To every book there is a season
In my late teens, the movie Reality Bites spoke to me. All of that teen angst, the heartfelt pronouncements and…
Shed the book shame and get back to enjoying reading
The Book Club on the ABC is polling Australia’s favourite books released in 2017. Wonderful, I thought. I’ll have a…
What kids really want to read
One thing teachers learn early on in their careers is that no child is alike. Each is an amalgam of…
Seeing the walkman, Salt ‘n’ Pepa and the Australian schoolyard through new eyes
Pop culture has a way of marking a generation. Those who spent their childhood and teen years listening to the…
I have mixed feelings about improved internet on my commute
One of the big frustrations of an hour-long commute to work is the poor internet reception on the train. Between…
One theme is at home in most of our literature
Readers can travel to far flung places in the pages of a book. They can see life from the lofty…
Let’s stop thinking of libraries as gifts, but as wise investments
There are plenty of things that young generations feel aggrieved about being saddled with. Climate change for one and a…
Chasing a sense of community by the book
There are times in life when the goodwill of others is more obvious than usual. When you are walking using…
Some books bring the horror of war too close to home
Some scenes in The Narrow Road to the Deep North are hard to read and impossible to forget. Based on…
Autobiography suffers from a missing chapter
“Everyone has a chapter they don’t read out loud.” (Anonymous) Bob Dylan’s memoir might be as lyrical as his songs…
