Page 4 of our reviews
Crimson by Niviaq Korneliussen
Niviaq Korneliussen begins her novel Crimson with a letter to the reader: ‘I began creating characters and stories on paper and suddenly the whole world was available to me.’
Crimson, originally tit…
Working Class Boy (DVD)
‘Flame Trees’ is my favourite Cold Chisel song. I love its yearning; the way it coils into a melancholy, regretful tone. But for its vocalist, it’s not an easy song to sing. In Working Class Boy, Jim…
Arvo Pärt by Viktoria Mullova & Paavo Järvi
When I worked Sunday evenings at Readings in Carlton (some few years ago now) one of my favourite albums to put on in the shop to bring the vibe down and yet give it a frisson of emotion was Arvo Pär…
Himmelsmusik
The celebrated Baroque harpist and theorbo player (a type of lute) Christina Pluhar is a favourite of Readings. She has consistently released superb albums bringing a new life to early European music…
Sea Glass by Grand Salvo
Paddy Mann’s seventh album as Grand Salvo, and – the first in six years – follows his full-hearted embrace of a theme for each record he creates. The opening track, ‘A Flux of Moments’, swells with t…
Schmelzer: The Emperor’s Fiddler
Relatively little is known about Austrian composer Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (1623–1680), despite being described during his lifetime as ‘the famous and just about foremost violinist of all Europe’. …
Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
I have sold hundreds of Liane Moriarty books in my time at Readings, but I hadn’t read one myself until a friend suggested I read Truly, Madly, Guilty. I was instantly hooked! Like all Moriarty fans,…
Love is Blind by William Boyd
I have to confess that William Boyd is one of my favourite authors; his Any Human Heart is probably his best but Love is Blind comes close. It’s an exotic and sad love story that kept me wanting more…
The Year of the Farmer by Rosalie Ham
No one does Australian Gothic quite like Rosalie Ham. Her sun-soaked revenge fantasy, The Dressmaker, captured a particular side of rural Australia – one steeped in malice, jealousy, bitter rivalries…
The Skylarks' War by Hilary McKay
For all the children who loved The War That Saved My Life and its sequel by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, this beautiful story is an excellent addition to the genre.
Clarry and her brother live a drear…
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