges a variety of styles rather than the sardine can formulaic story. <i>Bourbon Penn</i> contains my favourite type of writing: innovative, slightly unconventional, brave but readable, and it almost always strikes that delightful spot where the ‘lit’ and ‘genre’ boundaries blur. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I found all six stories in <i>BP 25</i> strong, and most superb. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">An early<a href="http://www.sfrevu.com/php/Review-id.php?id=19653"> review</a> is already out at SFRevu. I've decided to copy the part that mentions my story (mild spoiler alert) as I've realised with 'Reading Coffee' and other stories that web reviews can vanish into the ephemeral Etheretherlands: </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">"The first story is "Anthrophages Anonymous (AA) by Anthony Panegyres.</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">James Davis has become Holy James to intelligent bears and has weaned them away from eating humans. Ted is a bear with a little more intelligence and loves his wife, Liz. But Holy James is far from divine.</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">A great little story."</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>I'm not on the Twitter-sphere, but a friend sent me pics of two tweets, one regarding the journal with Jeffrey Ford stating </span><i>Bourbon </i><span><i>Penn</i></span><i> </i><span>is<i> 'One of my all time favourite magazines'</i>, which gave me tingles as Jeffrey Ford's <i>The Shadow Year </i>is one of my all time favourite novels. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And Emma Culla, who contributed a poetic, colourful and structurally innovative story to <i>Bourbon Penn 24 </i>('Red Diamond, Black Diamond, Golden Hexagon') wrote about my own story: <i>'I loved the AA story in this issue (AA as in bears who've stopped eating people and can speak, some of them very eloquently). What a ride!'</i> There are few things more invigorating than a fellow writer enthusing about your own work. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Although an American publication and easily ordered online through a host of channels, <i>Bourbon Penn 25 </i>is available at Planet Books here in Perth, both in Northbridge and in Mt Lawley. So if you're a Perthite, head on down. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj1lFA4L94smZJeqxJxPE2qAhI0ESj3hMFzrIPlyM4ZQDqhklXr63_tPrf079-CkmdnjBZVcjybOmfg6eRrh1suxBanIzqqqub3rQr1LrLrJvw-Fuqtnb6tLSF1ECXyXudZz-cjIy8Bg2gZg-8bZBLuF-dmErTIJyfl9efR2Qsl52Oc3j6zI7Bx0q1O=s1146" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="716" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj1lFA4L94smZJeqxJxPE2qAhI0ESj3hMFzrIPlyM4ZQDqhklXr63_tPrf079-CkmdnjBZVcjybOmfg6eRrh1suxBanIzqqqub3rQr1LrLrJvw-Fuqtnb6tLSF1ECXyXudZz-cjIy8Bg2gZg-8bZBLuF-dmErTIJyfl9efR2Qsl52Oc3j6zI7Bx0q1O=s320" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Reprint: “Reading Coffee”</b> an Aurealis Award finalist story originally published in <i>Overland Literary Journal 204, </i>and then reprinted in Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene’s <i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2011, </i>found its third home a decade on in a colourful anthology of reprint stories called <b><i>Spawn of War and Deathiness </i>Ed. Tom Easton</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I wanted to highlight three standout stories: ‘Wallflower’ by Tom Easton, ‘The Sidewalk’ by James Dorr, and ‘Daddy’s Girl’ by Jennifer R. Donohue. Other stories that I found especially entertaining were ‘Power of Attorney’ by Louis Evans, ‘Starship Scion’ by David F. Schultz, ‘The Schrodinger Child’ by Dwayne Minton, ‘The Inn of the Dove’ by Gordon Linzner, and ‘The Last Death’ by Sarah Seddon. But there is something here for everyone, a mixture of light and dark and all the greys in-between. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhbMhPo2V5tOAVpdufyKwXYKU0JyCRko25FPZdWDOPzsUliszrAWyTIpBysqFpVqUaBBoPU-te_yfVTF0c_Pl35i29RwNWaYdRByfFH8jJ50kU900cyYcQxnvB_FC47kzvJL2-hpOV2qIKpg3zdN6slAFWiWsspFFL5NO-XT6bcMgul7IQu7SdqMap-=s499" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="333" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhbMhPo2V5tOAVpdufyKwXYKU0JyCRko25FPZdWDOPzsUliszrAWyTIpBysqFpVqUaBBoPU-te_yfVTF0c_Pl35i29RwNWaYdRByfFH8jJ50kU900cyYcQxnvB_FC47kzvJL2-hpOV2qIKpg3zdN6slAFWiWsspFFL5NO-XT6bcMgul7IQu7SdqMap-=s320" width="214" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Concerns and a Happy 2022<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><o:p><b><span>Opining Away on Opening Up</span></b></o:p><b> </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We are opening here in Perth. I do feel for families who haven’t seen loved ones (and perhaps some work can be done on that front), but I don’t think that opening up is the solution, so I hope, perhaps vainly, that Premier Mark McGowan changes his mind. Healthy people make for a healthy economy, and, as we have seen, we are leading the nation in terms of employment, economic growth, health, liberties, and lifestyle. Ironically, 'opening up'will most likely mean closing more often; it will also place unnecessary pressure on hospitals and businesses. I would like to think that we've learned from the train wreck over East. NSW have just banned dancing at bars and clubs, hospitals are under immense pressure, more elective surgeries are on hold, plus, most tragically, deaths are on the rise. We will have to open up eventually, but with some patience we can see what the 'let rip' or the euphemistically labelled 'push through' policy brings over East. At present it doesn't look great. Who knows what, with a little patience, a couple of months of observation will bring? Albert Bourla is already discussing an omicron-specific vaccine for potential release in March. By waiting, we could also make a decision based on how the Australian COVID-19 modelling (although already flawed) works in practice –– especially regarding the alleged peaking.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">At the moment, here in Perth, we have one of the best lifestyles in the world. But our wily Premier may yet have a few more cards to play in keeping the population safe. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Vaccines and Global Inequality</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The data out there is evident that vaccinations significantly help reduce symptoms. I am not claiming that vaccinations will solve the COVID -19 crisis, but they are currently an integral step in protecting lives where COVID-19 is prevalent. Having said that, the arena seems to be forever changing, and so too will vaccines and anti-viral treatments. But the tragedy is that some nations have incredibly low vaccination rates. I heard a programme on Radio National highlighting horrific issues in Papua New Guinea.Cultural and economic reasons mean that they, and many other countries, especially with low GDPs, have extremely low rates of vaccination (and they are often 'gifted' vaccines that have a lower efficacy rate). It may be idealistic, but I'd love it if we globally united to deliver to nations like Papua New Guinea. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Happy 2022</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">On the brighter side, I hope you read a few books, take care of your loved ones and friends, along with our precious environment. It’s wishful thinking, but in a political sense wouldn't it be great if the era of the demagogue was over? The polarisation fuelled by fringe extremists on both sides is ugly. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">As always, I wish all a healthy, happy, but also meaningful, year.<span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-52833302968523408092021-12-31T16:22:00.019-08:002022-04-20T04:37:20.533-07:0025 Superb Stories Read in 2021<p><span style="font-family: inherit;">I read 174 short stories in 2021. I'm brutally keeping these yearly lists now to my favourite 25 stories read, which is a real challenge as many wonderful stories aren't listed. I am also very careful about listing works from anthologies I've stories in. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The couple of Greek folktales listed also privilege a few outdated values, which naturally relate to their context of production. </span></p><p>As always, the list is about celebrating the stories listed, rather than denigrating any that are not mentioned. </p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span>‘Talking Dog’ by Francine Prose (</span><i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span> </span><span>Ed. Daniel Halpern from</span><span> </span><i>The Peaceable Kingdom: Stories) </i><span> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Free Radio’ by Salman Rushdie (<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories </i>Ed. Daniel Halpern from <i>East, West</i>)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Mark of Satan’ by Joyce Carol Oates (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Daniel Halpern from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Antaeus</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Girl Who Left Her Sock on the Floor’ Deborah Eisenberg (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">All Around Atlantis </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">by Deborah Eisenberg)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Optimists’ by Richard Ford (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">From </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Rock Springs </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">by Richard Ford). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfVqkCRa-opuQoVUb1QXwEiQ_5aLmha7elblzV4kb-vmuEAUTcyP49_rdBx27DLMXXS0nMxDYZ04Elfsxq9oBPSkkJjWO2irtDXmtGAlQQ44U-2lcDneSMeamBDaKLeUyPkqw0LcZmZ1hueszXw2cJxo9dMHXO2IkuJBa2lSXGD7tK96MzKYQcM03L=s462" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfVqkCRa-opuQoVUb1QXwEiQ_5aLmha7elblzV4kb-vmuEAUTcyP49_rdBx27DLMXXS0nMxDYZ04Elfsxq9oBPSkkJjWO2irtDXmtGAlQQ44U-2lcDneSMeamBDaKLeUyPkqw0LcZmZ1hueszXw2cJxo9dMHXO2IkuJBa2lSXGD7tK96MzKYQcM03L=s320" width="208" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Willing’ by Lorrie Moore (<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i> Ed. Daniel Halpern from <i>Birds of America</i>)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Lifeguard’ by May Morris (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Ed. Daniel Halpern from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Lifeguard</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Green Man’ by Jeanette Winterson (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Daniel Halpern from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The World and Other Places</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Bone Mother’ by Angela Slatter </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(The Girl With No Hands and other tales)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Monk’ (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Folktales of Greece </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Georgios A. Megas)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Anthousa the Fair with Golden Hair’ (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Folktales of Greece </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Georgios A. Megas) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Minutes of Glory’ by Ngugi wa Thiong’o ((<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories </i>Ed. Daniel Halpern)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Wilderness Tips’ Margaret Atwood (<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i>)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘G-String’ Nicola Barker (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">First published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Three Button Trick and Other Stories)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Portrait of the Avant-Garde’ by Peter Hoeg (<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i> Ed. Daniel Halpern from <i>Tales of the Night</i>)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Intimacy’ by Hanif Kureishi (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Ed. Daniel Halpern. Originally in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The New Yorker</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Farm’ by Joy Williams Prose (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Ed. Daniel Halpern from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Taking Care</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Hunt at Rotherdam’ by A.C Wise </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">(Bourbon Penn 24)</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i> </i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Appearing Nightly’ by Gregory Norman Bossert <i>(Bourbon Penn 25</i>) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvZEfeYuU_OwZwsosTwIrhU1zkAg_LSmJId34KjS-CGe8oo45E3oIlkczuZaaRT7fXsHR_LPgggReNs3hBKIevBFN4RmshDg4XOU-ofEMixHjythmBeAHusZ-ms2DKQNbIwz7PVA2oKoSRWGh0fW-COxnZz_0Z3kcYwaJ-vIsecPb9lP1-JZCs9Ue-=s462" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvZEfeYuU_OwZwsosTwIrhU1zkAg_LSmJId34KjS-CGe8oo45E3oIlkczuZaaRT7fXsHR_LPgggReNs3hBKIevBFN4RmshDg4XOU-ofEMixHjythmBeAHusZ-ms2DKQNbIwz7PVA2oKoSRWGh0fW-COxnZz_0Z3kcYwaJ-vIsecPb9lP1-JZCs9Ue-=s320" width="220" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="text-align: left;"> </span><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘The Juniper Tree’ Heart’ by Angela Slatter <i>(The Girl With No Hands and other tales. </i>First published in<i> Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet </i>#<i>18)<br /> </i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Dresses, Three’ by Angela Slatter <i>(The Girl With No Hands and other tales. </i>First Published in <i>Shimmer Spring 2008</i>)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Love Songs for the Very Awful’ by Robert Reed <i>(Asimov’s March/April 2018) <o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Escort’ by Abdulrazak Gurnah (<i>The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i>. First appeared in <i>New Writing </i>Ed. Peter Porter & Christopher Hope)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘John-Jin’ by Rose Tremain (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Ed. Daniel Halpern from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Evangelista’s Fan</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'All Lateral' by </span>John<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Summell <i>(One Story 201)</i></span><i style="font-family: inherit;"> </i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 32px; margin: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-70778407555810321232021-11-04T18:52:00.013-07:002023-02-02T05:13:33.660-08:00Publishing News:'Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)' in Bourbon Penn 25<strike><strike></strike></strike><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">New Story: 'Anthrophages Anonymous (AA)' in<i> Bourbon Penn 25</i></span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Some stories are written relatively quickly, whereby little changes from the first draft to the final product. Others take an aeon of reflection and fine tuning. "Anthropophages Anonymous" is of the latter kind. It is an ambitious story, which took over four years of rewrites and edits. I recall sending Carol Ryles an earlier version, and this final product bears little to no resemblance at all to that draft. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There's an old writing exercise where there is a bear at the front door, and you come up with five plot outlines for the story. The lesson is that the most outrageous will be fun but most likely unworkable, and the most tame too mundane and dull. Well, this story is more the outrageous kind –– I'm always up for a masochistic-challenge with my writing. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">For those who have read "Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)' - every syllable is accounted for. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I was flattered when Stephanie Gunn told me she'd thanked me in her Aurealis Award for Best Novella acceptance speech for the feedback I'd given her. With some stories, due to tight time parameters, you work in isolation, but with others you may have the fortune of discussing them before submitting. So in turn, I'd like to thank my writing group at the time of this story's production, my mates: Marty Young, Pete Kempshall, and Daniel Simpson. Dan, who has has been of great support for many years, told me to persist with it, while Pete and Marty helped me work in a sense of verisimilitude into an outlandish story which has a thread exploring verisimilitude, which isn't easy when you are writing about cultish bear folk going through the 'AA' stages; all set in a bear-folk compound run by a human 'deity'...</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I have to thank Erik Secker too. This is the first time I've collaborated on a plot change with an editor (a rewrite of a scene). It was a third of a page, but a major change. Erik was never forceful, but thought it would improve the story. And it truly did. I had something similar in one of the earlier twenty or so drafts, so I was eager to see how it eventuated in this later version. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Although humorous and a little dark, the story is hopefully also poignant and meaningful. Adrian Van Young, who has helped me with story ordering for a potential collection (a WIP), told me that I was free to paste some of his feedback regarding the story here. <span><span class="il" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;">Van</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"> </span><span class="il" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;">Young</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;">has works published in<i> Granta, The New Yorker, Conjunctions, Black Warrior Review</i> and other places, said the following about the story. Always nice for positive FB on a new story. </span></span></span></p><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: arial;"><i>to the somehow altogether plausible plights of the cultish, flesh-addicted Bear people in “Anthropophages Anonymous (AA),” these stories again and again managed to walk that razor’s edge between humorous and horrifying, daring us to laugh at the most uncomfortable moments (often we have no choice!), and forcing us in the process to examine why we’re reacting the way we do; what we’re able to face head-on and what we just can’t. You set up their work as a hinge that swings between humor and horror, discomfort and amusement....</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: black; font-style: italic;">“Anthropophages Anonymous (AA)”:” this was yet another of my favorites, perhaps my favorite along with “Honey Possum” (on which more soon!) and I could also see cause for moving it up earlier in the collection; I think it’s always best to really slam them at the beginning... But, Anthony,</span><span style="color: black; font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-style: italic;">really </span><span style="color: black;"><i>fantastic stuff. This one did a pitch perfect job of integrating the fantastic and the realist on a need-to-know basis, and of showing how a story about the inhuman, or un-human, as it were, is always a stand-in for a story about the human—again, that emotional anchor. And the prose truly sings in this one! You were hitting your stride here on multiple fronts—in terms of genre, tone, stylistics & characterization...Loved it!</i></span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><i>Bourbon Penn</i> is a quality production of exceptional stories with a beautiful cover. The stories are meaty and imaginative, often with a touch of the odd, and are of a literary bend too. It's the type of fiction I am naturally drawn to. </span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;">And I couldn't be prouder of being in the lineup with the other five writers: Allie Kiri Mendelsohn, Gregory Norman Bossert (Winner of the World Fantasy Award & Theodore Sturgeon Award), E. Catherine Tobler (a story finalist for Theodore Sturgeon Award and also a renown editor), Louis Evans (<i>Analog, Interzone</i>), Simon Strantzas (finalist for four Shirley Jackson Awards, two British Fantasy Awards, and The World Fantasy Award). </span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;">The exquisite cover art is by Dan Quintana. </span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RA3DL2FNqV8/YX-T0OhkjOI/AAAAAAAABQ8/kGuMIUq3qfo2FDMaKsrjXHUCAoCKe_4mgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1146/FCyi_YtXsAQyoOA.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="716" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RA3DL2FNqV8/YX-T0OhkjOI/AAAAAAAABQ8/kGuMIUq3qfo2FDMaKsrjXHUCAoCKe_4mgCLcBGAsYHQ/w250-h400/FCyi_YtXsAQyoOA.png" width="250" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; text-align: center;"><span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><b>The Short Story Genre Down Under: Side Note</b></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I love supporting and reading Australian short work, but I find that there's an obsession within the Aussie literary scene for primarily short, tight work. These stories naturally have, and deserve, their place, however, it is also a limiting view of the genre. It's most likely the outcome of having such short word counts in Australian literary journals (most Australian journals max out at 3K), along with the fiction-submission readers adhering too stringently to creative writing 'rules' taught at a tertiary level. The best readers, writers, and editors have an understanding of the 'rules' but they also know why they can be broken for the betterment of a story. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">American journals often only buy the meatier type of short story. For instance, <i>One Story's </i>minimum cut-off is 3000 words, <i>Bourbon Penn</i> is at 2000 words, <i>Colorado Review</i> 3750, <i>Crazyhorse</i> 2500, V<i>irginia Quarterly Review</i> (<i>VQR</i>) 3500; and even UK's <i>Granta</i> is at 3000. So, I do think we've fallen down the wrong rabbit hole Down Under as it means falsely pigeonholing the short story genre into very short stories and flash fiction, rather than a more representative embracement of the genre's lengthier narrative. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Current Reads</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I've also just finished <i>Bourbon Penn 24 </i>and found all the stories brave and innovative. Although Sam Rebelein, Michael Gardner, Charles Wilkinson, and Chelsea Sutton's works are strong, the story that has especially stayed with me is the haunting-yet-fun tale <span>‘The Hunt at Rotherdam’ by A.C Wise.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e1T7GWhzm1A/YYMgnMTty_I/AAAAAAAABRE/zMQXSwrmO2QujZDKlJVsdOokgBBukozJACLcBGAsYHQ/s1146/24.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="716" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e1T7GWhzm1A/YYMgnMTty_I/AAAAAAAABRE/zMQXSwrmO2QujZDKlJVsdOokgBBukozJACLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h320/24.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><span><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span>And my book club has just read John Steinbeck's </span><i>The </i><span><i>Winter</i></span><i> of Our Discontent. </i><span>While i</span><span>t's not </span><i>East of Eden (</i><span>which for me is the magnum opus of magnum opuses), it is still wonderful. Like the contemporary writer Ian McEwan appears to do with his works, the overarching theme in Steinbeck's <i>T</i></span><i>he </i><span><i>Winter</i></span><i> of Our Discontent</i><span> revolves around a moral dilemma; in this novel<i>, </i>Steinbeck explores the trappings of capitalistic temptation and class status.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MEB7HSA5xAw/YYMgzfOI9hI/AAAAAAAABRI/Q9Ho5dPDxhEBoRpGFX6Tjart-NOgxxEvACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/9780141186313.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1334" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MEB7HSA5xAw/YYMgzfOI9hI/AAAAAAAABRI/Q9Ho5dPDxhEBoRpGFX6Tjart-NOgxxEvACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9780141186313.jpg" width="208" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><span><br /></span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Reprint News: 'Reading Coffee' </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">'Reading Coffee', an Aurealis Award finalist story originally published in <i>Overland Literary Journal 204</i> (fiction Ed. was Jane Gleeson-White at the time) and republished in The <i>Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2011 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene, has found another home a decade on. <i>Spawn of War and Deathiness </i>Ed. Tom Easton is an American anthology of reprint stories.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I always try to keep tabs on anthology buddies, and this time around it's the second home I've shared with American poet Gerard Sarnat (<i>Changing Tides </i>pub. 2020 was the previous home); and I had to laugh when I realised it is the second home shared this month alone with Louis Evans as we also both contributed to <i>Bourbon Penn 25. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"> More news to come. </span></p><p><br /></p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-86141370670833183912021-01-06T14:33:00.019-08:002022-01-03T15:06:12.253-08:002020 Reading Review<p style="text-align: center;"> <b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;">Books Read in 2020</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i>A Little Hatred </i>Joe Abercrombie</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Atonement </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ian McEwan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Mythos </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Stephen Fry (collection/mythology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Matilda </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Roald Dahl (children’s novel)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Orange World and Other Stories </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Karen Russell (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Machines Like Me </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ian McEwan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Stone Mattress </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Margaret Atwood (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Hunger </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joyce Carol Oates (novella read in </span><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Female of the Species, </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">originally in </span><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine</i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Overstory </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Richard Powers</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ed. Richard Ford (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">In Sunlight or In Shadow </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ed. Lawrence Block (anthology inspired by the paintings of Edward Hopper)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ghost Empire </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Richard Fidler (history)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Trouble with Peace </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joe Abercrombie</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Magic for Beginners </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kelly Link (novella read in </span><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Wrong Grave. </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Originally published in the collection </span><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Magic for Beginners</i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Norse Mythology </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Neil Gaiman (collection/ mythology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Half a King </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joe Abercrombie</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Tau Zero </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Poul Anderson</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Half the World </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joe Abercrombie</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Invisible History of the Human Race: How DNA and History Shape Our Identities and Our Futures </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Christine Kenneally (Expository)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Female of the Species </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joyce Carol Oates (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Sputnik Sweetheart </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Haruki Murakami</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Silent Land </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Graham Joyce</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Wrong Grave </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kelly Link (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Bridge Burning & Other Hobbies </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kitty Flannagan (memoir/humour)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kindred </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Octavia Butler</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ready Player One </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ernest Cline</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Bagombo Snuff Box </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kurt Vonnegut (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Sleep Donation </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Karen Russell (novella)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Country of the Blind </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">H.G. Wells (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Welcome to the Monkey House </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kurt Vonnegut Jr (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2014 </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Changing Tides </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ed. Jaynie Royal & Michelle Rosquillo (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">One Hundred Years of Dirt </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Rick Morton (memoir)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Eidolon 1 </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Ed. Jonathan Strahan & Jeremy G Byrne (anthology)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse</i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> Tim Seeley (author) Tom Derenick & Dan Fraga (illustrators) (graphic novel)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Over to You </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Roald Dahl (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Half a War </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Joe Abercrombie</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">488 Rules for Life: The Thankless Art of Being Correct </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Kitty Flanagan (humour-expository)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Glitter Rose </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Marianne de Pierres (collection)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Dirty Beasts </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Roald Dahl (children’s poetry)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Astercote </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Penelope Lively (children’s novel)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Laughable Loves </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Milan Kundera (collection) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>Highlights with Brief Commentary (Not Reviews)<o:p></o:p></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b> </b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I read more books than I have in a while in 2020, yet only two disappointed, so many that I loved have not received a mention here. I’ve decided to stick to a max. of four favourites in the genre I most consumed, and one to three in the remainder. Brutal, I know.<o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b> </b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>NOVELS<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Could have easily gone for more here with Joe Abercrombie, and also added Haruki Murakami, Octavia Butler and Graham Joyce – and then the list would continue...<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>A Little Hatred</i> by Joe Abercrombie</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OyvB6XHHjwM/X_PPG_e2gvI/AAAAAAAABKo/xqHJaQhosuAGzjVTjw0i5xbFNY9IEKOkACLcBGAsYHQ/s920/LittleHatred_FINAL-600x920.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="920" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OyvB6XHHjwM/X_PPG_e2gvI/AAAAAAAABKo/xqHJaQhosuAGzjVTjw0i5xbFNY9IEKOkACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/LittleHatred_FINAL-600x920.jpg" /></a></div><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I devoured five Abercrombie novels this year. His novels remind me of the thrill I once got when I was 10 through to 14 when I read high fantasy – only Abercrombie, like his fellow grimdark writer, George RR Martin, adds adult elements, and the wit and humour and prose far surpass what I read in my young teens. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i>A Little Hatred</i> is set a few decades after <i>The First Law</i> trilogy. As usual, Abercrombie cheekily borrows storylines from history, and in <i>A Little Hatred, </i>Abercombie incorporates elements of the Industrial Revolution, and I suspect the French Revolution too. Like always, every scene amuses, every page has you craving more. But this time around, Abercrombie stays away from his deliberate late twists and flips, and the work felt better for it. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">In a thematic sense, Abercrombie makes salient points regarding gender (there are more focalised female characters), as well as exploring industrialism and emerging capitalist economics within a largely feudal society. And as per Abercrombie’s norm, his characters exhibit all of our human frailties, especially that of ambition, guilt, and confused motivations. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Atonement </i>Ian McEwan</b><i><o:p></o:p></i></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y4SWQlf-Xtk/X_PP2UbDolI/AAAAAAAABKw/eYuw29PQBN0if-yp9gfSzFBxc5OiefPJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1381/4967300223.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1381" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y4SWQlf-Xtk/X_PP2UbDolI/AAAAAAAABKw/eYuw29PQBN0if-yp9gfSzFBxc5OiefPJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/4967300223.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">As good as the critics claim. I’ve read and enjoyed a lot of McKewan (especially <i>Nutshell</i>) but for me this is the best so far. SPOLIER ALERT It would be a fantastic historical novel without the ending, but the meta elements in the last part make it absolutely superb. <o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Machines Like Me </i>Ian McEwan</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z9EipikDwM8/X_PQXZkMUyI/AAAAAAAABK8/JAh8-lPXO00BUM9w-Q78dAJV7Y7v6MROACLcBGAsYHQ/s253/138615815-hq-168-80.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="168" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z9EipikDwM8/X_PQXZkMUyI/AAAAAAAABK8/JAh8-lPXO00BUM9w-Q78dAJV7Y7v6MROACLcBGAsYHQ/w212-h320/138615815-hq-168-80.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Reading this so close <i>to Atonement</i> revealed distinct thematic similarities: the controversy and the lies surrounding a sexual encounter, the deception of others and self-deception, and the old moral dilemmas that McKewan adores exploring. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i><br /></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i>Machines Like Me </i>is an alternative history, a bit like PK Dick’s <i>A Man in the High Castle. </i>This time it’s set in Thatcher’s England. I liked this aspect the most. Most AI I’ve read is set in the future, so the change was especially refreshing. My book club, an astute bunch, believe there are some incongruences and anachronisms within the alternative world, but I enjoyed the ride. The moral ambiguity of AI, the inevitable arguments as to whether AI can possess a soul, whether they can be higher beings than ourselves, and also their potential displacement of humans, are all touched on in an intelligent manner. And rather than paint things in black and white, McKewan offers a more open approach here. As always, his prose is at a standard few writers rival. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Overstory </i>Richard Powers</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PdQOuj-ZY1g/X_PQu1_aeqI/AAAAAAAABLE/r1nzAxBs3Ec_gn-tP24lbJgWeeW64DcCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s409/9781784708245.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="260" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PdQOuj-ZY1g/X_PQu1_aeqI/AAAAAAAABLE/r1nzAxBs3Ec_gn-tP24lbJgWeeW64DcCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9781784708245.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">To be honest, <i>The Overstory </i>is incredibly vexing at times. The opening series of vignettes in ‘The Roots’ all end with hyperbolic melodrama; the novel’s ending borders on being frustratingly open without the satisfaction of all the threads meeting. But then again, you’ll pensively pause after you've finished the tome in the same manner as a great short story. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">So why is it here? Because when Powers is on song, he astonishes: the intelligence, the allusions, the characters and relationships, are all so vividly drawn. And the initial story lines do come together, for the most part, in the middle. ‘The Trunk’ and ‘The Crown’ sections contain some of the most captivating work I’ve read. So despite the frustration, which may also be an integral ingredient in making Powers uniquely brilliant, it’s worth reading for the parts in which Powers simply scintillates. And even within the parts that don't entirely work for me, there is still plenty to admire and reflect on.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i>The Overstory </i>is also a reminder that we are environmental custodians of the world, and how we are failing this stewardship in numerous respects. Powers quite deliberately has written this to drive change, there’s even an analogy within the novel about stories influencing change more than facts (makes sense, look at the tragedy of COVID in the US and the fact that many still blindly believe that Trump has excelled, while the objective facts state the exact opposite). <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">But I don’t see this imperfect-yet-remarkable work being the catalyst for a new wave of environmental conservationists. T<span style="text-indent: 0cm;">he depressing reality is that Power’s ambitious novel most likely only preaches to the already converted, or the believers, like myself. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">While</span><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> <i>The </i></span><i style="text-indent: 0cm;">Overstory </i><span style="text-indent: 0cm;">won’t be everyone’s cuppa tea (and at times it wasn’t mine) the world benefits from rich, explorative writers like Richard Powers.</span><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Reading<i>The</i> <i>Overstory </i>is an unforgettable experience––as long as you’re willing to take the challenging climb up to the canopy. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>CHILDREN'S NOVEL<o:p></o:p></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b> </b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Matilda </i>Roald Dahl</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_DRLwCBml_8/X_PRIsPxM1I/AAAAAAAABLM/g7cRshJRF4kbkedE-flwKuIEQSxbd2iewCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/matilda_book_cover.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1300" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_DRLwCBml_8/X_PRIsPxM1I/AAAAAAAABLM/g7cRshJRF4kbkedE-flwKuIEQSxbd2iewCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/matilda_book_cover.png" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">After all these years, I’ve finally read <i>Matilda</i>. Tim Minchin’s musical version of <i>Matilda</i> is also genius, one of the best I’ve seen, so I don’t know how I missed out on reading <i>Matilda </i>until now, especially as Dahl played such a role in my younger reading. Who doesn’t love <i>The Twits, George’s Marvellous Medicine, Fantastic Mr Fox, Revolting Rhymes, Danny the Champion of the World, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, The Witches </i>and <i>The BFG</i>? Won’t say much about <i>Matilda </i>other than I treasured it. Nobody writes children’s fiction like Dahl.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>COLLECTIONS<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Orange World</i> <i>and Other Stories </i>Karen Russell</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Cxu3IexXls/X_PRm58xiJI/AAAAAAAABLY/KMDaUvJwStMztcWq52fqvTc6TCkcBinLACLcBGAsYHQ/s450/9780525566076.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="292" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Cxu3IexXls/X_PRm58xiJI/AAAAAAAABLY/KMDaUvJwStMztcWq52fqvTc6TCkcBinLACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9780525566076.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Another superb collection from Karen Russell. I’ve listed recommended stories from <i>Orange World</i> on both my 2019 & recent 2020 beloved story lists. I'm enthralled by Karen Russell’s writing and worlds. Russell courageously blends genre and realist elements, and as such, Russell is my go-to short story writer. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Stone Mattress </i>Margaret Atwood</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SFMRDIimF1w/X_PSFZXebbI/AAAAAAAABLg/My-eb-XI0zIHwXkBiasN_MAUVQ2dP0UlACLcBGAsYHQ/s279/Unknown.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="181" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SFMRDIimF1w/X_PSFZXebbI/AAAAAAAABLg/My-eb-XI0zIHwXkBiasN_MAUVQ2dP0UlACLcBGAsYHQ/w208-h320/Unknown.jpeg" width="208" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I’ve found Atwood’s writing more imbued with humour of late. These stories are fantastic. Many play with genre, often subverting it with meta elements. Funny, witty, and simply fab prose. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Female of the Species </i>Joyce Carol Oates</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S0sbvGzta4U/X_PSfVowlII/AAAAAAAABLo/_y0ttdhDzh4t48x-MUMlLhPXl-X63saQACLcBGAsYHQ/s465/the-female-of-the-species.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S0sbvGzta4U/X_PSfVowlII/AAAAAAAABLo/_y0ttdhDzh4t48x-MUMlLhPXl-X63saQACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/the-female-of-the-species.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I started this years ago, and although I delighted in many of the stories, I’d abandoned it. The return lived up to my expectations. Oates has plenty of fun here with highly suspenseful, playful, dark, and often deliberately melodramatic stories. Once again, I’m a fan. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Wrong Grave </i>Kelly Link</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HKLoM_XQRNU/X_PTFSnLyFI/AAAAAAAABLw/U6ujNy5V_ooC1Atw1Elnx6xE6EOqip8zQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/9781921520730.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1324" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HKLoM_XQRNU/X_PTFSnLyFI/AAAAAAAABLw/U6ujNy5V_ooC1Atw1Elnx6xE6EOqip8zQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9781921520730.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Exuberant, clever and fun and, unlike Oates’ cold but effective suspense and horror, there’s a wonderful warmth to Link’s stories, even with those which lean to the darker side. I especially enjoyed the title story, and a novella (see the novella highlights). I’ll certainly read more Link. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>MYTHOLOGY<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Two completely different takes on retelling myth here. Gaiman’s beauty is in the parred back simplicity, while Fry’s humour and erudite commentary enhances the tales. Fry has added, while Gaiman has deliberately gone the other direction. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Mythos </i>Stephen Fry</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EpchbeVIQg0/X_RQPojGI2I/AAAAAAAABL8/3m5fdcDWCpg_aAvyrYvhMjqQ7VNVpAZYgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/9781405934138.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1334" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EpchbeVIQg0/X_RQPojGI2I/AAAAAAAABL8/3m5fdcDWCpg_aAvyrYvhMjqQ7VNVpAZYgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9781405934138.jpg" /></a></div><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Myth retold by the Philhellene. Fry’s passion for the Hellenic world comes through, he even mentions in a footnote in <i>Heroes</i> how he was studying Ancient Greek at eight years of age. Fry supplies a commentary throughout with wry quips, along with playful and informative ways Greek myth relates to the contemporary world. The early generational God-chronology is always a challenge, and Fry pulls it off as well as anybody, and after that the great narrative tales take hold. The footnotes are well-worth reading. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Norse Mythology </i>Neil Gaiman</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6aNf8tTHZJI/X_RQogQ17II/AAAAAAAABME/qEKMHJDPWBoovvDFLZ83qLwNaXIsQObhgCLcBGAsYHQ/s310/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="202" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6aNf8tTHZJI/X_RQogQ17II/AAAAAAAABME/qEKMHJDPWBoovvDFLZ83qLwNaXIsQObhgCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" /></a></div><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Unlike Fry’s mythology, rather than additional commentary, there is little new here. And although I appreciate the criticism that Gaiman has added little to the genre, I actually feel as though it is one of <i>Norse Mythology’</i>s strengths. Via the use of simple rhythmic prose and maintaining a purity to the tales, I think the stories themselves are given the spotlight. So, if you’re new to Norse mythology or want a gentle return to some great tales, this is a great place. I’ve always loved Norse mythology, and I loved this. Although not as rich or witty as Fry, Gaiman’s strength is that he allows the Norse tales to shine in their own right. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>NOVELLAS</b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Hunger </i>Joyce Carol Oates</b><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">(novella read in <i>The Female of the Species, </i>originally in <i>Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine</i>) </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">A racy novella that will have you on your toes throughout. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Magic for Beginners </i>Kelly Link</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">(Read in </span><i>The Wrong Grave. </i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">Originally published in</span><i>The Magazine of Fantasy & Science </i><i>Fiction) </i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">Wonderfully whacky and will take you back to your childhood.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Tau Zero </i>Poul Anderson</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J9QnWwVHuqY/X_RRH0md3eI/AAAAAAAABMM/1X1NSP6gB0ovgukkWayE-Rwh8PTnE4QBACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/51i1qfMA-2L.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="325" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J9QnWwVHuqY/X_RRH0md3eI/AAAAAAAABMM/1X1NSP6gB0ovgukkWayE-Rwh8PTnE4QBACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/51i1qfMA-2L.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Old school, compelling hard SF. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>ANTHOLOGIES</b> </p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;">(as per the norm, I’m not including works I have stories in)<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford </b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1EHBt-PGMxs/X_RRRjYtYuI/AAAAAAAABMQ/zUPNnkJsEtQTKHPTPtulXeyRwiCs1_49wCLcBGAsYHQ/s218/Unknown-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="218" data-original-width="140" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1EHBt-PGMxs/X_RRRjYtYuI/AAAAAAAABMQ/zUPNnkJsEtQTKHPTPtulXeyRwiCs1_49wCLcBGAsYHQ/w206-h320/Unknown-1.jpeg" width="206" /></a></div><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I won’t lie, a couple stories were a bit bleh, but I find this in most anthologies, so please hang in there, because this anthology is marvellous. Some of the best works I’ve read. And many I loved weren’t included on my list of favourite yearly reads when they normally would have but (but I felt an icy cut-off had to occur somewhere). Only problem is that <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> will seriously add to your reading list of writers to pursue further. I've already bought ZZ Packer, Edward P. Jones, Elizabeth Strout, Charles D'Ambrosio, and will be hunting down more...<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>In Sunlight or In Shadow </i>Ed. Lawrence Block<span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;">(An anthology inspired by the paintings of Edward Hopper)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kwg5FCqce0M/X_RRdNMI7MI/AAAAAAAABMY/TN_L9Q-i5bEDvcg4Sb7gUIOjs6r0nkqIACLcBGAsYHQ/s215/images.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="144" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kwg5FCqce0M/X_RRdNMI7MI/AAAAAAAABMY/TN_L9Q-i5bEDvcg4Sb7gUIOjs6r0nkqIACLcBGAsYHQ/w214-h320/images.jpeg" width="214" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Such a beautiful idea and production. It impresses in an aesthetic sense with a coloured pic of the Hopper painting before the inspired story, and although (like in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i>)<i> </i>a couple didn’t wow me (and that’s the subjective nature of reading) there’s still plenty to cherish here. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><i> </i></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2014 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FR9CtSP0EL8/X_RRmicyWHI/AAAAAAAABMg/Fv8D2R52wCsjDvNuZveVzm8_4uPf339OACLcBGAsYHQ/s449/the-year-s-best-australian-fantasy-and-horror-2014.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="449" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FR9CtSP0EL8/X_RRmicyWHI/AAAAAAAABMg/Fv8D2R52wCsjDvNuZveVzm8_4uPf339OACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/the-year-s-best-australian-fantasy-and-horror-2014.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Wish these were still around, along with <i>The Best Australian Stories.</i><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>EXPOSITORY<o:p></o:p></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b> </b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Ghost Empire </i>Richard Fidler</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;">(history)</p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7b6pPusXNpw/X_RSBg8be9I/AAAAAAAABMs/PQDilnd1lWQpn27-ZR68NWFq1HJKQobvACLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/4-Book-Review-Ghost-Empire-cover-727x1024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="727" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7b6pPusXNpw/X_RSBg8be9I/AAAAAAAABMs/PQDilnd1lWQpn27-ZR68NWFq1HJKQobvACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/4-Book-Review-Ghost-Empire-cover-727x1024.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Like many Greeks, I’m fascinated by Byzantine history, and Fidler frames this within a touching trip to Istanbul/ Constantinople with his son. Yet although Fidler repeats how advanced and civilised the Byzantines were compared to the rest of the world at the time, he ironically focusses on the uncivilised parts: on the shocks, the violence, the regicide, the intrigue, the savagery. I understand this, it helps with narrative drive and the captivation of the reader––and the work is captivating. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">There is also a weird mistake, which after I read it lingered around like one of those annoying bedtime mosquitoes. Fidler states that 'Sophia' is a Latin name, and although used in Rome too, the name is Greek– in fact it's iconic to the Greek world. 'Sophia' means wisdom and the Haghia Sophia means Holy Wisdom, or Church of the Holy Wisdom, and has no meaning at all in Latin. But Fidler does confess that unlike most Byzantine historians he doesn’t possess any Greek, so I’m being a bit of a pedantic prick. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">And this is here as a highlight read– <i>Ghost Empire </i>is a thoroughly enjoyable easy-to-read history. The father-son trip tugs poignantly at the heart strings, and the history itself fascinates. Mind you, my mother hated the gore…<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>The Invisible History of the Human Race: How DNA and History Shape Our Identities and Our Futures </i>Christine Kenneally</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MeOrGA-RWKA/X_RSxMM3MzI/AAAAAAAABM0/7I_q50CpqmwRgqaFR5XPUcu-QGFqQCTsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/23472896.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="311" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MeOrGA-RWKA/X_RSxMM3MzI/AAAAAAAABM0/7I_q50CpqmwRgqaFR5XPUcu-QGFqQCTsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/23472896.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I’m uncomfortable with the use of the word ‘race' in a contemporary sense unless it's within an historical context or finding fault with racism, both past and present. The notion of race is incredibly outdated. Afterall, you can’t have racism without a belief in ‘race’. But Keneally does contextualise and explore this topic too. I found the first part of Keneally’s work, which concentrates on the history of family trees and tracing lineage, quite tiring, but after that Keneally’s work intrigues. The many historical interludes and new scientific innovations and revelations are absorbing. The subject itself is a juggling act, especially as the dangerous notion of eugenics has returned with DNA and genetic science, and the tragedy is that some of the science gives fuel to toxic supremist groups (who manage to twist the data into their own twisted world views). But Keneally navigates this quagmire better than The Argonauts. For those interested in science and history, it’s well worth the read. <o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>MEMOIR</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>Bridge Burning & Other Hobbies </i>Kitty Flanagan</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wP06KyxeDhU/X_RTEy3dzqI/AAAAAAAABM8/5KHdfi7wpkc3FiYNA37lJjiv1TBQeXYVQCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/9781760632052.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="523" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wP06KyxeDhU/X_RTEy3dzqI/AAAAAAAABM8/5KHdfi7wpkc3FiYNA37lJjiv1TBQeXYVQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/9781760632052.jpg" /></a></div><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">A fun humorous self-take by a charismatic comedian. Plenty of the old Australian self-deprecating humour too. I’m a Flanagan fan<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><i>One Hundred Years of Dirt </i>Rick Morton</b><o:p></o:p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T9KQtf5kJhs/X_RTekWGgzI/AAAAAAAABNE/lLPYD38a9NMZwYX6IVRYEsiOj4OMYnr4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s499/51SSfCwdjRL._SX325_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T9KQtf5kJhs/X_RTekWGgzI/AAAAAAAABNE/lLPYD38a9NMZwYX6IVRYEsiOj4OMYnr4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/51SSfCwdjRL._SX325_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" /></a></div><span style="text-indent: 0cm;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I wasn’t entirely convinced of the structure, but <i>One Hundred Years of Dirt </i>is brave and comical (facetious too at times) while covering dark issues regarding poverty, inequality, masculinity, substance abuse, and homophobia. It also straddles the line of being overly didactic, but it’s worth the read, and having binged on Vonnegut in high school I’m not frightened of a bit of well thought out moralising. Morton’s writing reminds me of another Queensland journalist I enjoy reading: Trent Dalton. It’s loud and playful and entertaining throughout. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0cm;"><b>BEST FOR 2021</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I keep personal things out of my rarely used blog, but I do hope 2021 is a better year for the world. After a flurry of pressure from medical experts, our Premier Mark McGowan changed his initial rhetoric about 'staying open' and closed the borders by locking down hard and early. He's shown wonderful strength here in Western Australia (WA) as well as a flexible mindset. I realise that not all places are capable of this type of shutdown, but some able nations have been myopic in their desire to keep the economy 'afloat' at all costs, and, ironically, all they have succeeded in doing was sink the economic ship and cause long term economic woe, not to mention the tragic loss of lives, along with the many other lives affected as an outcome. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm;">Wishing you all a happy, healthy, but also meaningful, 2021! </p>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-31536603550922568772020-12-26T17:20:00.007-08:002021-01-08T15:11:19.991-08:00Especially Loved Short Stories from my 2020 Reading
I read 142 short stories in 2020. This list has 26 of my favourite reads for the year––like always there are plenty of works not included that I still loved and admired. <div><br /></div><div> ‘Orange World’ Karen Russell (<i>Orange World</i> originally in<i> The New Yorker)</i> </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Pharmacy’ Elizabeth Strout (<i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> Ed.Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>Olive Kitteredge</i>)</div><div><br />
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‘The Dead Hand Loves You’ Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress</i>)</div><div> </div><div> ‘Dark Lady’ Margaret Atwood <i>(Stone Mattress</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘The Deposition’ Tobias Wolff (<i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>Our Story Begins: New and Selected Stories</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Alphinland’ Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress</i>)
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‘Soir Bleu’ Robert Olen Butler Block <i>(In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper </i>Ed. Lawrence Block)</div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Taking Care of Business’ Craig Ferguson (<i>In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper</i> Ed. Lawrence Block) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Revenant’ Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Torching the Dusties’ Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Geese’ ZZ Packer (<i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in<i> From</i> <i>Drinking Coffee Elsewhere</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Drummond and Son’ Charles D’Ambrosio (<i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>The Dead Fish Musem</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘The Store’ Edward P. Jones (B<i>lue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in<i> Lost in the City</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Angel of Wrath’ Joyce Carol Oates (<i>The Female of the Species</i> originally in <i>Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)</i> </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘The Walking-Stick Forest’ Anna Tambour (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2014</i> Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene. Originally published in <i>Tor.com</i> Ed. Ellen Datlow) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Big Green Mama Falls in Love’ Eleanor Arnason (<i>Eidolon 1</i> Ed. Jonathan Strahan & Jeremy G Byrne)</div><div><br /></div><div> ‘The Projectionist’ Joe R. Lansdale <i>(In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper</i> Ed. Lawrence Block) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Girlie Show’ Megan Abbott (<i>In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper </i>Ed. Lawrence Block)</div><div><br />
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‘Black Corfu’ Karen Russell (<i>Orange World</i> originally in <i>Zoetrope</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘The Wrong Grave’ Kelly Link (read in <i>The Wrong Grave</i>. Originally published in <i>The Restless Dead: Ten Original Stories of the Supernatural</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Adam’ Kurt Vonnegut Jr (<i>Welcome to the Monkey House</i>. Originally published in <i>Cosmopolitan</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘High Lonesome’ Joyce Carol Oates (<i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar</i> Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>High Lonesome</i>) </div><div><br /></div><div>‘A Prayer for Lazarus’ Andrew J. McKiernan (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2014</i> Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene. First published in<i> Last Year, When We Were Young</i> Ed. Stephen Ormsby)</div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Kneaded’ by S.G. Larner (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2014</i> Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene. First published in <i>Phatazein</i> Ed. Tehani Wessely)
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’Leviathan’ Simon Brown (<i>Eidolon 1</i> Ed. Jonathan Strahan & Jeremy G Byrne) </div><div><br /></div><div> ‘Night Windows’ Jonathan Santlofer (<i>In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper </i>Ed. Lawrence Block)
</div>Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-39610876954196605652020-06-29T04:28:00.002-07:002020-06-29T23:13:21.120-07:00 Changing Tides Ed. Michelle Rosquillo & Jaynie Royal; and The Coral Reef Foundation<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6_2SO-Phnts/XvKACTHoHWI/AAAAAAAABHM/cmvp6Q5Qm78o20d3HzZOp5nLBJbugNmzACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Unknown-13.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="179" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6_2SO-Phnts/XvKACTHoHWI/AAAAAAAABHM/cmvp6Q5Qm78o20d3HzZOp5nLBJbugNmzACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Unknown-13.jpeg" width="203" /></a>'Submerging', originally published in <i>Overland Literary Journal 214, </i>has found its fourth home in the American anthology <i>Changing Tides </i>Ed. Michelle Rosquillo & Jaynie Royal (the previous two anthology homes include <i>The Best Australian Stories 2014 </i>Ed. Amanda Lohrey<i>, </i>and <i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer).<br />
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The anthology, which concentrates on climate change and rising tides, offers a delectable range of genre including memoir, short stories (like my own), essays and poetry, from authors, scientists, poets and researchers.<br />
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To see more about the group of compassionate contributors, I've attached the link: <a href="https://regalhouseinitiative.org/contributors-to-the-changing-tides-anthology/">https://regalhouseinitiative.org/contributors-to-the-changing-tides-anthology/</a><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZfaPePIIr8Y/XvKAjggaFXI/AAAAAAAABHU/3N1aWR-jCjojT8R2Tq_zoOh0Iz2pp4jUACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Unknown.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZfaPePIIr8Y/XvKAjggaFXI/AAAAAAAABHU/3N1aWR-jCjojT8R2Tq_zoOh0Iz2pp4jUACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/Unknown.png" width="200" /></a>I'm all for paying the writer, but as I've already been professionally paid twice for the story, and donated the money from another publication, it was a thrill to see that all net benefits from this anthology will go towards the Coral Restoration Foundation (CRF), which is the world's largest non-profit marine organisation. During a climate of global warming this group has achieved real and visible outcomes; it's a world leader in terms of its coral breeding programme. CRF have a huge impact on the restoration of coral reefs, especially in Florida. While CRF is restoring health to reefs, it is also making great inroads in education too. Please take a look at their site and find out more: <a href="https://www.coralrestoration.org/">https://www.coralrestoration.org</a>.<br />
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<br />Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-69114573784396606442020-03-27T19:04:00.005-07:002021-03-28T15:54:40.233-07:00150 Fabulous Stories to Help Flatten the Curve <span style="font-family: inherit;">It's a challenging period, and in parts of the world it's more than challenging – it's tragic. My sympathies go out to all those who have suffered loss. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">During this time of isolation and social distancing, I thought I'd suggest some fabulous stories, predominantly 'long' short stories, from my last decade of reading. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> I'll add two each day. Now and then, I'll attach a link for the inquisitive, whether it's the story itself, or reviews, or interviews, or read extracts. A few sites only allow limited views before subscribing, such as </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The New Yorker</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> and </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Esquire. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">All stories are available in print, which is still my personally preferred format for reading fiction. </span><br />
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I hope the recommended reads help out a little as we all do our best to flatten the curve. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">29/3 <b>No. 1 & 2</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Bog Girl' by Karen Russell (<i>Orange World & Other Stories. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">30/3 </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>No.3 & 4</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/06/04/orange-world">Orange World</a>’ by Karen Russell (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Orange World and Other Stories. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The </i><i>New</i><i style="font-family: inherit;"> Yorker</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘</span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1995/09/25/bullet-in-the-brain" style="font-family: inherit;">Bullet in the Brain’</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Tobias Wolff (Originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The New Yorker</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">31/3<b> </b></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>No. 5 & 6</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1998/12/28/sea-oak">Sea Oak</a>' by George Saunders (<i>Pastoralia. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">& </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Dead Hand Loves You’ by Margaret Atwood (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Stone Mattress</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">1/4 <b>No.7 & 8</b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> are from two of my favourite contemporary American writers:</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘from Children’s Reminiscences of the Westward Migration’ </span>by Karen Russell <span style="font-family: inherit;">(</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Conjunctions)</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘</span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2003/01/27/jon" style="font-family: inherit;">Jon’</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by George Saunders (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">My Mistress's Sparrow is Dead</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> ed. Jeffrey Eugenides and </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">In Persuasion Nation: Stories. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Originally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The New Yorker</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">2/4 <b>No. 9 & 10</b> are two very fine imaginative American stories. Once sci-fi and the other an urban fantasy. Steinbeck wrote some beautiful urban fantasy – well before the term was even coined for the genre.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Rachel in Love' by Pat Murphy (I read it in <i>The Locus Awards: Thirty Years of the Best in Science Fiction and Fantasy</i> Ed. Charles N. Brow<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">n & Jonathan Strahan - a life changing anthology for me. Originally published in <i>Asimov's</i>)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Johnny Bear’ by John Steinbeck (from </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The Long Valley. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Originally published in <i>Esquire.) </i>Link below.</span></div>
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<span class="_3m6-" style="font-family: inherit;"><a aria-describedby="u_fetchstream_13_s" aria-label="The Ears of Johnny Bear | Esquire | SEPTEMBER 1937" data-lynx-mode="origin" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fclassic.esquire.com%2Farticle%2F1937%2F9%2F1%2Fthe-ears-of-johnny-bear%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR0b1R9aKGIOM0Vde_Gc-mb1IMc0x5ynU5llB_vTS4T1Pw0Y_eelPilMHaU&h=AT2dS0OCEel0miIwjGHF3Vm1h04DKC7397AeYwEMTlTvbpVZaLLR1Rq4_DyBHKcqYPxwcg_Zq8jiIdrMV0eyLE4Y9SjSrccrvM4BuI8GRvBzByGD40Erl9-lcI7i1F-M67N2SDUty7WZCe9Zl_KDoF-ahmXa66ZzY6vL9DFV" href="https://classic.esquire.com/article/1937/9/1/the-ears-of-johnny-bear?fbclid=IwAR0b1R9aKGIOM0Vde_Gc-mb1IMc0x5ynU5llB_vTS4T1Pw0Y_eelPilMHaU" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;" tabindex="-1" target="_blank"></a></span><br />
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<span class="_3m6-" style="font-family: inherit;">If you went out with a girl in the village of Loma, it was a good idea to take a dog along</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">3/4 <b>No. 11& 12</b> are two beautiful stories from the fantasy genre: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Firebird' by R. Garcia y Robertson (<i>Year's Best Fantasy 2, 2002 </i>Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">&</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Chanterelle' by Brian Stableford (</span><i>Year's Best Fantasy, 2001 </i>Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer. Originally published in <i>Black, Ivory Bones </i>Ed. Ellen Datlow & Terry Windling)<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">4/4 <b>No. 13 & 14 </b>are two gems from different genres. A magical realist story from Karen Russell and an equally superb realist story from Richard Ford. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The New Veterans' by Karen Russell (read in <i>Vampires in the Lemon Grove. </i>Originally published in <i>Granta: Winter 2013</i>)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">&</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://classic.esquire.com/article/1984/10/1/fireworks">Fireworks</a>' by Richard Ford (read in <i>My Mistress Sparrow is Dead. </i>Ed Jeffrey Eugenides. Originally published in <i>Rock Springs</i>)</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q7fubNIxaLM/XpZ4Y-CB6gI/AAAAAAAABCE/wIjC3WLmnzgXjVpXHAANHWxIn2t_dAb0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Vampires-in-the-Lemon-Grove-karen-russel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="250" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q7fubNIxaLM/XpZ4Y-CB6gI/AAAAAAAABCE/wIjC3WLmnzgXjVpXHAANHWxIn2t_dAb0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/Vampires-in-the-Lemon-Grove-karen-russel.jpg" width="125" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">5/4 <b>No. 15 & 16 </b>are two more stories in the urban fantasy/magical realist vein.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'Neighbors' by Megan Lindholm (from <i>Dangerous Women </i>Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois)</span><br />
<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">&</span><br />
<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Making a Noise in the World' by Charles De Lint (first read in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Year's </i><i>Best</i><i style="font-family: inherit;"> Fantasy (2001) </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer. Originally published in <i>Warrior Fantastic </i>Ed. Mark Greenberg.)</span></span>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">6/4 </span><b style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">No. 17 & 18 </b><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Margaret Atwood's writing has become more humorous of late, and her recent collection, </span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Stone Mattress, </i><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">is no exception. And I've a love for Richard Yates short work, in fact, I've devoured all of his stories. </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Eleven Kinds of Loneliness </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">is a sublime collection, as is another of his, which I'll </span>mention<span style="font-family: inherit;"> tomorrow. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'Dark Lady' by Margaret Atwood (</span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Stone Mattress</i><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #1c1e21; display: inline;">&<br />‘Out with the Old’ by Richard Yates (<i>Eleven Kinds of Loneliness</i>)<br />For those interested in more on Yates, read the article about him in <i><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2001/07/a-harrowing-mirror-of-loneliness/302256/?fbclid=IwAR2D1z5MhVw-czXo7AFgwPM59y1vFxNoh-uEUvoCXpV1qMQVWwOcee2vUe8">The Atlantic</a></i>.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hEsO6Ab0E-c/XpY1MJ9O6eI/AAAAAAAABB4/_p3SBgjJ4nwRdgZL31mL5IN6Fbxean8fwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/379275433.0.l.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hEsO6Ab0E-c/XpY1MJ9O6eI/AAAAAAAABB4/_p3SBgjJ4nwRdgZL31mL5IN6Fbxean8fwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/379275433.0.l.jpg" width="129" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">7/4 <b>No. 19 & 20</b> are again from Yates and Atwood. They're superb tales. Richard Yates' story is from his other equally amazing collection <i>Liars in Love</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Alphinland’ by Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress</i>)<br />& <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />“Saying Goodbye to Sally” by Richard Yates (<i>Liars in Love</i>)</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ep8Uo1v3KN4/XpYzs2vTuCI/AAAAAAAABBs/Fp7jV_TNXWoxUuAfum7AE3Zl8WDtj1B9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/c15025.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="209" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ep8Uo1v3KN4/XpYzs2vTuCI/AAAAAAAABBs/Fp7jV_TNXWoxUuAfum7AE3Zl8WDtj1B9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/c15025.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">8/4 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"><b>No.21 & 22</b> are two dark stories exploring lifespans, which display the strength and versatility of the short story form. The protagonists are also of questionable morality.</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'Fossil Figures' by Joyce Carol Oates (this story won The World Fantasy Award. I first read it in <i>Stories: All New Tales</i> Ed. Neil Gaiman & Al Sarrantonio; it can also be found i</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #1c1e21; display: inline; font-family: inherit;">n Oates' collection <i>The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares</i>) </span><br />
<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">&</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'Troll Bridge' by Neil Gaiman (short listed for The World Fantasy Award. This was originally published in <i>Snow White, Blood Red</i> Ed.</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Ellen Datlow </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">& Terri Windling. I first read it in Neil Gaiman's collection <i>Smoke & Mirrors</i>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">9/4 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"><b>No. 23 & 24</b> are from that reteller of fairy tales Angela Carter. A couple of bloody good stories from <i>The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories</i>:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Puss-in Boots' by Angela Carter<br />&<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />'The Bloody Chamber' by Angela Carter</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">10/4 <b>No.25 & 26. </b>Once again, Richard Yates surgically dissects human happiness; and with Joyce Carol Oates' story you'll never think of mannequins again in the same way!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">'A Glutton for Punishment' by Richard Yates (<i>Eleven Kinds of Loneliness</i>)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'Madison at Guignol' by Joyce Carol Oates (read in </span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">The Female of </i><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);"><i>the</i></span></span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> Species. </i><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Originally published in <i>Kenyon Review</i>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">11/4 </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">No. 27 & 28</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Hitting Russell and Yates again. Russell's story will give you a taste of Russell's novel </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Swamplandia,</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> which was short listed for The Pulitzer Prize. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Ava Wrestles the Alligator’ by Karen Russell (<i>St. Lucy’s HOME for Girls RAISED by WOLVES. </i>Originally published in <i>Zoetrope).<br />&</i><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />'A Private Posession' by Richard Yates (<i>Collected Stories</i>) </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The link is similar to the review I was invited to write for <i>Meanjin</i>'s Blog on Russell's <i>Swamplandia </i>(now vanished into Ether-Ether Land).</span></div>
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<span class="_3m6-"><a aria-describedby="u_fetchstream_9_19" aria-label="Book Review: 'Swamplandia' by Karen Russell" data-lynx-mode="origin" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fanthonypanegyres.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F08%2Fbrief-book-review-swamplandia-by-karen.html%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR0JZLyBfiHyBnh-J7DyVkbIJUeECtEPmhNl-k6HVw0p85SIqc9DWwR6oL4&h=AT030a1Ha9oO_GYPBnq5dp7YuE_hiQ_tcA7w9D_H-7Rn3g4myaDhycjKbsJ0yPmNAu9y71yi70nVvJyJklZRIPNZDdC5u7OHuUOxyJiBZtGNUDjuixC3Z-fhkMHwJHHXCUlHyEOeQXmwMDoPiI06erN9Osk" href="https://anthonypanegyres.blogspot.com/2012/08/brief-book-review-swamplandia-by-karen.html?fbclid=IwAR0JZLyBfiHyBnh-J7DyVkbIJUeECtEPmhNl-k6HVw0p85SIqc9DWwR6oL4" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" tabindex="-1" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></a></span><br />
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<span class="_3m6-"><a aria-describedby="u_fetchstream_9_19" aria-label="Book Review: 'Swamplandia' by Karen Russell" data-lynx-mode="origin" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fanthonypanegyres.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F08%2Fbrief-book-review-swamplandia-by-karen.html%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR0JZLyBfiHyBnh-J7DyVkbIJUeECtEPmhNl-k6HVw0p85SIqc9DWwR6oL4&h=AT030a1Ha9oO_GYPBnq5dp7YuE_hiQ_tcA7w9D_H-7Rn3g4myaDhycjKbsJ0yPmNAu9y71yi70nVvJyJklZRIPNZDdC5u7OHuUOxyJiBZtGNUDjuixC3Z-fhkMHwJHHXCUlHyEOeQXmwMDoPiI06erN9Osk" href="https://anthonypanegyres.blogspot.com/2012/08/brief-book-review-swamplandia-by-karen.html?fbclid=IwAR0JZLyBfiHyBnh-J7DyVkbIJUeECtEPmhNl-k6HVw0p85SIqc9DWwR6oL4" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" tabindex="-1" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Book Review: Swamplandia! by Karen Russell (2011) Robin Pen, my resident book guru at Planet Books (in Perth), ensured me that Swampl...</span></a></span></div>
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<span class="_3c21"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a data-lynx-mode="origin" href="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fanthonypanegyres.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F08%2Fbrief-book-review-swamplandia-by-karen.html%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR2ZwwDRslZpGNwBjV1tehNCqN0xct1rvmLqz3wyKGl4MqjK3heOvWoTNvY&h=AT2SjSxpOpoXqPUGZu_mvAZoz-I62mmqa6Pf55DUubOguncE0X6OdYA63kBgInyd0Uaki8ABJlnMQkG3acxquLZP_12IFoM6Oaal3jmaS8BjBEei83G-3FbA-6TMIYRVAWbg06G862wDqfPKpbzzmuQt0DE" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #1d2129; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Book Review: 'Swamplandia' by Karen Russell</a></span></span></div>
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<span class="_3c21"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Book Review: Swamplandia! by Karen Russell (2011) Robin Pen, my resident book guru at Planet Books (in Perth), ensured me that Swampl...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">12/4 <b>No. 29 &30</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Fits” by Alice Munro (<i>The Progress of Love</i>) <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />&<br />‘The Deep’ by Anthony Doerr (<i>That Glimpse of Truth</i> Ed. David Miller) This won 2011 Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award in England (apparently the largest prize in the world for a single short story). </span></span></div>
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<span class="_3m6-"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a aria-describedby="u_fetchstream_9_f" aria-label="Oxford Literary Festival reading" data-lynx-mode="origin" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DpbgRs0jfTo4%26feature%3DBFp%26list%3DWL0E025A49D7EF745C%26index%3D1%26fbclid%3DIwAR2rA7cJLm0ZQgpCSu_t_3823z-tBQ4HC8XqsM_WyLa-05HJ5VURG0oGXLI&h=AT0FYQI_VQgdPwHsAsEfNzfYyd_PCRdtyMLKU-nWh1LqkN89AhsrbLYv5DdRmbg5uokCQ_sofah9GR82-2YL0Qc-fylC2uSCt7_J2oQQEixkPNUvdiIElorfupFC2dwHt63oG57PWnUJNJevH4pnwEQ0hzM" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbgRs0jfTo4&feature=BFp&list=WL0E025A49D7EF745C&index=1&fbclid=IwAR2rA7cJLm0ZQgpCSu_t_3823z-tBQ4HC8XqsM_WyLa-05HJ5VURG0oGXLI" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" tabindex="-1" target="_blank">Damian Lewis reading an extract from The Deep by Anthony Doerr at the Oxford Literary Festival on April 7, 2011.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">13/4 <b>No.31 & 32</b> Realise I've mentioned Karen Russell's stories several times here. Clearly, I'm a fan. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Natasha’ by David Bezmozgis (first read in <i>My Mistress Sparrow is Dead</i> Ed. Jeffrey Eugenides, originally published in <i>Natasha)</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">&</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Star Gazer’s Log of Summer-Time Crime’ by Karen Russell (</span><i style="font-family: inherit;">St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">O</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">riginally published in </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Granta</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">14/4 <b>No.33 & 34 </b>are both from Rebecca Lee's collection <i>Bobcat and Other Stories</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">‘Slatland’ by Rebecca Lee (<i>Bobcat and Other Stories</i>, first published in <i>Atlantic Monthly</i>)<br />&<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />‘Fialta’ by Rebecca Lee (<i>Bobcat and Other Stories</i>, first published in <i>Zoetrope</i>)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">15/4 </span><b>No.35 & 36</b>. <span style="font-family: inherit;">Today's two stories are from wordsmiths: Angela Carter, and the ostentatious satirist, Will Self. Self, although both longlisted and shortlisted for The Booker Prize, polarises many readers. I've a love for most of his work. He'd be tossed out of most creative writing classes though – he's a major 'rule breaker'. </span><i style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.thewhitereview.org/feature/interview-with-will-self/?fbclid=IwAR0hUvmL0K52CgECn1uyyTdqtvjOs1Xf10VKpp_8ZhTsZTC2NyE1pRxZLYk">The White Review</a>'s </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">interview </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">with </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">Will Self is today's attachment for those interested in discovering more about this writing outlaw. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Waiting' by Will Self (<i>The Quantity Theory of Insanity</i>) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Company of Wolves' by Angela Carter (<i>The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">16/4<b> No.37 & 38</b></span></div>
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'No Pain Whatsoever' by Richard Yates <i>(Eleven Kinds of Loneliness) </i></div>
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'Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter' by Chitra Divakaruni (Originally published in <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/%E2%80%A6/mrs-dutta-writes-a-le%E2%80%A6/377092/" style="font-style: italic;">The Atlantic</a>)</div>
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17/4 <b>No. 39 & 40 </b>I first read both of these stories in Jonathan Strahan's <i>The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume Six.</i></div>
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'Steam Girl' by Dylan Horrocks (Originally published in <i>Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories</i>)</div>
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'What We Found' by Geoff Ryman (Originally published in <i>The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction</i>)<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">18/4 <b>No. 41& 42 </b>Today's pair of stories are the twists-and-turns kind. You'll be glued throughout.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'My Heart is Either Broken' by Megan Abbott (</span><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);"><i>Dangerous</i></span></span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> Women </i><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'The </span><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">Truth</span></span><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> is a Cave in the Black Mountains' by Neil Gaiman (<i>Stories </i>Ed. Neil Gaiman & Al Sarrantonio)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">19/4 <b>No. 43& 44</b> A pairing of stories leaning towards the surrealist genre. Weird, fantastical and beautiful stories. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Restoration' by Robert Shearman (I </span>first<span style="font-family: inherit;"> read this in </span><i>The</i><i style="font-family: inherit;"> Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume Six </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ed. Jonathan Strahan. Originally published in <i>Everyones Just So So </i></span></span><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);"><i>Special</i>)</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">'Almost Days' by DK Mok (I read this in <i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2015 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene. Originally published in <i>Insert Title Here </i>Ed. Tehani Wessely) </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">20/4 <b>No. 45 & 46 </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">'Second Arabesque, Very Slowly' by Nancy Kress <i>(Dangerous Women </i>Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois) </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;">'<a href="http://www.conjunctions.com/online/article/karen-russell-08-01-2006">Z.Z's Sleep-Away Camp for Disordered Dreamers</a>' by Karen Russell (</span><i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves.</i><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> Originally published in <i>Conjunctions)</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">21/4 <b>No. 47 & 48 </b>Today's pair give a unique slant to ghost stories. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2005/06/13/haunting-olivia?fbclid=IwAR1mspVu-o0v5mlL6maHcpBNvw_QztYorCt3zNeeE3k1L14N7iVOJ8-b6YQ">Haunting Olivia'</a> by Karen Russell (</span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. </i><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Old Habits' by Nalo Hopkinson (Originally published in <i>Eclipse Four </i>Ed. Jonathan Strahan)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">22/4 <b>No. 49 & 50. </b>Two 'long' short stories today (my favourite kind) from Australian writers. James Bradley's is an enchanting fantasy story –an exquisite retelling of Rapunzel; and Tim Winton's is a gritty realist one. Both are equally beautiful. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Boner McPharlin's Moll' by Tim Winton (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth. </i>Originally published in <i>The Turning</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Beauty's Sister' by James Bradley (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth. </i>Originally published as a stand alone)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">23/4 <b>No. 51 & 52. </b>Today's pairing rhymes...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Pulse' by Julian Barnes (<i>Pulse)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Dulse' by Alice Munro <i>(Moons of Jupiter)</i></span>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">24/4 <b>No. 53 & 54 </b>Today's stories are from two Australian masters of fantasy with very different styles. Margo Lanagan often has a unique 'folksy' voice, and in a structural sense has more abstract and unique entry and exit points, while Angela Slatter is a jeweller in a more traditional manner, every word and scene is carefully chosen, and any extraneous matter is cut with a gem maker's precision. The result is that there is a raw beauty and originality to Lanagan's work, while Slatter's prose is aesthetically remarkable and the final product especially well-balanced and well-polished. Both produce beautiful rhythmic prose in their own right. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Earthly Uses' by Margo Lanagan (<i>Black Juice)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Coffin-Maker's Daughter' by Angela Slatter (read in <i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2011 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene. Originally published in <i>A Book of Horrors</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">25/4 <b>No. 55 &56. </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Buffalo' by John Kessel (read in <i>The Locus Awards </i>Ed. Jonathan Strahan & Charles N. Brown. Originally published in <i>The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Lady in the House of Love' by Angela Carter (read in <i>The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories. </i>Originally published in <i>The Iowa Review</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">26/4 <b>No.57 & 58.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Patricia, Edith, and Arnold' by Dylan Thomas (<i>Portrait of the Artist as a Young Dog)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Images' by Alice Munro <i>(The Dance of the Happy Shades)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">27/4 <b>No.59 & 60 </b>are a couple of older classics. Yates' is from 1974 & Capote's from 1945. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Evening on the Cote d'Azur' by Richard Yates (read in <i>Uncollected Stories </i>in <i>Collected Stories. </i>Originally published in <i>Ploughshares</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'My Side of the Matter' by Truman Capote (read in <i>A Capote Reader</i>. Originally published in <i>Story</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">28/4<b> No.61 & 62 </b>An explorative 'realist' story from James Salter; and a structurally innovative tale in which the tables are completely turned midway through the story from the imaginative mind of Michael Swanwick.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Palm Court' by James Salter (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth. </i>Originally published in <i>Last Night: Stories)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Bordello in Faerie' by Michael Swanwick (read in <i>A Dog Said Bow-Wow. </i>Originally published in <i>Postscripts</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">29/4 <b>No.63 & 64 </b>The love for Karen Russell's work continues. Both of these can be found in Russell's delectable collection, <i>Vampires in The Lemon Grove, </i>and both were originally published in <i>Tin House. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Reeling for the Empire'</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Seagull Army Descends on Strong Beach' </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">30/4 <b>No.65 & 66. </b>Today's stories are from a contemporary writer and one that has passed away a while ago. Kelly Link's story was first published in 2007, and John Cheever's in 1954. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">'The Wrong Grave' by Kelly Link (first read in <i>The Wrong Grave. </i>Originally published in <i>The Restless Dead: Ten Original Stories of the Supernatural</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1954/04/10/the-five-forty-eight">The Five-Forty-Eight</a>' by John Cheever (Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">1/5 <b>No.67 & 68 </b>A pair of timeless classics</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://classic.esquire.com/article/1974/4/1/the-hitchhiking-game">The Hitchhiking Game</a>' by Milan Kundera (first read in <i>My Mistress Sparrow is Dead </i>Ed. Jeffrey Eugenides. Originally published in <i>Laughable Loves</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">'Too Early Springs' by Stephen Vincent Benet (<i>The Selected Works of Stephen Vincent Benet</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">2/5 <b>No.69 & 70 </b>My two favourite Haruki Murakami stories – mind you, I haven't read all of his tales. This pair is from his collection <i>The Elephant Vanishes. </i>The link is to a podcast of Andrea Lee reading 'Barn Burning'. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'The Dancing Dwarf' (first English publication in </span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">The </i><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);"><i>Elephant</i></span></span><i style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> Vanishes</i><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/fiction/andrea-lee-reads-haruki-murakami">Barn Burning</a>' (first English </span><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">publication</span></span><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> in <i>The New Yorker</i>). </span></span><br />
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3/5 <b>No.71 & 72 </b>And another couple from Alice Munro. Because, you know...it's Munro...Both originally published in <i>The New Yorker. </i><br />
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'The Bear Came Over the Mountain' (first read in <i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">My Mistress Sparrow is Dead </i><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">Ed. Jeffrey Eugenides.)</span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/10/21/the-bear-came-over-the-mountain-2">The Turkey Season</a>' (first read in <i>The Moons of Jupiter</i></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">)</span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">4/5 <b>No.73 & 74 </b>Today's stories are from E.L Doctorow. I first read both in his collection, <i>All the Time in the World, </i>and both were also originally published in <i>The New Yorker. </i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/01/14/wakefield">Wakefield</a>'</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/04/26/edgemont-drive">Edgemont Drive</a>' </span></span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"><br /></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">5/5 <b>No.75 & 76 </b>Two classics: Isaac Bashevis Singer's story was translated by Saul Bellows in 1954; and Frank O'Connor's story was first published in 1931. I read both in <i>That Glimpse of Truth. </i></span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">'Gimpel the Fool' by Isaac Bashevis Singer</span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">'<a href="https://www.csus.edu/indiv/m/maddendw/The-Oxford-Book-of-Short-Stories_29GuestsoftheNation.pdf">Guests of the Nation</a>' by Frank O'Connor </span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">6/5 <b>No.77 & 78 </b>A return to The Antipodes. Lisa L. Hannett's stories, in my experience, often have an ethereal atmosphere and are highly rewarding. Hannett's newly released collection is <i>Songs for Dark Seasons; </i>and Faith Mudge is a beautiful storyteller. </span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">'Forever, Miss Tapekwa County' by Lisa L. Hannett (first read in <i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror, 2011 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie. Originally published in <i>Bluegrass Symphony</i>)</span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">'The Oblivion Box' by Faith Mudge (<i>Dreaming of Djinn</i> Ed. Liz Grzyb)</span>
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7/5 <b>No. 79 & 80</b><br />
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<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2001/06/18/a-house-on-the-plains">'A House on the Plains'</a> by E.L Doctorow (read in <i>All the Time in the World. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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'<a href="https://classic.esquire.com/article/1957/12/1/the-b-a-r-man">The B.A.R Man'</a> by Richard Yates (read in <i>Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. </i>Originally published in <i>Esquire</i>)<br />
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8/5 <b>No. 81 & 82 </b>Today's pairing are both 'wild stories'. Valente's a wonderful animalistic 'coming-of-age' story; and Peter M. Ball's mad-cap ride is a purposeful fusion of as many genres as possible.<br />
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'White Lines on a Green Field' by Catherynne M. Valente (I<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">first</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"> read this in </span><i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">The</i><i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: inherit;"> Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume Six </i><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">Ed. Jonathan Strahan. Originally published in <i>Subterranean</i>)</span><br />
<span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;"><i>& </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);">'Dying Young' by Peter M. Ball (</span></span><i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21;">Eclipse </i><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33);"><i>Four </i>Ed. Jonathan Strahan) </span></span></span><br />
<b><br /></b>9/5 <b>No. 83 & 84</b> Today's stories are 'entertainments', replete with twists and turns. Both tales are from George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois' anthology <i>Rogues.</i><br />
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<i>'</i>The Curious Affair of the Dead Wives' by Lisa Tuttle<br />
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'How the Marquis Got his Coat Back' by Neil Gaiman<br />
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10/5 <b>No. 85 & 86 </b>The love affair with Richard Yates continues...Both from his collection <i>Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. </i><br />
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'Jody Rolled the Bones'<br />
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'The Best of Everything'<br />
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11/5 <b>No. 87 & 88 </b><br />
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'Breaking the Pig' by Etgar Keret (<i>The Bus Driver Who Wanted to be God and Other Stories)</i><br />
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'Revenant' by Margaret Atwood <i>(Stone Mattress)</i><br />
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12/5 <b>No. 89 & 90 </b><br />
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'The Comptroller and the Wild Wind' by Richard Yates (<i>Uncollected Stories </i>in <i>Collected Stories</i><br />
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'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/09/27/hanwell-in-hell">Hanwell in Hell'</a> by Zadie Smith (read in <i>Martha and Hanwell. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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13/5 <b>No. 91 & 92 </b>Today's are both from Angela Carter's <i>The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories. </i>Angela Carter was a rare writer whose prose aesthetic was, on occasion, more integral to her narratives than the plot.<br />
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'The Erl King' (Originally published in <i>Bananas</i>, but revised for <i>The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories</i>)<br />
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'The Courtship of Mr Lyon' (originally published in British <i>Vogue</i>)<br />
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14/5 <b>No.93 & 94 </b>Little more from two favourites:Richard Yates & Angela Carter<br />
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'The Werewolf' by Angela Carter (Originally published in <i>South-West Arts Review, </i>but revised for <i>The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories</i>)<br />
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'Regards at Home' by Richard Yates (<i>Liars in Love</i>)<br />
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15/5 <b>No. 95 & 96</b><br />
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'A Really Good Jazz Piano' by Richard Yates <i>(Eleven Kinds of Loneliness). </i>Trivia: this story was rejected nine times.<br />
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'Fever Flower' by Shirley Ann Grau (<i>Black Prince and Other Stories)</i><br />
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16/5 <b>No.97 & 98</b><br />
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'Torching the Dusties' by Margaret Atwood (<i>Stone Mattress)</i><br />
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'<a href="http://www.online-literature.com/sherwood-anderson/1476/">Unlighted Lamps</a>' by Sherwood Anderson (<i>The Triumph of the Egg)</i><br />
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17/5 <b>No.99 & 100</b><br />
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'Bad Characters' by Jean Stafford (<i>Bad Characters. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker)</i><br />
<i>&</i><br />
<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1980/12/29/the-turkey-season">'The Turkey Season</a>' by Alice Munro (<i>The Moons of Jupiter. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker)</i><br />
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18/5 <b>No.101 & 102</b><br />
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'<a href="http://bcslca.weebly.com/uploads/1/3/5/5/13553889/first-confession.pdf">First Confession</a>' by Frank O'Connor (<i>The Stories of Frank O'Connor. </i>Originally published in Lovat Dickson's <i>Magazine</i>)<br />
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<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/10/31/tenth-of-december">'Tenth of December'</a> by George Saunders (read in <i>Tenth of December. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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19/5 <b>No.103 & 104. </b>A couple more dark fantasy tales from Down Under.</div>
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'Palming the Lady' by Deborah Biancotti (<i>Bad Power)</i></div>
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'Unnamed Children' by Joanne Anderton (<i>Bloodines </i>Ed. Amanda Pillar)<br />
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20/5 <b>No.105 & 106 </b><br />
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'The Moon in its Flight' by Gilbert Sorrentino (read in <i>My Mistress Sparrow is Dead </i>Ed. Jeffrey Eugenides, from <i>The Moon in its Flight</i>)<br />
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<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/12/20/escape-from-spiderhead">'Escape from Spiderhead</a>' by George Saunders (read in <i>Tenth of December. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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21/5<b> No.107 & 108</b><br />
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'Nothing Visible'<b> </b>by Siddharta Deb (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth </i>Ed. David Miller. Originally published in <i>Heat</i>)<br />
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'Flicking the Flint' by Anna Krien (<i>The Best Australian Stories 2014 </i>Ed. Amanda Lohrey)<br />
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22/5 <b>No.109 & 1110 </b>Today's are escapist spec-fic tales, both from <i>Rogues </i>Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner Dozois.<br />
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'Heavy Metal' by Cherie Priest<br />
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'The Inn of the Seven Blessings' by Matthew Hughes<br />
<b><br /></b>23/5 <b>No.111 & 112</b><br />
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'Red Rose, White Rose' by Eileen Chang (Read in <i>My Mistress's Sparrow is Dead </i>Ed. Jeffrey Eugenides. Originally published in <i>Love is a Fallen City. </i>Also available as a Penguin stand alone)<br />
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'The Ballad of Paul Nonetheless' by Sherman Alexie (<i>War Dances</i>)<br />
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24/5 <b>No.113 & 114 </b>A couple of incredibly fun escapist stories.<br />
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'The Meaning of Love' by Daniel Abraham (<i>Rogues </i>Ed. George R.R Martin & Gardner R. Doizois)<br />
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'Yesterday, Near a Village Called Barden' by Joe Abercrombie (<i>Sharp Ends</i>)<br />
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25/5 <b>No.115 & 116</b><br />
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'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/10/29/the-cold-outside">The Cold Outside</a>' by John Burnside (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth </i>Ed. David Miller. Originally published in <i>The New Yorker)</i><br />
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'Two Boys' by Lorrie Moore (read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth </i>Ed. David Miller. Originally published in <i>Two Boys</i>)</div>
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<b><br /></b>26/5<b> No. 117& 118 </b>A couple of innovative sci-fi stories.<br />
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'<a href="http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/wolven_04_19_reprint/">Confessions of a Con Girl</a>' by Nick Wolven (read and originally published in <i>Asimov's Nov/Dec 2017. </i><a href="http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/audio_04_19g/">Audio</a> and reprint attached from <i>Clarkesworld). </i><br />
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'Microcosmic Dog' by Michael Swanwick (<i>Tales of Old Earth. </i>Originally published in <i>Science Fiction Age</i>).<br />
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27/5 <b>No. 119 & 120 </b><br />
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<b>'</b><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2003/11/24/trespass">Trespass</a>' by Julian Barnes (<i>Pulse. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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'Min' by Rebecca Lee (<i>Bobcat and Other Stories</i>)<br />
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28/5 <b>No.121 & 122 </b>A couple of dark American mysteries.<br />
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'<a href="http://indbooks.in/mirror1/?p=214598">The Stars are Falling</a>' by Joe R Lansdale (<i>Stories </i>Ed. Neil Gaiman & Al Sarrantonio)<br />
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'Angel of Wrath' by Joyce Carol Oates (<i>The Female of the Species. </i>Originally published in <i>Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine</i>)<br />
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29/5 <b>No.123 & 124 </b>Finding diamonds in less prominent places. These two stories are both from <i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer<br />
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'State of the Heart' by Carol Patterson<br />
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'Calving' by Georgina Luck<br />
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30/5 <b>No.125 & 126 </b>Today's stories are both from the anthology <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar: Stories of Work</i> Ed. Richard Ford.<br />
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'Geese' by ZZ Packer (Originally published in <i>From Drinking Coffee Elsewhere</i>)<br />
<i>&</i><br />
'High Lonesome<i>' </i>by Joyce Carol Oates (Originally published in <i>High Lonesome</i>)<br />
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31/5 <b>No.127 & 128 </b>Two more fantasy tales.<br />
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'My Brother Quentin' by Janeen Samuel (<i>ASIM 44 </i>Ed. Felicity Dowker)<br />
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'What the Tyger Told her' by Kage Baker (Read in <i>Year's Best Fantasy 2 </i>Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer 2002. Originally published in <i>Realms of Fantasy</i>)<br />
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1/6 <b>No. 129 & 130 </b>Two gems from a smaller press anthology <i>We'll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill (Margaret River Press).<br />
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'Cinta Ku' by Mirandi Riwoe<br />
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Mycorrhizal Networks' by Lynette Washington<br />
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2/6 <b>No.131 & 132</b><br />
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'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/10/07/drummond-son">Drummond and Son</a>' by Charles D'Ambrosio (Read in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar: Stories of Work</i> Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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'Black Corfu' by Karen Russell (Read in <i>Orange World. </i>Originally published in <i>Zoetrope</i>)<br />
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3/6 <b>No.133 & 134</b><br />
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'The Store' by Edward P. Jones (Read in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>Lost in the City</i>)<br />
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'Adam' by Kurt Vonnegut (<i>Welcome to the Monkey House. </i>Originally published in <i>Cosmopolitan</i>)<br />
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4/6 <b>No. 135 & 136 </b><br />
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'<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGtNqdmZOKY">The Country of the Blind</a>' by HG Wells (linked to the audio version)<br />
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'Half Past' by Samantha Murray (read in <i>The Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 </i>Ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene)<br />
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5/6 <b>No.137 & 138</b><br />
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'<a href="https://www.elizabethstrout.com/books/olive-kitteridge/olive-excerpt">Pharmacy</a>' by Elizabeth Strout (read in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>Olive Kitteredge</i>) Link to an excerpt.<br />
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'<a href="http://mspachecogdhs.weebly.com/uploads/1/3/2/0/13206998/the_chrysanthemums_by_john_steinbeck.pdf">The Chrysanthemums</a>' by John Steinbeck (<i>The Long Valley. </i>Originally published in <i>Harper's Magazine</i>)<br />
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<i><br /></i><i><br /></i>6/6 <b>No. 139 & 140</b><br />
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'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/02/06/the-deposition">The Deposition</a>' by Tobias Wolff (read in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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'<a href="https://classic.esquire.com/article/1983/9/1/foreign-shores">Foreign Shores</a>' by James Salter (read in <i>Blue Collar, White Collar, No Collar </i>Ed. Richard Ford. Originally published in<i> Esquire</i>)<br />
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7/6 <b>No. 141 & 142</b><br />
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'The Bad Graft' by Karen Russell (from <i>Orange World and Other Stories. </i>Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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'Singing My Sister Down' by Margo Lanagan (<i>Black Juice</i>)<br />
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<i><br /></i>8/6 <b>No.143 & 144</b><br />
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'Breaking and Entering' by Sherman Alexie (<i>War Dances)</i><br />
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'Live Bait' by Frank Touhy (Read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth</i> Ed. David Miller. Originally published in <i>Live Bait and Other Stories</i>)<br />
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9/6 <b>No.145 & 146</b><br />
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'The Children Stay' by Alice Munro (<i>The Love of a Good Woman</i>)<br />
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'<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/03/04/summer-of-38">Summer of '38</a>' by Colm Toibin (Read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth</i> Ed. David Miller. Originally published in <i>The New Yorker</i>)<br />
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10/6 <b>No.147 & 148. </b>The comical with the tragic.<br />
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'Mixed Breeding' by Nicola Barker (Read in <i>That Glimpse of Truth</i> Ed. David Miller. Originally published in the <i>Observer</i>)<br />
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'A Clinical Romance' by Richard Yates (<i>Uncollected Stories </i>in <i>Collected Stories</i>)<br />
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11/6 <b>No.149 & 150</b><br />
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'Lichen' by Alice Munro (<i>The Progress of Love</i>)<br />
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'Perpetual Light' by Margo Lanagan (<i>Black Juice</i>)<br />
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-61539225535159505902020-03-16T19:00:00.002-07:002020-03-18T01:23:58.460-07:00Perth GP and Communicable Disease Doctor's Perspective on COVID-19 (Coronavirus)This is a brief segue from the writing and reading I occasionally blog about.<br />
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The below is from my uncle, Dr Terry Pitsikas, a well respected GP, and also the founder of The Lindisfarne Medical Group in Perth. He now predominantly works at Royal Perth Hospital in the Department of Communicable Diseases.<br />
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Feel free to share. </div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>NOTE TO ME</b> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Can you please d</span>o whatever you want with this- facebook, pass it on<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">. We GPs have not a voice but are at the front line; we are seeing the worried well and those with symptoms and as this disease grows we will be doing the caring- there are limited resources in the hospital system.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Please excuse the bio. I have tried</span> to send this on but have not had response.<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I have been trying to alert various people to the probable devastation that is going to come if we do not act soon or should I say “act early and act fast”.</span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black;">BIO AND INFO</b><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-size: small;"> OF TERRY PISTIKAS</span></span><br />
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">My background is in General Practice, in Mt Lawley for 40 years and established what is now the Lindisfarne Medical Group. I work at RPH in the Department of Communicable Diseases and have spent considerable time in Aboriginal Health in Port Hedland and in Public Health advising the Aboriginal Health Council. From the onset of the HIV epidemic I was involved in diagnosis and management of this disease and for several years was the only GP with prescribing rights to anti-retroviral medication. </span><br />
<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A drug trial run by the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, that I and RPH participated in one of the seminal trials that led to the acceptance of Triple Therapy as the standard treatment of HIV infection. My concern and suggestions are outlined below.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="x_MsoNormal" style="color: #201f1e; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I have little confidence in the way the Morrison Government has handled the Covid-19 crisis and find that the approach has been reactive and contradictory, and not consistent, changing advice from day to day. There does not appear to be an understanding of the way this disease has evolved and behaved elsewhere and of the consequences of inaction. Indeed this is a government of inaction and “none of that”.</span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Thank you for reading this note. I wrote it in the hope that a Lockdown will happen and that action is needed now.</span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="caret-color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"><b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">PAST SUCCESS WITH FLU, ISOLATION AND QUARANTINE IN 1918/19</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">One of the benefits of Perth’s isolation and strict quarantine measures for and at the time was that the 1918/1919 flu epidemic was delayed by 6 months after it began on the east coast in January 1919 and the death rate was much lower than in Sydney or Melbourne. By then the onset of warmer weather, a CSL developed vaccine against secondary bacterial infection (95,000 people in Perth were vaccinated) or the natural decline of the virulence of the virus contributed to the decrease in the death rate.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="border: 0px; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /><span style="background-color: white;"><b>LETTER</b></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">On a Lockdown for Western Australia</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Introduction.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Perth people pride themselves on living in the most isolated city in the world. Its remoteness can be seen as an advantage. It is much easier to control the borders of Western Australia and access from other parts of Australia can be easily patrolled. The majority of human traffic is by plane and comparatively few people will enter by sea or road or rail. It will not be difficult to control who enters and leaves Perth and other airports in Western Australia.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Timing of the Lockdown.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Italy has today announced that over 1,000 people have died as a result of infection with Covid-19. The region affected initially was the wealthy north; if it can happen in that part of Italy, why can’t it happen here? The country has gone into complete shutdown in response to the increasing positive diagnoses and increasing death rates. The north of Italy was to be affected but the rapid exodus resulted in the country being isolated. The question is when is a decision such as this made. How many deaths or diagnoses per head of population does it take to declare such an emergency? Should we in Western Australia wait for that to eventuate or do we go into lockdown now? It is clear we are unable to predict the spread of the virus over the next weeks and months and even the experts are quoted in the context of the likely spread of the virus in Perth as saying “it could go either way” (Professor Archie Clements, Curtin University). What we have seen in other countries is increasing numbers of people being infected with local spread being the predominant way of increasing these numbers. We talk about evidence base in modern medicine, but this is a pandemic the like of which we have never seen before in modern times; we don’t have evidence for anything we choose to do. It may be a matter of putting lives ahead of the economy which is already under stress. The economic effects of the virus are already evident- an example is the fall in tourism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>What is a Lockdown</b>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This means restricting people entering and leaving the parts of Western Australia that are chosen to be in Lockdown. If locals or residents need to travel then severe quarantine measures will be in place if they return. If self-quarantine is broken house arrest could be activated. There should not be a need to restrict exports or imports by whatever transport means, though transport workers will have restricted movements (and person to person interaction) once they reach their destination and will need to leave the lockdown area immediately after delivery or pickup. All meeting will have to be by remote access and this will even apply to the Federal Parliament.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Issues to do with Perth.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There is a world shortage of kits for testing for Covid-19, and there are restrictions on who can be tested. Whenever there is a shortage of pharmaceuticals it is always Perth and WA who are the last to receive supplies. It seems no different with the testing kits. It has also taken 5 full days for a patient to receive his result and that was only after he made several phone calls involving long periods of being on hold, whereas in Adelaide the result is returned in 36 hours. In Mr Dutton’s case his result was back a few hours later. There are 20% fewer GPs in Western Australia compared with other mainland states and this is also reflected in the medical workforce in general, hence the delay in the results with pressure on laboratory and other staff. If this virus gets out of control, which it has tended to do elsewhere, the medical and nursing workforce will be under unprecedented pressure. A few months reprieve which is the aim of the lockdown will allow time to source medical equipment and basic products needed for treating affected patients and protecting the rest of the population.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Summary</b>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A lockdown will be easier to implement in Perth and the rest of the state than in any other city in the world. It will buy time, time needed to see what treatments will work, time for a possible vaccine to be developed, time to see how other cities and countries resolved their issues whether by draconian action or by successful quarantining or by strict contact tracing and constant vigilance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We can do this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Terry L Pitsikas<span style="border: 0px; color: #1f497d; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span></div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-37401088260707433852020-01-08T02:18:00.003-08:002024-01-11T00:44:38.899-08:00Books Read and Stories Published in 2019<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
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<b>BOOKS READ 2019</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Song of Solomon </i>Toni Morrison <br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Some Kind of Fairy Tale </i>Graham Joyce </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Boy Swallows Universe </i>Trent Dalton </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill (anthology). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Path of the Dragon </i>George RR Martin (novella) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer </span></div>
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<i>Best Served Cold </i>Joe Abercrombie </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus </i>Mary Shelley </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Finder </i>Ursula K. Le Guin (novella) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Restoration </i>Rose Tremain <br />
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<i>He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection </i>(expository and graphic novel) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Undermajordomo Minor </i>Patrick deWitt </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Year’s Best Fantasy </i>(2001) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bNHsS8Vhtfg/XhLC382EPZI/AAAAAAAAA8c/FOvBfMh7jSwCtr9_FQJ9E09lz1YCPigfACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/9780099529637.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="926" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bNHsS8Vhtfg/XhLC382EPZI/AAAAAAAAA8c/FOvBfMh7jSwCtr9_FQJ9E09lz1YCPigfACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/9780099529637.jpg" width="129" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Issue 44 </i>Ed. Felicity Dowker & Simon Petrie<br />
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<i>Word Play </i>Gyles Brandweyth (expository) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Fahrenheit 451 </i>Ray Bradbury </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Orchardist’s Daughter </i>Karen Viggers </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Whiskey and Water </i>Elizabeth Bear <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Debt of Bones </i>Terry Goodkind (novella) </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TrthHqt3sgc/XhLDNTqAIuI/AAAAAAAAA8k/qGjk4v0SHfMpRrGXOg8qFBGqYVZYfpTPACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/51l%252BXyuo3YL._SX324_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="326" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TrthHqt3sgc/XhLDNTqAIuI/AAAAAAAAA8k/qGjk4v0SHfMpRrGXOg8qFBGqYVZYfpTPACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/51l%252BXyuo3YL._SX324_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="130" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Harmless </i>Julienne Van Loon (novella) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Battles of Tolkien </i>David Day (expository) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Maze Runner </i>James Dashner (YA) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>A Princess of Landover </i>Terry Brooks </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Misadventures of John Nicholson </i>(novella) Robert Louis Stevenson <br />
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<i>Eternals </i>Neil Gaiman (graphic novel) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The DC Universe by Neil Gaiman </i>Neil Gaiman (graphic novel) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Alchemist </i>Paulo Coelho </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Issue 41 </i>ed. Ian Nichols <br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>The Enchantress of Florence </i>Salman Rushdie </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p><b> Novel Standouts</b></o:p><br />
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I've kept the brief commentary to three, but there was plenty to revel in this year. Abercrombie always delivers and <i>Best Served Cold </i>is no exception; I'm glad I finally read <i>Frankenstein; </i>and both <i>Restoration</i> by Tremain and <i>Undermajordormo Minor </i>by De Witt also impressed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p><b><i>Song of Solomon</i></b></o:p><br />
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Easily the best of my 2019 reads. </span></div>
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"If you surrendered to the air, you could ride it.' Vale Toni Morrison. Your legacy soars. </span></div>
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To summarise the plot would be unfair as this unique reading experience is best left for you to dive into on your own. In terms of language and style, Morrison incorporates a blend of rhythmic poetic prose with black urban dialogue from two separate parts of the states, along with a cultural infusion of Black songs and folktales.</span></div>
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Toni Morrison weaves magical realism with fable and history in such a natural manner, that even the nature of the plot, which moves to absurdist, appears organic and authentic.</span></div>
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Morrison makes me want to never put pen on paper again. She's that good, and for me, <i>Song of Solomon </i>is Morrison at her finest. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p><b><i>Some Kind of Fairy Tale</i></b></o:p><br />
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Tara went missing the woods some 20 years ago, now at the supposed age of 36, Tara arrives at her parents door on Christmas Day. Problem is she hasn't changed at all. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">Joyce touches our sentiment here in this exploration of time and life-changing events. It also bravely interrogates relationships with not only the family, but an old, and somewhat lost, past lover. The work shares similarities with other novels of his I've read</span><i>. </i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">This is up there in terms of quality with his <i><a href="http://anthonypanegyres.blogspot.com/2015/12/2015-year-in-review.html?m=0">T</a></i></span><a href="http://anthonypanegyres.blogspot.com/2015/12/2015-year-in-review.html?m=0"><i>he </i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif"><i>Year</i></span><i> of </i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif"><i>the</i></span></a><i><a href="http://anthonypanegyres.blogspot.com/2015/12/2015-year-in-review.html?m=0"> Ladybird</a>. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Joyce is unabashedly sentimental, and although at times this touches on the saccharine, Joyce manages it all successfully - when many other writers wouldn't. The plot is thought provoking, and the controlled prose is strong throughout. The ingredients are all there in the right doses in a compelling tale.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p><b><i>Boy Swallows Universe</i></b></o:p><br />
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Eli Bell's seemingly stable childhood world in urban Brisbane is torn asunder as he realises that he and his non-verbal brother, Gus, are no longer safe. His mother, who he adores, is involved with a drug-trafficking stepfather (who he also idolises) and their troubles have entered the domestic front in a super hostile manner. Eli and Gus have to leave.</span></div>
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It's a gritty take on 80s Australia with Vietnamese gangs, abusive partners, a drunken father, reformed and unreformed crims, and violent dug cartels. It also incorporates magical realism with a unique red phone and Gus weaves a little magic too.</span></div>
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But Eli's hyperbole, humour and dramatic outlook make it all worth the while. For me this deserved the Miles Franklin; it's one of the best Aussie rides I've been on. And it is a wild adventurous ride. Dalton pulls out all the writerly tricks out of the hat: connection and disconnection, stark contrast and juxtaposition, and figurative lines abound on every page. It's hyperobolic and hyperactive, and doesn't hold back. So much of Australian literature is controlled and spare these days, making Dalton's unleashed voice a refreshing change. </span></div>
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The adventurous unashamedly bloated prose is reminiscent of the work of a journalist on steroids. And guess what? It works. This novel is fun, touching, brave and imaginative. </span></div>
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I personally felt the glass jars and much of the latter part related to the jars too far fetched, not in terms of gratuity, but in terms of incredulity and taking the melodrama to an unneeded extent. The scenes aren't really required. Although I did think the later magical realist elements worked a treat. </span></div>
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But it's all part of a wonderful ride. A future Australian classic, if it isn't one already. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p><i><b> Path of the Dragon</b></i></o:p><br />
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<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The novella where Daenerys Targaryen and Jorah Mormont share a romantic moment! This tale portrays Daenarys as the liberator we all loved before the final episode of the television series spoilt her for many of us. </span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><i><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Finder</span></b></i></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">The tale of how a school of magic is founded by a brave man. A lot of elements are at play in this novella, there's danger, including a tracker with bloodhound qualities, and also serious abuses of power. On occasion, I find</span></span> Le Guin's<span face=""calibri" , sans-serif" style="font-family: inherit;"> Earthsea works more suited for younger ages, but </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">The </i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif" style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Finder</i> holds adult audiences too. A fine novella and well-wrought story. </span></div>
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<o:p><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer</span></b></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cut and pasted via Goodreads: An impressive and consistently strong anthology. Out of the twenty two stories, there were only four that I didn't enjoy. Some personal favourites (and I could mention 18 stories here) include Ursula K. Le Guin's novella <i>The Finder; '</i>What The Tyger Told Her' by Kage Baker; 'The Man Who Stole the Moon' by Tanith Lee; 'Nucleon' by David D. Levine; and 'Hell is the Absence of God' by Ted Chiang. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The absolute standout is 'Firebird' by R. Garcia y Robertson. Although a fantasy is a more traditional vein, the story delights and all the elements come together in a clever fashion. It had me glued throughout.</span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b> 2019</b> <b>Publications</b></span></o:p></div>
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'The Do' in <i><b>We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories</b> </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill.<br />
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Very proud to have a story here, the variety of genre and styles was a pleasure to see. Some stories are rich, others economical, some realist, some speculative, and all deserve a second reading. A fantastic display of the magic and breadth of the short form.<br />
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'Submerging' <b><i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed</b>. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer (previously published in<i> Overland 204</i> & <i>The Best Australian Stories 2014</i>.)<br />
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This explores an inescapable part of the human experience. It includes meaningful works in the form of essays, prose, memoir, and poetry.<br />
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2020</span></div>
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'Submerging' will find its 4th home in 2020 in the anthology <i>Changing Tides</i> (more to come). <br />
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Hope 2020 is a happy, healthy and meaningful year for all!</span></b></div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-4189360480406130822020-01-04T23:00:00.002-08:002021-01-12T15:53:58.081-08:0025 Fabulous Short Stories from my 2019 Reading<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T9ldYzCxff0/XhK8-DYAAdI/AAAAAAAAA60/JUdAGsi4Ob8cHil4NJSWuZlOpj-arptHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/1835229.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="295" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T9ldYzCxff0/XhK8-DYAAdI/AAAAAAAAA60/JUdAGsi4Ob8cHil4NJSWuZlOpj-arptHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/1835229.jpg" width="123" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">I read 101 short stories in 2019 (old and new). So the below list is my favourite 25 stories from this year's reading. As per usual, this yearly list of outstanding stories could have been lengthier, but that gets tedious. I'm also careful not to mention too many from anthologies I have works in (there could have been far more). </span><br />
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<span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">‘Bog Girl: A Romance’ Karen Russell (from </span><i>Orange World and Other Stories </i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">originally in </span><i>The New Yorker</i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">) </span><br />
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‘The Bad Graft’ Karen Russell (from <i>Orange World and Other Stories </i>originally in <i>The New Yorker</i>) <br />
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‘Firebird’ R. Garcia y Robertson <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer) <i> </i></span></div>
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‘Chanterelle’ Brian Stableford <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy </i>(2001) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer,<i> </i>first published in <i>Black Heart, Ivory Bones </i>Ed Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling) </span></div>
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‘Making a Noise in This World’ Charles De Lint <i>[Year’s Best Fantasy</i> (2001) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer, first published in <i>Warrior Fantastic </i>Ed. Mark Greenberg] </span></div>
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‘State of the Heart’ Carol Patterson (<i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer)<br />
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‘Calving’ Georgina Luck (<i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer) </span></div>
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'My Brother Quentin’ Janeen Samuel <i>(Andromeda Spaceways 44)</i><i> </i></span></div>
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‘What the Tyger Told Her’ Kage Baker <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell <br />
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‘Cinta Ku’ Mirandi Riwoe <i>(We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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‘Mycorrhizal Networks’ Lynette Washington <i>(We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill) </span></div>
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‘Greedy Choke Puppy’ Nalo Hopkinson <i>[Year’s Best Fantasy</i> (2001) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer, first published in <i>Dark Matter] </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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‘Staying On’ Ann Bolch (<i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer) </span></div>
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‘A Room Inside a High-Care Nursing Home’ Liam Brooks (<i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer) </span></div>
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‘Lacrimosa’ Emily J. Sun (<i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss </i>Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina Mercer) </span></div>
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‘The Man Who Stole the Moon’ Tanith Lee (<i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer) </span></div>
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‘The Prospectors’ Karen Russell (from <i>Orange World and Other Stories </i>originally in <i>The New Yorker</i>) </span></div>
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‘Nucleon’ David D. Levine <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer) </span></div>
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‘The Golem’ Naomi Kritzer <i>[Year’s Best Fantasy</i> (2001) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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‘Hell is the Absence of God’ Ted Chiang <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer, first published in <i>Starlight 3</i>) </span></div>
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‘The Black Heart’ Patrick O’Leary <i>(Year’s Best Fantasy 2 </i>(2002) Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer) </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vlgd5JVPP_w/XhGHoq8lMkI/AAAAAAAAA6o/opF8WKldHeYmy0Ff9YyhY-ru6o2p5dzUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/011002_1338581.jpg.1014x1500_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1015" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vlgd5JVPP_w/XhGHoq8lMkI/AAAAAAAAA6o/opF8WKldHeYmy0Ff9YyhY-ru6o2p5dzUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/011002_1338581.jpg.1014x1500_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" width="135" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">‘A Twist of Smoke’ Emily Brewin <i>(We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill) </span></div>
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‘The Tornado Auction' Karen Russell (from <i>Orange World and Other Stories </i>originally in <i>Zoetrope</i>)</span></div>
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‘The Children’ Andrew Sutherland <i>(We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill) </span></div>
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‘Somebody’s Baby’ Jenni Mazaraki <i>(We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill) </span></div>
Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-65878187349496672862019-07-19T19:59:00.001-07:002019-07-19T20:03:17.147-07:00We'll Stand in That Place and Other Stories Book Launch<i>We'll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>Ed. Michelle Cahill, which includes my latest story "The Do" will be launched at the gorgeous Readings Book Store in the Victorian State Library in Melbourne. Wish I could be there, but it's the usual tyranny of distance issue.<br />
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<b>Thur 1 Aug 2019 at 6:30 pm. </b><br />
<b>Readings State Library –State Library Victoria, 285-321 Russell St, Melbourne 3000, Victoria</b><br />
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<a href="https://www.readings.com.au/event/book-launch-well-stand-in-that-place-and-other-stories">https://www.readings.com.au/event/book-launch-well-stand-in-that-place-and-other-stories</a><br />
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Hope it's a wonderful celebration of the genre and a fabulous night for all who attend.<br />
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<b>Current Read: </b><i>A Maggot</i> by John Fowles<br />
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-52286658961319001222019-06-25T16:54:00.003-07:002019-07-29T04:46:33.675-07:00Book Launches for The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUG4zkenpt8/XRKx2Qf6AZI/AAAAAAAAA4g/WYRzRTPHoLQTi4FBWWPhkHi-SvewV5SiACLcBGAs/s1600/58468693_1121387628065010_5631238471981989888_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUG4zkenpt8/XRKx2Qf6AZI/AAAAAAAAA4g/WYRzRTPHoLQTi4FBWWPhkHi-SvewV5SiACLcBGAs/s1600/58468693_1121387628065010_5631238471981989888_n.jpg" /></a> <i>The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss</i> Ed. Gina Mercer & Terry Whitebeach will have its first launch at <b>Fullers Bookshop</b> on the 26th June at 5:30pm in the editors' home state of Tasmania.<br />
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<a href="https://www.fullersbookshop.com.au/event/the-sky-falls-down-an-anthology-of-loss/">https://www.fullersbookshop.com.au/event/the-sky-falls-down-an-anthology-of-loss/</a><br />
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And then if you're in Melbourne, Carrie Tiffany will be launching the anthology at<b> Readings in Hawthorn </b>on the 13th July, 2pm.<br />
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<a href="https://www.readings.com.au/event/book-launch-the-sky-falls-down">https://www.readings.com.au/event/book-launch-the-sky-falls-down</a><br />
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<br />Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-69528535221593382252019-05-29T20:55:00.001-07:002019-07-29T16:54:15.269-07:00The Sky Falls Down: An Anthology of Loss Ed. Terry Whitebeach & Gina MercerI have a story in <i>The Sky Falls Down,</i> a compendium of fiction, memoir and poetry revolving around the theme of loss.<br />
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There's a crowdfund from the Australian Cultural Fund to raise a little more money for the writers. My own story is a reprint, so I've donated to the fund, but there are many pieces in the anthology that are seeing print for the first time. No pressure, just spreading the word. The link's below:<br />
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<a href="https://australianculturalfund.org.au/projects/anthology-of-loss">https://australianculturalfund.org.au/projects/anthology-of-loss</a>/<br />
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<b>Current Reads:</b><br />
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Recently finished <i>We'll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </i>ed. Michelle Cahill. I'll disclose I've a story in it, but regardless, I loved the anthology.<br />
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I'm fascinated by the variety of style and voices that the short form can exhibit, and <i>We'll Stand in That Place and Other Stories</i> is a fantastic exemplar of that power. All stories within<i> </i>are layered and, in my opinion, deserve a second reading. I discovered something to enjoy and admire in each and every narrative.<br />
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And I'm currently reading the historical fiction <i>Restoration </i>by Rose Tremain.<br />
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<br />Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-56964009861111832902019-02-17T04:10:00.002-08:002021-11-27T15:31:20.279-08:00Cover Reveal: We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories Ed. Michelle Cahill <h2 class="header-title" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; line-height: 2.3rem; margin: 0px auto 11px; max-width: 590px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Latest Story News</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">My latest s</span><span style="font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">tory</span><span style="font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> 'The Do' will feature along side what's a fab lineup of Australian writers in </span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-style: italic; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6px; text-align: center;">We’ll Stand in That Place and Other Stories </span><span style="color: #444444; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6px; text-align: center;">Ed. Michelle Cahill. MRP has revealed<i> </i>the</span><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> gorgeous</span></span><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;"> cover designed by Susan Miller. </span></span></span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">Previously Shared Homes (trivia)</b><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">: I always love seeing if I've shared previous homes with writers. This time around Claire Corbett tops the list as it's the third publication we've been in together; and it's the second with Mark Smith, and Michelle Cahill. Sincere apologies if I've missed out on any of the other writers. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;"><b><a href="https://margaretriverpress.com/product/well-stand-in-that-place-and-other-stories/">Editor and Author Bios</a></b> (from Margaret River Press Website):</span></span><br />
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Michelle Cahill</span>‘s short stories, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Letter to Pessoa</span> won the UTS Glenda Adams Award, the NSW Premier’s Literary Award for New Writing and was shortlisted in the Steele Rudd Queensland Literary Awards. She won the Hilary Mantel International Short Story Prize and was shortlisted in the <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">ABR</span> Elizabeth Jolley Prize. She was a Fellow at Kingston Writing School, a Visiting Scholar in Creative Writing at UNC, Charlotte and a Fellow at Hawthornden Castle. She is an award-winning poet and critic. Her essays have appeared in the <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Sydney Review of Books, Southerly, Westerly</span> and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Weekend Australian</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Emily Brewin</span> is a Melbourne-based author and educator. Her first novel<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">, Hello, Goodbye</span>, was released in 2017 with Allen & Unwin. Her second, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Small Blessings</span>, came out in February 2019 with the same publisher. She has been awarded an Australian Society of Authors mentorship for her fiction writing, and undertook a Bundanon Trust artist residency and a Moreland writers’ residency in 2018 to develop her third novel, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Piano</span>. Emily’s short stories have been short listed for a number of awards, including the 2019 Margaret River Short Story Competition. She has written for Feminartsy, Meanjin, Kill Your Darlings and Mamamia.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Claire Corbett</span> has had stories, essays and journalism published in journals including <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Picador New Writing</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">SMH</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Monthly</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Griffith Review</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Overland</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Southerly</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Antipodes</span>, S<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">cience Fiction Film and Television</span> and B<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">est Australian Stories 2014</span> and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">2015</span>. Her first novel, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">When We Have Wings </span>(Allen &Unwin), was shortlisted for the 2012 Barbara Jefferis Award and shortlisted for the 2012 Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction and published overseas. <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Watch Over Me</span>, her second novel, was published by A&U in 2017. She is writing her third novel. She teaches Creative Writing at UTS, is on the Board of Varuna, the National Writers’ House, and is the new fiction editor of <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Overland Journal</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Darryl R. Dymock</span> enjoys writing short fiction, is a winner of the Roly Sussex Short Story award, and has been published elsewhere including in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Griffith Review</span> and most recently in the anthology, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Within/Without These Walls</span>. He is also the author of five narrative non-fiction books, including <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Hustling Hinkler</span> and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Chalkies</span>. In his other life he is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at Griffith University, Brisbane. Darryl lives in Brisbane with his wife and his laptop, and says that in any writing the challenge is always the beginning, the middle and the end.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">K. W. George</span> is a writer from Brisbane. She has been published in a number of journals including <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Meanjin</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Going</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Down</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Swinging</span>, and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Big Issue</span>. This is her fourth appearance in a Margaret River Press Anthology, which she believes is a record of some kind—but who’s counting?</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Justine Hyde</span> is a library director, writer and critic who lives in Melbourne. Her fiction, essays and reviews are published in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Age</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Australian</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Saturday Paper</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Kill Your Darlings</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Lifted Brow</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Meanjin</span> and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Seizure</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Jenni Mazaraki </span>is a writer and visual artist based in Melbourne, Australia. She is currently working on her first novel, an extract of which was shortlisted for the 2017 Deborah Cass Prize. Her poetry has been highly commended in The Bridport Prize 2018 and her short stories have been shortlisted for prizes including the Write Around the Murray award 2017. Her poetry is included in the anthology <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">#MeToo: Stories from the Australian movement </span>published by Picador in May 2019.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Rachel McEleney</span>‘s short fiction and nonfiction has appeared in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Seizure</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Ghostly StringyBark Anthology</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Aeternum: The Journal of Contemporary Gothic Studies</span>and<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">An Alphabetical Amulet</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> Anthology. </span>Her poetry has appeared on the UWA Poets’ Corner in Perth. Rachel lived in several countries before settling in the southwest of Western Australia. The southwest landscape has inspired her writing and she likes to spend a lot of time in the bush, particularly in spring so she can search for orchids. She is a PhD candidate at Edith Cowan University’s South West Campus.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Audrey Molloy</span> was born in Dublin and grew up in rural Ireland. She now lives in Sydney, where she works as an optometrist and writer. Her poetry has been widely published, most recently in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Meanjin, Cordite, Overland, Australian Poetry Anthology, Rabbit, Southerly, The Moth, The Irish Times </span>and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Magma. </span>Her short fiction has been shortlisted for The Southern Cross Short Story Competition and has been published in<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> The Blue Nib. </span>Audrey’s work has been nominated for the Forward Prize and she is one of Eyewear Publishing’s Best New British and Irish Poets 2018.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Catherine Noske</span> is a lecturer in Creative Writing and editor of <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Westerly </span>at the University of Western Australia. Her research focuses on contemporary Australian place-making. She has been awarded the A.D. Hope Prize, twice received the Elyne Mitchell Prize for Rural Women Writers, and was shortlisted for the Dorothy Hewett Award (2015). Her first novel is forthcoming with Picador.</div>
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Since 2011, Perth writer, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Anthony</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Panegyres</span>, has had works featured in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Best Australian Stories 2014</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2011</span>,<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Overland 204 </span>(a story short listed for the Aurealis Award), <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Overland 214</span>,<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> Meanjin Vol.3 2013</span>,<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> The Guardian</span>,<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> Dreaming of Djinn </span>and several other homes, including the award winning anthologies <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Bloodlines </span>and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">At the Edge. </span>He is currently a doctoral candidate at UWA.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Emily Paull</span> is a writer, blogger, editor and former bookseller from Western Australia. Her work has appeared in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Westerly</span> as well as two previous Margaret River anthologies. Her debut collection of short stories will be published by Margaret River Press later in 2019. You can find out more about Emily at <a href="http://www.emilypaull.com/" style="-webkit-text-decoration-skip: objects; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-skip: objects;">www.emilypaull.com</a>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Kathy Prokhovnik</span> is currently working on her second novel and a narrative non-fiction history of Sydney. She <a href="http://kathyprokhovnik.com/" style="-webkit-text-decoration-skip: objects; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-skip: objects;">blogs</a> in two threads: ‘Sydney snaps’ and ‘At the farm’. Awards for her short stories include: highly commended in the 2018 and 2017 KSP Short Fiction Awards; runner-up in 2016. Winner of the 2016 Joyce Parkes Women Writers Prize and the 1988 Olga Masters Short Story Competition, University of Queensland Press Award. She has had short stories published in the <a href="http://www.seizureonline.com/content/waiting-for-the-train-to-rome?rq=waiting%20for%20the%20train%20to%20rome" style="-webkit-text-decoration-skip: objects; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-skip: objects;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Seizure </span>‘Flashers’ series</a>, in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Certifiable Truths (</span>Allen & Unwin, 1998), <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Meanjin</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Westerly </span>and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Hecate</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">K.A. Rees</span> writes poetry and short fiction. Her poems and short stories have been included by <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Red Room Company</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Rochford Street Review</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Yalobusha Review</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Review of Australian Fiction</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Australian Poetry</span> and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Cordite Poetry Review</span>, among others. In 2012, Kate was the Café Poet in Residence at the State Library of NSW. She was shortlisted for the 2016 Judith Wright Poetry Prize. She is the recipient of the 2017 Barry Hannah Prize in Fiction and runner-up in the 2018 Peter Cowan Short Story Award. She is a 2019 Varuna fellowship holder for her manuscript of short fiction. Kate lives with her family in Sydney.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Mirandi Riwoe</span>’s novella <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Fish Girl </span>won <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Seizure</span>’s Viva la Novella V and was shortlisted for The Stella Prize. She is the author of two crime novels and is prose editor for <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Peril Magazine</span>. Her work has appeared in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Best Australian Stories, Meanjin, Review of Australian Fiction, Shibboleth and Other Stories </span>and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Best Summer Stories. </span>Mirandi has a PhD in Creative Writing and Literary Studies (QUT).</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Kit Scriven</span> has been published in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Island</span> and short story anthologies. He won the Olga Master Short Story Award in 2016 and 2017, and the SALA Short Story Prize in 2016. He has been highly commended or shortlisted in several other short story competitions.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Mark Smith</span> lives on Victoria’s Surf Coast. His debut novel, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Road To Winter</span>, was published in 2016. The sequel, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Wilder Country</span>, won the 2018<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />Australian Indie Book Award for YA. Mark is also an award winning writer of short fiction, with credits including the 2015 Josephine Ulrick<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />Literature Prize and the 2013 Alan Marshall Short Story Prize. His work has appeared in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Best Australian Stories</span>,<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> Review of Australian Fiction</span>,<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Big Issue</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The Victorian Writer</span> and<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;"> The Australian</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Andrew Sutherland </span>is a Queer writer and theatre practitioner working between Western Australia and Singapore. Theatre works include <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Poorly Drawn Shark</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Unveiling: Gay Sex for Endtimes</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Baby Girl</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Chrysanthemum Gate</span>, and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Ragnarok</span>. He was awarded <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Overland</span>‘s Fair Australia Poetry Prize 2017 and selected as a poet for Westerly’s Writers’ Development Program 2018. His poetry and prose can be found in various publications including <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Visible Ink</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Suburban Review</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Muse/A</span>, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Bosie</span>, and <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">From Whispers to Roars</span>.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Jem Tyley-Miller</span> is a crime writer from Bacchus Marsh who sees life through a magical realist lens. A 2018 Wheeler Centre Hot Desk Fellow, Jem works casually directing extras to fund her very serious writing habit and co-organises the Peter Carey Short Story Award in her spare time. You can read more of her writing in <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Spike</span>, the <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Meanjin</span> blog.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Lynette Washington </span>is a writer, editor, publisher and teacher of creative and professional writing. Her stories have been published widely and performed at events such as Spineless Wonders Presents and Quart Short Literary Readings. In 2014 she edited the story collection, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Breaking Beauty</span>. In 2017 she co-edited the story collection, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Crush</span>. Her debut, <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">Plane Tree Drive</span>, was Highly Commended in the 2018 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award and shortlisted for the MUBA.</div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">Currently Reading: </b><i style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">Year's Best Fantasy </i><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">Ed. David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer This dates back to 2001. David G. Hartwell unfortunately passed away in Jan 2016, so I regret not reading the anthology earlier. I have read the Michael Swanwick and George RR Martin's stories before (strong works as expected); and I can't wait to read Nalo Hopkinson's story as I regard her short work as sublime. Sadly, the fantasy and speculative fiction short story form doesn't always receive the critical acclaim it deserves. The best work in the genre is truly impressive, and if more people read the genre they would discover that it's predominantly not 'high fantasy' (it's not all medieval dwarves, elves, goblins, warriors and wizards - although they have a place too), but rather the genre consists of a vast range of settings, characters, ideas and styles, and the narratives are intelligent, well-crafted, and character-driven. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">And I'm also reading </span><i style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">Song of Solomon </i><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">by the legendary Toni Morrison. Morrison is one of those writers who makes me embarrassed to put pen to paper. </span></span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #444444; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">Reprints: </b><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">And 'Submerging' (</span><i style="color: #444444; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">Overland Literary Journal 214 </i><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">& </span><i style="color: #444444; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">The Best Australian Stories 2014) </i><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">will now find its 3rd and 4th homes in June. One is an Australian compendium exploring the theme of loss: </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-style: italic; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">The Sky Falls: An Anthology of Loss</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i style="color: #444444; letter-spacing: 0.6px;">; </i><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;">and the other is an American climate change anthology </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">called</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> </span><i style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;">Changing Tides. </i><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;">The latter is unpaid. I'm all for paying the writer, but </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">all proceeds</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> from <i>Changing Tides </i>go toward </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">environmental</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> conservation, which I'm </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">passionate</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> about. In this case it's the <a href="https://www.coralrestoration.org/">Coral Restoration Foundation</a>; a </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">nonprofit</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6px;"> organisation in Key Largo, Florida, which </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.6000000238418579px;">focuses on restoring coral reefs, creating offshore nurseries, and educational outreach (it's the world's largest non-profit marine-conservation organisation). Sounds like a very worthwhile cause to me. </span></span></div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-17775344069449387762019-01-23T22:04:00.001-08:002021-08-26T16:07:45.449-07:00Publishing News 2019: New Story<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">New Story: "The Do"</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nice news to hear that all 19 short listed stories from the Margaret River Short Story Competition will be published again in an anthology out later this year. For more info see this linked post from <a href="https://margaretriverpress.com/2019/01/24/2019-margaret-river-short-story-competition-shortlist/?fbclid=IwAR1mevfC9BCkSzxmlJUYtk69ln_m9dN2vuyJnD-QFCKrBO3PffmFOPDr2uE">Margaret River Press</a>.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MrwvBsZ1f50/XElUpSPlvRI/AAAAAAAAA3Q/w75Qqs6UFOEoruTQ_S8n42G7u8oW7hxQQCLcBGAs/s1600/Unknown.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="166" data-original-width="304" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MrwvBsZ1f50/XElUpSPlvRI/AAAAAAAAA3Q/w75Qqs6UFOEoruTQ_S8n42G7u8oW7hxQQCLcBGAs/s1600/Unknown.png" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Congrats to all involved. I'm really looking forward to reading all the stories, but especially Mark Smith's as I loved his work, "Sugar Bag Dreamin' Country" in <i>Best Australian Stories 2014</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have pasted an excerpt from MRP post below along with a little from the editor, poet Michelle Cahill (from MRP).</span><br />
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<b>Editor Michelle Cahill had this to say about this year’s shortlist</b><span style="color: #444444;">:</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">‘Reading through the longlist for this year’s Margaret River Press Short Story Competition, I was struck by the many stories inflected by contemporary concerns: climate change, the need for queer spaces and voices, cultural inclusiveness. And yet, equally, the stories that impressed me most succeed in realising complex emotions that we sometimes fail to honour in our daily lives and in our close relationships. It has been a privilege to judge this prize; my warm congratulations to the shortlisted writers and the winners.’</span></div>
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Congratulations to Kit Scriven, who took out first place with his short story ‘We’ll Stand in That Place’, and to Catherine Noske, whose short story ‘Thylacine’ won second place. Rachel McEleney’s short story ‘The Day the Rain Stopped Dancing’ is the winner of the Southwest Prize.</div>
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Of the nineteen stories chosen, there are six writers from Victoria, five from Western Australia, four from New South Wales, three from Queensland and one from South Australia.</div>
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<span style="font-weight: 700;">2019 SHORT STORY SHORTLIST</span></div>
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Emily Bewin – A Twist Of Smoke</div>
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Claire Corbett – Aftertaste</div>
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Darryl R. Dymock – A Tough Little Bird</div>
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K.W. George – Three Dog Night</div>
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Justine Hyde – Emotional Support</div>
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Jenni Mazaraki – Somebody’s Baby</div>
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Rachel McEleney – The Day the Rain Stopped Dancing <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">*Southwest Prize*</span></div>
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Audrey Molloy – Thirty Sacks</div>
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Catherine Noske – Thylacine <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">*Second Prize*</span></div>
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Anthony Panegyres – The Do</div>
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Emily Paull – A Moveable Farce</div>
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Kathy Prokhovnik – Still life</div>
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K.A. Rees – Butterscotch</div>
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Mirandi Riwoe – Cinta Ku</div>
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Kit Scriven – We’ll stand in that place <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">*First Prize*</span></div>
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Mark Smith – A Concreter’s Heart</div>
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Andrew Sutherland – The Children</div>
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Jem Tyley-Miller – The Monster in the Lake</div>
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Lynette Washington – Mycorrhizal Networks</div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-59141157696846085782019-01-11T23:22:00.000-08:002019-10-18T16:57:21.798-07:00Reading Review 2018<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
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<b style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Books Read in 2018 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b> (</b>happy to discuss any)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i style="font-style: italic;">Great Apes </i>Will Self</span></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Revolutionary Road </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Richard Yates</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Northern Lights </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Philip Pullman (YA)</span></div>
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span lang="EN-GB">Pastoralia </span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders <i>(</i>novella from <i>Pastoralia)</i></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Burr </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Gore Vidal</span></div>
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Glimpse of Truth </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Ed. David Miller (anthology)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Lincoln in the Bardo </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Pastoralia </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders (collection)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Bobcat and Other Stories </i>Rebecca Lee (collection)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Genius of Birds </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jennifer Ackerman (natural history)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">CivilWarLand in Bad Decline </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders (collection)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Tenth of December </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders (collection)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Yellowcake Springs </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Guy Salvidge</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">In a Sunburned Country </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Bill Bryson (travel/memoir/expository)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Gate of Angels </i>Penelope Fitzgerald</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Bounty </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders <i>(</i>novella from <i>CivilWarLand in Bad Decline)</i></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Count of Monte Cristo </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alexandre Dumas)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Semplica Girl Diaries </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Saunders (novella from </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Tenth of December)</i><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">House of Lost Dreams </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Graham Joyce</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Pulse </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Julian Barnes (collection)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">A Cabinet of Byzantine Curiosities </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Anthony Kaldellis (History)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Invisible Man </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">H.G Wells (novella)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Princess of Mars </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Edgar Rice Burroughs</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Asimov’s Science Fiction Nov/Dec 2017 </i><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Woman in White </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Wilkie Collins</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Inner Life of Animals </i>Peter Wohlleben (natural history)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The Gods of Mars </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Edgar Rice Burroughs</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Wimmera </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Mark Brandi</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Magrit </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Lee Battersby (childrens’s novel)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Splintered Walls </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Kaaron Warren (collection)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Sky </i>Kaaron Warren (novella)</span></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Who Fears Death </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nnedi Okorafor</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Divergent </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Veronica Roth (YA)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Mars Trilogy </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Edgar Rice Burroughs</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Aleppo </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Philip Mansel (history)</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Heroic Adventure Stories </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Ed Mike Ashley (anthology)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Warlord of Mars </i>Edgar Rice Burroughs</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Novel Highlights </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Keeping the extended commentary to two, but as mentioned earlier there were plenty of great reads. </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Great Apes and Revolutionary Road, </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">although vastly different, are easily up there with the best books I've read. My next two favourite reads were </span><i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Northern Lights</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></i></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(a delightful and unashamedly British steampunk adventure), and Gore Vidal's <i>Burr </i>(an historical fiction about a man who was much more than simply the 'arch-villain' who killed Hamilton). </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As expected</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">,</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> George Saunders' <i>Lincoln in the Bardo </i>was excellent</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">; </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and <i>Yellowcake Springs </i>impressed as a local dystopian novel.</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> It was also nice to read a thoughtful Australian children's novel: <i>Magrit</i> by Lee Battersby is rhythmic and unique. I could go on and on...</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Great Apes </i>by Will Self</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kSTAHmTi4uU/XDLNAG2_LSI/AAAAAAAAA2U/2E-FWzV_6-8FSp3K19RcHPXz8yFmiaHjgCLcBGAs/s1600/9780140268003-us.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="312" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kSTAHmTi4uU/XDLNAG2_LSI/AAAAAAAAA2U/2E-FWzV_6-8FSp3K19RcHPXz8yFmiaHjgCLcBGAs/s320/9780140268003-us.jpg" width="198" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><br /></i></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Great Apes </i>is a brilliant absurdist satire with Will Self at the peak of his game. Symon Dykes awakes from a drug-infused psychedelic night out to discover himself as a human entrapped within a chimp's body in a world of chimpanzees. And what's more, his girlfriend is a chimp perfectly self-accepting of her own chimpunity. This parallel world of 'Planet of the Chimps' functions much like ours with cars, universities, arty-farts, academics, and more, yet the chimpanzee's 'primate nature' still reigns supreme. Self's favourite clinical psychologist, Dr. Zach Buzner, is a chimp past his prime but still perilously clinging on to his Alpha Male status. For once Buzner (a reoccurring character in many Self stories) is sympathetically portrayed. We are endeared to him with his drive to save Simon and restore Simon's sense of 'chimpunity', while simultaneously dealing with his own clan; dealing with other males aiming to topple his reign; and dealing with the overly ambitious world of academia in general – all with ample and admirable cunning. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">T</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">he novel is incredible at a micro level, where Self's wit constantly delights. And with <i>Great Apes, </i>Self manages to do more than produce his usual cutting satire, he also manages a warm and empathetic connectivity with the reader in relation to the entire cast of main characters. This element of connectivity was what I felt <i>Where the Dead Live, </i>although very good, did not quite achieve. Through the exploration of our chimpunity, Self strikes a deliberate unique chord with our exploration of our own humanity. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Great Apes </i>is Self at his irreverent best. Perhaps the ending was forced, but the journey is not only forever witty, but also thoughtful and hilarious. Self always overdoes it in one or two scenes, but these stretches are also what makes Self a brave individual in a world that often rewards a mundane or conservative approach to prose. The literal brown-nosing metaphor at Oxford was a point of overkill for me. That aside, I <i>pant-hoot</i> to this work's great merit. I submissively <i>pant-grunt</i>, bend low and offer my fragrant backside to Self, a true genius.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7A1BMqIl3_k/XDh7FLoVrmI/AAAAAAAAA2g/vW-9bDwylTIwKEz4Ho7xX7zvqSLze8M2gCLcBGAs/s1600/xrevolutionary-road.jpg.pagespeed.ic.WPjY9hrhBV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7A1BMqIl3_k/XDh7FLoVrmI/AAAAAAAAA2g/vW-9bDwylTIwKEz4Ho7xX7zvqSLze8M2gCLcBGAs/s320/xrevolutionary-road.jpg.pagespeed.ic.WPjY9hrhBV.jpg" width="207" /></span></a><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7A1BMqIl3_k/XDh7FLoVrmI/AAAAAAAAA2g/vW-9bDwylTIwKEz4Ho7xX7zvqSLze8M2gCLcBGAs/s1600/xrevolutionary-road.jpg.pagespeed.ic.WPjY9hrhBV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'm a huge fan of Yates' shorter work, in fact I've read all of his stories, but I had delayed reading <i>Revolutionary Road </i>and his other longer works – perhaps I didn't want them to take the shine off his short stories. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But I was blown away, once again, by Yates. Although I should note that my </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">book club was far less enthusiastic about <i>RR. </i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">F</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">r</span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ank Wheeler imagines (at times...) that he is above the </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">urban and cult</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ural uniformity of the American burbs. His wife April, would like to regard him that way too (Once again – at times...) In their dream, they are a pair of thinkers and</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">philosophers being stymied by the American way. </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The r</span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">eality is that Frank, rather than subversively 'role-playing' in urban America, is only fantasising for his and April's benefit, and is as much a player in the monotonous American way as his neighbours.</span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">On the surface, Frank and April are the new mid-1950s American Dream: b</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">oth are attractive with a good house in the suburbs with the world at their feet. Dig just a little though and their relationship is no more than a doomed downward spiral built up </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">on false foundations and illusions. The idea of moving to France is April's solution for them both; a means to something more unique and far more artistic than what the American burbs can ever offer. And with this dream in debate, Frank gradually unveils his layers of falsity. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sounds all gloom and doom...and it is... but it's a truly sublime novel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Yates, as usual, not only portrays the urban disillusionment and urban discontent, but also the cultural buy-in of it all. He also makes some wonderful narrative turns and captures the human condition here like no other writer can. I also love Yates' prose. It entails a purposeful mix of telling and showing that rolls the story along without it every being a drag, or at the other end, without ever evolving into a thin fast-paced romp. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The small array of characters works well, especially when the sole 'truth-speaker' in <i>RR</i> is a man who visits under the careful eye of his folks as an outing from the lunatic asylum.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Frank's self-regard and fatuous inclination to assert his own masculinity will make you want to throttle him at times. April wants Frank's lofty self-regard as a creative thinker to be real and hopes that France will bring out the 'authentic submerged' Frank. Frank likes that April still sees him as this figure </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(at times...)</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> – one above the mass manufactured suburban American. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>RR </i>is full of irony and dark humour but it is also compassionate. Only at the very end does it resort to melodrama - which, by that time of the novel, works a treat. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And the little afterward is one of the neatest endings I have read. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Collection Highlights</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">All three collections that I read by Saunders were a riot, with <i>Pastoralia</i> my own personal favourite. </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rUN53kHzimU/XDmQcwwh0wI/AAAAAAAAA3A/mFC-Q_L4xrYhB3LQ0fRL7Pft9W9f6VCqQCLcBGAs/s1600/51u1xHVk6nL._SX332_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="334" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rUN53kHzimU/XDmQcwwh0wI/AAAAAAAAA3A/mFC-Q_L4xrYhB3LQ0fRL7Pft9W9f6VCqQCLcBGAs/s200/51u1xHVk6nL._SX332_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="133" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XTS2lUM6gQs/XDmQIp7o10I/AAAAAAAAA24/WVeaJ2w_tRAKxDYMoF3Om7GK4kV9-m5JQCLcBGAs/s1600/81RoaISdD5L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1022" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XTS2lUM6gQs/XDmQIp7o10I/AAAAAAAAA24/WVeaJ2w_tRAKxDYMoF3Om7GK4kV9-m5JQCLcBGAs/s200/81RoaISdD5L.jpg" width="127" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And at the other end of the spectrum, in a more controlled, realist manner, Rebecca Lee's <i>Bobcat and Other Stories </i>is wonderful. It may be a little too centred around university and academia at times, but the controlled rhythmic prose is Munro-esque, as is Lee's insight into relationships. </span></div>
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<b style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Expository Texts </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And very briefly for nature lovers, <i>The Genius of Birds</i> is a treat. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And for travellers or Australians, <i>In a Sunburned Country </i>by Bill Bryson is also great fun, although the initial cliched hyperbole about how dangerous Australia is is dull and disappointing, especially when compared to gun-toting America. But after the opening, Bryson's warm and humorous voice will win most readers over. It did me.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Favourite Films seen in 2018</span></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I had </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">two personal faves that I saw on screen</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">.</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Firstly, the quirky and powerful exploration of a polarised American identity: <i>Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri; </i>and secondly, the celebratory biopic <i>Bohemian Rhapsody, </i>which also rocked me. </span></span></span></div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-35075632241820880802018-12-21T18:03:00.000-08:002018-12-21T23:32:18.169-08:0024 Superb Short Stories from my 2018 Reading.<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iwxP3BwPb0A/XAq-0wUxW1I/AAAAAAAAA1M/MDwJVMwaP5ANfnsnxCaiWjO4TuzLqzsbQCLcBGAs/s1600/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="341" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iwxP3BwPb0A/XAq-0wUxW1I/AAAAAAAAA1M/MDwJVMwaP5ANfnsnxCaiWjO4TuzLqzsbQCLcBGAs/s200/ImageHandler.ashx.jpeg" width="140" /></a>Once again, this yearly list is about celebrating short fiction and hopefully playing a role in generating a little dialogue and conversation about the genre. These stories are all part of my 2018 reading rather than stories published in 2018. There are also several works from <i>That Glimpse of Truth </i>in previous lists.<br />
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‘Sea Oak’ <span lang="EN-GB">George Saunders <i>(Pastoralia)</i></span><i> </i><br />
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‘The Deep’ Anthony Doerr <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) <br />
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‘Fialta’ Rebecca Lee <i>(Bobcat and Other Stories </i>first published in <i>Zoetrope) </i><br />
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‘Slatland’ Rebecca Lee <i>(Bobcat and Other Stories </i>first published in <i>Atlantic Monthly) </i><br />
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‘Pulse’ Julian Barnes <i>(Pulse</i>) <br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c-JVle378Ag/XAq-peg0hGI/AAAAAAAAA1I/iMWe0enDpkgz1dcU089Kqsy1Jl9OvmSHACLcBGAs/s1600/9781922182319.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="840" data-original-width="543" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c-JVle378Ag/XAq-peg0hGI/AAAAAAAAA1I/iMWe0enDpkgz1dcU089Kqsy1Jl9OvmSHACLcBGAs/s320/9781922182319.jpg" width="206" /></a>‘Boner McPharlin’s Moll’ Tim Winton <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) <br />
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‘Beauty’s Sister’ James Bradley <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) <br />
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‘Min’ Rebecca Lee <i>(Bobcat and Other Stories)</i><i> </i><br />
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‘Confessions of a Con Girl’ Nick Wolven <i>(Asimov’s Nov/Dec 2017) </i> <br />
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‘Trespass’ Julian Barnes <i>(Pulse</i>) <br />
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‘Nothing Visible’ Siddharta Deb <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) <br />
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‘Escape from Spiderhead’ George Saunders <i>(Tenth of December) </i><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;">‘The Cold Outside’ John
Burnside </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">(That
Glimpse of Truth </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">ed. David Miller)</span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘Two Boys’ Lorrie Moore <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller)<span style="mso-tab-count: 4;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘Tenth of December’ George Saunders <i>(Tenth of December) </i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘Mixed Breeding’ Nicola Barker <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) - humorous </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘Summer of ‘38’ Colm Toibin <i><span lang="EN-GB">(That Glimpse of Truth </span></i><span lang="EN-GB">ed. David Miller) </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vwwvjnFTxKQ/XBIHettqOFI/AAAAAAAAA1c/Sxh_KjyqSAkAFFyKBtm2brUDtm6drlVpACLcBGAs/s1600/511UfpfgjXL._SX317_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="319" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vwwvjnFTxKQ/XBIHettqOFI/AAAAAAAAA1c/Sxh_KjyqSAkAFFyKBtm2brUDtm6drlVpACLcBGAs/s320/511UfpfgjXL._SX317_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="204" /></a><span lang="EN-GB">‘The Wavemaker Faulters’ George Saunders <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David
Miller & <i>CivilWarLand in Bad Decline) </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘A Real Doll’ A.M Homes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller)<span style="mso-tab-count: 4;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">‘The Discrete Charm of the Turing Machine’
Greg Egan <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Asimov’s Nov/Dec 2017) </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;">‘The Barber’s
Unhappiness’ George Saunders (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pastoralia)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;">‘The Banks of the
Vistula’ Rebecca Lee <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Bobcat and Other
Stories)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 4;"> </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;">‘Home’ George Saunders
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Tenth of December)</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 6;"> </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;">'Creek' Kaaron </span>Warren <i>(Through Splintered Walls) </i></div>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-68352144198576388602018-03-02T15:18:00.003-08:002018-03-02T15:36:32.462-08:00Writers [on Writing]: Hilmer WolitzerThis is from the final page and final paragraph of the collected essays of <i>Writers [On Writing]</i> from <i>The New York Times</i>; and seems a fitting way to end these posts.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<b><i>'I still agree with Wallace Stegner that talent is a prerequisite for the future professional. But there's a place in the classroom for other interested parties who, in their ardent analysis of one another's writing, become much better readers. And God knows we can always use more of them.' </i></b><br />
<b> </b><br />
Hilma Wolitzer, 'Embarking Together on a Solitary JourneyAnthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7919775782642545848.post-41256237868869575742018-01-04T05:14:00.000-08:002020-07-10T17:07:24.705-07:00 25 Exceptional Short Stories from my 2017 Reading<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>My list of stories this year could have easily been twice as long, but of the 122 short stories I've read in 2017, I've put down 25 of what I thought the most exceptional stories. I'm always in two minds about these lists, especially ones from anthologies I've stories in, I do, however, feel that dialogue is integral in supporting the genre; I realise that some writers are fearful –perhaps justifiably so in the social media age– of participating in the reading conversation. As always, the list is about celebrating and supporting short fiction.</o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>‘Palm Court’ James Salter <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </o:p></span></div>
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‘Almost Days’ DK Mok (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 </i>ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene) </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>‘The Ballad of Paul Nonetheless’ Sherman Alexie <i>(War Dances) </i> </o:p></span></div>
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‘Yesterday, Near a Village Called Barden’ Joe Abercrombie <i>(Sharp Ends) </i> </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>‘Half Past’ Samantha Murray (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 </i>ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene) </o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W3geOdWIEK0/Wkwb5oOWTEI/AAAAAAAAA0g/ap0FpDIh4BQPM78vOvpdfscChcPqmsL3ACLcBGAs/s1600/wardances_cvr_lr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1100" data-original-width="711" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W3geOdWIEK0/Wkwb5oOWTEI/AAAAAAAAA0g/ap0FpDIh4BQPM78vOvpdfscChcPqmsL3ACLcBGAs/s320/wardances_cvr_lr.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>‘The Chrysanthemums’ John Steinbeck <i>(The Long Valley)</i></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><i> </i></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Breaking and Entering’ Sherman Alexie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(War Dances) </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Live Bait’ Frank Touhy <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘The Children Stay’ Alice Munro <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘The Murder’ John Steinbeck <i>(The Long Valley) </i> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘The Senator’s Son’ Sherman Alexie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(War Dances) </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Salt’ Sherman Alexie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(War Dances) </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘At the Beach’ Bernard MacLaverty <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Emergency’ Denis Johnson <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </span></div>
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'Lizzie’s Tiger’ Angela Carter <i>(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </div>
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‘Big Bang Theory’ Sherman Alexie <i>(War Dances) </i> (flash fiction) </div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘War Dances’ Sherman Alexie <i>(War Dances) </i> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Two’s company’ Joe Abercrombie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Sharp Ends) </i></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘A Good Man is Hard to Find’ Flannery
O’Connor <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David
Miller)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 6;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 4;"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5x0DDKE3i4Q/WkwbciNTioI/AAAAAAAAA0c/0kCUO39PdQAIP-_yD--SlQxHiAej-z2AQCLcBGAs/s1600/9781925212488_web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5x0DDKE3i4Q/WkwbciNTioI/AAAAAAAAA0c/0kCUO39PdQAIP-_yD--SlQxHiAej-z2AQCLcBGAs/s320/9781925212488_web.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-US">‘2B’ Joanne Anderton (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 </i>ed. Liz Grzyb
& Talie Helene)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Saint Katy the Virgin’ John Steinbeck <i>(The Long Valley) </i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘Bluebeard’s Daughter’ Angela Slatter (<i>The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 </i>ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene) </span></div>
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‘Sleepless’ Jay Kristoff (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy &
Horror 2015 </i>ed. Liz Grzyb & Talie Helene) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">(</span>suspenseful twists)<span style="mso-tab-count: 4;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘The Harness’ John Steinbeck <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(The Long Valley)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">‘The Dying Room’ Georgina Hammick <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(That Glimpse of Truth </i>ed. David Miller) </span></div>
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Anthony Panegyreshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02779674503088900337noreply@blogger.com2