Helen Forrester

English Family Stories are ever popular, and authors such as Catherine Cookson are still among the most requested of authors in libraries. Sadly in 2011 two best selling authors in this genre passed away and we have some of their timeless works in our collection…

First up we have Helen Forrester. Helen was born 1919 in Cheshire to an upper middle class family, however during  the depression her family lost their wealth and were plunged into poverty. They moved to Liverpool in the hope of finding work, but economically things were just as bad there. As the eldest child, Helen took care of her six younger siblings and due to her family duties, she stopped attending school from the age of 11, but at the age of 14 she forced her parents to allow her to attend night school.

Her first autobiographical work was written in response to a critic of her fiction who claimed she would have little real understanding of poverty. ”Twopence to Cross the Mersey’ was published in 1974 and is considered to have been the first of it’s kind in depicting the harsh lives of families during the 30′s depression.

Twopence to Cross the Mersey - deals with Helens childhood in Liverpool 

By The Waters Of Liverpool - about her adolescence and struggle for independence.

Lime Street at Two - about her life during the war years in Liverpool

Her family fiction includes such titles as …

Liverpool Basque

Mourning Doves

Iain Blair whose pen name was Emma Blair

The second author is Iain Blair who wrote under the pseudonym Emma Blair. Iain was born in Glasgow in 1942, and before he became and author he was a journalist and actor. He ended his acting career after waiting to audition for a role in Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark. After being kept waiting by the great director for hours, he was finally asked by Spielberg if he could  come back the next day to audition. Blair shot back at him, “No I F*****g Can’t!

After penning some unsuccessful thrillers, he started writing romance fiction, and his publishers thought it best that he adopt a female name to increase sales. Most of his books were set in Scotland and dealt not only with romance, but with the social and economic conditions of the times in which they were set.

Under the pen name Emma Blair he became one of britains most popular authors, writing about 30 novels over 30 years. His true identity remained a secret until 1998, when his novel The Flower of Scotland was nominated for the Romantic Novel of the Year Award.

We have The Flower of Scotland in the library as well as others by this author…

Jessie Gray

Twilight Time also in 7 vols of Braille

This Side of heaven also in 7 vols of Braille

Also on Hear This, Gavin Butler called in to talk about some  books in the collection.

 For rock music lovers ….

 Real Wild Child: An Insiders Tales from the Rage Couch by   Narelle Gee, also in 4 vols of Braille

 Thirteen Tonne Theory: Life Inside Hunters and Collectors by Mark Seymour

Sideshow: The Dumbing Down of Democracy by Lindsay Tanner.

In Gael’s Library News…

Out of the Vaults: Henry Lawson – The Man and the Legend

Where: State Library of NSW

When: 19 Jan 2012, 5:30PM – 7:30PM

Cost: $25 drinks and canapes provided

Email: bookings@sl.nsw.gov.au

Telephone:  2 9273 1770

Books by Henry Lawson in the Library…

A Camp-fire Yarn: Complete Works 1887-1891

A Camp-fire Yarn 2: Complete Works 1892-1893

A Campfire Yarn 4: Complete Works 1899-1900. In these volumes, the works are arranged chronologically and thematically, showing Lawson’s progression of ideas, themes and influences on his work. His poetry and prose blend together giving an insight into Henry Lawson’s world and mind.

You can read a short biography of Lawson from the The Australian Dictionary of Biography

The next Library event is a good one for those wanting to start the new year with a clean sweep of the broom….

Feng Shiu and Chinese Astrology

Where: Narre Warren Library

Overland Drive, Fountain Park

When: January 24th 7pm-8pm

Bookings: event is free buy bookings are essential on 03 9704 7696

For more than 10 years, Edgar (Lok Tin) Yung, a Feng Shui and Chinese astrology consultant, has been using his knowledge learned from Hong Kong masters to assist Melbourne’s Chinese community.

Feng Shui is about changing your environment to your advantage and, by learning techniques, you can enhance your life. Edgar will help to provide insights into understanding your personality, potential, wealth, health, career path, relationship and luck cycles.

Some books in the Library on the topic…

Feng Shui by Stephen Skinner

Feng Shui for Australians by Gerry Heaton

We also have an entertaining Mystery series featuring a Feng Shui consultant by Nury Vittachi.

From the Synopsis of the first book The Feng Shui Detective ( also in 4 vols of Braille) -  Mr Wong is a feng shui consultant, but his cases tend to involve a lot more than just interior decoration. You see, Wong specialises in a certain type of problem premises: crime scenes. His latest case involves a mysterious young woman who, according to a psychic reading, is doomed to die. Wong and his brash teenaged Aussie-American intern make a strange pair indeed as they travel around Singapore solving crimes while trying to decipher each other’s language and behaviour.

Further titles in this light and entertaining series are …

The Shanghai Union of Industrial Mystics also in 4 vols of

The Feng Shui Detective’s Casebook. also in 4 vols of Braille

Mr Wong Goes West also in 3 vols of Braille

Thats all for this week and we hope you find some books of interest!!

USA postal stamp issued for World Braille Day

 Hello and welcome to our first post for 2012.

 January 4th marks the anniversary of the   birth of Louis Braille and has been declared World Braille  Day. On Hear This, in honour of the occasion, we replayed an interview with Rebecca Maxwell the author and editor of ‘Blind and Busy: Life Stories of People who use Braille’

The book is available from Palmer Higgs Publishers  to buy as an e-text for  $34.95  or Paperback for $24.95; or you can borrow a copy from our Library in Braille

You can hear the interview with Rebecca Maxwell here

Also on Hear This, we cast our minds back to the cinema of 2011 and came up with 3 great books adapted for the Big Screen

The first one is …

We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver. This is a compelling psychological drama about a woman coming to terms with the impact of her son’s murderous rampage at his high school. The novel won the Orange Prize for Literature in 2005. The film version stars Tilda Swinton and John C. Riley and you can find out what David Stretton and Margaret Pomeranz thought of it from the ABC programme At The Movies. You can listen to the author, Lionel Shriver speaking with Richard Fidler on ABC Radio here

The second book is …

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Set in the 1960′s in the rural southern states of the USA, the novel has 3 ‘voices’ Minny and Abilene both black housemaids for white families and  Skeeter a white college student who has been away for a while and returns to her home town. Skeeter embarks on a novel and interviews Minny and Abilene about their experiences thus setting a cat amongst the pigeons in this racist pre civil rights town.

This is the authors first book and it took her 5 years to write. Rejected  by 60 literary agents before it was finally accepted, it was  published in 2009. Since then it has sold 5 million copies and continues to remain in the USA best seller lists this day.

You can read some reviews of the book from the author’s website Here and it seems ‘The Help’ is destined to become an enduring American classic

The third book  has only only come to be regarded as a classic of American literature in recent times…

 True Grit by Charles Portis

This is the most famous of Portis’s novels. Published in 1968 it was  originally filmed with John Wayne, Kim Dalby and Glen Campbell in 1969. The latest film version has the Coen brothers directing with Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon.

The novel is told through the eyes of  fourteen year old Mattie Ross, determined to bring her father’s killer to justice.  When she meets  Rooster Cogburn, an aging and irascible U.S Marshall, she decides she has found a man with the ‘true grit’ to do the job. From the opening lines of the book…

 ”People do not give it credence that a young girl could leave home and go off in the wintertime to avenge her father’s blood, but it did happen. I was just fourteen years of age when a coward by the name of Tom Chaney shot my father down, and robbed him of his life and his horse and two California gold pieces that he carried in his trouser band”

Reviewers have called it a ‘classic coming of age’ novel and the first  ’Noir Western’ written years before it could be fully appreciated. It now sits  alongside the darkly poetic works of Cormac McCarthy; though, as most critics point out, with a good dash of humour thrown in.

 To find out more about the book there is a great interview with American crime writer George Pelecanos from the NPR Books website.

To find out more about this author (who famously declines interviews) we found a good article from the Wall Street Journal

Remember to keep your feedback and reviews about books and authors coming in by mail, email or in the box below. If you prefer to use the phone, call us on 1300 654 656 or you can Facebook us as well.  Happy listening or reading for 2012!

Get into the Christmas spirit or spirits with …

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, on Daisy

A Child’s Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas, on Daisy

Christmas at Fairacre by Miss Read, on Daisy

A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg, on Daisy

However, if  your’e feeling a little fed up with Christmas cheer, our advice is to lock your door, take your phone off the hook, put your feet up, say “Bah! Humbug!” and have a listen to some books from the Library that deal with the darker side of of the season

 Gael, in her Library News segment  supplied the following list…

The Christmas Bow Murder by Brain Battison, on Daisy

Christmas Stalkings: Tales of Yuletide Murder  on Daisy, which  includes works by such well-known mystery writers as Elizabeth Peters, Robert Barnard, Sharon McCrumb, Reginald Hill, Dorothy Cannell, Charlotte MacLeod, and others.

Murder in the Dark, by Kerry Greenwood, on Daisy

Tied Up In Tinsel by Ngaio Marsh, on Daisy

Deck The Halls by Mary Higgins Clark, on Daisy and in 3 vols of Braille

Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie on Daisy

We also have Anne Perry’s Christmas series of detective novels all on Daisy…

A Christmas Grace 

A Christmas Beginning 

A Christmas Secret

A Christmas Visitor

On Hear this, we also had Lucy Irons in the studio to review 3 audio books from the Library shelves.

First up…

Mother Of Pearl by Melinda Haynes

Summary: Twenty-eight year old Even Grade, a black man who grew up an orphan, and Valuable Korner, a young white girl, daughter of the town whore, are seeking the family, love and commitment they never had. When their paths cross through Judy Two Sun, a seer, all three confront their past and present.

We have this book available in Daisy and you can read an interview with the author from the Harper Collins Publisher’s website

Lucy’s second review was for A Man’s Got to Have a Hobby by William McInnes.

This looks back at the life of Colin McInnes, handyman, father of five and habitual stubbie wearer, and his wife Iris, lover of shopping centre openings, Volkswagens and Dean Martin. Through the memories of their second son, William, we are transported to a time when incinerators took up space in every yard and K-Tel glass cutters were the pride of many a home. William McInnes has created a memoir that poignantly reminds us of the changes that growing up brings – for parents and children.

This book is available in Daisy and in 3 vols of Braille and you can hear or watch an interview with McInnes on the ABC Big Ideas website

For those that love a good psychological thriller, Lucy’s last recomendation should fit the bill…

The Chameleon’s Shadow by Minette Walters

Summary: When Lieutenant Charles Acland is flown home from Iraq with serious head injuries, he faces not only permanent disfigurement but also an apparent change to his personality. Crippled by migraines, he becomes increasingly isolated and withdrawn and starts to display sporadic bouts of aggression .. particularly against women ..Rejecting medical advice, Acland discharges himself from hospital, cuts all ties with his former life and moves to London. Alone and unmonitored, he sinks into a private world of guilt and paranoia .. until a customer annoys him in a Bermondsey pub. He attracts the attention of police who are investigating three murders in the area that appear to have been motivated by extreme rage. Under suspicion, Acland is forced to confront the real issues behind his isolation. How much control does he have over the dark side of his personality? Do his migraines contribute to his rages? Has he always been the duplicitous chameleon that his ex-fiancé’s claims? And why if he hates women does he look to a woman for help?.

We have this on Daisy and in 5 vols of Braille and you can read about the author from her website

The Library is happy to announce the arrival of 3 new books this month that many Library clients have been requesting …

Sideshow: The Dumbing Down of Democracy by Lindsay Tanner, on Daisy

Guantanamo: My Journey by David Hicks, on Daisy and soon to be in Braille

Michael Kirby: Paradoxes and Principles by A. J Brown, on Daisy

To all our readers, Hear This Listeners and Library borrowers; we wish you a safe and happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

A special thank you to all those who supply such excellent book reviews and  feedback by phone, mail, email, please keep it coming - you inspire us!

Bearbrass: Imagining Early Melbourne by Robyn Annear

Yarra: A Diverting History by Kristin Otto, also in 3 vols of  Braille

Now to books that have been recomended by our wonderful readers…

Hazel’s Journey: A Personal Experience of Alzheimer’s by Sue Pieters-Hawke. You can read an article from the Sydney Morning Herald about this touching and brave book

Travels With Charlie by John Steinbeck. In 1960,  in a camper van he named ‘Rocinante’ after  Don Quixote’s  horse, Steinbeck took off on a trip accross the USA with his giant poodle Charlie. A good insight into the man associated with such classics such as …

The Grapes of Wrath in Daisy and also in 15 vols of Braille,  and Of Mice and Men

I Peed On Fellini: Recollections of a Life in Film by David Stratton, also in 5 vols of Braille.  You can read a great review by Andrew Urban of this book in Senses of Cinema

One of our long serving and dedicated Braille Transcribers Allen Egerton recomends the following book and says it is ‘”one of the best books I have ever read”

The Lightkeepers Wife by Karen Viggers, also in 5 vols of Braille

In Gaels Library News we have a couple of events in NSW…

Special Human Rights Day Event

Where: Campsie Library

When: Saturday December 10th at 12pm -1.30pm

Cost: Free

Phone: 02 9789 9423

Shafeen Mustaq will talk about her experiences of travelling to Bangladesh and her interviews with women to find out how Microcredit has helped to empower them and improved their lives. Shafeen’s book “Financial Empowerment of Women in Bangladesh Through Microcredit” offers an insight into this inspiring area.

Whilst we don’t have that book in our Library we do have a book that looks at life in India for Women …

Broken Bangles by Hanifa Deen

Synopsis: From the comforts of the Mona Lisa guesthouse in Dhaka to the dusty town of Peshawar, Hanifa Deen travelled through Bangladesh and Pakistan, meeting and talking to women; to discover the many faces of Muslim women today. Hanifa relates stories of their fight against oppression, of the joys and frustrations of the extended family, of the unwritten laws that govern women’s lives and the violence that can threaten them.

Gael’s 2nd event is a celebration of a new release for author Tara Moss

Where: Friends Room, Mitchell Wing of the State Library of NSW

When: Thursday 15th September 6pm- 7pm

Cost: Adults $15 and Friends of the Library $10

Phone: 02 9273 1770

Join best- selling author Tara Moss for a night of high fashion, gothic glamour and all thing paranormal to celebrate her second book in the Pandora English series,”The Spider Goddess”

Armed with a wooden stake, Gael our Library’s fearless interlibrary loans book hunter can send out the first in this series, “The Blood Countess” if you would like to embark on the series

Tara’s earlier series of books featuring Makedde Vanderwall, part time model and forensic psychology student, are available to borrow and here they are in order …

Fetish

Split

Covet

Hit

Once again – happy reading and thanks for your time!

In the lead up to this literary feast of a year Love2read have asked Australians to vote on the book that best captures the spirit of the State they live in – the winning books from each State will be announced on the 14th of Feb 2012, the official launch date of The National Year of Reading.

From the National Year of Reading Website: “We are setting out to identify a set of eight books, which together describe what it’s like to live in, be from, visit or in some other way connect with the eight different states and territories. We want to create a collection of books which, if read together, will articulate the Australian experience – remote, regional, suburban and metropolitan”

Here is the link to voting page – Love2read…

and here is the shortlist of the books nominated that we have in our Library

First up – The ACT…

Smoke and Mirrors by Kel Robertson, narrated by David Tredinnick

The Fog Garden byMarion Halligan, narrated by Helen Morse, also in 4 vols of Braille

Now to NSW…

Bereft by Chris Wormersley in 4 vols of Braille

The Harp in the South by Ruth Park, narrated by Beverley Dunn

The Idea Of Home: Autobiographical Essays by John Hughes, narrated by Richard Bligh, also in 2 vols of Braille

Lilian’s Story by Kate Grenville, narrated by Jill McKay, also in 5 vols of  Braille

Torn Apart by Peter Corris, narrated by Noel Hodda

Up in the NT…

The Far Country by Neville Shute, narrated by Peter Gray

Listening to Country: A Journey to the Heart of What it Means to Belong by Ros Moriarty, narrated by Marie-Louise Walker

Territory by Judy Nunn, narrated by Jeffrey Hodgson, also in 8 vols of Braille

The Red Highway by Nicholas Rothwell, narrated by Humphrey Bower, also in 4 vols of Braille

Now to QLD…

Affection by Ian Townsend, narrated by James Wright

Brisbane by Matthew Condon, narrated by Jim Pike

Journey to the Stone Country by Alex Miller, narrated by Jenny Seedsman also in 4 vols of Braille

The White Earth by Andrew McGahan, narrated by James Wright, also in 5 vols of Braille

Across to SA…

Three Dog Night by Peter Goldsworthy, narrated by Noel Hodda, also in 5 vols of Braille

Times Long Ruin by Stephen Orr in Braille only

Down to Tassie…

In Search of Hobart by Peter Timms, narrated by David Baldwin

Into The Woods by Anna Krien, narrated by Amanda Morrison

The Hunter by Julia Leigh, narrated by James Bean

Wanting by Richard Flanagan, narrated by Francis Greenslade, also in 3 vols of Braille

In Vic…

Bearbrass by Robyn Annear, narrated by Helen Morse

Unpolished Gem by Alice Pung, narrated by Melissa Chambers

Well Done, Those Men by Barry Heard, narrated by Mike Bishop

Last but not least,  WA…

Cloudstreet by Tim Winton, narrated by Peter Hosking, also in 6 vols of Braille

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey, narrated by Humphrey Bower, also in 4 vols of Braille

My Place by Sally Morgan, narrated by Lise Rodgers, also in 10 vols of Braille

Remember to cast your vote by 6th January 2012! Happy summer reading from Hear This!

Hear an interview with Lorelei from Audiofile Magazine in which she talks about narrating the Janet Evanovich novel Finger Lickin’ Fifteen also available in 3 vols of Braille

 Pozieres: The Anzac Story by Scott Bennett on Daisy

You can read some revies of Pozieres from the  publisher Scribe\’s website

On youtube a profile of Albert Jacka VC  who saw action at Pozieres

The Other Anzacs: Nurses at War by Peter Rees on Daisy, also in 5 vols of Braille

On youtube, a short interview with the author Peter Rees

 Claude Choules: His Autobiography by Claude Choules on    Daisy

To Hell and Back: The Banned Account of Gallipoli by Sydney Loch

Read a reveiw of this book from the Sydney Morning Herald

The Australian Light Horse by Roland Perry on daisy and in 7 vols of Braille

Hear an interview with Roland Perry from ABC Radio

German Anzacs and the First World War by John Frank Williams on Daisy

Read a review of this book from The Australian Humanities Review

 We have a few books by this wonderful writer and lets start  with …

 My Brilliant Career narrated by Megan. E. Rees, also in 5   vols of Braille and in Daisy e-text

This book was followed by…

My Career Goes Bung narrated by Vivien Creegor

Plus a lesser known work…

Some Everyday Folk and Dawn narrated by Pauline Munro

Marjorie Barnard was a writer and Librarian who was a long term member of The Fellowship of Australian Writers, and a friend of Miles Franklin. She published a biography of the author in 1967…

Miles Franklin: The Story of a Famous Australian narrated by Chris Williams

For a more up to date biography we have …

Stella Miles Franklin: A Biography byJill Roe, narrated by Elizabeth Oats

e have a CD copy of a collection of letters written between Franklin and other top Australian Authors such as Eleanor Dark and Katharine Susannah Prichard. For those of you familiar with the Daisy format, just be prepared, as this CD version is on 17 discs ….

As Good As A Yarn With You, narrated by Jenny Vuletic

you can reserve some his work here…

Kinglake 350 by Adrian Hyland

Here you can read an extract from Kinglake 350. You can also read an interview with the author Adrian Hyland from Reading\’s Website

The Ottomon Motel by Christopher Currie

You can read an interview with the author from Readings website

The Amateur Science of Love by Craig Sherborne

Hear a podast or read a transcript of an interview with the author from the Radio National Book Show

The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett

Hear an interview or read a transcript of the interview from the Radio National Book Show

Gaels Library News 

Join Teresa Oates and Angela Villella as they take you on journey through the creation of the book,  Mangia! Mangia!

Having grown up together in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, they wanted to preserve their families’ southern Italian migrant food culture and its rich traditions.

When: September 22 from 6.45pm to 7.45pm

Where:  Northcote Library, Melbourne

Bookings: 1300 655 355

The night will end with some offerings of bread, cheese and olives.

We have a range of cookbooks available in the Library and here a just a few which concentrate on Italian cooking…

The Commonsense Italian Cookery Book by Amelia Santini in 4 vols of Braille

Donnini\’s Pasta by Tiberio Donnini and Gianni Milani, narrated by Peter Pierce

The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan, narrated by Diana Copisaro

Also in Gael’s Library news…

Author Karly Lane who’s latest book ‘North Star’ has been selected as one the GET READING “50 Books You Can’t Put Down”, will be talking this Month at Coffs Harbour.

When: September 21 from 5.30 to 7.00pm

Where: Coffs Harbour Library

Bookings: essential phone Jessie or Carolyn 02 6648 4900

Whilst we don’t have this author as yet in the collection, we do have authors who write in a similar style that you may enjoy. Lynne Wilding has penned a few books in the family and romance genres with an Australian setting…

52 Waratah Road narrated by Kate Hood

Heart of the Outback narrated by Kate Hood

King of Cane Valley narrated by Stephanie Daniel

Turn Left at Bindi Creek narrated by Kate Hood

Another Author you may enjoy is Amanda Hampson…

The Olive Sisters narrated by Jenny Seedsman, also in 3 vols of Braille

Two for the Road narrated by Catherine Jennings, also in 4 vols of Braille

and finally Kerry McGinnis…

The Waddi Tree narrated by Humphrey Bower

Heart Country narrated by Elaine Speight

Wildhorse Creek narrated by Noel Hodda

Happy listening and have a great week!