Download or read book Driving Stevie Fracasso written by Barry Divola and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2021-03-01 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two estranged brothers, one stolen car and a road trip from Texas to New York. What could possibly go wrong? For fans of Nick Hornby, David Nicholls and Jonathan Tropper. Jaded music journalist Rick McLennan knows his life is going south when he loses his job, his apartment and his long-term girlfriend all on the same day. But then he is thrown a lifeline – a commission to write the story of his ex-rock-star brother, Stevie, and drive him from Austin, Texas, to New York to play one final gig. One small problem: the brothers haven't spoken in thirty years. Rick knows it's a bad idea. But he's out of choices. So he gets behind the wheel of a beaten-up 1985 Nissan Stanza and drives towards his destiny. He's about to find everything he didn't know he was missing. It's September 2001. From award-winning journalist and author Barry Divola comes a glorious, music-infused, rollicking road-trip novel – think High Fidelity meets The Big Lebowski meets The Darjeeling Limited. A smart, funny and wholly endearing story about how, though we may at times lose ourselves along the way, the road always leads back to family and the things that bring us joy. 'Of course this road trip comes with a top-quality mix-tape – it's by Barry Divola – but it's the layers to this story, and its humour and its heart, that make this journey irresistible.' – Nick Earls 'This book is the super f***ing gnarly lead break of rock-lit novels.' – John Birmingham 'Driving Stevie Fracasso reads as great as the fifth Replacements album sounds. It's a New York–centric, music-obsessive tale of humour and poignancy, the literary equivalent of hanging with folks who think going to church is finding a record fair. A+' – Stuart Coupe An interpreter of the listening experience forced to listen to experience? This novel will be read in between flippin' records. Go for the ride. You'll be spent, you'll be grateful.' – Tim Rogers 'If I could go back in time and take a different fork in the road, I would have lived like Barry Divola. But poor choices can't be unmade, and if Driving Stevie Fracasso is the only ride available I'll take it. Damn you, Barry Divola, you've been having everyone else's fun.' – Malcolm Knox

Download or read book Driving Stevie Fracasso written by Barry Divola and published by . This book was released on 2021-03-03 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two estranged brothers, one stolen car, and a road trip from Texas to New York. What could possibly go wrong? For fans of Nick Hornby and David Nicholls. When burnt-out, disillusioned, newly unemployed and about-to-be-divorced music journo Rick Fracasso is offered a paying gig to drive his ex-rock star brother, Stevie - who he hasn't spoken to in thirty years - to New York for one final gig, he knows it's a bad idea. But he's out of choices. Three thousand kilometres in two weeks. Thirty years of mistakes, miscommunications and misunderstandings. It's all going to come out. A glorious music-infused, rollicking road-trip novel - think High Fidelity meets The Big Lebowski meets The Darjeeling Limited - Driving Stevie Fracasso is a smart, funny and wholly endearing novel about how, though we often lose ourselves along the way, we all need to find the road back to rediscovering what gives us joy.

Download or read book Locust Summer written by David Allan-Petale and published by Fremantle Press. This book was released on 2021-07-02 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shortlisted for The Australian Vogel's Literary Award, Locust Summer celebrates the wide-open beauty of Australia's regions while exploring the heartbreaks that come from living on the land. On the cusp of summer, 1986, Rowan Brockman's mother asks if he can come home to Septimus in the Western Australian Wheatbelt to help with the harvest. Rowan's brother Albert, the natural heir to the farm, has died and Rowan's dad's health is failing. Although he longs to, there is no way that Rowan can refuse his mother's request as she prepares the farm for sale. This is the story of the final harvest - the story of a young man in a place he doesn't want to be, being given one last chance to make peace before the past, and those he has loved, disappear.

Download or read book The Countess from Kirribilli written by Joyce Morgan and published by Allen & Unwin. This book was released on 2021-07-02 with total page 395 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: She was Australian born, an international bestselling author and a member of the glamorous literary, intellectual and society salons of late nineteenth and early twentieth century London and Europe She was 'amused, cynical, ironic, loving, gay, ferocious, cold, ardent but never gentle'. She was a whirlwind. She created around her the atmosphere of a Court at which her friends were either in disgrace or favour, a butt or a blessing. Elizabeth von Arnim may have been born on the shores of Sydney Harbour, but it was in Victorian London that she discovered society and society discovered her. She made her Court debut before Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace, was pursued by a Prussian count and married into the formal world of the European aristocracy. It was the novels she wrote about that life that turned her into a literary sensation on both sides of the Atlantic and had her likened to Jane Austen. Her marriage to the count produced five children but little happiness. Her second marriage to Bertrand Russell's brother was a disaster. But by then she had captivated the great literary and intellectual circles of London and Europe. She brought into her orbit the likes of Nancy Astor, Lady Maud Cunard, her cousin Katherine Mansfield and other writers such as E.M. Forster, Somerset Maugham and H.G. Wells, with whom it was said she had a tempestuous affair. Elizabeth von Arnim was an extraordinary woman who lived during glamorous, exciting and changing times that spanned the innocence of Victorian Sydney and finished with the march of Hitler through Europe. Joyce Morgan brings her to vivid and spellbinding life.

Download or read book Nineteen Seventysomething written by Barry Divola and published by Hardie Grant Publishing. This book was released on 2010 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Barry Divola's Nineteen Seventysomething is a requiem for bygone days of nineteen-seventies Australia. In the fictional suburb of Braithwaite, we meet Charlie during the listless weeks of his sweltering summer holidays. Against a background of garage rock, transistor radios and a whole lot of vinyl, Barry Divola deftly evokes that awkward, exhilarating journey from childhood to adolescence. Told with humour, poignancy and authenticity, Nineteen Seventysomething marks the familiar stages of teenage awakening - in friendship, desire and love.

Download or read book Other People s Houses written by Kelli Hawkins and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2021-03-01 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'A dark, twisting tale of guilt and obsession which will leave you gasping' Petronella McGovern, author of Six Minutes The stunningly tense, page-turning top 10 bestseller for all fans of The Woman in the Window and The Girl on the Train. The perfect house. The perfect family. Too good to be true. Kate Webb still grieves over the loss of her young son. Ten years on, she spends her weekends hungover, attending open houses on Sydney's wealthy north shore and imagining the lives of the people who live there. Then Kate visits the Harding house - the perfect house with, it seems, the perfect family. A photograph captures a kind-looking man, a beautiful woman she knew at university, and a boy - a boy that for one heartbreaking moment she believes is her own son. When her curiosity turns to obsession, she uncovers the cracks that lie beneath a glossy facade of perfection, sordid truths she could never have imagined. But is it her imagination? As events start to spiral dangerously out of control, could the real threat come from Kate herself? 'At times sad and moving [and] the twists come fast. This promising debut novel would be a good recommendation for fans of thrillers and is a confirmed quick and entertaining holiday read.' Books + Publishing 'A clever premise and a troubled narrator set this page-turner up beautifully. I really enjoyed the ride.' Sara Foster 'Taut, smart and immensely satisfying. I was addicted from the first page to the last.' Nicola Moriarty

Download or read book She Is Haunted written by Paige Clark and published by Two Dollar Radio. This book was released on 2022-05-17 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: * Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction, Shortlist * 2022 Stella Prize, Longlist "A Best Book of the Year" —The Guardian "A Most Anticipated book of 2022" —Entertainment Weekly With an unforgettable voice and exuberant wit, She Is Haunted is a masterful debut exploring issues of identity, connection, and loss, told with remarkable grace and assurance by Chinese/American/Australian author, Paige Clark. In stories charged by the complexities of mother-daughter relationships, grief, exes, and the profundities of friendship, She Is Haunted features injured ballerinas, cloned dogs, and competitive call centers in settings as far ranging as future and present Australia, New York City’s Chinatown, and suburban California. A mother cuts her daughter’s hair because her own hair begins falling out; a woman attempts to physically transform into her dead husband so that she does not have to grieve; a woman undergoes brain surgery in order to live more comfortably in extreme temperatures. Braiding the real and the surreal, both playfully witty and deeply insightful, these stories show us characters striving to make sense of the grand themes of family, love, death, and our changing world. She Is Haunted flags Paige Clark as a wondrous and wise new literary talent.

Download or read book Hare Klein Interior written by Meryl Hare and published by . This book was released on 2020-05 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Distinguished by an aesthetic of understated luxury and attention to fine detail, Hare + Klein is synonymous with uncompromisingly comfortable, liveable interiors made exceptional by deceivingly effortless styling. Whether it's a stark inner-city warehouse brought to life by contemporary furniture and finishes or a rural idyll seamlessly linked to a gorgeous garden, Hare + Klein's style is unmistakeable. Hare + Klein Interior showcases the signature use of texture, colour and scale in responsive interior design that has defined their practice to date. Featuring alluring photography, architectural sketches, fabric swatches and mood boards for fourteen properties, this, their second book, offers further insight into their design decisions and the stunning, timeless homes that they produce.

Download or read book The Bondi Lifesaver written by Craig Griffiths and published by . This book was released on 2019-12-20 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of a rock and roll fun park, much loved by the famous and not-so-famous, told by those who were there, which is tricky because they partied non-stop, rarely slept and brutalised their brain cells. From Bondi Beach to Kings Cross and the CBD there was just too much music to play or hear, too much excess to exceed and too much indulgence to overindulge in. But too much was never enough, and the Bondi Lifesaver was their clubhouse.

Download or read book The Iron Raven written by Julie Kagawa and published by HarperCollins Australia. This book was released on 2021-03-01 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Wicked faeries and fantastic danger… Welcome to book one of the new trilogy in New York Times bestselling author Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey fantasy series, as infamous prankster Puck finally has a chance to tell his story and stand with allies new and old to save Faery and the world. For fans of Holly Black and Cassandra Clare! ‘You may have heard of me…’ Robin Goodfellow. Puck. Prankster, joker, raven, fool…King Oberon’s right-hand jester from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The legends are many, but the truth will now be known as never before, as Puck finally tells his own story and faces a threat to the lands of Faery and the human world unlike any before. With the Iron Queen Meghan Chase and her prince consort, Puck’s longtime rival Ash, and allies old and new by his side, Puck begins a fantastical and dangerous adventure not to be missed or forgotten. Filled with myths and faery lore, romance and unfathomable dangers, The Iron Raven is book one of a new epic fantasy trilogy set in the world of The Iron Fey.

Download or read book The Italian Girl written by Anita Abriel and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2022-02-02 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fearless young Italian woman risks everything to save precious artworks from the Nazis in a gripping new tale from the bestselling author of The Light After the War. Rome, 1943: Marina Tozzi adores her father Vittorio and working together in his art gallery is her only escape from the reality of the Nazi occupation. Not only has Marina inherited her father’s passion for art but she is earning a reputation as an expert in her own right. However, Vittorio is keeping a deadly secret from his daughter. He has been hiding a Jewish artist in their basement and one day Marina returns home to find her father has been brutally murdered by a German officer. Devastated, Marina flees to Florence to seek help from a man who owes Vittorio his life. Renowned American art expert Bernard Berenson offers Marina sanctuary in his villa outside Florence and a job cataloguing his vast art library. Marina is grateful but she is determined to find a way to avenge her father. When handsome young artist Carlos proposes using her expertise to help the partisan cause against the Nazis, she has at last found her purpose. In one daring and ingenious act, Marina risks her life to save a priceless painting from falling into Nazi hands and proves her worth to the partisans. But falling in love with Carlos was not part of her plan. When Carlos suddenly disappears, Marina’s dreams about building a life with him after the war turn to ashes. She will have to travel halfway around the world to unravel the past – and find her future. ‘Inspiring, heartbreaking and full of courage, The Italian Girl is a stunning work of historical fiction. Abriel has delivered a compelling story that you won’t be able to put down … This is one WWII historical you won’t want to miss.’ Better Reading

Download or read book Rainfish written by Andrew Paterson and published by Text Publishing. This book was released on 2021-07-02 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2020 Text Prize. A humorous and poignant middle-grade story about a young boy grappling with guilt after stealing from the local church.

Download or read book The Hush written by Sara Foster and published by Blackstone Publishing. This book was released on 2021-11-02 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Everything can change in a heartbeat ... The pulse-pounding new thriller from the bestselling author of You Don’t Know Me Lainey’s friend Ellis is missing. And she’s not the only one. It’s been six months since the first case of a sudden epidemic—when a healthy baby wouldn’t take a breath at birth—and the country has been thrown into turmoil. The government has passed sweeping new laws to monitor all citizens. And several young pregnant women have vanished without trace. As a midwife, Lainey’s mum, Emma, is determined to be there for those who need her. But when seventeen-year-old Lainey finds herself in trouble, this dangerous new world becomes very real. The one person who might help is Emma’s estranged mother, but reaching out to her will put them all in jeopardy ... The Hush is a new breed of thriller, an unflinching look at a society close to tipping point and a story for our times, highlighting the power of female friendship through a dynamic group of women determined to triumph against the odds. Book discussion questions are available here: https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/www.blackstoneaudio.com/The_Hush_Discussion_Questions.pdf

Download or read book Well Behaved Women written by Emily Paull and published by . This book was released on 2019-12 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A woman grapples with survivor's guilt after a body is found in her garden bed; an ageing beauty queen contemplates her past; a world champion free-diver disappears during routine training¿In moments disquieting or quietly inspiring, this collection considers the complexity of the connections we make-with our family, friends and neighbours, and with those met briefly or never at all.In her timely debut, Emily Paull voices a chorus of characters that reveal and re-evaluate the expectations of women in Australia today-after all, well-behaved women rarely make history.

Download or read book The Truth About Her written by Jacqueline Maley and published by HarperCollins Australia. This book was released on 2021-04-01 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How can you write other people's stories, when you won't admit the truth of your own? A critically acclaimed, absorbing, moving, ruefully tender, witty and wise novel of marriage, motherhood and the paths we navigate through both, for fans of Ann Patchett and Anne Tyler. 'I loved The Truth About Her. It's an intelligent, compelling, nuanced tale of guilt, culpability, pride, shame and atonement. But most of all, it's a love letter to daughters, from the mothers who raise them. An astoundingly good debut.' Annabel Crabb Journalist and single mother Suzy Hamilton gets a phone call one summer morning, and finds out that the subject of one of her investigative exposes, 25-year-old wellness blogger Tracey Doran, has killed herself overnight. Suzy is horrified by this news but copes in the only way she knows how - through work, mothering, and carrying on with her ill-advised, tandem affairs. The consequences of her actions catch up with Suzy over the course of a sticky Sydney summer. She starts receiving anonymous vindictive letters and is pursued by Tracey's mother wanting her, as a kind of rough justice, to tell Tracey's story, but this time, the right way. A tender, absorbing, intelligent and moving exploration of guilt, shame, female anger, and, in particular, mothering, with all its trouble and treasure, The Truth About Her is mostly though a story about the nature of stories - who owns them, who gets to tell them, and why we need them. An entirely striking, stylish and contemporary novel, from a talented new writer. PRAISE FOR THE TRUTH ABOUT HER 'Heartfelt, funny and will resonate with many readers. This tender, witty and beautifully written novel is for fans of Georgia Blain, Charlotte Wood and Ann Patchett.' Books+Publishing 'An intimate world filled with characters I could have lived with a great deal longer... rewarding, enjoyable and utterly addictive.' Readings 'A stunning novel, sharply observed, beautifully written, enthralling.' Julia Baird 'Read the first sentence of Jacqueline Maley's debut novel, and you will be in it until the end. Electrifying, deeply unsettling and so, so satisfying. And, if you've ever tried to manage the sharp end of a career with the blunt demands of parenthood, fiercely recognisable.' Meg Mason, author of Sorrow and Bliss 'I loved The Truth About Her. I could not put it down - whip-smart, sexy and with so much heart - and god, that ending packed a punch. The sort of book that all mothers need to read.' Eliza Henry- Jones, author of In the Quiet and Ache

Download or read book After Story written by Larissa Behrendt and published by Univ. of Queensland Press. This book was released on 2021-07-02 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Indigenous lawyer Jasmine decides to take her mother, Della, on a tour of England's most revered literary sites, Jasmine hopes it will bring them closer together and help them reconcile the past. Twenty-five years earlier the disappearance of Jasmine's older sister devastated their tight-knit community. This tragedy returns to haunt Jasmine and Della when another child mysteriously goes missing on Hampstead Heath. As Jasmine immerses herself in the world of her literary idols &– including Jane Austen, the Bront&ë sisters and Virginia Woolf &– Della is inspired to rediscover the wisdom of her own culture and storytelling. But sometimes the stories that are not told can become too great to bear. Ambitious and engrossing, After Story celebrates the extraordinary power of words and the quiet spaces between. We can be ready to listen, but are we ready to hear?

Download or read book The Brightest Star written by Emma Harcourt and published by HarperCollins Australia. This book was released on 2022-07-01 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thirst for learning and a passion for astronomy draw an extraordinary young woman deep into the intellectual maelstrom, political complexities and religious extremism of Renaissance Florence. This beautifully crafted novel will appeal to readers of Karen Brooks' The Good Wife of Bath and Pip Williams' Dictionary of Lost Words. 1496 It is the height of the Renaissance and its flowering of intellectual and artistic endeavour, but the city state of Florence is in the grip of fundamentalist preacher Friar Girolamo Savonarola. Its good people believe the Lord speaks through him, just as certainly as the Sun circles the Earth. For Leonarda Lunetta, eldest daughter of the learned Signore Vincenzio Fusili, religion is not as interesting as the books she shares with her beloved father. Reading is an escape from the ridicule flung her way, for Luna is not like other girls. She was born with a misshapen leg and that, and her passion for intellectual pursuits alters how society sees her and how she sees the world. Luna wants to know, to learn, to become an astronomer who charts the night sky - certainly not the dutiful, marriageable daughter all of Florence society insists upon. So when Luna meets astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, she is not surprised that his heretical beliefs confirm her view that the world is not as it is presented - or how it could be. These dangerous ideas bring her into conflict with the preacher Savonarola, and her future is changed irrevocably as politics, extremism and belief systems ignite in a dangerous conflagration. Luna is a woman born out of time, the brightest star of her generation, but can she reconcile the girl of her father's making with this new version of herself? And if she does, will Renaissance Italy prove too perilous and dark a place for a free-thinking woman?