Author Archives: susan

I discovered the pleasure of wandering through the garden with a free-floating attention, registering how the plants were changing, growing, ailing, fruiting. Gradually I thought about mundane tasks such as weeding, hoeing, and watering changed; I came to see that … Continue reading →

I like a bit of popular science, and find recent books dealing with the emerging and amazing research on the brain are especially fascinating. This one, by science journalist Caroline Williams, has a practical element too, which makes it fascinating … Continue reading →

I borrowed A Dream in the House from the Bendigo Library one sweltering summer in the early 1980s.  I thought it was very weird. Possibly the weirdest children’s book I’d ever read. Or was it just the heat, and fever … Continue reading →

Book groups. I’ve been in a couple, and they’re fun. Held after dinner, with wine (always with wine!) and something (from basic cheese-and-biscuits to lavish platters) to nibble. There is always a lot of talk, and only some of it … Continue reading →

I promised myself to read more new books this year (new to me, I mean), and so I have been trawling through the library catalogue and earmarking any titles that take my fancy. I have 21 books on reserve at … Continue reading →

Ten years ago, when I met my friends, we talked about our teenage children and our ageing parents. Now we talk about our own health. Most of us have something to whinge about and it seems we all have our … Continue reading →

In 1991, aged 32, I went overseas by myself for the first time. I felt both bold and scared as I headed off on my Grand Tour with a round-the-world fare. Air travel was expensive then – it cost me … Continue reading →

It starts with a can of paint. 13-year-old Rowan, helping her older sister Ash redecorate her bedroom, shifts a bookcase and finds a silver ring set with a sea-glass stone. The chance-found (or was it?) ring has the power to … Continue reading →

A lot of reading lately, but no writing. Exactly three years after the original covid lockdown in Victoria, I finally caught the virus. That was three weeks ago, and I’m only just emerging from the illness. I have to say, … Continue reading →

I guess you would call me a ‘progressive’ or ‘liberal’ voter, so I felt a surge of joy when the results of the last federal election were announced. I was elated, not because Anthony Albanese is some kind of visionary … Continue reading →