what the world will look like when all the water leaves us
Laura van den Berg
Scribe 2011
ISBN: 9781921640896
$25.95
192 pp

Never judge a book by its cover; I know this but judge it I did – by its cover and by its title.  The title (taken from the closing story) misled me, as this is not a book about environmental issues although issues of species survival come up in a few instances.  The stories in this collection are about the internal environments of a number of women.  A better title may have been taken from the opening story: ‘where we must be’.

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The Pen and the Stethoscope
Ed: Leah Kaminsky
Scribe Publishing 2010
ISBN: 9781921640735
$32.95
240 pp

This is a strange collection – an anthology of stories and essays linked only by the fact that all the writers are, or once were, doctors.  The nine non-fiction pieces hang together through their subject matter; however, only a few of the six fictional short stories obviously owe something to the medical training of their authors.  Nevertheless, every piece entertains or informs or both and I enjoyed them all.

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New Australian Stories 2
Ed: Aviva Tuffield
Scribe Publishing 2010
ISBN: 9781921640865
$29.95
346 pp

With this second, large offering of short stories (36 examples of the art), Scribe is indicating a commitment as a publisher to add to the regular anthologies now available to Australian readers.  Among the many writers I had not previously come across, there are also a number of familiar names.

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War Dances
Sherman Alexie
Scribe 2010
ISBN: 9781921640803
$26.95
224 pp

Sherman Alexie is a native American and many of his stories and poems in this collection make this obvious.  Other pieces ignore it completely.  He sometimes refers to himself as a “part-time Indian”.  He treats his ancestry with humour and lightness, while also exposing the mistreatment of natives by others and the pain this brings. (more…)

Speaking Volumes: Conversations with remarkable writers
Ramona Koval
ISBN: 9781921640612
$35 417 pp
Scribe 2010

The name and voice of Ramona Koval are well known to many Australians as the presenter of the long-running ABC Radio National program The Book Show, where she interviews many writers and talks about their work and about writing generally.  She is passionate about what she does and adds to this an intelligence and compassion that makes listening to her and her guests a pleasure.  She is so good at what she does that she is frequently invited to moderate discussions and conduct interviews with writers around the world. (more…)

The Vitamin D Solution
Michael F Holick
Scribe 2010
ISBN: 9781921640520
$35
336 pp including bibliography and index

At the outset I need to declare a possible conflict of interest: I work part-time for a company in Melbourne that manufactures vitamin D supplements in oral and injectable form.  However, that, and my sixteen years working for the Australasian College of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, gives me the knowledge and insight to read this book intelligently and review it. (more…)

Sarah’s Last Wish: a chilling glimpse into forced medicine
Eve Hillary
2010
ISBN: 9780980662900
$29.95
348 pp with images + references

I have found this book very difficult to read, because it is so well written.  It is the subject of the book that has gripped me by the throat and made breathing difficult.  Eve Hillary is a masterful storyteller and this book is a fine tribute to a courageous girl and her family and a powerful condemnation of professional incompetence and negligence, unethical behaviour and bureaucratic excesses. (more…)

The Quest for Justice
Ken Crispin
Scribe 2010
ISBN: 9781921640438
$35
290 pp + notes

This is above all a thoughtful work.  The author assumes the reader to be intelligent and he treats the reader with respect.  It is not a dispassionate book – Ken Crispin’s hopes and aspirations for society are clearly stated.  He also expresses little patience with those who would impose their prejudices and bigotry on others. (more…)

If I loved you, I would tell you this
Robin Black
Scribe, Melbourne, 2010
ISBN: 9781921640421
PB, 268 pp   $32.95

This is very welcome addition to my short story collections shelf.

It has been said that, while in a novel there is a need for a plot and the development of characters, the short story need be no more than just that: a fragment of life, an interesting tale with a cameo of characters.  Then you come across a writer like Robin Black and you learn that a short story can be a novel in miniature.  (more…)

Etchings Indigenous: Black and Sexy
(anthology)
Ilura Press, Melbourne, 2010
ISBN: 9781921325137
PB, 176 pp

There is an underlying tension in this collection of work by Aboriginal writers and artists, that reflects the real tension between Aborigines and the wider community in Australia.  This wider community is certainly not homogeneous, with its sometimes disparate ethnic groups, the result of waves of migration from different parts of the world.  I myself was part of such a wave in 1955.  As a society, we manage to eventually feel fairly comfortable with each ‘new’ ethnic group that comes to this country.  We accept the differences or cease to notice them. (more…)