Space for me

What I'm Into October Edition

 Here is my very quick, last minute contribution to Leigh Kramer's link up

Books:

All the Birds, Singing Evie Wyld

No Place Like Home Caroline Overington

The Narrow Road To The Deep North Richard Flanagan

 

The new Alexander McCall Smith was, as always, a delight. Matthew Lee Anderson's The End of Our Exploring was challenging and intensely cerebral. Losing February was frustrating but interesting with a fully dimensional central character/narrator. (Sidenote: if you don't like any erotica in your fiction I wouldn't recommend this one!) No Place Like Home was up there with Overington's best. I Came To Say Goodbye is still my favourite but this one was fast paced and fascinating, tragedy alongside whip smart social commentary. Evie Wyld is new to me. All The Birds, Singing got inside my head in a not all together welcome way but she's an incredible storyteller and lyrical writer for sure.

Last but not least, the new Richard Flanagan, The Narrow Road To The Deep North. Words fail me completely. Doubtless one of the best novels I have ever read. Horrifying, tragic, illuminating, stark misery and transcendent beauty co-existing in one magnificent work. It's hard to recommend this one without extreme caution to sensitive readers but I truly believe it is essential reading for any Australian ...or human! If the competition wasn't so steep this year (um, Tim Winton anyone?) I'd say Miles Franklin winner for sure.

 

TV:

Ja'ime: Private School Girl*

Homeland

Wonderland Though it's really grown on me, the theme song is still my favourite thing. Here it is (with a little of the show's footage too):

 

 

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

*PSA - Ja'ime is a satire, folks. The outrage from one side and adulation from the other are both missing the point entirely.

What have you all been reading, watching, etc. in October? Looking forward to finding out over at Leigh's place

What I'm Into - September Edition

Read & Reading:

Cairo Chris Womersley: I loved the setting for this story; the intriguing, quirky characters and skillful weaving of fact and fiction. In my view, not as good as Bereft but still a great read.

When She Was Good Laura Lippman: I idly picked this up in the book shop and then proceeded to tear through madly! Compelling central character and narrative.

 Me Before You Jo Jo Moyes: I was never really a Moyes fan but this one came so highly recommended I had to give her another go. Adored it. Turned the pages late into the night and finished it heartbroken but curiously uplifted.

The Engagements J. Courtney Sullivan: Loved the weaving together of several different stories of love and marriage in various settings and times, all linked by one diamond. 

Lexicon Max Barry: Unlike anything I've ever read. Fascinating and fast paced, a unique exploration of the power of words.

If I Should Lose You Natasha Lester: Easily one of the most devastating books I've read this year. Brilliant. Proceed with caution.

Knitting & Other Stories: My favourite was Kristen Levitzke's Solomon's Baby but there were many other excellent, entertaining and moving short works here by local authors both emerging and established.

Faithful Place: Tana French can sure spin a ripping yarn. Read it if you thought your family was crazy!

* Click on images for affiliate Amazon links 

TV:

Yes, I'm still grieving Offspring and impatiently waiting for Puberty Blues but currently watching Wonderland. I don't love it but a couple of characters are growing on me. Despite the fact that it's a bit The Secret Life of Us meets Packed to the Rafters (with a little too much Rafters) there's something endearing and comforting about the show. I'll give it a little more time.

It's A Date Consistently snort laugh through this genius new Peter Helliar comedy.

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries fun and visually stunning crime caper (based, of course, on the wildly popular Kerry Greenwood novels) gets me in a whodunit mood before the grittier crime drama Scott and Bailey.

Of course I've also seen the final season but I can't even talk about Breaking Bad because it's not TV, it's REAL LIFE, isn't it? Also, it's too soon. Still processing. (and popping sedatives)

So what about you all? What have you been watching, reading, listening to in September?

As always, linking up with Leigh Kramer. Join us there?

 

What I'm Into July Edition

I'm going to keep this very brief today, folks. There are so many wonderful posts in this month's Hopefulleigh link-up I'd rather be perusing them (and I'm sure you would too!)

Here are four of the best books and four of the best TV shows I read/watched in July (you should read/watch them too!)

Books:

 

TV:

Broadchurch

The Time of Our Lives

A Place To Call Home

Offspring

Now I'm off to Leigh's place place to see what the rest of you all have been into. See you there!

What I'm Into - May/June Edition

Hello fellow Hopefulleigh link-upers! My post today pretty much covers what I've been reading and watching for the past two months. My Pa (grandfather) died quite unexpectedly at the end of last month and I missed posting for May in the week that followed. So, without further ado, here's a few books and shows that have brought me joy (or at least distraction!) during May and June:

Read and Reading:

         

 

The Shadow Year Absorbing and enjoyable read from Hannah Richell, author of Secrets of the Tides. Reminiscent of Donna Tartt's The Secret History.

Kind of Cruel intriguing crime drama by Sophie Hannah.

The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds The latest Isabel Dalhousie novel from the incomparable Alexander McCall Smith.

You'll Be Sorry When I'm Dead I didn't actually want to like this since Marieke Hardy is such a notoriously harsh critic. Unfortunately she can flat out write! Admittedly some of the essays were on subjects I have no interest in (ahem, swinging!) but her wit, honesty and exceptional turn of phrase kept me riveted regardless. I guess it's true there is nothing she won't try - or write about!

All Good Things The follow up to Sarah Turnbull's mega best seller, and my personal favourite, Almost French. I would have preferred more Paris again but Turnbull is certainly a wonderful memoirist and she evoked the beauty and history of Tahiti as well as the bittersweetness of infertility and eventually childbirth and new motherhood perfectly.

Farewell to the East End The third of Jennifer Worth's Call the Midwife memoirs; as ever challenging subject matter, faithfully chronicled.

Sparkly Green Earrings by Melanie Shankle. I got this one free on the kindle app. and must admit I was kind of glad I hadn't spent money on a paperback. Sometimes amusing but the tone wore on me a little. Maybe if I'd read more of Melanie's (very popular) blog first.

The Likeness by Tana French. Fascinating and very well written but didn't quite live up to the massive hype for me and I thought the resolution could've been better.

Broken Harbor by Tana French. Gripping from start to finish. Her characterisation and ability to convey a sense of place is genius.

The Hive by Gill Hornby. Fun, frothy but also well observed and insightful. I do find the idea that all female relationships conform to this 'Queen Bee' pattern a tad disturbing and hope it's not true!

Bread & Wine by Shauna Niequist. Utterly delicious, comforting and inspiring read. And there's recipes! I will try and write a proper review (read: gush!) in the coming weeks.

Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner. Very interesting exploration of Jewish traditions and practices but for me it fell short in application. Maybe, having grown up in the Seventh-Day Adventist faith tradition, I don't find ideas like observing Sabbath and dietary disciplines particularly revolutionary.

 

TV:

      

 

Packed To The Rafters (Top left) Only one more episode to go until we say goodbye to Australia's 'favourite family'. I've found the last couple of seasons a bit lack lustre but am still sad. The upside of the finale though should mean the return of Ben and perhaps even Rachel. 

Revenge finally caught the finale this week - sob! Gasp! Noooooo! (As you can see my thoughts on this are profound!)

Offspring (Top right) Of course I am loving this season. The new characters are interesting, there's more Clegg, Kim and Dr Noonan hilarity than ever. Kat Stewart is killing the Billie storylines and, is it just me, or are we getting even more shirtless Patrick action this season? Again, profound I know.

       

The Time Of Our Lives (Top left) New contemporary Australian drama. Feels like The Secret Life of Us went and grew up behind our backs! This could have the greatest ensemble cast I have ever seen and so far I'm absolutely loving it.

A Place To Call Home (Top right) just keeps getting better. The exploration of issues of class, religion and sexuality in 1950s Australia has been excellent. I'm particularly fascinated by the relationships between James and Olivia/James and Harry.

Endeavour The young Inspector Morse. So good. Okay, so Shaun Evans is no John Thaw (yet!) but I think he's doing a phenomenal job with the iconic and beloved character.

Now I don't have much to offer in the way of music but I'd certainly be remiss if I didn't share Ricky Martin and my man Luke Kennedy's duet from The Voice (Australia) finale. Enjoy!

 

 

So, what have you all been watching/reading/listening to this month? I'm looking forward to visiting as many of your sites as possible and finding out!

Imagine . . .

I was not raised with the belief that a person goes straight to heaven when they die.

My grandfather is in hospital this Friday evening. He is dying.

I don’t hold to the belief that upon death his soul will instantly be in God’s presence, surrounded by those who have gone before him.

But tonight it’s nice to imagine . . .

It’s nice to imagine my Granny, his wife, and my dad, his son, in a beautiful, peaceful place. A place where there is no old age or cancer or crying. A place where God lives. It’s nice to imagine that they are waiting patiently for him, ready with a rapturous welcome for when he leaves us still living ones behind.

I don’t really believe this . . . but it’s kind of nice to imagine . . .

 

This post is part of the Lisa-Jo Baker Five Minute Friday Link-up

View

I have been lucky with views all my life.

As a child I lived in a large farmhouse on a property in South West Australia. Our floor to ceiling lounge room windows, study, dining area, even kitchen glass overlooked citrus orchards and large paddocks; dry and brown in summer but bright green, fresh and liberally sprinkled with daisies in winter and spring.

When I was a teenager I lived in the hills surrounding Perth. From our house we could see the city centre; tiny, almost inconsequential in the distance.

After high school I stayed with my best friend’s family who had recently moved to Ireland, in a snug, kind of old timey house called Hazelwood Gables. Every morning and evening found us in the sunlit kitchen, drinking coffee and drinking in the view across the peaceful and glassy expanse of Galway bay.

Tonight, this is my view:

 

The sun is setting in the west across The Swan River. Sabbath is beginning. I plan to spend most of it gazing out at this scene; this view which changes with the soft dawn, the sometimes unbearably bright noon day sun spilling across tiles and carpets (and dust!), until the golden glow of tomorrow’s sunset will signal the end of another Sabbath day.

This is my view.

I have been lucky with views all my life.

This post is part of the Lisa-Jo Link-up

Top 10 Offspring Moments - Season Four Episode One

Well, it's official - Nina & Co. are back! With an absolute cracker of a first episode. Just for fun, and because this is the trivial person I am, I thought I'd try keeping a weekly record of my favourite moments and lines this season. So, without further preamble, here are my personal picks for Episode One:

 

1. Nina and Patrick's Counselling Session

As usual the most priceless soundbite involved Nina's neurotic interior monologue: "Hope we're his most fascinating clients . . . but, would that make us his craziest? We want to be respected. Intriguing but respected."

 

2. Patrick talking to the little boy in the hospital.

"Does cat want to come in the operation with you? We're going to have to give cat a special mask. Can you explain to him what happens so he doesn't freak out?" Swoon.

 

3. Nina's mental image of what the results might be if she and Patrick got some glamour pregnancy photographs done. Yikes!

 

4. Patrick making something from wood for the baby. Swoon part deux.

 

5. Patrick chatting with baby Alfie in the bassinet. Swoon trilogy concludes.

 

6. Clegg and Patrick at the family function:

C: "Any tips on how to handle this one, old friend?"

P: "Smile. Remain neutral."

C: "I am Switzerland."

P: "It helps to be flexible."

C: "I am a Swiss contortionist."

 

 7. Billie's emotional reaction to Nina's impassioned speech about "managing her pregnancy" ("I take preparation for parenthood VERY seriously!" "I'm going to be a mother!")

Kat Stewart is phenomenal and I truly think she and the writers nailed Billie's feelings regarding her own infertility and Nina having a child. It's not just a baby she desperately longs for but the identity (of motherhood) that is one of her deepest desires and that she may never have.

 

8. Mick and Billie's conversation at home after her abrupt exit from the party:

 

B: "I want to enjoy this adventure with my sister and I want to be supportive and gracious."

M: "I'm not sure if gracious is you . . . really."

B: "What, you're thinking more . . . strident, mean spirited . . . cow?"

M: "No. No! Strong. Generous. Honest. Magnificent!"

 

9. Eloise (Nina's new registrar) quickly walking away to avoid Patrick when she sees him with Nina. Ooh, intrigue! So keen to know what the back story is to this one. Can't wait to see the mystery unfold next week.

Let's end with another laugh, shall we?

 

10. Dr Noonan quote of the day:

"Zara, I'm a GP; I've encountered a lot of bowels over the years, hence my commitment to fibre!"

 

Happy Season 4 everyone - I'm sure we're going to love it!

 

Five Minute Friday: Song

I thought through this week's prompt just now in the shower; building up huge amounts of steam, lathering my hair and yes, if you must know, singing!

Now I'm in my soft, bright green robe, hunched over the computer with a towel around my head, tapping out my random thoughts about song.

One of my best friends in high school had this thing, based on the romantic notion of a couple's 'song' whereby he claimed that he had a song to represent each of his meaningful friendships, that listening to said song instantly reminded him of that person.

It's a fun thought experiment but sometimes this is not so easily predicted or contrived. Music is a funny and wondrous thing, how it weaves between and underpins and sometimes even creates our memories.

Sometimes song associations just seem kind of . . . wrong. For example, the aforementioned friend was my sister's ex-boyfriend and his song for her was U2's So Cruel. Lovely.

I myself cringe every time I hear Chris Isaak's Somebody's Crying, remembering a first love, some very awkward moments and a letter, thankfully unsent. I may or may not be blushing right now!

Paul Kelly's Bradman oddly reminds me of my dad and his bizarre (and very un-Australian!) antipathy toward 'The Don'.

But then, there are times when it's just exactly right:

Clare Bowditch's You Make Me Happy makes me smile and think of my beautiful younger sister.

That lovely old hymn Day is Dying in the West never fails to resurrect an image of my beloved grandparents, praying and reciting 1 Corinthians 13 together each evening of their 66 year marriage.

I feel a flash of pure remembered happiness when Crowded House's Four Seasons in One Day plays on the radio. I picture myself and a carload of friends barelling down Great Eastern Highway; all in our last year of high school, freedom like the open road at midnight stretching on ahead.

A disparate collection of musings on song, threads of melody woven through the fabric of memory. And with apologies to my old friend, picking songs for the moments and the people is not always so simple. The soundtrack to our lives is an unexpected one.

Linking up with Lisa-Jo Baker

 

 

Australian Television

 

This post is especially for Fiona Lynne who, during the most recent What I'm Into link up, said, "It’s funny that these British shows (Downton, Call the Midwife, Sherlock) are just going all over the world at the moment! Are there any Aussie shows we should be watching?!"

So, for my non-Aussie bloggy friends, here are my Top 5 Australian television programs (only includes those currently screening - wait for another post on past shows). This is by no means an exhaustive or 'Best Of' list; just my own favourites, in no particular order.

I've kept my descriptors short, sweet and spoiler free!

 

Packed To The Rafters

 

This family dramedy begins with Dave and Julie Rafter celebrating 25 years of marriage with their three grown children and relishing a newly empty nest. Of course it doesn't take long before that all changes.

For fans of Parenthood

 

A Place To Call Home

 

 

This new period drama opens in 1953 on an ocean liner travelling from England to Australia. A mysterious Australian nurse working on board crosses paths with the even more mysterious Bligh family. She discovers a potentially devastating secret about one family member but appears to be hiding a few more of her own.

Downton Abbey meets Revenge

 

Puberty Blues

 

 

Based on the bestselling coming of age novel by Gabrielle Carey and Kathy Lette, beloved characters are faithfully brought to life along with new and peripheral ones. The universal story of the treacherous path through adolescence is set in the unique and beautifully reconstructed era of 1970s Australia.

Mad Men meets Skins

 

Offspring

 

Equal parts hilarity and heartbreak, the story centers around thirty-something Melbourne obstetrican Nina Proudman, her colourful family and work colleagues, romantic misadventures and vivid fantasy life.

Ally McBeal meets Grey's Anatomy meets The Mindy Project - but so much better than all three!

 

House Husbands

 

 

The story of four men and four very different Melbourne families. From retired and twice divorced, Lewis, to hapless part-time worker, Mark, disgraced footballer and absentee father, Justin and stay at home gay dad, Kane; this show is less about gender stereotypes and more of a celebration of family, fatherhood and mateship.

Modern Family meets Married, Single, Other

If you don't live in Australia or New Zealand, some or all of these shows might be difficult to find but if you can, you know they have my stamp of approval - for whatever that's worth!

 

Comfort

This morning I took coffees and a boysenberry muffin to my best friend, stuck at home with her feisty, wriggly baby boy waiting for her leaking roof to get fixed after the last three stormy days.

We split a tin of baked beans on marmite toast for lunch and talked about baby food and sisters and our mutual disappointment in Downton Abbey.

The weather held off as I drove home. Swedish House Mafia and Macklemore and even Taylor Swift played on the radio and I didn't bother to change stations.

Now I am nestled in a comfy chair watching dark clouds scuttle across a still faintly blue sky.

'Scattered showers' - the weekend weather report sounds more like poetry than meterology.

I have a full-to-the-brim cup of Yorkshire Gold at my elbow and a sweet, soft cat that looks and smells like a tiny haystack (well, not so tiny, he could miss a meal or three!) in my lap.

I snort laugh through 10 minutes of Miranda before racing outside to yank the washing off the line when the rain starts coming down in earnest.

There are vacuum lines on the carpet and I think soup will do for tea.

Small comforts all. Today, they feel like enough.