Fourteen year old Cindy leads a brutally unhappy life. Her parents are elsewhere, leaving Cindy in the care of her older brothers, who have little interest – to say the least – in looking after her. But when another local teenager, Jude, goes missing, Cindy perversely sees an opportunity to improve her lot, in Marilou Is Everywhere (published by Penguin Books Australia, 28 September 2021), the debut novel of American author Sarah Elaine Smith.
Jude’s mother Bernadette, afflicted by alcoholism and mental illness, seems unaware her daughter vanished on a camping trip with friends, and unwittingly accepts Cindy as a surrogate. While Cindy is fully aware her charade is all shades of wrong, her longing for the presence of a loving parent, and a happy, stable, family life, is far more compelling.
Michael Schaub, writing for NPR, describes Marilou Is Everywhere as “a novel of stunning emotional intelligence, and Cindy an unforgettable character, but it’s Smith’s writing that’s the real star of the book. Her language is hypnotic and enchanting, with lines that read like poetry.” Sometimes it’s not so much the story, as the way it’s written, that draws me to a book, so this is a title I look forward to reading.
The shortlist for the (Australian) Prime Minister’s Literary Awards was unveiled last week. The awards recognise a broad spectrum of Australian writing, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, Australian history, young adult, and children’s literature. A generous A$80,000 prize (tax free) is on offer to the overall winner, a nice shot in the arm for someone’s future writing endeavours, while all shortlisted authors receive $5,000 each.
Andrew Pippos, Evie Wyld, and Amanda Lohrey, are among contenders in the fiction category. The winner will be announced in early December, 2021.
[A Hero] is the story of Rahim (Amir Jadidi), who is in prison for a debt that he was unable to pay. During a two-day leave, an act of kindness provides him with an opportunity to convince his creditor to withdraw the complaint so he can go free, but not everything goes as planned.
But not everything goes as planned… this is the hallmark of Farhadi’s work. A relatively minor incident occurs. Those in the vicinity scramble to cover their tracks because they have something to hide. But it’s too late, and from there things quickly spiral out of control. If you’re new to Farhadi’s films I suggest you look at About Elly, A Separation, and The Past to get started.
It’s not exactly fiction, but I couldn’t go passed the concept behind No. 91/92: A Parisian Bus Diary (published by Tablo Tales, 2021), written by London based American-French author Lauren Elkin. Partly because it’s sometimes the way I use my phone – though not so much for keeping a dairy of what I see and hear on my travels on public transport – and partly because I think it’s such great idea.
For seven months, between September 2014 and May 2015, using the notes app on her iPhone, while commuting on the number ninety-one and ninety-two buses, to a teaching job, Elkin tapped in observations she made along the way. Perhaps not the way most people might use their smartphones, but Elkin’s aim was “to observe the world through the screen of my phone, rather than to use my phone to distract myself from the world.”
It makes me think, what if a copy of this book were given to every commuter? Might it prompt one or two people to think about how they spend their travel time, and who knows, consider using it differently, more – dare I say it – productively? And potentially end up a published author as a result: how does that sound for an enticement? It’s surprising how much is going on in the world, when we tune into it.
It’s been a long week. I think this calls for a quiet night in, watching a nice movie. Do you think Malignant (trailer), the latest feature from James Wan, starring Annabelle Wallis, is a good choice?
He said he had struggled to shut down the persistent rumours that Silverchair, who split in 2011, would one day reform. “I was like, ‘This is really starting to effect my mental health’. Because I am saying ‘that’s it’, and every time I try to tell the truth, someone told a lie,” he told The Project. “So I was like, ‘I wouldn’t get Silverchair back together with a gun to my head for $1 million’. Maybe that was too harsh in hindsight.”
Hope springs eternal I think. In a note posted to Silverchair’s Facebook page in May 2011, the band said they were going into “indefinite hibernation.” It might have suggested to some fans a return was on the cards at some point. John’s conversation with The Project can be streamed here until about 20 January 2022.
The mentorship is awarded annually to an unpublished Indigenous writer who has made substantial progress on a work of fiction or non-fiction. The intention of the program is to support the writer to develop their manuscript and to facilitate a pathway to publication.
But I Give My Marriage a Year is more than eye-catching cover design, and a pithy title, it’s like having seats centre stage while you watch two sports teams you know nothing about, go head to head. Sydneysiders Lou and Josh have been married for fourteen years. They have two children, and live in the city’s inner western suburbs. But their marriage has lulled into a void.
Lou decides it’s time to take action. Or more to the point, to make a plan to take action. For twelve months she will subject her relationship with Josh, who works as a carpenter, but would rather be in a band, to a number of stress tests. At the end of the year, she will assess the outcomes and make a final decision, does she leave Josh, or does she stay?
That leaves the reader to decide who they’ll back. And the choice may not be all that simple. Both players will break rules and land low blows. But the best in both Lou and Josh will also come to the fore. Will there be only one winner, or can the spoils of victory be shared? And without any further delay I shall add I Give My Marriage a Year to my to-be-read list.
Sydney based Australian author Charlotte Wood speaks to Jemma Birrell, creative director at Tablo Publishing, and host of the Secret Life of Writers podcast. Wood, who is based in Sydney’s bustling inner west, speaks of the quiet she finds on the NSW Central Coast, something conducive to her writing. That I can go for. Fascinating to hear Wood describe her writing journey. She started out wanting to write, but not knowing what to write.
