Last post

I'm saying goodbye and thank you for reading and commenting. If you don't already have these links, here are some super places to spend your lunchtimes (there are too many to include here so I will miss some excellent ones, for which I apologise; and I know that there are exciting new sites being set up all the time so feel free to add them):
The New York Times Book Review
The New Yorker's Book Bench
Book Covers
Harper's Wyatt Mason's Sentences
The Complete Review's Literary Saloon
New York magazine Books
Media Bistro's Galleycat
Guardian Book News
Tiggy Johnson's blog: Words in Progress
Time Out New York Books
The New York Times Paper Cuts blog
ABC Radio National's Book Show
Angela Meyer's blog: Literary Minded
Genevieve Tucker's blog: Reeling and writhing
Mark Sarvas's blog: The Elegant Variation

19-September-08

The thing I remember most about 'The Weasel, Twelve Monkeys, and the Shrub', DFW's essay on John McCain (Rolling Stone, 2000), is the way in which Wallace forced me to get inside McCain's head, especially by making me think about what it was like when his plane was shot down and he was so badly injured in Vietnam. 'Try for a moment to feel this.' And I did. DFW was a writer of incredible compassion and empathy and I can learn a lot from him. He will be missed. Personal recollections of him here.

18-September-08

Guardian Books blog: Foster Wallace is a huge loss, by Robert Potts

17-September-08

Baltimore Sun: The Life of Kings – The genius of David Foster Wallace and the ugliness of depression, with some good links to his articles

The Believer interview: Dave Eggers corresponds with DFW

'The really important kind of freedom involves attention and awareness and discipline, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them over and over in myriad petty, unsexy ways every day.'
- Read the whole of DFW's commencement speech at Kenyon University, 2005

16-September-08

DFW: James Ley writes an obituary in the Australian

15-September-08

David Foster Wallace on Charlie Rose, which I may have linked to before

14-September-08

Black news. David Foster Wallace RIP

12-September-08

1. Guardian blog: Knut Hamsun - the Nazi novelist you should read
2. Edward Champion is demanding curry accountability for John Sutherland

11-September-08

1. Authonomy looks interesting, thanks to JNW
2. I love Robert Heinlein's Fan Mail Solution, thanks to The Book Bench

10-September-08

1. I had a bet with a friend that the Steve Toltz would be shortlisted for the Booker – if only I'd put money on it
2. I would love to have been in the creative meeting that came up with my current favourite ad

9-September-08

1. Fred Ramey's Unbridled Books blog
2. NY Times: Juliana Hatfield's memoir, When I Grow Up, is out: Juliana Hatfield Feels Her Way Beyond the Spotlight
3. Helen De Witt's The Last Samurai was such a brilliant read that I am automatically looking forward to her next one, which is co-authored, and written in Mellel – here's Jenny Turner's look at Your Name Here (as yet unpublished) in the LRB

5-September-08

David Rakoff made me one of his special Duct Tape Wallets, multi-coloured. Made only from duct tape, it is an actual, useable, wallet – but I haven't had the heart to start ruining it yet, it's a work of art. Seeing David perform was an absolute highlight of the festival for me.

3-September-08

1. Robert Drewe talked about the joys of growing up with comic books. SMH: Batman and Philosophy: The Dark Knight of the Soul
2. LRB: Michael Wood on The Dark Knight At the Movies: 'Heath Ledger, who died of a drug overdose at the beginning of this year, was until now best known as the stolid hero of a remake of The Four Feathers (2002) and as the rather more complex figure at the centre of Brokeback Mountain (2005). Nothing we have seen of his career prepares us for what he can do as the Joker. By turns authoritative and wheedling, often speaking casually, with long pauses, as if talking to himself, always acting, aware of circumstance and timing, and very rarely manic (unlike the always manic Nicholson, for example), he creates a character who is attractive and horrifying in exactly the right proportions: attractive because horrifying, perhaps.'
3. The Triple R FM Radiothon is over for the year but you can still subscribe and be in the running for the huge Readings voucher, and more...
4. The New Yorker: 'The Dinner Party' by Joshua Ferris: ' "I can predict everything that will happen from the moment they arrive to the little kiss on the cheek goodbye and I just can't goddamn do it."
"You could stick your tongue down her throat instead of the kiss goodbye," she offered casually as she continued to dice. She was game, his wife. She spoke to him in bad taste freely and he considered it one of her best qualities.'
5. The new Coen Brothers film: Burn After Reading – I never get sick of Frances McDormand

2- September-08

1. Anya Ulinich was lovely and funny
4. The new Meanjin is sensational (and a new website is on its way, but checkout the cover here)
5. Dear Henry: a little bit of mentoring on how the world works by Catherine Deveny: raises some excellent points about free versus paid work
6. The new Overland: packed full of goodies
7. Anita Heiss reminded me of the existence of Trixie Beldens
8. Which, in turn, reminded me of Sweet Valley Highs, with a world about as far from my high school in England as you could get.

28-August-08

1. New York Magazine: Was Hunter Thompson's Gonzo Image His Downfall?
2. Today at the festival I'm chairing at 1pm: Chekhov's Children about the short story, with Hannah Tinti, Emily Perkins and John Clanchy
3. Also at the festival to look out for today: The Common Pursuit at 7pm, with Philip Gourevitch, Julianne Schultz, Sally Warhaft and Michael Burleigh.
4. And: Historical Novels at 4pm, with Fiona Capp, Antoni Jach, Matt Condon and Simon Cleary.
5. Not to mention: The Young Americans at 4.15, with Hannah Tinti, Mark Sarvas, Anya Ulinich and Delia Falconer.
6. The book and film that have been spiralling through my subconscious so much these past few days: Kenneth Cook's Wake in Fright.

26-August-08

Click Lit: a computer program to help write a novel, thanks to DY

25-August-08

Augusten Burroughs is a real storyteller and has what's known as 'the gift of the gab'. Seeing him at both the First Tuesday Book Club screening, and then his keynote address on Friday, made me want to read his books – and his brother's.

Davids Rakoff and Sedaris with Don Watson on Friday were a real highlight – I had no idea Watson was such a wit.

So many things to go to...

22-August-08

MWF today: don't miss The Whole Shebang. Sophie Cunningham is hosting Toni Jordan, Mandy Brett, Bridie Riordan, Susan Johnson, Aviva Tuffield, David Astle, Nikki Christer, Jeremy Fisher, Joel Becker, Jenny Darling - and more... It's an intensive one-day workshop for emerging writers.

20-August second go & 21-August-08

1. Brascoe Publishing
3. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a great book despite its title
5. New York Review of Books: EM Forster, Middle Manager by Zadie Smith
6. Andrew O'Hagan at The Observer
7. Idlewind Press in the Nicholas Building



Thanks to Mister Nora: Melbourne hooks the books
Big whoops for all the writers and editors and publishers and readers who will benefit from this decision, and there's plenty of opportunity to celebrate over the next fortnight. I  guess the next question is, how will it really affect us all?

20-August-08

David Rakoff is coming to this year's Melbourne Writers' Festival. Look out for him at:
Beyond Your Navel masterclass on Saturday
Don't Get Too Comfortable with Max Barry on Sunday afternoon, and
What's Funny About America? with David Sedaris and Don Watson on Saturday afternoon

19-August-08

1. Jacinta Halloran's excellent Dissection is being launched by Helen Garner tonight at the Avenue Bookshop
2. World Without Books: Indigenous Literacy Day is September 3, thanks to LP

18-August-08

1. New York Times: He Blurbed, She Blurbed by Rachel Donadio
4. Australia is nowhere on this list of Top 10 literary destinations, which would have to surprise those who participated in Melbourne's bid for Unesco City of Lit. Zoe and I were interviewed about it for Stateline recently. Fingers crossed.

13-August-08

1. A few MWF picks:
Genre Jumper with Kate Atkinson and Catherine Cole – 30 August, 10am
Secrets and Lies with Hannah Tinti, Joan London and David Francis – 30 August, 4pm
Writing Love with Mark Sarvas, Kathryn Lomer and Andrew Riemer – 30 August, 10.15am (for those who can be in two places at the same time)
2. Lit Mob, thanks to KF
3. The Atlantic: My Life in Sales by Ann Patchett
4. And The Perils of Literary Success by Curtis Sittenfeld
5. The Age, from 2003: The Great Escape Artist, Andrew O'Hagan

11- August-08

1. My review of Susan Johnson's Life in Seven Mistakes for the Sydney Morning Herald
2. With John Marsden's release of Hamlet next month, he may get a giggle out of this: Hamlet (Facebook News Feed Edition) by Sarah Schmelling at McSweeney's
3. One of the books that was shortlisted for the Vic Prem's Unpublished Ms Award in 2006 is now on the Ned Kelly's shortlist: Chris Womersley's The Low Road which I reviewed for The Age

Friday afternoon

The Vic Prem's shortlists have been announced. I had the pleasure of joining Kevin Brophy and Liam Davison in judging the Unpublished Manuscript Award, so beneath the bed are boxes and boxes of bound manuscripts (what to do with them?), some of them with scrawlies all over them.

Our shortlist is strong, and includes one ms, by Daniel Ducrou, that's already been shortlisted for the Vogel:

Daniel Ducrou, Conditions of Return
Mandy Maroney, Going Finish
Robert Power, In Search of the Blue Tiger

7-August-08

1. The New York Times: Mr Darcy Comes Courting by Maureen Dowd
3. Michael Chabon talking about The Yiddish Policemen's Union on The Book Show
4. New Yorker: Personal History – All the Answers by Charles Van Doren, will make you want to hire out Quiz Show all over again
6. Awesome Animal Farm cover
8. It is pretty astonishing that of the five shortlisted novels for the Age book of the year, two are published by Giramondo. I haven't read the Juchau or the Winton, but the Knox, the Coetzee and the London are all strong in such different ways.
9. Who'd have thought that A Fraction of the Whole would have been shortlisted – alongside another strong debut in The Low Road, which is more obviously a crime novel – for the Ned Kelly awards?
11. This clip from Synecdoche, New York (2008) lets me know it's a film that will make me nervous the way Charlie Kaufman can, which I'm already looking forward to.
13. I'm looking forward to the new Christos Tsiolkas, The Slap, due this November. It sounds quite different to his previous work: "In this remarkable novel, Tsiolkas turns his unflinching and all-seeing eye onto that which connects us all: the modern family and domestic life in the twenty-first century."
14. The Prime Minister's Literary Awards shortlisted authors are Mireille Juchau, Dorothy Porter, Malcolm Knox, Gail Jones, David Malouf, Tom Keneally and Steven Conte. Better start reading...

5-August-08

The Observer: review of James Bradley's The Resurrectionist, showing the UK cover

4-August-08

1. Guardian blog: The great chick-lit cover up
2. The Prime Minister's Literary Awards keep sending out press releases designed to make us excited about the soon-to-be-announced shortlist but with too long a lead-time between press release and announcement, it just frustrates in that kind of 'i've got a secret and i'm not going to tell you' way. Still, I'm looking forward to the announcement this Wednesday: the awards hold such massive promise.
3. Writer-editor fighting over at The Times, leaked to The Guardian: Giles Coren gets heated about the removal of "a", and the sub-editors' reply, thanks to MMW.

1-August-08

Salute: Jo Case

Jo is books editor of the Big Issue, editor of the Readings magazine, the book reviewer at Triple R FM, and a freelance reviewer.

A book Jo has strongly recommended that I still haven't read: Darkmans by Nicola Barker

What amazes me about Jo: her enthusiasm for books. She's a real book lover. She reads numerous books a month but manages to avoid becoming cynical and tired of them. She has energy and passion, not just for books but also for their authors, and enough enthusiasm left over to engage with readers, critics and writers; and she is interested in developing new reviewing talent. Her book passion is infectious.

Sample of her work: review of Emily Perkins' Novel About My WifeThe Age

31-July-08

Along with Aravind Adiga and Michelle de Kretser, Steve Toltz has been longlisted for the Man Booker. The Guardian blogs weigh in: Shock of the new and Let the arguments commence.
It's a pity Toltz isn't coming to next month's Melbourne Writers' Festival. I'll look at more events soon but for now, here are some of the events I'm involved in at this year's festival:
Chekhov's Children – with Hannah Tinti, Emily Perkins and John Clanchy, and me as chair. As you may have surmised from the title, we'll be talking about short stories, in the BMW Edge on the 28th of August from 1pm.
A Reading Life – with Robert Drewe and Anita Heiss, and me as chair. Rob and Anita will be talking about what books created them, what they love to read, in the BMW Edge on the 31st of August at 2.30pm.
Saturday Night Readings: Creative Writers. I'm MC'ing this celebration of creative writing classes at RMIT. Featuring Cathy Cole, Alexis Wright, Jeff Sparrow, Ellie Nielsen and Kevin Rabalais. 5.45pm on the 23rd of August in ACMI 2.