September 2013 - The Boomerang Books Blog

Player Profile: Frances Whiting, author of Walking In Trampolines

Frances Whiting, author of Walking In Trampolines

Tell us about your latest creation:

Walking on Trampolines. It’s a bit of a love letter to the Australia I grew up in. It’s also a story about the way friendships can mark us, and how most families are chaotic beneath the surface. Ultimately I think its about love.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

Brisbane. Brissie. Bris Vegas. Brisney land in Queensland, a beautiful, quirky and strangely endearing town that also marks those who come from it.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

Yes, an author, but also a ballerina, a spy, a teacher, an actress, a singer, a dancer, an astronaut, an equestrian and a figure skater. I was keeping my options open.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

Definitely Walking on Trampolines. Although I have had two books on non fiction out, which have been collections of the weekly Sunday column Ive been writing for 16 years, I consider Walking to be first “real” book. I think its my best work because I’m not tired of reading it myself yet, and I’ve been writing it for seven years, so I think that must say something!

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

Chaotic. For the most part I wrote Walking on Trampolines wherever I could find a quiet nook to do so. We don’t really have a proper office, so I found myself moving the computer around the house a lot, trying to find a space to call my own!

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

If you took a photo of my bedside table, you would find a small hill of books. I really do love reading and I’m pretty eclectic in my tastes. But I love P G Wodehouse, Clive James, Liane Moriarty, Tony Parsons and Nick Hornby.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

Madicken by Astrid Lindgren. Iloved that book so much, I got it out every week at our local library for so long that in the end, the librarians there just gave it to me!

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Ooooh, that is a really tough question, but my friends would say Brigid Jones, not sure I agree!

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I dance a lot at home with my four year old. We are very, very good dancers.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

MMM. Ice cold natural oysters with lemon juice with a rum and coke. Youc an take the girl out of Queensland…..

Who is your hero? Why?:

Obama. Because he’s the first black man in a white house built by slave’s hands. For that alone, he is heroic.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

To keep spreading the message that in the end, its the words that matter.

Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/#!/FrancesWhitingAuthor

Player Profile: Mark Lamprell, author of The Full Ridiculous

Mark Lamprell, author of The Full Ridiculous

Tell us about your latest creation:

THE FULL RIDICULOUS is a story about an ordinary family who go through an extraordinarily difficult time, told from the dad’s point of view, after he is hit by a car.

When he doesn’t die, he is surprised and pleased. But he can’t seem to move from the crash position. He can’t concentrate, or control his anger and grief, or work out what to do about anything much. His wife Wendy is heroically supportive but his teenage children don’t help his post-accident angst: daughter Rosie punches out a vindictive schoolmate, plunging her parents into a special kind of parent-teacher hell; son Declan is found with a stash of illicit drugs. A strange policeman starts harrassing the family and ordinary mishaps take on a sinister desperation. To top it all off, his professional life starts to crumble.

This novel about love, family and the precarious business of being a man, examines the terrible truth: sometimes you can’t pull yourself together until you’ve completely fallen apart.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

Sydney

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

It changed about every five minutes but I do recall answering “I’m going to be a doctor” to grown-ups who inquired. I think I meant it at the time but let’s write off that failure to complete as a lucky break for the medical profession.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

Ugh. Honestly? Nothing except maybe the garden I planted around my home – never complete but always surprising.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I write from home and tend to move from my desk to the kitchen bench to the dining table. In our home office, I share a very long desk with my wife who is also a writer. Her end is neat and ordered. My end is utterly chaotic, which I never notice until I am asked to tidy it. Once tidied, I can never seem to find a damn thing.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I have very catholic tastes. I’ve just finished a Kathryn Heyman binge and am very much looking forward to reading her new book Floodline. Love Jonathon Franzen, Tolstoy, Austen, Mark Twain, Margaret Atwood, Barbara Kingsolver, the magic realists – I ping-pong all over the place!

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

My Family and Other Animals – by Gerald Durrell. First time I laughed out loud reading a book. For some reason, that changed everything.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Max from Where the Wild Things Are. What an excellent, self-revelatory, economically-told adventure that was!

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Nude Surfing. No. Sorry, made that up. Although I do surf most mornings at Manly or Freshwater beach and I suppose, technically, I am nude under my board-shorts.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Very smelly very runny cheese. And it’s a toss up between sticky wine and a very dry gin martini. Hmm. Can I have both please?

Who is your hero? Why?:

I have lots but I’ll single out mythologist Joseph Campbell because he showed us a new way of looking at stories (and heroes in particular) and helped us see how they are expressions of our interconnectedness across time and space.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

The other day I spent a few hours in Bristol library in the UK (long story) and passed the kid’s section. If you had seen this room, brimming with children from toddlers to teens, all engrossed in reading, you would have no doubt about the safe future of books. I think, sure, we’re in a transition period and the ways that stories are delivered are multiplying, but books will still be with us.

Twitter URL: @marklamprell

Player Profile: Jenny Bond, author of Perfect North

Jenny Bond, author of Perfect North

Tell us about your latest creation:

Perfect North is a work of fiction based around a true story. When the remains of three explorers, lost to the world since 1897 are discovered on a frozen arctic island in 1930, the news makes headlines around the world. A brash young journalist is sent to report from the site and uncovers journals filled with love letters from one of the explorers to his fiancée. Wanting to know more about the man who left his love to embark on a journey that was doomed from the start, the journalist embarks on his own voyage of discovery but soon learns that the woman he seeks out does not want to be found. In a search that uncovers lost loves, deceit and long-buried secrets, the journalist discovers a story that has stayed hidden for decades and the people who have been concealing it.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I was born and raised in Sydney, Australia. I have lived in Canberra for the past four years.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I never dreamed of being an author! Veterinarian, chef, teacher and nutritionist are professions that I have considered throughout my life. On leaving school I trained to be an English teacher. It was a career I loved for a decade. Without realising it all those years of reading, teaching great literature, analysing books, plays and poetry and editing other people’s work, albeit that of students, had led me to one obvious career. When my husband suggested that I write a book the previous ten years finally made
sense.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

As my only published work I would have to nominate Perfect North. It tells a very powerful and intriguing story with characters that resonate long after the book is completed. My second novel is complete – the first draft at least. It’s due out in October 2014.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I work from my home office. It has wonderful views of the mountains so I have to sit with my back facing the window. I often swivel around if I’m in need of inspiration. I work in a fairly orderly environment although it can become disorderly when I’m in the throes of writing.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

Apart from the Year 1 readers my son brings home every afternoon, I have by my bedside a stack of different books, mostly biographies and non-fiction, that all revolve around the subject of my recently started third novel.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

1. The Murder
of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. This was the first adult novel that I experienced. I was about ten years old. I thought it was the cleverest thing I had ever read. I subsequently read all of Christie’s novels in quick succession. She got me hooked on reading.
2. Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. I read this book when I was in Year Nine. Although it terrified me I couldn’t put it down and even scammed a day off school so I could keep reading! For the duration of the book I slept with a crucifix, a bible and a bulb of garlic. Stephen King taught me the immense power of words.
3. The Cider House Rules by John Irving. I also began reading John Irving when I was a teenager. I’m still not exactly sure why this bitter-sweet tale resonates with me so. The beautifully drawn characters, the setting, the expanse of the narrative and the unexpected plot all combine to produce something entirely unique and wonderful. Homer, Dr Larch and Candy are characters I still think about often.
4. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I first read this book as a six year old. Boo Radley both fascinated and frightened me. My second encounter with the novel was when I was in high school. Studying the text in depth made me realise what a rich and complex novel it is. My third run in with Lee was when I taught it to my students. My joy at this time came from making a new generation of readers fall in love with this amazing work.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

As a former teacher I would have to say Professor Minerva McGonagall from the Harry Potter books. Although not quite as old, I’m a no-nonsense kind of person with a heart of gold, just like Minerva.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I have two boisterous sons and an energetic Staffy. I enjoy spending time with when I’m not at my computer.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Vegetables are my favourite food. I love all of them but I’m not a vegetarian. My favourite drink is coffee.

Who is your hero? Why?:

I have thought long and hard about this question and there is no one I can cite that I would call a hero. However, I do respect any person who takes the road less traveled to pursue their passion.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

To me it comes down to policy makers spending money on improving public transport in Australia. In cities such as London and Paris where a high proportion of the population uses the excellent public transport, the literary environment is far healthier because a greater number of people actually have time to read.

Website URL: www.jennybondbooks.com
Blog URL: www.jennybondbooks.com

Player Profile: Inga Simpson, author of Mr Wigg

Inga Simpson, author of Mr Wigg

Tell us about your latest creation:

Mr Wigg is the story of the final year of one man’s life. His wife has died and it looks like what’s left of the family property will have to be sold off. He loses himself in his somewhat magical orchard, and spends time cooking with his grandchildren – telling them stories of the Orchard Queen. Despite his age, and Parkinson’s, he begins an ambitious project: to forge a wrought-iron tree.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I grew up on a property in Central West New South Wales, and now live in Queensland’s Sunshine Coast hinterland. I tend to call both “home” though with different meanings.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

An author, closely followed by spy or detective.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

The next novel, the one yet unwritten. At the moment it is all possibility; without flaws.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I write in a studio looking out into bushland though odd-shaped windows – including a circle, which has me feeling a little like a hobbit some days. The interior is reasonably ordered, or starts out that way … But I do accumulate piles of papers and books to be dealt with ‘later’.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I try to read as widely as possible but tend to read a lot of contemporary Australian fiction, as well as nature writing.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

Blinky Bill, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Sam Gribley, from My Side of the Mountain. He runs away and lives in a hollowed-out tree in the Catskill Mountains, befriending a peregrine falcon and becoming entirely self-sufficient, which appeals to me some days.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Surf, though not as often as I would like lately. Or Trivial Pursuit by the open fire on winter evenings.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Moroccan lamb and a decent glass of red wine.

Who is your hero? Why?:

Judith Wright. Not only an amazing poet but an uncompromising activist on environmental and Indigenous issues.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Reminding decision makers and educators of the value the arts, including a national literature, in tough economic times.

Website URL: http://www.ingasimpson.com.au/
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/MrWigg2013?ref=hl
Twitter URL: https://www.facebook.com/MrWigg2013/

Review – Amy and the Wilpenea Flood An Australian Girl adventure

A sweeping yet generally accurate observation of girls aged up to 12 years or so, is that most love dolls, of some descript. In this age of zombie mutant, bloodsucking teenage wannabes, these aren’t necessarily the ubiquitous Barbie dolls or sleepy-eyed baby dolls either. Just about any recognisable, eye-catching, radically dressed, personality driven figurine will do the trick these days.

The crucial part is ensuring that the insane desire young girls develop for a particular doll or collection is born from an age appropriate and culturally enriching source. Not just as another clever marketing spinoff from the latest TV show.

This is where Australian Girl dolls, created by Helen Schofield, step in. Five doll characters, each with their own distinct personalities and backgrounds, aim to encourage imaginative, age relevant play. Chances are your daughter (or son) knows or is friendly with someone of a similar ethnic background as those of the dolls; such is the rich cultural diversity of our modern Australian society. Perhaps they can identify parts of themselves with their favourite doll. The exciting thing about the Australian Girl dolls is that now, thanks to Wombat Books, they have been brought to life through a new series of adventure based books.

Amy and the Wilpena Flood, by Claudia Bouma, is the second in the series (there is a third soon to be released) which features all five heroines but lightly focuses on one particular girl as the catalyst or driving force of each story.

The premise is simple: five girls form a deep, do-or-die-for friendship and discover a powerful talisman in the shape of a rainbow necklace. With the aid of this magical charm they are able to time-slip throughout Australia’s past, which inevitability enables them to solve the dilemmas that they chance upon, like missing turtles for instance.

This time, it’s Amy’s turn. After she finds a mysterious map, she and her friends transport back in time to Wilpena Pound in South Australia. From the moment they arrive, it’s a race to save not only Jessie and her family, whom they encounter there, but also themselves from an unexpected catastrophic flood.

Claudia Bouma manages to entertain us with an on-the-edge of your seat drama and catchy modern characters, in an upbeat introduction to our inimitable Aussie geography and history. The bold black and white illustrations of Emily, Amy, Matilda, Annabelle and Jasmine sprinkled throughout this chapter book by cartoonist, Jason Chatfield (aka the current Ginger Meggs), left me lingering over it long after the flood waters of Wilpena Pound had receded.

Packed with true blue Aussie spirit and solid reference to the favourable merits of friendship, courage and perseverance, Amy and the Wilpena Flood is a treat to read. And one you don’t have to be a girl or lover of dolls to appreciate either.

Great for primary school aged children.

View and purchase this book here.

Wombat Books August 2013

Player Profile: Walter Mason, author of Destination Cambodia

Walter Mason, author of Destination Cambodia

Tell us about your latest creation:

“Destination Cambodia” An affectionate journey through one of Asia’s most fascinating destinations.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I grew up in a country town in North Queensland, but these days I live in Cabramatta in Sydney’s Southwest.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I remember when I was 8 my mother was reading through my Composition Book (remember them?) and she said, “You know what? You write really well. I think you might become a writer.” My grandfather (whose name I inherited) was a keen self-publisher, writing local histories that actually sold quite well. I recently had a sweet email from a man asking me if I was the Walter Mason who wrote books and who he went to school with in 1932. I had to let him down.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

My office is tiny, and jammed full of books, I have worked with books all of my life (I have been a bookseller, distributor, marketer and academic)and I have thousands of volumes to show for it. I have an enormous pile above my computer of books that are maked up and that I have to do something with urgently. The one at the bottom of the pile has been there since 2010.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I love E F Benson and Nancy Mitford. I read something by them every year, over and over again. Perfectly crafted comic novels – you have to be really sharp to pull them off, and Benson and Mitford were the best. I like books about ideas and marketing. I am a Seth Godin groupie. I take copious notes. And then
ignore them.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

In order of reading:

“Mr. Galliano’s Circus” by Enid Blyton (I blame this for my love of the limelight)

“The Shark in Charlie’s Window” by Keo Felker Lazarus (a forgotten 70s classic)

“I Own the Racecourse” by Patricia Wrightson (probably the first book I read that was really morally complex)

“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Hmmm….Father Brown from Chesterton’s mystery stories because I am portly, religious and always wondering why things happen. On a less kind day Ignatius J. Reilly from “A Confederacy of Dunces,” – that portly thing again, plus I have delusions of grandeur. I always imagine I am A J A Symons, the genius who wrote “The Quest for Corvo.” I don’t think he was portly. I wish I was Edith Sitwell or Elinor Glyn – they had style. So did Ouida.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I meditate, I pray at my local Buddhist temple, I eat (a lot).

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

My all-time favourite dish is probably kimchi jigae – a hot and delicous Korean stew. I have that once a week. Drink wise I can never refuse a Long Island Iced Tea.

Who is your hero? Why?:

Oscar Wilde – style, substance and outrageousness. He lived life and made it all worthwhile. I try to ignore the tragic end. I am also a Boy George groupie – have been since I was 12. I love that man!

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

The lack of imagination in the industry. Publishers have been too slow to respond to changes in the market and they still operate, more or less, according to models established in the early part of the 20th century.

Website URL: www.waltermason.com
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/waltermasonauthor
Twitter URL: https://twitter.com/walterm

A masterwork by one of Australia’s best writers

Review- The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan

Richard Flanagan has been working on this novel for over 12 years, writing other novels in between. He’d gone through countless drafts, reworked the story, started completely over. The reason it troubled him so much was because central to the story are the Australian POWs who worked on the Thai-Burma death railway. An experience shared by his father. He didn’t just want to get the story right, he had to get the story right. And I believe, deep down in my guts, in my heart and with every fibre of my being that he has got the story right.

Richard Flanagan has written a tragic love story, a deconstruction of heroism and mateship, and captured a side of humanity I’ve never read before. Wars, according to our history books, have beginnings and ends but for those who take part in wars, who are swept up in it’s maelstrom, there is no beginning or end. There is only life. And the damage war causes must be endured by those lucky or unlucky enough to survive it.

Dorrigo Evans is a Weary Dunlop type character. Revered by his fellow soldiers/prisoners and mythologized by his country’s media, politicians and people. But Dorrigo’s experience of War and being a POW doesn’t equate to the image his men needed during their imprisonment nor the one thrust upon him later. He battled his role in the POW camp and tried to hide from the one at home. At the expense of family, friends and love. It is not that these images are based on lies, they just don’t ring true to himself. And after surviving the horror of internment he can no longer make sense of the emotions of the life he must now grapple with.

Flanagan structures this novel uniquely. I think he was trying to base his story on a Japanese style but am not 100% sure. We start with Dorrigo’s early years growing up in rural Tasmania and his journey to becoming a surgeon but in between we start to get snippets of his time in the POW camp. We jump to Dorrigo’s later years before jumping back to his time just before the war and an affair that will change Dorrigo irrevocably. When we get to his time at the POW camp the story is contracted around one day, one 24 hour period, but it doesn’t feel like just one day, it feels like many lifetimes. We barely follow Dorrigo through this day as we have already glimpsed bits and pieces and will re-live yet more. Instead we get everyone else’s story. The other prisoners, the guards, the Japanese officers in charge. Flanagan clearly shows us each characters’ motivations, desires, inner turmoil and demons. As the day unfolds we experience the terror, the devastation, the depredation, the hope, the loyalty, the betrayal, the choices of life on the Thai-Burma death railway.

But Flanagan’s novel is not just about what happened on the death railway but also what happened after. How it was explained and justified. How it was hidden and run away from. How justice can be escaped but is also used as revenge. And how it never really ended for anyone involved.

We often talk about the Anzac spirit in Australia but we rarely confront it. War is never altruistic, no matter which side you are on. Survival brings out the best and worst in people as does victory, as does love. Flanagan explores this warts and all. Dorrigo is not a hero, nor is he a bad man, father, husband. He is all of theses things and he is neither. This is a masterwork by one of Australia’s best writers.

Buy the book here…

Player Profile: Roger McDonald, author of The Following

Roger McDonald, author of The Following

Tell us about your latest creation:

“The Following” is a novel about Marcus Friendly, who became Australia’s sixteenth prime minister, and his line of descent through to the present day, in the person of a politician who may or may not have been his son, Max Petersen.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

Growing up in country towns inoculated me against the romanticism of village life, so I live outside of one, on a high ridge 800 metres up in the Southeastern NSW Dividing Range.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be an aeroplane pilot but became a writer so never really came to earth.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

My latest book is always my best book, because it gets to where I only tried to get in my previous book (although leaving out where I hope to reach in the book after this one, should I be able to write it).

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

Chaotic.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

At the moment, sea stories.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

There wasn’t one. I’ve tried to write it since.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I would not like to be a literary character because I would be the prisoner of its creator…But putting that one side, I would settle for being Tom Jones by Henry Fielding (1707-54).

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Most of the year I gather firewood and stack it for the following winter. In the summer I go to New Zealand for a couple of months where I mess around in boats.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Raw fish and Japanese
sake.

Who is your hero? Why?:

Charles Darwin for his vision of creation.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

What it has always been – finding readers.

Blog URL: http://rogermcdonaldthefollowing.blogspot.com.au
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/RogerMcDonaldAuthor

WIN a Donna Tartt, signed and numbered, collectors edition boxed set of The Secret History & The Little Friend worth $350

Donna Tartt is a true enigma. She is a phenomenal bestseller with a cult following. There isn’t very much known about her but you wouldn’t call her a reclusive author either. The Goldfinch is her third novel in twenty years, a decade gap between each book. All of them worth the wait.

And the wait is almost over. The Goldfinch wi ll be released on October 23rd and we have a very special, exclusive prize to giveaway.

Pre-order The Goldfinch before October 23 and go into the draw to win a signed and numbered collectors edition boxed set of Donna Tartt’s The Secret History & The Little Friend worth $350.

This is a must for any Donna Tartt Fan.

Pre-order The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt…

Also available in hardback and a special limited deluxe edition

Here’s the blurb..

Aged thirteen, Theo Decker, son of a devoted mother and a reckless, largely absent father, survives an accident that otherwise tears his life apart. Alone and rudderless in New York, he is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. He is tormented by an unbearable longing for his mother, and down the years clings to the thing that most reminds him of her: a small, strangely captivating painting that ultimately draws him into the criminal underworld. As he grows up, Theo learns to glide between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love – and his talisman, the painting, places him at the centre of a narrowing, ever more dangerous circle. The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling power. Combining unforgettably vivid characters and thrilling suspense, it is a beautiful, addictive triumph – a sweeping story of loss and obsession, of survival and self-invention, of the deepest mysteries of love, identity and fate.

Player Profile: Jaye Ford, author of Blood Secret

Jaye Ford, author of Blood Secret

Tell us about your latest creation:

My new book Blood Secret is my third thriller. It is inspired by a road rage incident my husband and I was caught up in about two years ago. A teenager harrassed and threatened us on our way to a restaurant. When we finally got there, my husband decided to go out to check on the car and I sat on my own thinking, What if he doesn’t come back. He did but that question stuck and so in Blood Secret, Max Tully goes to check on his car and doesn’t come back. What follows is a story about families and secrets and nothing being what it seems.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I grew up on the North Shore of Sydney and now live at Lake Macquarie in the Hunter Valley, NSW – where Blood Secret is set!

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be lots of things, including a nurse for a long time, a nun very briefly, and a journalist. I was always a story teller – collecting other people’s and making up my own -but the idea of being an author seemed way too clever for me! It took a lot of years to get serious about it, a few more to believe I could actually do it and ten to get published. It’s never too late to realise a dream!

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

My family is my best work! It takes time, patience, love and determination to make it work. In terms of writing, choosing one books over another is like asking which child I love the most! Books take time, patience, love and determination too.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I work in office under my house with a wrap-around desk, a wall of books and a white board at my back. It’s freezing in winter so I write for six months of the year under layers of clothes and a blanket. I’m both chaotic and ordered – the stuff I need is organised, neat and close to hand but I’m terrible at putting things away so the rest of the desk is cluttered with paper and notes to myself and books and … well, I don’t want to look too closely or I might have to put it away.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I read crime when I’m not writing it! I love a good series and I’ve got collections by Lee Child, Stuart MacBride and Sue Grafton. Other favourites include Michael Robotham, Nicci French and Harlan Coban. I like to keep my head in the genre whenever I can and have a huge to-read pile … another reason my
desk is cluttered.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

As a kid, I liked reading about strong, defiant girls who were ignoring the traditional roles of my era – the sixties and seventies. Those characters probably had a lasting effect on me and my various career choices. But in terms of story, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest was the first book I read that I didn’t want to end at the last page. It made me hungry for more of that kind of intensity and probably influences the way I write now.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I’d be happy to be Kinsey Milhone, the Chardonnay drinking, VW driving private investigator in Sue Grafton’s alalphabeteries. She’s street savvy, understated, unencumbered by computers and mobile phones, and is stuck in the 1980’s – an era I have a fondness for.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I go boating! My husband and I are out most weekends on our boat and we take it away for a couple of weeks every Christmas. I’m chief deckhand and cook, so an expert at tying ropes, hooking onto moorings, yelling at crew and providing big meals in small spaces.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Food – soup in winter, bbq in summer, a home cooked meal anytime, especially one that someone else cooks for me. Drink – coffee during the day, a good Shiraz at night.

Who is your hero? Why?:

My hero is always the man I’m currently working on. He’s not usually the main character and I don’t like him to be the perfect guy but it’s a lot of fun creating a man who’s perfect for the desperate-to-survive woman I’m writing.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

The challenge of digital publishing – the speed of it and the massive growth in titles through both traditional publishers and self published – is for authors to continue to produce good stories in less time and for readers not to be overwhelmed by choice or put off by variable standards.

Website URL: www.jayefordauthor.com
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/JayeFordauthor

Review – The Harvest Race

Ever wondered how those sensational little nutty chunks in your macadamia crunch ice-cream got there? Well maybe not. But let me tell you it’s a long and exacting process from orchard to waffle cone, and one I’m most definitely grateful for.

Our nutty friends from Macadamia House on the Sunshine Coast give us another tantalising taste of the harvesting process through the eyes of Nosh the Nutmobile with their second release in the series, The Harvest Race.

Likeable new picture-book team, Em Horsfield and Glen Singleton along with their colourful cast of characters describe a timely notion to us all; that winning and coming first is not everything. Hard to swallow I know with the Grand Final season upon us, and apparently, advice easily overlooked amidst the excitement and build-up to Nosh’s and Max’s first harvest race.

Farmer B is anxious to collect as many nuts as possible from his bulging orchard. So are the racing teams who include; Arnold and Maureen, Gus and Borris and new comer to the scene, Pistol Pete, the fearless, green nut harvesting machine.

No nuts means no race, unfilled market orders and no winner to crown. What could possibly get in our competitors’ way this season? Hungry hogs? Marauding cockatoos? Bad weather? It’s a disaster of a more bovine nature that threatens the crop and race this time.

An entire herd of Holstein Friesians (that’s the black and white version of a Milka cow), believing the grass really is greener on the other side of the fence, escape their paddock and invade the orchard, breaking boughs, trampling nuts into the mud and most upsetting of all, leaving cow-sized land-mines all over the racetrack.

Our dauntless hero, Nosh the Nutmobile, once again hits upon the solution to a rather nutty dilemma and eventually calm is restored. However, cow-removal has prevented Nosh from collecting one single nut. Fearing they have completely flopped in their first-ever race, Nosh and Max are heartened to hear from Farmer B that they too have earned a ‘Hip Harvest Hooray!’ for saving the day.

Em Horsfield has chosen to use rhyming verse to call this harvest season’s race and manages to keep the pace blipping along as smartly as nuts popping into a harvest hopper.

Glen Singleton’s characteristic illustrations sing silliness and convincingly cement the bolder than life personalities of Nosh and his farm friends in this very pleasing continuation of what is fast becoming a quintessentially idiosyncratic Aussie picture book series.

Charming, charismatic and cheeky for 4 year olds onwards.

Harvest your copy of The Harvest Race online here.

Want a look behind the scenes? Watch this video by Macadamia House of Glen Singleton as he takes us through the process of bringing Gus, one of the characters in The Harvest Race to life. It’s almost as involved as growing macadamias! Brilliant. This whole experience has made me hungry for more. And there will be…Stay tuned for the release of Santa’s Magic Beard due out next month.

Little Steps Publishing August 2013

Player Profile: Jenny Tabakoff, author of No Mercy: True Stories of Disaster, Survival and Brutality

Jenny Tabakoff, author of No Mercy: True Stories of Disaster, Survival and Brutality

Tell us about your latest creation:

“No Mercy: True Stories of Disaster, Survival and Brutality” considers the fate of stranded, isolated groups from 134 BC to 2010 AD. What causes these small groups trapped in hostile and remote locations to turn on each other with catastrophic results? No Mercy outlines the physical and psychological changes that affect stranded disaster victims, and compares them to the rapid social implosion imagined in William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies”. Does reality support his dark, dystopian vision of an isolated micro-community? If anything, these historical groups descend deeper than even Golding pictured.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I grew up in Ryde, in the north of Sydney. After a considerable period living and working in London, I am back in Sydney again.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

An archaeologist – and then I realised that journalists and writers also dig up things, and don’t get as dirty.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

I enjoyed writing No Mercy because, as we learnt more and more about these largely forgotten incidents from history, we began to appreciate the parallels between the behaviour of different survivor groups. When people are stranded together and pushed to their limits, whatever the situation, they are driven by many of the same factors, with many of the same results. When people allow their primitive human hardwiring to take over, the result can very quickly be catastrophe. Individuals tend to smugly believe, “I would never behave like that”, but the more we looked into history, the more we realised it takes great effort of will and great leadership to behave in a way that is better than “every man for himself”. Unfortunately, most survivor groups seem to behave badly.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

Unfortunately, all too often I have to wrestle my children off my desktop. My desk is very messy, but I am a great believer in creative mess. Every time I tidy up I feel that little bit more dumb.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I love old books – especially crazy old illustrated books, especially very old children’s books. If it’s new books, give me histories, biographies and first-hand
accounts of events. I also love the New Yorker, the London Review of Books, and the Daily Mail website.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The William books, by Richmal Compton. And they are still so funny.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Rather than an imaginary character, I’d choose the author William Golding: he instinctively understood the dark side of humanity and depicted it with incredible accuracy in “Lord of the Flies”.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Reading. Oh yes, and kayaking on Sydney’s waterways.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Satay chicken skewers, lemony and spicy and smothered with peanut sauce. If I found myself on a desert island, I’d be dreaming of them. I never enjoying drinking anything as much as a very cold beer on a very hot day. On a cold day, make that a cappuccino.

Who is your hero? Why?:

I can’t pick between Thomas Musgrave and Francois Raynal, who were both on the Grafton in the sub-Antarctic in 1864. Musgrave for showing amazing compassion and leadership in keeping his little group together; Raynal for his extraordinary ingenuity in designing and making objects that made their 19 months in that desolate spot not just tolerable but comfortable. They were such a great team.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Standing up to what seems to be a general belief that publishing is doomed. My view is that, in an age of so much rubbish, there is a greater hunger than ever for real books – both on paper and in e-form – that are the result of research, hard work and considered, polished writing.

Player Profile: Eleanor Learmonth, author of No Mercy: True Stories of Disaster, Survival and Brutality

Eleanor Learmonth, author of No Mercy: True Stories of Disaster, Survival and Brutality

Tell us about your latest creation:

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I was born in Sydney, lived in Japan for a decade, then returned to my birthplace to have a family (just like a salmon).

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

Either a psychologist or a writer.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

I have to say “No Mercy” for the simple reason that the subject matter is so intriguing. The dark side of human nature is a creepy place to explore, but I find the permutations of a malfunctioning group to be endlessly fascinating. How thin is our layer of social conditioning? Paper thin. What lies beneath? Instinct, aggression and a sharp-focused will for self-preservation.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

It’s a disgrace! My desk has paper everywhere and I have an almost fatal addiction to post-its. My worst nightmare? Hard-drive meltdown. The ideal workday is to have a head full of ideas and spend the entire day glued to the keyboard in my pyjamas and ugg boots. I also find swearing a lot very conducive to the creative process.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

Old historical journals, the New Yorker and the International Herald Tribune. (Also the occasional novel).

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The Narnia books, anything on archaeology, history or fish, “Catch 22”, and “Lord of the Flies”.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

My family says Lady Macbeth (Way Harsh!), but I think Beowulf. He never took ‘no’ for an answer, and never ran away from a fight.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I like to snorkel – most of all with sharks, turtles or any members of the squid/octopus/cuttlefish family.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

My dream dinner would be top quality sushi – sitting at the counter with the chef making me a perfect pair of uni (sea-urchin roe) sushi. I’m also very partial to a Cherry Ripe, as long as I don’t have to share it! My all-time favourite tipple would be a generous Moscow Mule made with freshly grated ginger, and garnished with a lychee.

Who is your hero? Why?:

Captain Thomas Musgrave, who kept himself and his men alive through the worst possible circumstances on a miserable sub-Antarctic island for 19 months following a shipwreck, and then facilitated the rescue of the entire group at great risk to his own life. He is an unsung hero, but they are the best kind.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

It might be adapting to the digital age, and stopping the kind of piracy that has gutted the music industry.

Twitter URL: https://twitter.com/EKLearmonth

Player Profile: Summer Land, author of Summerlandish: Do As I Say, Not As I Did

Summer Land, author of Summerlandish: Do As I Say, Not As I Did

Tell us about your latest creation:

“Summerlandish: Do As I Say, Not As I Did”

It’s my tale about how I raised my ovaries in middle class America. Summerlandish is all the hard-won, scar-leaving, tattoo-regretting, butthole-tearing lessons I’ve learned over the years – “summer-ised” in all their glamorously gory detail, so you don’t have to bother with learning them yourselves. And, surprisingly, I feel like I know quite a bit about love, life and awkward moments involving too much caffeine and/or lack of restraint.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I grew up in Gainesville, Florida, but currently call Australia home. To be more specific- I call Mudgee, NSW home. I had the pleasure of falling in love with an Australian in Utah at a ski resort in 2008 and… (you’ll have to read my book to find out more.)

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

No way. I thought that I would either be Rapunzel, a teacher, a Playboy Bunny or Marketing Manager of a footwear company. I did not see “Author” coming.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

Currently this book because it’s my only work. Actually – LIES. I just made a pretty phenomenal burrito. That was some good work.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I tend to write when the mood strikes. Sometimes that is in my home office. Other times it’s on my couch or at my kitchen table. My favourite place to write is in a cafe though. I travel quite frequently and love to cafe hop and write. (I’m also addicted to iced tea so wherever I can get some homemade iced tea makes for a great writing environment.)

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I like reading anything by Malcolm Gladwell, David Sedaris, Charles Bukowski, Sloane Crosley, Chelsea Handler, Augusten Burroughs, John Steinbeck, Harper Lee, JD Salinger, Emily Giffin, and well this could go on for a long time….

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

I’m sure a lot of people feel this way, but “Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret” by Judy Blume was pretty crucial in Summer Land being Summer Land. I even wrote a book report on it in 5th grade. I’m sure that my male teacher was thrilled to learn about how I can totally relate about wanting to get my period
before my friends.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I would LIKE to be someone powerful, inspiring, loving, wise, soulful and amazing like Scout, George Milton or Kunta Kinte (to name a few), but to be honest I think I’m a bit more Amelia Bedelia.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I’m currently heavily pregnant so I’ve mostly been eating a lot of weird food combinations lately.

When I’m not making a mini human I love playing tennis, dancing, travelling, and watching Hoarders, Intervention and Animal Planet.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

LOVE iced tea. (Homemade-not bottled)

Also love watermelon, pineapple, burritos and ketchup. (Not all at once. Well maybe when I’m pregnant.)

Who is your hero? Why?:

I’m going to be super cliche here and state that my mom, Donna, is my hero. She is a widow, mom, sister, friend, teacher, and so much more. Her existence makes me happy to be alive.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

I don’t think books are going anywhere. There are just too many lovers. I like to think that mankind loves the smell of a freshly printed book (or even a musty old one) too much to let them stop being produced and consumed.

Website URL: http://www.summerlandish.com
Blog URL: http://www.summerlandish.com/blog
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Summerlandish/21708476166571
Twitter URL: http://www.twitter.com/summerlandish

It’s Roald Dahl Day – What’s your favourite Roald Dahl book? Here’s my Top 5

The official Roald Dahl Day takes place every year on the birthday of the World’s No. 1 Storyteller. This year Roald Dahl Day coincides with Friday 13th – the perfect excuse for even more mischief and mayhem than usual.

The fantastic thing about Roald Dahl’s books is you can literally grow up with them, from his picture books like The Enormous Crocodile to first chapter books like The Twits to books like Matilda until you reach his autobiographies and adult short stories. And what would a Roald Dahl book be without the illustrations of Quentin Blake?

In celebration of Dahl Day here are my top 5 Roald Dahl books. Let us know your favourites

1. Danny The Champion of the World

A fantastic story about a father and son, pheasant poaching and an ingenious plan.

2. Matilda

The story of a very smart girl and her very dumb parents full of all the dark humour we love from Roald Dahl.

3. The Twits

The most disgusting couple you’ll ever meet who eventually get their comeuppance. This was just as fun reading to my daughter as it was when I was her age.

4. The Witches

Witches who eat children, the best way to hide from them is not to wash and boy gets turned into a mouse. What’s not to love?

5. Fantastic Mr Fox

The clever Mr Fox must outwit farmers Boggis, Bunce and Bean. Plus Wes Anderson made a fantastic film

Here’s a list of Roald Dahl’s books.

What are your favourites?

Player Profile: Ed Chatterton, author of Underland

Ed Chatterton, author of Underland

Tell us about your latest creation:

‘Underland’. This is the sequel to last year’s ‘A Dark Place To Die’ which was Random House Book of the Month for August. Set in Liverpool, England and in LA, this is a gritty psychological crime thriller which builds from an apparently ‘ordinary’ murder-suicide to a climax of global proportions.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I was born in Liverpool (England) and lived and worked in London and then the US for some time before emigrating to Australia in 2004. I live in Lennox Head on the NSW north coast and split my time between there and the UK.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be an astronaut but there were some problems: fear of enclosed spaces and being lousy at maths among them. Next I wanted to be a footballer. I still do. My first achievable aim was to do something in the arts and I became an illustrator. Now I have ambitions to be a film-maker. ‘A Dark Place To Die’ was optioned as a movie so maybe that’s how I’ll end up achieving that particular goal.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

The work I’m producing at the moment is my best. If I didn’t belive that I’d give up. I’m currently working on three projects, all of which occupy most of my brain space. The first is ‘Unidentified Male’, the third book in my ‘Frank Keane’ crime series. The second is ‘Archangel’, a futuristic YA novel which itself is a spin off from my PhD magnum opus, ‘The Last Slave Ship’ an examination of the lingering effects of the slave trade on my home city. I think that ‘Underland’ is an improvement on ‘A Dark Place’ and I’m feeling good about the work I’m doing on ‘Unidentified Male’. Why? These novels are the culmination of a long apprenticeship in writing. I’m pushing myself hard, because I’m trying to compete with the best. And I’m trying new fields: one of my projects is working with Rebel Waltz Films on a documentary about the Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I have a desk that’s too small and a computer that’s too big. It veers wildly between chaotic and ordered. I’ve been working for thirty years in this field and there is always this imagined Shangri-La of work environments that I know – just know – I will have one day yet still remains tantalisingly out of reach. I suspect this will always be the case.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I have been reading a lot of slavery related stuff. Barry Unsworth’s ‘Sacred Hunger’ is a stand out. Also more esoteric academic material and (quite strangely for me) the poems of WH Auden. I’ve also been trying to discover why Scandi crime is so popular.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

So many to choose from. The Famous Five featured heavily, as did Ian Fleming, Conan Doyle, Capt WE Johns (Biggles), Agatha Christie, PG Wodehouse, Dr Seuss, Isaac Asimov, Michael Moorcock, Evelyn Waugh, Richmal Crompton and (later) Elmore Leonard. Probably the Sherlock Holmes stories are the ones that have had the most influence.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Sherlock Holmes. I always fancied myself as a cerebral gentleman about town and Holmes is such a complex and flawed character. I think my Holmes fixation is very like my David Bowie man crush.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I play soccer and I’m pretty good at it too. I’m also president of the Lennox Arts Board. We brought KULCHUR to Surf Town in the form of Andrew Frost (‘The A-Z of Contemporary Art) and Michael Leunig.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

When I was a kid there was a magazine called ‘Shoot!’ which dealt with English football. In the section where they asked players what their favourite food was they would, almost without exception, say ‘steak and chips’. This was the late sixties/early seventies but I still think it’s hard to beat a perfect rare steak and some shoestring fries with a dab of English mustard. Wine.

Who is your hero? Why?:

As an ex-punk not having heroes was something of a mission statement but I’d have to give it up for John Lennon, John Lydon, PG Wodehouse, William Shakespeare, David Bowie, James Brown, Larry David, Laurel and Hardy, SJ Perelman, Armando Ianucci, Michael Winterbottom, Woody Allen, Patricia Highsmith, Ron Mueck and Billy Connolly all qualify as bona fide heroes. Actually, for someone who doesn’t have heroes that’s quite a lot, isn’t it? John Lennon then.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

I think moving to a more fluid distribution system while still rewarding the creatives is the biggest challenge. What has happened with music will happen with books. Probably.

Website URL: www.edchatterton.com
Blog URL: www.thelastslaveship.com.au
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/martin.chatterton.5?ref=tn_tnmn
Twitter URL: @MEChatterton

Player Profile: Bill Cheng, author of Southern Cross The Dog

Bill Cheng, author of Southern Cross The Dog

Tell us about your latest creation:

Southern Cross the Dog, a novel set in the Jim Crow-era American South

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

New York

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be an artist at one point, but gave that up fairly quickly

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

The one I’m working on.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

By and large, I write in different places: coffee shops, restaurants, park benches, on the subway, etc. My desk at home though currently has a koa-nut carved into a catfish that my wife bought for me at a street fair.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I can’t even begin to know how to answer this one.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

Cathedral by Raymond Carver

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I wouldn’t merit literary attention. I suspect many writers make for boring subjects– why else then would they invent these worlds for themselves? Though, if pressed, who wouldn’t want to be Sherlock Holmes?

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Spare time!?

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Hard to say on the food. As for the drink: bourbon on the rocks– though I’m cutting down overall.

Who is your hero? Why?:

Orson Welles

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

We have to figure out a way to instill a reading culture that is as integral and ubiquitous as sports or films or pop music.

Website URL: bycheng.tumblr.com
Blog URL: bycheng.tumblr.com
Twitter URL: https://twitter.com/gillbench

Player Profile: Deborah Abela, author of Ghost Club

Deborah Abela, author of Ghost Club

Tell us about your latest creation:

Ghost Club: Part 3 A Transylvanian Tale

After dealing with a haunted castle and ridding their school of its very own pesky paranormal, Ghost Catchers, Angeline and Edgar Usher, are off to the Annual Ghost Club Convention and this year it’s in Transylvania, home of the infamous Count Dracula.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

Sydney, Australia

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

An author and an explorer…but I’m pretty clumsy, so it’s lucky I’m an author.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

This is hard! Each book takes me a year to write, so I become really attached to each character…mmm…but I did almost give up on my novel, Grimsdon, about
half way through, but my editor convinced me to stay with it. It went on to win awards and lots of fans….so that one does have a special place.
http://deborahabela.com/site/Video_Clips.html

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

At certain times of the year, it is the quiet carriage of trains and airport lounges….when I’m home, it’s a room that looks out over the front garden, but is stacked to almost every inch of its life with books, shelves, papers and suitcases with even more papers….there’s an ordered chaos. Sort of.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

At the moment I’m doing loads of research into my father’s story….he was born in a cave on Malta during a bombing raid of WW2…I’m fascinated by everything about that period, including the fact that Malta was the most heavily bombed area of WW2…I also like reading the New Yorker and listening to podcasts from
the BBC…great drama and docos.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The Lorax by Dr Seuss…..it was funny, warm, moving and ultimately, hopeful. I also loved Norman Hunter’s, Professor Branestawm, about a whacky professor who invents all sorts of weird inventions that often went very, very wrong.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Charlie Bucket…that would be fun! I’d get to meet Willy Wonka!

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I go hiking into wilderness areas for days at a time with absolutely no contact with the electronic world….and I love it. The last walk was a five day ancient Aboriginal walking trail from Katharine to Edith Falls in the NT, with clear waterholes at the end of each dusty day.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Ahhhh….I love food….I don’t eat red or white meat…but give me Italian, Thai, Vietnamese, African, Moroccan…..toooooo many to choose from!

Who is your hero? Why?:

There are many, but Malala Yusafzai…the young Palestinian woman who was shot by the Taliban for going to school and campaigning for the rights of kids everywhere to be educated. She recovered and is quietly and gently helping to change the world.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Getting books into the hands of the 57 million kids who don’t have access to schools. It will be hard, but there are brilliant NGOs trying to make it happen, like Room to Read, which I love and support.

Website URL: www.deborahabela.com
Blog URL: www.deborahabela.com
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/deborah.abela.9
Twitter URL: @DeborahAbela

Player Profile: Maria Takolander, author of The Double

Maria Takolander, author of The Double

Tell us about your latest creation:

The Double is a book of short stories. The stories range in their subject matter from rural Australia to northern Europe and beyond, and from the dark past of the Soviet era to a terrifying vision of the near future. The stories are bold and original, unnerving and unforgettable.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I am the only Australian-born member of my family. My parents and my sister were born in Finland, and then migrated to Melbourne. I now call Geelong home.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I always wanted to be a writer. I think it had something to do with learning English as a second language when I was very young, and feeling like an outsider in Australia for quite a long time. As a result, language and the world never seemed ‘given’. Writing gave me the opportunity to ‘get to know’ language
and the world better.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

The Double! I worked on it very intensively, and I had an excellent publisher supporting me.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I’m not fussy about where I write. I write wherever I can–at the kitchen table, in the train, at my daughter’s desk. All I need is my laptop and some time. Quiet, of course, also helps.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I love the poetry and prose of Jorge Luis Borges for its thrilling ideas, cool irony and lavish language. His writing reminds me that it’s exciting to be alive in a world that we don’t understand but that offers experiences of such intellectual and emotional intensity. JM Coetzee’s work is also brilliant. His writing evokes the suffering and complexity that unavoidably comes with living.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

I’ll single out Enid Blyton’s The Wishing Chair. It was so wholesome and otherworldly, and I loved the idea of a magical escape. I think the book also intuitively represented for me the power of books more generally to facilitate
mesmerising flights of fancy.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Feeling like an outsider, I have always strongly identified with Gregor Samsa! In more romantic moments, I saw myself as Jane Eyre.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I play with my young son, who loves books and imaginative play. Who wants to live solely in this world, when you can also inhabit so many others?

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

I love Finnish comfort foods and drinks, so I’d say Karelian pasties and milk.

Who is your hero? Why?:

My mum. She is an incredible survivor. Her family were exiled from their homes during the Finno-Russian war during the Second World War, and they endured significant hardship and privation. Nevertheless, my mother is the most loving and joyful person I know.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Finding readers for books, which are about probing the surface of things, in a society that’s increasingly content with surfaces.

Player Profile: Belinda Murrell, author of The River Charm

Belinda Murrell, author of The River Charm

Tell us about your latest creation:

One of my new books is The River Charm, which is a very special book to me, because it is based on the true life adventures of my great-great-great grandmother, Charlotte Atkinson. Set in Australia, during the 1840s, it is the story of a family who lost everything but fought against almost insurmountable odds to regain their independence and their right to be together as a family. Charlotte was born into a wealthy family at Oldbury, a grand estate in the bush. But after her father dies, her mother is left to raise four young children on her own. A young widow was a tempting target – from murderous convicts, violent bushrangers and worst of all, a cruel new stepfather. Fearing for their lives, the family flees on horseback to a remote hut in the wilderness. The Atkinson family must fight to save everything they hold dear.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I live at Manly on Sydney’s northern beaches.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be a vet, just like my dad, which was one of the reasons I was inspired to write my new Lulu Bell series, about a girl growing up in a vet hospital, having lots of adventures with friends, family and animals.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

I am very excited about my new book The River Charm. This book was inspired by the lives of my ancestors, the Atkinsons of Oldbury and I spent months researching it. The book has received some fantastic reviews which have likened it to the classic Australian tale – Seven Little Australians.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I have a beautiful office, overlooking the garden, with a fireplace and hundreds of books. My dog Asha sleeps in front of the fire keeping me company. It is usually orderly but as I get closer and closer to deadline, it does, just like my life, get messier!

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I read lots of things! The books I have recently read include Burial Rites by Hannah Kent, The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion, The Wild Girl by Kate Forsyth and The Light Between Oceans by ML Stedman.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis. I loved its enticing mixture of fantasy and adventure, and the idea that you could step through a hidden door into another magical world.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I would love to be Eliza Bennett in Pride and Prejudice.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Mustering cattle on my brother’s farm, riding my Australian stockhorse.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Can’t write a book without my morning coffee, and for late night energy – chocolate! Although for real food I do love Vietnamese salads and Thai red chicken curry.

Who is your hero? Why?:

My heroine at the moment is Charlotte Atkinson, my great-great-great-great grandmother, who fought against almost insurmountable odds for what she believed in, wrote the first children’s book published in Australian in 1841 and happens to be one of the star characters in my new book, The River Charm!

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Making sure that authors and publishers can afford to keep producing good quality, gorgeous books.

Website URL: www.belindamurrell.com.au

“You don’t know a high-water mark until you’ve seen a lot of low water.” Winner of the Best First Fiction Ned Kelly Award

Review – The Midnight Promise by Zane Lovitt

“You don’t know a high-water mark until you’ve seen a lot of low water.”

I was totally blown away by this book. This is crime fiction at its absolute best. Zane Lovitt literally bursts on to the literary scene with this book and I can say without a doubt is destined for huge things. This is not a new writer who has potential, this is a new writer whose skill and talent just oozes out of the page. From the structure of the novel to Lovitt’s distinct style, from the black as night dark humour and cynicism to the deep recesses of human emotion and frailty this is the most original, absorbing and utterly compelling crime novel I’ve read in a long time.

The Midnight Promise is told in ten cases. Cases, not short stories. Although the magic of this book is that they each work perfectly on their own. And I want to be clear here, this is not ten short stories mashed together. This is not ten short stories that form a novel. Think of the ten cases more like vignettes or episodes. They are self contained but together they combine to make something truly special. As you read, everything slowly starts to form together and cases you thought had no bearing on each other actually play a vital role in the story.

As you put the individual pieces together, a bigger picture is formed, a wider story is told and you’ll be in awe of what you’ve just been reading. You are following an intricate and subtle arc that is slowly but surely spiraling down. And this is the genius of the book. You think you’re reading ten cases, ten separate stories that have no bearing on each other but they have all been leading to a certain point, a midnight promise. A deal made at rock bottom, never to get here again. But the journey to rock bottom is what is important, as well as realizing what rock bottom actually is.

There are only a few authors who I can still vividly remember the first time I ever discovered them. The moment, the feeling, stuck in my reading memory: George Pelecanos (The Big Blowdown), Don Winslow (The Power of the Dog), Laura Lippman (Every Secret Thing), Ken Bruen (The Guards), Peter Temple (The Broken Shore), David Simon (Homicide), Adrian McKinty (Dead I Well May Be). You knew you’ve just read a writer who you will follow anywhere. I’m adding Zane Lovitt to that list.

Buy the book here…

Player Profile: James Phelan, author of The Last Thirteen

James Phelan, author of The Last Thirteen

Tell us about your latest creation:

The Last 13. It’s a new series for kids/teens about a battle between good and evil to control the dream world. 13 books, 13 nightmares, 1 destiny…

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

Melbourne.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

Aged 3 and 4 I used to make up recipe books for juices. Pretty much a list of everything I could put in the blender. I used to say that “one day I want to open a juice bar”… but, that being the early 1980’s, my family laughed and guffawed, saying “As if anyone would ever pay for a fresh juice. What else you got?” Then about aged 9 or 10 I decided I’d be an architect, as that’s what some of my family do. Aged 15 I decided I wanted to be a novelist. But I thought that you had to be old and retired to do that, and so I started off in architecture. I “retired” at 25 to be a novelist.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

I always think that my latest project is my best work, as that’s what I’ve been living with for year or more and my writing improves with each outing. So let’s say right now that “The Last 13” series is my “best work”. I also like ALONE: CHASERS, published 2010, which was my first novel for a YA readership. It has the biggest ever twist in the ending. Ever. Twist. Ending. Ever…

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

My local cafe in the mornings, and then my home office.

Other than that, I write wherever I am – whether it’s when I’m on book tour, or following my wife around on her tours (she’s an opera singer). So if you’ve been to a hotel or cafe or bar around the world have had a disheveled guy in a corner typing away – that was me.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

Good novels! And good magazines: National Geographic, Vanity Fair, Esquire.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The Little Prince.
The Jungle Book.
Treasure Island.
Tales of the Punjab.
Taronga.
The Hobbit.
Siddhartha.
Ender’s Game.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Charles Bukowski. Why? Go read “Ham on Rye”, brilliant book. Or maybe Hank Moody. Hang on – is this “who would I be” or “who do I want to be”?

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Cook. Hang with friends. Blow stuff up.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Italian and Thai are my fav cuisines. Red wine. Mineral water. Beer. Scotch. Gin. Coffee. In no order…

Who is your hero? Why?:

3-way tie: E Hemingway, C Hitchens, and H Bloom. Legends.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

The volume of published crap that has flooded the market.

Website URL: www.jamesphelan.com
Blog URL: www.thelast13.com
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/realjamesphelan
Twitter URL: https://twitter.com/RealJamesPhelan

Vivid and compelling but it is not an easy book to stomach

REVIEW – Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil

Jeet Thayil’s hallucinatory novel is semi-autobiographical. He spent his early years in Hong Kong; studied for his BA degree in Bombay, where he became addicted to heroin; moved for a while to New York; then returned to India to live in Delhi. It was twenty years before a health crisis caused him to give up his heroin habit. Now, in his fifties, he says that poetry is his only addiction.

Narcopolis is his first novel and it is set in the opium dens and amongst the poorest most marginalised people in Bombay. Zeenat, or Dimple as she is usually called, is a eunuch. Castrated as a child, she lives as a hijra, travelling between genders and working first in a brothel, then as a pipe-maker, preparing opium pipes for addicts in a slum where the poor, the deranged and the addicted lead sordid and violent lives.

Narcopolis was rejected by every Indian publisher it was sent to and it has been badly received by Indian reviewers, who objected to it as being unnecessary sleazy and sensationalist. But it was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2012 – a remarkable achievement for a first novel.

Certainly, it immerses the reader in the degraded lives of child prostitutes, pimps, casual violence, addictive drug-taking and the terrible poverty that exists behind the modern, middle-class facade of the city.

The opening chapter is one long, seamless, opium-dream of a sentence. “I’m not human”, says its narrator. “I’m a pipe of O telling this story…it’s writing it down straight from the pipe’s mouth”. But the story focuses mostly on Dimple, her past, her present, and the stories of those she lives with and works for. The history of opium in India and China underlies the narrative of the old Chinese man who teaches Dimple to make pipes. There is religious debate, too, but only because Dimple moves between religions, as she moves between genders. And there are stories and conversations; scraps of Indian history, literature, bits of music and poetry, all woven together in a language which is as hypnotic as the opium fumes in which it is soaked.

Narcopolis is vivid and compelling but it is not an easy book to stomach, and it immerses the reader in a world which most would prefer not to see, and certainly not to experience.

Buy the book here…

******************************************************************
Copyright © Ann Skea 2013
Website and Ted Hughes pages: http://ann.skea.com/
Sylvia Plath, Ariel and the Tarot: http://ann.skea.com/Arielindex.html

A fitting finale to the Silo trilogy; thought-provoking, action-packed and keeping you guessing all the way to the last page.

Review – Dust by Hugh Howey

Hugh Howey wraps up his trilogy that began with Wool and Shift. Wool showed us a world beyond imagining, a world where everything was underground and the truth was hidden from everybody. Shift showed us how this world came into being and began to expose the truth. In Dust the truth must now be confronted and not everybody is ready to face it.

Unlike the previous two books Dust hasn’t been serialized which does change the pacing of the story. Unlike the previous two books I found Dust a bit slow to get started. This was partly due to the structure and also it had been a whole book since we last saw Juliette. However once things get going it is non-stop.

Juliette has returned to Silo 18 and is determined to get back to Solo and the kids in 17. Only now she is mayor and responsible for the lives of many. Meanwhile Donald is trying to prevent the plans he has exposed. But the truth will also expose Donald and it may already be too late to stop something which has planned for long ago.

What I loved about the the final book was that now that the truth about the silos had been exposed it wasn’t a fait accompli. Discovering the truth is one thing, delivering it is something else altogether. Some people do not want accept the truth, no matter what the consequences. Juliette must come to terms, not only with the truth she discovered, but the consequences learning this truth will have on others around her.

Howey delivers a fitting finale to the Silo trilogy; thought-provoking, action-packed and keeping you guessing all the way to the last page.

Buy the book here…

Player Profile: Jenni Fagan, author of The Panopticon

Jenni Fagan, author of The Panopticon

Tell us about your latest creation:

The Sunlight Pilgrims. It is my second fiction novel, based on the lives of four characters who live in a caravan park. Around them there is a huge mountain, a city dump, an industrial park and a nearby motorway. There are rumours of an insipid sea. It is set about ten years in the future and begins with a mass eviction of the area around the river Thames in London, when it floods (they know it will at some point) it could affect a huge area of land. Anyway, the four characters are all quite different and they meet at the beginning of a freak severe winter, the aurora borealis is about to pass by and it really is just the story of their lives. I haven’t been talking about it much yet so excuse the vagueness, I’ll get to the synopsis stage once it is finished.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I am from Edinburgh really, I call that home as it is the longest I ever stayed in one place. I haven’t lived there for quite a while but I am thinking of moving back.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I wanted to be an author from a very early age. When I was about seven the teacher asked everyone in class what they wanted to be and I said I’d like to be a witch. She said that wasn’t possible so I said I’d be a coal miner instead. I lived next to a coal mine then, I only said it to annoy her as girls were not meant to go down the pit.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

I don’t think about that really. My work is always evolving and I try not to grade it, either it’s good or it’s not.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I finally have a tiny room that I am to make into a study and I don’t quite know what to do with it. I have been writing in bed, on the sofa, or out in libraries or bars for so long that I’ve just continued to write that way. I would like a big room in the garden as an office, I’d probably live there.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

I read everything and anything, I go through a lot of new authors each year and I’m always catching up on older ones too. At the moment I am reading The Bridge by Iain Banks, The Deadman’s Pedal by Alan Warner, Mr Fox by Helen Oyeyemi, Short Stories and Essays by Mina Loy, Collected Stories of Lydia Davis, Save Yourself by Kelly Braffet and about to begin the new one by David Vann. I’m also reading a book on brain psychology and another on shamanism.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

I think when I read The Hobbit at around age eight, I really thought it was something special. I read constantly as a child but I remember reading that and thinking — this isn’t the usual patronising crap. I had a particular fondness for The Faraway Tree and the Magic Wishing Chair. Also, anything by Maurice Sendak or Roald Dahl.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

Anais Hendricks. Go figure.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I grow potatoes. That’s a recent endeavour. I hang out with my toddler. I like to make things, I do a lot of photography, I’d like to do old houses up if I had more time. I try to walk by the sea and I love going to the movies although there isn’t a cinema near here right now. I want a big bass guitar. That would do nicely.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Favourite food is probably anything with goats cheese and organic tomatoes. Or chicken. Or seafood. I’ll settle for cheese on toast actually. Favourite drink is gin.

Who is your hero? Why?:

I don’t have a hero, is that sad?

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

The biggest challenge is to provide work that current generations will actually engage in — there’s a lot of competition out there.

Website URL: http://thedeadqueenofbohemia.wordpress.com
Twitter URL: @Jenni_Fagan

A funny, shocking, sensitive and hopeful book about growing-up

Review – Snake Bite

“Jez is seventeen and lives with her alcoholic single mum in a government rental in Canberra’s outer suburbs”.

This fragment from the back of Snake Bite told me that this was not a book I had asked to review. But since it has been likened to the notorious Puberty Blues

In the foreword to the reprinted edition of Puberty Blues in 2003, Germaine Greer notes that teenage boredom and experimentation have not changed since the 1970s but that the drugs and the venues are different. And they are: very different. Marihuana appears only in the final pages of Puberty Blues and heroin is hardly mentioned, but in Snake Bite, although sex and the loss of virginity are still rites of passage for teenagers, so , too, are piercings, tattoos, ‘joints’, ecstasy and ‘poppers’. In Snake Bite, too, the constant and casual use of drugs and alcohol, and the foul language, make teenage world of Puberty Blues (where fucking was “doing it” or “screwing”, girls didn’t eat in front of boys, and single girls who got drunk were “molls”) look like a world of innocence.

Jez is the main character in Snake Bite and she tells her own story in her own language, which is ripe and offensive but is considered normal amongst her friends. Some of the Australian slang was new to me and some of the SMS messages defeated me, but I found this book a gripping read. Christine Thompson writes well and she captures the ethos, the speech and the moods of her teenage characters vividly. She manages to convey their growing maturity and their uncertainties subtly and realistically; in particular, Jez’s often fraught relationship with her mother, who starts a relationship with a much younger man and who struggles with her own reliance on alcohol whilst trying to give Jez the freedom to make her own choices in life.

In the end, Jez is too intelligent to be brought down by the bad friends she makes and the sordid world some of them inhabit. Snake Bite turns out to be a funny, shocking, sensitive and hopeful book about growing-up and learning to survive in the dead reaches of suburbia. I always thought of Canberra as a fairly sterile city populated by civil servants and politicians. But clearly there is a different kind of life out there in the suburbs and this book will tell you all (or more, perhaps, than you ever thought you wanted to know) about teen-life, language and behaviour in what the book’s blurb calls “a Canberra you never dreamed existed”.

Buy the book here…

Win a SIGNED Ricky Ponting Cricket Bat

Well, there hasn’t been too much to write home about when it comes to Australia’s sub-par performance in the Ashes in England, but here’s some writing that cricket lovers need to get their hands on – Ricky Ponting’s new autobiography, to be launched on 1 November, just in time for the return Ashes Test series here in Australia.

And if you pre-order the book from Boomerang Books before 1 November, you will go into the draw to win a signed Ricky Ponting Kookaburra bat. That’s one bat exclusively for Boomerang Books customers – that means that the odds of landing the bat are very high!

Why not get ahead with your Christmas shopping and pre-order a copy of At the Close of Play by Ricky Ponting today – and you could score yourself a timeless piece of cricketing memorabilia in with the bargain!

Pre-order At the Close of Play by Ricky Ponting…

Here’s the blurb:

Ricky Ponting is one of the greatest Australian cricketers to have worn the baggy green. His autobiography details his journey from his childhood protege, to the highs and lows of an extraordinary international cricket career, to retirement. Test captain of Australia in 2004 until handing the job to Michael Clarke in 2011, he is the highest Australian run-scorer of all time in Tests and one-day international cricket, behind only India’s Sachin Tendulkar among batsmen from all countries. Ricky’s awards in cricket include ICC Player of the Year (twice), Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World, Cricinfo Player of the Decade and Allan Border Medallist (four times). This autobiography of a very private man and one of Australia’s most public figures will resonate with lovers of cricket as well as anyone who strives to reach the top of their chosen field. Off the field, Ricky and his wife Rianna have raised in excess of $10 million since 2002 to help young Australians and their families beat cancer. In 2008 Ricky and Rianna established the Ponting Foundation to provide focus to their fundraising efforts.

And the teaser video:

Pre-order At the Close of Play by Ricky Ponting…

I haven’t had this much fun reading a book for ages – Winner of the 2013 Hugo Award

Review – Redshirts

I haven’t had this much fun reading a book for ages. I literally chuckled through the entire book. I’m not a sci-fi reader but am a big sci-fi watcher which works perfectly for this book.

Whether we watched it religiously or not at all we are all pretty familiar with Star Trek. And we’re also familiar with the coloured shirts they wore in the 60s TV series. Captain Kirk, Spock and co wore the blue and yellow ones. And the poor unfortunates who usually got killed off wore the red ones. Well this is the redshirts’ story…

The novel opens like your classic sci-fi story. We are introduced to five characters who are about to the join the crew of the starship Intrepid. However these new crew members quickly realize that all is not well with Intrepid and its crew. Firstly there seem to be an above average number of highly dangerous “Away Missions” where a crew member is nearly always killed except for 5 officers who always manage to escape being killed or narrowly avoid death. The rest of the crew do anything they can to avoid these “Away Missions” and try to hide whenever one of the 5 officers enter a room. The new crew members, led by Ensign Andrew Dahl, soon learn that there is more going on than bad luck and the colour of their shirts.

“Avoid the narrative”

This works on so many levels it may possibly give you a headache as you try to get your head around it. It is a great sci-fi adventure with lots of action and tech. It is also great satire that will have you laughing out loud wherever you’re are reading it. And it is totally brilliant metafiction. It breaks down the sci-fi genre, the writing process and the omnificence of the narrative. John Scalzi does all this while entertaining the pants off you.

The novel finishes with three codas. I had be warned off reading the codas and had heard some dissatisfaction about the end but I think they are great. They take the metafiction up another notch and if your brain wasn’t already spinning enough they give it another few, fast rotations.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read and wish it had come out in Australia at the same time as the US rather than 6 months later. But in saying that it is a perfect book for Summer reading and having a good laugh out loud. And it may lead me to read a bit more sci-fi.

Buy the book here…

Doodles and Drafts – Searching for magic with Donna Smith and Jazmine Montgomery – The Magic Glasses Blog Tour

I’m not sure if it is the sleek, bug-eyed appearance of the title character, her sleuth-full occupation or just her name that appeals so forcibly to me, but there’s something about this new Literacy Ladder Reading Series title, Jazmine Montgomery Toy Detective, by Donna M Smith, that I just love.

Aimed squarely at 6 – 8 year old emergent and confident readers, this chapter book is brimming with mystery, mushroom elves and magic.

Jazmine Montgomery is a girl with a passion for solving dilemmas and is regularly called upon by her school and friends to locate missing toys. Operating from her backyard office (aka the cubby house), Jazmine has a litany of devices she uses to deduce the whereabouts of toys missing in action, but perhaps her most useful is her set of magic glasses, after which the first book in this series is titled.

When she is unable to find an errant iPad borrowed from school, Jazmine and her trusty side-kick, Yap (aka the shaggy pet dog) must use the glasses to relocate the iPad in time for school. If she doesn’t, she not only risks detention but her reputation as a detective as well. Who hasn’t gone through this kind of trauma just minutes before the first school bell of a morning?

Young readers, especially those of the little-girls-with-large-aspirations variety, are sure to get a kick out of the first in this series. It might even have a few checking under their fruit trees for the tiny villages of mushroom elves, like I did!

Each book includes super sleuthing tips and (elf) character descriptions which are perfect for coaxing fledging readers into the magical world of reading alone with confidence.

To celebrate Jazmine’s awesome success as a Toy Detective, today I welcome her creator to the draft table, author and publisher, Donna Smith. So grab a big bag of jelly beans, settle back and get comfy.

Q: You have published a varied selection of work for children Donna, including short stories, picture books and Haiku poetry. Name a stand out piece that you are most proud of and why?

Yes Dimity, some of my work is varied. Thank you for asking about the various genres I have written. I have also been fortunate enough to have had several text books published and course content for the Adult Education sector. Choosing one piece is difficult as I love them dearly for various reasons. Mr Bumblebottom which appears in the ‘Hopscotch’ anthology holds special significance, not only was it one of the first stories I wrote but it evolved over the course of two years whilst my eldest son Timothy, was at three and four year old kindy. This took place about seven years ago. Timothy really did not want to go to kindy and so I told him there was a magical dragon that would sit in his pocket throughout the day and he would take special care of him while he was a kindy. Over time, Timothy named him and told me what colour he was and lots of stories about how he felt happy at kindy when Mr Bumblebottom was there too. So over the two years while Timothy attended kindy, Mr B as he was known became an important part of the family. When Timothy started school, I whispered to him as he went into class for the first time that Mr B was in his pocket and he replied, ‘Mum, I am a big boy now shhh.’ I will say he did appear from time to time in need. So this story is quite special and at present I am working on it to be launched as a picture book.

A Shadow of Cape Naturaliste, also holds special significance as it was the first story accepted by a publisher. At that time, I replied to an ad for stories at least 2500 words which must be historical fiction and a ghost story. I relished in the research process and found the Cape Naturaliste lighthouse on the Western Australian coast line has quite a haunted past. So, I wrote Harry’s Lighthouse (as the title was back then). It was published in Australian Chillers’ anthology in 2009. A few years later I decided to re-tweak it for a slightly younger audience and it became A Shadow at Cape Naturaliste. I love this book, the cover is perfect. The photograph depicts what I had imaged it to be exactly and the size is a perfect companion. This book has done well in grade three- six classrooms and is also available it the lighthouse gift shop.

Billy Cart Derby is a really exciting, fast paced, giggle of book starring Jaz, TJ and Ben who participate in a billy cart race at school as a fundraiser. Jaz, TJ and Ben are based on my three children Jazmine, Timothy and Benjamin. What is interesting Dimity is that I wrote this book when Jazmine was in grade 1 (now grade 6) before Ben was even born. I wrote a draft based on a dress up day I attended at school where I saw a grade 6 girl wearing a billy cart. I thought it was fantastically inventive. So the story started to take shape about a billy cart race at school which was based on fundraising but during the race they had lots of mishaps. After the initial draft a couple of years later, I was pregnant with Benjamin and I decided to wait until he was born (to see if he was going to be a boy or a girl) before I completed the final draft so I could include all three children. I ended up waiting until Benny was in kindy and developed his own little personality and character so as I could make teh characters true to their real personalities. I just love the story so much. Children just find it hysterical. Billy Cart Derby is currently used in classrooms grade prep through to about four. Actually a grade three class used it last year during their narrative study. Billy Cart Derby has coloured glossy billy cart race track maps in the front of the book along with character illustrations. This book is currently undergoing production to be made into an interactive picture book, which is illustrated of course. I plan to write more about Jaz, TJ and Ben’s school adventures in the future.

Delightfully Haiku is also very special as it was my first poetry collection but, more importantly it was also a dedication to my nephew Marshall who was born sleeping in August 2010. It has received wonderfully positive reviews over the past couple of years which lead to being invited to participate in the Japanese Festival since it began in 2010. I have attended each year since and enjoy holding haiku poetry workshops throughout the day.

A Christmas Tail was born several years ago when my daughter’s Victorian doll house (which stands 1.2 metres tall) became home to a beautiful family of wooden dolls which my daughter still loves to play with. Over time we furnished the doll house, put lighting in, pictures on the wall, even a tiny grand piano sits in the living room. The idea of a story evolved. A Christmas Tail was co –written with Helen Ross, a very talented children’s writer and former primary school teacher. This beautiful picture book was illustrated by Aaron Pocock, a well known Brisbane artist who did a fantastic job bringing the story to life. A Christmas Tail kicks off a book launch tour in November so keep your eyes peeled for more information regarding that.

Jazmine Montgomery – Toy Detective series is based on my daughter Jazmine. Jaz tends to see magic in everything even at almost 12 (in a few weeks). I love the idea that not everything can be seen and just because we can’t see it on the surface doesn’t mean that it’s not real or it’s not there. Jazmine Montgomery has many case files that she will be sharing in the future. The Magic Glasses is book one in this new series.

It is really hard to pick just one book. My books hold special meaning and significance for myself and my family.

Q: What was the inspiration behind the character Jazmine Montgomery?

JM is based on my daughter Jazmine, who possesses a beautiful innocence and ability to see magic in everything. Jaz will be 12 in a few weeks and is still very much a little princess.

Q:What was the best thing about writing Jazmine Montgomery and the most difficult?

I think the most difficult aspect of writing the first of this series was the evolution that took place. I wrote the first draft a couple of years ago and after editing with Sally Odgers, it was discussed the possibility that an aspect of the story could outdate quickly. The original story was about a red scooter that was lost. Once it was decided that this may not work as well as something which was just flooding the market and being implemented in schools (such as the iPad), I had to re-write many sections to fall in line with iPad concept. Therefore this story evolved and underwent many visits for ms assessment by Sally before the final story was complete and Sally began the editing process. We worked on this story for quite some time before it was just perfect. I then contact Sharon Madder and was just delighted with her illustrations. Sharyn was wonderful to work with and I am really happy with the final result. Another difficult aspect of this particular book was the layout. I really wanted to incorporate the stars which appear around the pages, I had to create each individual star and place each one exactly where I wanted it to appear, this was very time consuming. Then my design team headed by Sylvie Blair, converted this in InDesign to make each star digital and keep the placement the same. This process was quite tricky, time consuming and expensive however, I am really happy that we kept at it as it turning out really well. It really sets the book off, particularly for the target age group. So this book has taken quite some time to produce and get just perfect. But well worth it. I must credit Sally Odgers as it was her idea of the stars on the page! Thank you again Sally.

Q:You have aimed this chapter book series for younger primary aged children, what motivates you to write for this age group?

My children I think Dimity. My children Jazmine 11 (she reminds daily that there are not many sleeps until she is 12!), Timothy 10 and Benjamin 7, inspire me every day. Our library at home is a favourite room in the house, it contains many, many picture books, early chapter books and novelettes. We read these sorts of books most often. I have had a few funny looks after purchasing an arm full of children’s books and then nestling down to read them in a cafe. I have surrounded myself with these sorts of books primarily because of the ages of my children, therefore it just happened that way. I am excited however about my next book, Benjamin and the Castle of Tomorrow which I have been writing since 2009. It started as a 2500 chapter book, and just became longer and longer. Sally said to me ‘don’t worry just keep writing.’ The book now some 25000 words has visited Sally’s desk more times than I can remember and has been a journey in its self.

Two trips to England to study castles and medieval culture, I took medieval literature electives during my Arts degree and submitted a draft as part of my final portfolio assessment in my children’s literature unit. I have also studied endless waterfall locations and waterfall photography, dragon myths and written under Sally’s guidance for the past four years. The story is metafictional and something I am very excited about. I am very happy to say- the story is complete and the editing process is now underway. So, I guess Dimity this will be a different genre again! Ben’s story, as Sally and I refer to it as, after all these years will be out next year.

Q: Have you or your children ever come across elves or fairies in your garden?

Of course Dimity, magic is everywhere. Just smile on the inside and out!

Q:What can we expect from Jazmine Montgomery in the future?

Jazmine Montgomery has an exciting collection of case files which has solved and worked on with her companion Yapps and the Mushroom Elves. Their next adventure sees them at school trying to solve the mysterious case the missing counting beads in the preps class.

Q: What is on the storyboard for Donna Smith?

I graduated with my Arts degree in April this year. My main stream was Educational Psychology and Writing/ Literature. My youngest son has been struggling at school with a learning disability so I decided to attend Monash Uni earlier this year and complete their one semester course in Education Support/ Teacher Aide course with the aim to help Ben as much as I can. I have just completed PD training in Cued Articulation and really enjoy helping in his class two mornings a week. It has six years now that I have being doing classroom help with my children since they started school, however now I am helping in literacy intervention which I really enjoy. I was deciding whether to continue study in literature, however due to our circumstances with my son and recent further diagnosis, I have decided to continue study next year in the Masters of Special Education with a major in Literacy Support. As I also manage Jelli-Beanz Publishing, I am busy with a catalogue of titles which have approved contracts by various authors. Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to become a team leader at the Victorian College of Literary Arts which will see me working literacy invention programs, which is exciting. And my writing? Helen and I are currently brainstorming Peter’s next adventure, Jazmine Montgomery’s next case file will emerge and Benjamin and the Castle of Tomorrow will be released next year. Mr Bumblebottom will take flight as a picture book and Billy Cart Derby will be skidding into the interactive app world! Gee wizz, a cup of tea somewhere in there would be nice too!

Q: Just for fun, do you have a favourite Jelly bean? What is it?

Oh yes, I love Jelly beanz, my favourite is black! Wouldn’t it be wonderful if there was a rainbow jelly bean?

(Oh yes! But black is my favourite too!) Thanks Donna and good luck with EVERYTHING including nabbing that cup of tea some time soon.

Jelli-Beanz Publishing Blog August 2013

Check out the Book Trailer for The Magic Glasses. Buy the book here.

Be sure to visit Jazmine as she zips around on the rest of her Blog Tour with Donna Smith.

Player Profile: Persephone Nicholas, author of Burned

Persephone Nicholas, author of Burned

Tell us about your latest creation:

My book is called Burned and is the winner of this year’s Random House/National Seniors Literary Prize. It’s the story of four families on two sides of the world brought together by one terrible event.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I was born in the UK but have lived in Sydney for nearly 10 years now. I live a stone’s throw from Balmoral Beach in Mosman – it’s a great place to call home.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I’ve always loved words and writing, but did go through a long stage of wanting to be a vet.

What do you consider to be your best work? Why?:

Burned is my first novel so it’s definitely the best so far. I was very humbled to receive an award for it – it’s made me determined to try and make the next one even better.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

I write at a beautiful silver desk I bought in London many years ago. My dog lies underneath it and keeps my feet warm in winter. I like peace and quiet when I’m working and if I need some inspiration I just head down to the beach at the end of the street.

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

It’s very important to me that the books I read are well-written. At the moment I’m reading M L Stedman’s The Light Between Oceans and then I’ll be moving on to Khaled Hosseini’s And the Mountains Echoed. R J Palacio’s Wonder was a favourite earlier this year.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

I particularly loved Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie series. The tv series just didn’t do it justice.

If you were a literary character, who would you be?:

I could pick a different character for every day of the year!

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

I love the ocean – swimming in it, walking beside it, watching it… I find it very therapeutic and restorative.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

Champagne, coffee, chocolate… anything beginning with a ‘c.’

Who is your hero? Why?:

My real life hero is Annie Crawford, founder of CanToo – a not for profit organisation that helps people get fit and raises money for ground-breaking cancer research.

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Instilling a love of reading and great books in our children – so entertainment doesn’t always sink to the level of the lowest common denominator.

Website URL: www.persephone-nicholas.com
Blog URL: http://thebookorme.blogspot.com.au
Facebook Page URL: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Persephone-Nicholas-Author
Twitter URL: @PersephoneNich

An imaginative book full of great characters, action, horror, humour and sadness, told by a masterly story-teller

Review – Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood

MaddAddam is the third book of the trilogy which began in 2003 with Oryx and Crake and continued with The Year of the Flood . Judging by the thanks offered by Atwood in her ‘Acknowledgements’, without the encouragement of her readers, “including those on Facebook and Twitter”, it might never have been written. But it does not matter if you have not read either of the first two books, this one can stand alone. In fact, I found the outline of the earlier books, which prefaces MaddAddam, totally confusing in spite of having read them, and I resorted to making a sort of flow-chart of the characters who had already appeared. It was unnecessary.

“There’s a story, then there’s the real story, then there’s the story of how the story came to be told”, says Toby, who is the writer-protagonist of this book. And this is the way the book unfolds, with the back-story of several of the characters and events from the earlier books being told, as well as a more detailed account of Toby’s own story. She is one of the few survivors of the ecological/biological disaster which has destroyed most of humankind, and her ongoing diary begins with the final events of The Year of Flood. Amongst the survivors are the murderous Painballers, the injured Jimmy, The Snowman, and a small group of Crakers, bio-engineered, gene-spliced, human-like beings who are “free of sexual jealousy, greed, clothing and the need for insect repellant”. The Craker males are also sexually voracious and this becomes the cause of distress and curiosity amongst the few human women, but with potentially hopeful results for the whole group.

In 2003, Oryx and Crake described seemingly outlandish inventions, corporations and social changes, and Atwood had fun inventing appropriate names: such as ‘Pigoons’ for “gen-mod” pigs with human characteristics; the powerful ‘CorpSeCorps’ technocrats; and ‘BlissPluss’ pill for sexual energy and prolonged youth. Now, bioengineering is well established, gated communities and powerful technocrats are common, and ecstasy and other ‘life-style drugs’ have taken on the agenda of BlissPluss. In fact, as Atwood remarks in the ‘Afterword’ to MaddAddam, although the book is fiction, she has not included “technologies or bio-beings that do not already exist, are not under construction, or are not possible in theory”.

In fact, MaddAddam is less science fiction than the earlier books and more a gripping adventure thriller and love story. The chapter headings suggest the story-telling nature of the book: ‘The Story of How Crake was Born’, Snowman’s Progress’. ‘Moontime’, for example. ‘The story of Zeb and Fuck’ is particularly funny, as Toby tries to support the Crakers’ assumption that the exclamation “Oh Fuck!” calls on a God of Misfortune for help.

Atwood’s dark humour, her concern for our survival in a changing world, her intelligence, and her clear-eyed, wry, dry observation of human nature are always apparent. Some may find the Crakers too simple and too fanciful an invention but, for me, her loving depiction of them and of Toby’s humorous and gentle interactions with them as she tells her stories, are a delight. The innocence and curiosity of a young Craker boy, Blackbeard, and his pleasure at learning from Toby that the dark marks she makes on her pages mean sounds which can also be heard by other people who see them, is tempered by Toby’s concern for the results of this learning “What comes next? Rules, dogmas, laws? The Testament of Crake?”. It comes as no surprise that these people who purr illness and hurt away, sing joyfully at the slightest provocation (so that Toby has constantly to restrain them so she can continue her story) and can communicate with the Pigoons, ultimately save Toby and her companions from death.

Forget labels like ‘science fiction’, ‘futurist fiction’, ‘dystopian fantasy’, ‘ecological disaster novel’. MaddAddam is an imaginative book full of great characters, action, horror, humour and sadness, told by a masterly story-teller.

Buy the book here…

On the warpath with Tania McCartney and her Eco Warriors – Blog Tour Review

Step outside into your garden or even local parkland. What do you see? Is it a verdant, vibrant paradise or neglected virtual wasteland? Today I am ecstatic to be on the war path with fellow lover of nature, kids and books, the luminous Tania McCartney. With more books blooming to life this year than a golden wattle in spring time, Eco Warriors to the Rescue!, stands tall and proud amongst them encapsulating the best of backyard adventure, magic and the preservation of our astonishing native flora.

Quintessentially named school-kids, Banjo, Matilda and Ned, are on a bit of a botanical mission. As self-appointed eco warriors with a goal to keep our native plants thriving for generations to come, they wisely consult their big book of Aussie flora and fauna. They become magically entwined within its pages smothered with splendiferous botanical paintings.

Theirs is a journey of enlightenment, discovery and wonder as they interact with such native gems as the kangaroo paw, blue quandong and my favourite, the flame tree. Each encounter reveals a basic fact, crucial to the long term survival of not only that species but our native environment as a whole. Young readers are introduced to the holistic ideology that plants, like animals, need much more than just clean water to flourish. Things like polluted bushland, introduced animal species, unregulated development and even unthoughtful behaviour like picking native flowers can dramatically affect the existence of our wild-flora.

This might seem like a heavy message to impart on young children but it is carefully implied with the clever use of real life images; our little warriors are visually shown as real people with beating hearts and souls and thus are completely believable as the executers and educators of the tips and tricks offered to us (and thoughtfully numbered throughout). Most resplendent in this joyful showering of information is the final notion that the ultimate thing we can do for our native plants is to ‘enjoy!’ them. So we should and so we can with Eco Warriors.

McCartney considerately includes plenty of ways to think about and embrace our native plants with the inclusion of maps, links, explanations and even a list of native birth flowers. Her fertile, design-bejewelled mind beautifully harmonises crisp, clear dialogue with the multi-media used throughout this picture book. I’m no expert in this field but recognise a good spread when I see one. (You can learn more about the design and layout behind this beautiful book at Angela Sunde’s blog).

Eco Warriors to the Rescue! packs a punch for all the right reasons. This book has a lovely ‘dirt girl’ feel and robust design with thick glossy pages (notably printed on paper from sustainable forest resources) and is more than suitable for repeated discussion, field trips and reads; outdoors perhaps, sprawled on the grass, gazing up through the branches of a flame tree aglow with carmine, campanula blooms. Botanical metaphors aside, McCartney has cultivated yet another work of art, which kids all over Australia and beyond will have fun reaping.

National Library of Australia August 2013

Join Tania McCartney and her three real-life eco warriors—Banjo (Riley), Ned (Andrew) and Matilda (Claire)—as they launch Eco Warriors to the Rescue! at Canberra’s National Arboretum Gift Shop, Saturday 5 October 2013, at 11am.

Can’t wait till then? Then stick around and visit some more of her exciting blog tour stops where you can learn more about the book and how to become an Eco Warrior.

View this book and purchase on line here.

Blog Tour Dates and Places

Sunday 1 September

Sneak Peek

Tania McCartney’s Blog

taniamccartney.blogspot.com

Review

Boomerang Books Blog

blog.boomerangbooks.com.au

Giveaway

Pass It On

jackiehoskingpio.wordpress.com/school-magazine

Mixed Media Illustrations for Picture Books

Angela Sunde

Under the Apple Tree

Monday 2 September

Book Review

Book Giveaway

Kids Book Review

kids-bookreview.com

Eco Tips for Little Readers

Sheryl Gwyther’s Blog

sherylgwyther.wordpress.com

Bringing Up Eco Warriors

The Book Chook

www.thebookchook.com

Review

Books for Little Hands

booksforlittlehands.blogspot.com.au

Literature Supporting Sustainability

Children’s Books Daily

www.childrensbooksdaily.com

Author Interview

Alison Reynolds

www.alisonreynolds.com.au

Tuesday 3 September

Giveaway

My Little Bookcase

www.mylittlebookcase.com.au

Review

5 Multi-Media Writing Tips

DeeScribe

deescribewriting.wordpress.com

Review

Writing for the National Library of Australia

BuzzWords

buzzwordsmagazine.com

Review

Elaine Ouston Blog

elaineoustonauthor.com

Review

Giveaway

Soup Blog

soupblog.wordpress.com

Player Profile: Chris Allen, author of Hunter

Chris Allen, author of Hunter

Tell us about your latest creation:

The second Alex Morgan novel in my black-ops Intrepid series is Hunter: Intrepid 2. It’s a rapid-paced action-packed rollercoaster of a story and it deals with a current issue with the backdrop of the Serbian warlords being brought to justice in the Hague – the sentencing is happening right now.

Where are you from / where do you call home?:

I’m an Australian who calls Sydney home, we live on the leafy North Shore. But I grew up in Perth and left aged 18 by joining the Australian Army.

When you were a kid, what did you want to become? An author?:

I dreamed of a few different things, actually. The military tradition ran pretty deep in my family, so I felt compelled to serve as well. Add to that, I knew my all-time favourite author Ian Fleming had served in WWII, and wanted to see the action that I too could write compelling stories about.

Finally, I was a mad drummer as a teenager, but loved the old jazz tunes and big live rock songs at a time when the likes of ‘Tainted Love’ were chart toppers.

All those things combined drove me straight into the welcoming (!) arms of the Australian Army, which is where I spent the next 13 years of my life. What do you consider to be your best work? Why?: The one I’m currently writing is my best work this far, which is called Avenger. I want each story to better than the last.

In this series, my flawed protagonist, the unstoppable Alex Morgan will age as time passes. He lives in real time, not a vacuum, and the stories will mature as my writing and Alex Morgan does.

Describe your writing environment to us – your writing room, desk, etc.; is it ordered or chaotic?:

My writing mancave is a large room downstairs, with lots of natural light. I’m surrounded by great books and writers and things that have significance from my time in the military, humanitarian aid and law enforcement environments.

I find this kind of environment helps me to write realistic action scenes based largely on real-life experiences. All with a generous serving of escapism in the mix, of course!

When you’re not writing, who/what do you like to read?:

My literary legends, the ones I turn to time and again are Ian Fleming and Arthur Conan Doyle. Quite simply, their stories never get old.

What was the defining book(s) of your childhood/schooling?:

The first thriller I ever read was The Wooden Horse — I was about 12-13 at the time.

At that age, I was really interested in a lot of stories of WWII, particularly the stories that were about individuals and how they overcame things. This was a story about guys who were prisoners of war, pilots who’d been shot down and captured by the Germans. I remember details about that book – that they needed to escape and someone came up with this idea that they needed to build a tunnel to escape. The shortest way for them to build a tunnel, so there was less chance of collapse, was to start right under the middle of the exercise yard, under the nose of the prison guards. So they requested exercise equipment from the guards like a wooden bolting horse. They hid two guys in the wooden horse and those men would work each night to dig out the tunnel each night. The detail was ingenious.

This book had all the elements of intrigue, deception, danger, subterfuge coupled with fearlessness, innovation and ingenuity borne out of a desperate need to escape captivity.

What more could a teenager in Perth ask for in his reading material!? If you were a literary character, who would you be?: I think I’d most like to be Watson from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock series.

In the books, Holmes is so reliant on his partnership with Watson. If it wasn’t Holmes saving the day with some well-paced Judo moves, it would be Watson with his revolver.

I love the duo. They are a much more equal pairing than the old movies ever gave them credit for.

Apart from books, what do you do in your spare time (surprise us!)?:

Well, on a recent rare weekend I was allowed out of the writing man cave for 48 hours. I really enjoyed taking the family up to the beautiful Blue Mountains just a couple of hours drive west of Sydney.

There’s nothing I love more than exploring a new town like Blackheath, taking in some historic sites, enjoying the views, browsing in an antiques store and drinking lots of good coffee and red wine.

What is your favourite food and favourite drink?:

There’s nothing quite like an evening meal served with Brussel Sprouts at this time of year… they’re solid and nuggety, multi-layered, with the strange ability to be bitter and buttery at the same time. If I had my way, I’d like that served with a full-bodied Shiraz most nights of the week.

Otherwise it’s tea for me, strong tea with milk. Being ex-Army, I’m quite particular about my brew.

Who is your hero? Why?:

You know what? I don’t actually have a hero. I’m inspired creatively by figures from real life, but as bad as it sounds, I don’t have a hero that I call my own.

I think you should aspire to be the best person you can be, and not set someone else up as the benchmark, because people are still people, and it can be all too easy to fall for the idea of the person without understanding the context and full story of their life.

I’d rather be the best person I can be, and judge myself that way, than worship some other mortal bloke or lady based on some uninformed view I have of them!

Crystal ball time – what is the biggest challenge for the future of books and reading?:

Independent bookstores are undergoing a reinvention, becoming community hotspots that embrace all that reading and storytelling has to offer – books and eBooks and, maybe one day, print-on-demand technology.

Books make excellent gifts and the bookstore owner is an important part of the local community. As we know, while there has been a digital revolution underway, our need for community remains strong. The other constant is one of our ability to tell a story about the place we live. The intersection of the two is the local bookstore owner’s challenge.

Website URL: http://intrepidallen.com
Blog URL: http://intrepidallen.com/blog
Facebook Page URL: http://facebook.com/intrepidallen
Twitter URL: http://twitter.com/intrepidallen