Magic Beach double-pass giveaway!
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The cost of living and the artists' way
As a reader or bookseller, there is nothing more satisfying than picking up a book by a hitherto unknown writer, attracted maybe by the cover or an intriguing title and realizing you've discovered something great. So it was with Tasmania by Italian writer Paolo Giordano (who is this guy and why is he writing about Tasmania?), a novel (or autofiction) not set in Tasmania at all, but which uses the idea of Tasmania as a refuge, a place far distant from Europe and the concerns of Giordano’s 40ish writer and his friends - climate change, terrorism, pandemics, war, the atomic bomb and the nuclear future. While we follow the personal problems and relationships of Paolo and his friends as
they search for their own personal ‘Tasmania’, there's also science and non-fiction about all of the above (Giordano has a PhD in particle physics). While at first, the novel can seem somewhat dry, it gradually becomes more personal and moving until, like the author, you may need to cry. Tasmania is an important novel which reflects our times with enormous intelligence and humanity. I can't recommend it highly enough.
65,000 years: A Short History of Australian Art, edited by Marcia Langton and Judith Ryan is an accompaniment to an exhibition to be held in Melbourne in 2025 (30 May - 23 November). A comprehensive history of art by and about First Peoples, this fascinating book is both academically rigorous and highly accessible with many beautiful and previously unseen artworks, plates and illustrations. It should be in every school and library in the country. Let's be honest (and speaking for myself) - often with an art book, one just looks at the pictures and plonks the book on the coffee table, but I’m reading this cover-to-cover and planning my trip to Melbourne to see it all for real.
Also loving Deborah (The Cost of Living) Levy's brilliant The Position of Spoons, a collection of essays and ruminations, many of which are about women writers and books I read back in the day. So great to revisit books like Violette Leduc's La Batarde and Elizabeth Hardwick's Seduction and Betrayal with such an erudite guide.
The Royal Literary Fund in the UK was founded in 1790 and provides one-off ‘hardship’ grants to writers in dire need. The Guardian reports an increase in applications of a whopping 400% while median earnings for writers have fallen to a paltry (insert pound symbol) 7,000 p.a. Add to this, the difficulty in finding supplementary work, with
universities reducing or even scrapping creative writing and other arts courses, the growing integration of AI into areas such as translation and copywriting, and the reduction of scripted material on most streaming services. Meanwhile, of course, writers (and all artists) face the same rises in the cost of living as we all do, and with their miserable income, it must be a huge struggle. I'm told (to my surprise) the UK doesn't have a body such as Creative Australia which gives project-based grants, hence the need for the RLF which is mainly funded by donations from writers, many of whom have bequeathed their literary estates. In Australia, is there a writers’ equivalent to the RLF (separate to Creative Australia) or the Actors Benevolent Fund which helps senior thespians? My limited research (asking writer mates) suggests not, but if there is let me know!
Morgan
Magic Beach Giveaway
Here's a summer Christmas treat. We have 10 double passes to give away to a wonderful new film based on Alison Lester's much loved Magic Beach. It's a wondrous mix of live action and animation - check out the trailer to get a sense of the alchemy involved - and ask at the counter of any of our branches for tickets. First in, best dressed!
Take a trip with the ones you love! Visit a perfect beach where you can swim, surf, spash through the waves, build sandcastles, beach-comb, explore rock pools, muck about on boats and build a bonfire under the stars. An exciting mix of live action and animation, MAGIC BEACH is where adventures begin.
Based on Alison Lester's much loved classic, and directed by Robert Connolly, Magic Beach is in cinemas from 15th January.
Summer Reading Guide Out Now
Our Summer Reading Guide is out now. Packed with all the big new Christmas releases, plenty of choices for children and teens, dozens of special prices, and some 'bargain basement' steals for the budget-conscious.
Postage is our usual flat rate of $10 for as many books as you like! Browse online now or pick up a copy from any of our branches.
Last Events for 2024
Chris Baker – Swimming Sydney Tuesday 10th December – In conversation with Michaela Kalowski
A tale of 52 swims in and around Sydney that take place over a calendar year. From Palm Beach to Cronulla, Mount Druitt to Bondi, at iconic beaches, municipal pools, harbour baths, and bushland lakes. Taking his weekly plunges, Baker reflects on friendship, history and family, and how swimming can help us better understand ourselves. Chris will discuss this valentine to a beautiful obsession.
Meanjin-Essays That Changed Australia Wednesday 11th December – Meanjin 83.4 Summer and Essays That Changed Australia
Just announced. More details to follow. Join Esther Anatolitis for our final Meanjin event for the year, as we launch into the Summer edition, and the stand alone anthology Essays that Changed Australia: 1940 to Today
A SPECIAL EVENT The Deep – From Sea to Sky Thursday 12th December – Inga Simpson, David Dyer and James Bradley exploring the depths of the sea and sky.
Join three of Australia’s most acclaimed authors in a wonderful panel discussion as they explore the depths of the sea and sky, and reveal what they’ve discovered venturing far into the stars and under the waves, and what the deep can tell us about where we’re headed.
