The Labyrinth: Winner of the 2021 Miles Franklin Literary Award

Author: Amanda Lohrey
Publisher: Text Publishing
ISBN: 1922458465
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 255

Book Description
Erica Marsden’s son, an artist, has been imprisoned for homicidal negligence. In a state of grief, Erica cuts off all ties to family and friends, and retreats to a quiet hamlet on the south-east coast near the prison where he is serving his sentence. There, in a rundown shack, she obsesses over creating a labyrinth by the ocean. To build it—to find a way out of her quandary—Erica will need the help of strangers. And that will require her to trust, and to reckon with her past. The Labyrinth is a hypnotic story of guilt and denial, of the fraught relationship between parents and children, that is also a meditation on how art can both be ruthlessly destructive and restore sanity. This multi-award-winning bestseller shows Amanda Lohrey to be at the peak of her powers.

The Labyrinth: Winner of the 2021 Miles Franklin Literary Award

Author: Amanda Lohrey
Publisher: Text Publishing
ISBN: 1925923541
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 255

Book Description
A moving tale of grief, community and the possibility of starting over, by an award-winning Australian author

A Short History of Richard Kline

Author: Amanda Lohrey
Publisher: Black Inc.
ISBN: 1925203042
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 207

Book Description
I woke with a gasp. And lay in the dark, open-mouthed, holding my breath. That feeling . . . that feeling was indescribable. For a moment I had felt as if I were falling . . . falling into bliss. All his life, Richard Kline has been haunted by a sense that something is lacking. He envies the ease with which others slip into contented suburban life or the pursuit of wealth. As he moves into middle age, Richard grows angry, cynical, depressed. But then a strange event, a profound epiphany, awakens him to a different way of life. He finds himself on a quest, almost against his will, to resolve the “divine discontent” he has suffered since childhood. From pharmaceuticals to New Age therapies to finding a guru, Richard's journey dramatises the search for meaning in today's world. This audacious novel is an exploration of masculinity, the mystical and our very human yearning for something more. It is hypnotic, nuanced and Amanda Lohrey's finest offering yet - a pilgrim's progress for the here and now. Shortlisted, 2015 Queensland Literary Awards Shortlisted, 2015 Tasmanian Premier's Literary Prizes Longlisted, 2016 Stella Prize ‘Lohrey’s language throughout the novel is a searing delight ... Without patronising, disparaging or becoming a sentimental accomplice, she gets inside the head of a serious man congenitally on the brink.’ —Age ‘The nature of such mystical questing requires a steadiness of pace and a commanding style in order to prevent it floating up and away into the unfathomable ... Lohrey’s skill is in keeping us suspended in the cocoon of an idea – “Is this all there is?’ – a question that hums in and out of our own lives during the day, but which can suddenly ring out on dark nights with a deafening thunder.’ —Saturday Paper ‘[A] lyrical, bold exploration’ —Australian Book Review Amanda Lohrey is the author of the acclaimed novels Camille’s Bread, Vertigo and The Morality of Gentlemen, as well as the award-winning short story collection Reading Madame Bovary. She has also written two Quarterly Essays: Groundswell and Voting for Jesus. In 2012 she was awarded the Patrick White Literary Award.

The Rain Heron

Author: Robbie Arnott
Publisher: FSG Originals
ISBN: 0374722897
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 288

Book Description
"Astonishing...With the intensity of a perfect balance between the mythic and the real, The Rain Heron keeps turning and twisting, taking you to unexpected places. A deeply emotional and satisfying read. Beautifully written." --Jeff VanderMeer, author of Borne. One of LitHub's Most Anticipated Books of 2021. A gripping novel of myth, environment, adventure, and an unlikely friendship, from an award-winning Australian author Ren lives alone on the remote frontier of a country devastated by a coup d'état. High on the forested slopes, she survives by hunting, farming, trading, and forgetting the contours of what was once a normal life. But her quiet stability is disrupted when an army unit, led by a young female soldier, comes to the mountains on government orders in search of a legendary creature called the rain heron—a mythical, dangerous, form-shifting bird with the ability to change the weather. Ren insists that the bird is simply a story, yet the soldier will not be deterred, forcing them both into a gruelling quest. Spellbinding and immersive, Robbie Arnott’s The Rain Heron is an astounding, mythical exploration of human resilience, female friendship, and humankind’s precarious relationship to nature. As Ren and the soldier hunt for the heron, a bond between them forms, and the painful details of Ren’s former life emerge—a life punctuated by loss, trauma, and a second, equally magical and dangerous creature. Slowly, Ren's and the soldier’s lives entwine, unravel, and ultimately erupt in a masterfully crafted ending in which both women are forced to confront their biggest fears—and regrets. Robbie Arnott, one of Australia’s most acclaimed young novelists, sews magic into reality with a steady, confident hand. Bubbling with rare imagination and ambition, The Rain Heron is an emotionally charged and dazzling novel, one that asks timely yet eternal questions about environment, friendship, nationality, and the myths that bind us.

Amnesty

Author: Aravind Adiga
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1982127317
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Book Description
An “urgent and significant book [that] speaks to our times” (The New York Times Book Review) from the bestselling, Man Booker Prize–winning author of The White Tiger and Selection Day about a young illegal immigrant who must decide whether to report crucial information about a murder—and thereby risk deportation. Danny—formerly Dhananjaya Rajaratnam—is an illegal immigrant in Sydney, Australia, denied refugee status after he fled from Sri Lanka. Working as a cleaner, living out of a grocery storeroom, for three years he’s been trying to create a new identity for himself. And now, with his beloved vegan girlfriend, Sonja, with his hidden accent and highlights in his hair, he is as close as he has ever come to living a normal life. But then one morning, Danny learns a female client of his has been murdered. The deed was done with a knife, at a creek he’d been to with her before; and a jacket was left at the scene, which he believes belongs to another of his clients—a doctor with whom Danny knows the woman was having an affair. Suddenly Danny is confronted with a choice: Come forward with his knowledge about the crime and risk being deported? Or say nothing, and let justice go undone? Over the course of this day, evaluating the weight of his past, his dreams for the future, and the unpredictable, often absurd reality of living invisibly and undocumented, he must wrestle with his conscience and decide if a person without rights still has responsibilities. “Searing and inventive,” Amnesty is a timeless and universal story that succeeds at “illuminating the courage of displaced peoples and the cruelties of those who conspire against them” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis).

Out of the Forest

Author: Gregory Smith
Publisher: Random House Australia
ISBN: 014378529X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 352

Book Description
What makes a man turn his back on society? What makes him return? For years a man calling himself Will Power lived in near-total isolation in northern New South Wales, foraging for food, eating bats and occasionally trading for produce. But who was this mysterious man who roamed the forest and knew all of its secrets and riddles? Some people thought he might be Jesus. Others feared he was a more sinister figure. The truth was that he was neither miraculous nor malevolent, but he was, most certainly, gifted. And when he finally emerged from the forest, emaciated and close to death, he was determined to reclaim his real name and ‘give society another chance’. Today, Dr Gregory Peel Smith, who left school at the age of fourteen, has a PhD and teaches in the Social Sciences at university. His profoundly touching and uplifting memoir is at once a unique insight into how far off track a life can go and powerful reminder that we can all find our way back if we pause for a moment in the heart of the forest.

Lucky's

Author: Andrew Pippos
Publisher: Picador Australia
ISBN: 1760983705
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 316

Book Description
Lucky's is a story of family. A story about migration. It is also about a man called Lucky. His restaurant chain. A fire that changed everything. A New Yorker article which might save a career. The mystery of a missing father. An impostor who got the girl. An unthinkable tragedy. A roll of the dice. And a story of love - lost, sought and won again (at last). Following a trail of cause and effect that spans decades, this unforgettable epic tells a story about lives bound together by the pursuit of love, family, and new beginnings. WINNER OF THE READINGS PRIZE FOR NEW AUSTRALIAN FICTION 2021 SHORTLISTED FOR THE MUD LITERARY PRIZE 2021 SHORTLISTED FOR ABIA MATT RICHELL NEW WRITER OF THE YEAR 2021 SHORTLISTED FOR THE MILES FRANKLIN LITERARY AWARD 2021 SHORTLISTED FOR THE PRIME MINISTER'S LITERARY AWARDS FOR FICTION 2021 HIGHLY COMMENDED FOR 2021 ARA HISTORIAL NOVEL PRIZE Praise for Lucky's 'Andrew Pippos has written an unforgettable epic with Australian humour and Greek tragedian turns on every page. Such skill and heart and love pulses through this debut!' - Alice Pung 'A sweeping, sprawling family epic of heartbreak, hope, and redemption. This is the debut of a born storyteller.' - Liam Pieper 'Affecting, authentic and tender' - Rebecca Starford 'A gorgeous novel of wonderful characters, Lucky's is the real deal and I didn't want it to stop. I was so caught up in the casual charm of this book that I kept being sideswiped by the excellent turns of its plot, and the wise, sometimes disturbing things it has to say about fate, luck and family over the sweep of decades.' - Ronnie Scott 'From the first pages of this debut novel, it is clear that we are in the hands of a wise, perceptive, and highly-skilled storyteller. Pippos brilliantly distills multiple stories to those pure moments of love, despair, passion and folly that make up the essence of a life, and his fierce and fragile characters will remain in your heart long after the final page. The writing is fresh and fairly crackles with energy. Lucky's is one of the best Australian novels I've read in years!' - Emily Bitto 'Crisp and evocative' - Rick Morton 'A mouthwatering tale that encapsulates family drama, true crime and Greek tragedy - with pathos-filled characters that pop' - Guardian 'A hugely entertaining, tender, rollicking yarn. Part immigration story, part love story, part adventure, it's a multi-layered original Australian story.' - Sydney Morning Herald 'Lucky's is a bold novel, both backwards- and forwards-looking, a strong start to a career, and a timely reminder that an individual's life story can be quietly vast.' - The Australian 'Pippos writes towards myth while grounding his book in deeply human themes. Lucky's is concerned with the stories we tell ourselves and the chasm between fact and fiction, the space where happiness may lie.' - Australian Book Review 'This is a novel that I'd like everyone to read...Lucky's is a beautiful reminder that lives can be reinvented, that the bad things will eventually give way to the good ones, and that the change we seek could be right around the corner.' - Kill Your Darlings 'One of the most impressive and appealing Australian debuts novels of 2020 - or, frankly, any year, and you can scratch the adjective "debut" from that description too.' - Readings 'From reading this magnificent debut, it's clear that Andrew Pippos will go down as one of the finest Australian storytellers of his generation ... Pippos dictates the conventions of our humanity perfectly, giving to us the definition of a Greek tragedy interpersed within what is sure to become an Australian classic.' - Glam Adelaide 'Grand, evocative and generous storytelling mark out Lucky's as one of the most rewarding Australian debuts of 2020 ... A wild and sprawling story is rendered with precision and depth. Every page is a reward for the reader.' - Booktopia

The Wingmaker

Author: Mette Jakobsen
Publisher: Text Publishing
ISBN: 1922459135
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 211

Book Description
A mesmerizing otherworldly tale about love, memory and redemption from a masterly Australian storyteller

The Mother

Author: Jane Caro
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
ISBN: 1761063898
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 331

Book Description
From the Walkley Award winning journalist, social commentator and author comes a gripping domestic thriller with a moral dilemma at its core. 'A timely, tense and important story that takes you to the heart of a toxic relationship, fighting to get free.' Michael Robotham Just like the garden, the fuse box, the bills, bin night and blown light bulbs, this was just something else she'd now have to take care of herself. Recently widowed, Miriam Duffy is a respectable North Shore real estate agent and devoted mother and grandmother. She was thrilled when her younger daughter Ally married her true love, but as time goes by Miriam wonders whether all is well with Ally, as she moves to the country and gradually withdraws, finding excuses every time Miriam offers to visit. Their relationship has always had its ups and downs, and Miriam tries to give her daughter the distance she so clearly wants. But is all as it seems? When the truth of her daughter's situation is revealed, Miriam watches in disbelief as Ally and her children find themselves increasingly vulnerable and cut off from the world. As the situation escalates and the law proves incapable of protecting them, Miriam is faced with an unthinkable decision. But she will do anything for the people she loves most in the world. Wouldn't you? 'The vivid and gripping tale of a young family in danger and the mother who will do anything to save them. I couldn't put it down. Passionate, vivid and unsettling, this heart-stopping tale had me transfixed.' Suzanne Leal, author of The Teacher's Secret

The Yield

Author: Tara June Winch
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063003481
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 344

Book Description
Winner of the 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award and 2021 Kate Challis RAKA Award! "A beautifully written novel that puts language at the heart of remembering the past and understanding the present."—Kate Morton “A groundbreaking novel for black and white Australia.”—Richard Flanagan, Man Booker Prize winning author of The Narrow Road to the Deep North A young Australian woman searches for her grandfather's dictionary, the key to halting a mining company from destroying her family's home and ancestral land in this exquisitely written, heartbreaking, yet hopeful novel of culture, language, tradition, suffering, and empowerment in the tradition of Louise Erdrich, Sandra Cisneros, and Amy Harmon. Knowing that he will soon die, Albert “Poppy” Gondiwindi has one final task he must fulfill. A member of the indigenous Wiradjuri tribe, he has spent his adult life in Prosperous House and the town of Massacre Plains, a small enclave on the banks of the Murrumby River. Before he takes his last breath, Poppy is determined to pass on the language of his people, the traditions of his ancestors, and everything that was ever remembered by those who came before him. The land itself aids him; he finds the words on the wind. After his passing, Poppy’s granddaughter, August, returns home from Europe, where she has lived the past ten years, to attend his burial. Her overwhelming grief is compounded by the pain, anger, and sadness of memory—of growing up in poverty before her mother’s incarceration, of the racism she and her people endured, of the mysterious disappearance of her sister when they were children; an event that has haunted her and changed her life. Her homecoming is bittersweet as she confronts the love of her kin and news that Prosperous is to be repossessed by a mining company. Determined to make amends and honor Poppy and her family, she vows to save their land—a quest guided by the voice of her grandfather that leads into the past, the stories of her people, the secrets of the river. Told in three masterfully woven narratives, The Yield is a celebration of language and an exploration of what makes a place "home." A story of a people and a culture dispossessed, it is also a joyful reminder of what once was and what endures—a powerful reclaiming of Indigenous language, storytelling, and identity, that offers hope for the future.