MAY/JUNE REVIEWS

What I've Been Reading

Aphrodite's Breath: a memoir by Susan Johnson

Susan Johnson is a popular Australian fiction author. This is quite a different book, it is part memoir and part travel book. Susan has always had a great love for Greece after visiting there when she was younger and subsequent visits. After being laid off from her journalist position, she decided to think about moving to Greece to edit her current book and maybe write a memoir-based book about her time there. She also thought she would like to take her 85 year old mother, Barbara with her. Susan was 62.

The first part of the book goes through the pain that is packing up your life - well, 2 lives - and move overseas. Whilst this sounds incredibly romantic, it is a lot of red tape and paperwork and language to navigate, especially if you are not fluent in Greek.

And once there, things were very different to what Susan would think. Her mother did not take to life on the island well and did not like the house they were renting. They clashed (not unusual) and at times severely and this causes Susan to rethink her whole idea and indeed her relationship with her mother. 

This is so well written, you can feel the beauty of the island, feel the tensions and the love of the relationship as it grows. Susan is one of our most underrated writers, I always look forward to her books. This is one of her best.

It's A Shame About Ray by Jonathan Seidler

I really enjoyed this memoir by Jonathan Seidler about his father Ray. Ray has serious mental health issues and committed suicide. A short period before this happened, Jonathan is diagnosed with a similar mental health condition to his father. Whilst not as severe, the book is about his father and Jonathan's quest to understand him and his own mental health issues. This may sound depressing and there are certainly some triggering moment within, but it is mostly upbeat. Ray was a GP to the stars, so it is peppered with cute stories about his work. Ray was the son of Australian architect, Harry Seidler, so Jonathan also touches on his legacy. A great read.

Limberlost by Robbie Arnott

This is one of the best books I have read in a long time (well, listened to). Ned is a teen on his summer holidays. This is a coming of age story set in Tasmania during WWII. Ned's older brothers are at war, his mother died before he was 1, his sister and his father are left running their apple orchard. Things are tough, but all Ned can think about is making some money to buy himself a boat.

Limberlost is about families, masculinity, and the decisions we make and the impact they have on our lives, good and bad, no matter how small. It is beautifully written, very descriptive, and just a great story.

The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki

This was a delightful but melancholy book about Benny Oh, an unusual young boy. After his father, a jazz musician, was run over by a chicken truck and killed, life changes for Benny and his very meek mother, Annabelle. Benny starts to hear voices in everything - windows, teapots, pens, everything. People start to think benny is unhinged but what if he was just special and magical?

We follow Benny and Annabelle as they try to move forward in a world they seemingly do not fit when everything is not going their way. Jazz, Libraries, space, a homeless poet, and many other strange characters feature in this very unusual but compelling story. I had no idea what to expect when I started this book, and it is a difficult one to explain without giving too much away. It was a lovely read.

Bless the daughter: raised by a voice in her head by Warsan Shire

Warsan is a Somali British poet and has been linked to Beyonce. This is a collection of feminist poetry about her life and women she knows. But she also includes some pop culture, history, and news stories within her poems. Powerful and sassy.

Growing up Wiradjuri: stories from the Wiradjuri Nation edited by Dr. Anita Heiss

This is a gift to the nation from treasured Elders. Some are stories passed down from generations, some are new. It has been pulled together with love by Anita Heiss and the stories are wonderful. It is not a long read, so should be digestible for everyone, a must read!

Time of my life by Myf Warhurst

This is an easy read, a memoir by Myf Warhust on her life so far. It is a very basic view of her life not going into much personal details after her childhood. It didn't really tell me more than I already knew. It was light and breezy and enjoyable, but I wanted more.

The Fairytale: a real and imagined history of Australian sport BY HG Nelson

I listened to this on talking book, read by HG himself, which is really the only way to take in this book. What a hoot, exactly as you can imagine, some of HG's great stories of sport and sporting heroes told as only he can. Called The Fairytale, there is the usual hilarious embellishment we can expect. I laughed the whole way through, it was a sheer delight. I particularly loved his stories about sporting Prime Minister's from Harold Holt's swimming prowess to John Howard's bowling his stories brought a tear to my eye from laughing too much. His tales of Jack Brabham using his hot engine as a BBQ for his lunch as he raced around tracks was also funny. I could go on, but just get yourself a copy, you will not be disappointed.

Over the hill and up the wall by Todd Alexander

I loved the first two books by Todd Alexander but was disappointed by this one. His first two books cover his tree change from Sydney to the Hunter Valley, buying a vineyard and turning it into an air bnb, and collecting a lot of animals along the way. It was interesting and funny. Really funny. I was really looking forward to book 3, as I knew they had sold the vineyard for another venture. But the book was mostly about looking after his elderly parents and the changes that can happen at this stage of your life. It was really interesting and really funny, but lacked the farm life stories and you felt it. I presume another book is forthcoming. I guess we wait and see.

Queen Menopause: finding your majesty in the mayhem - Alison Daddo

This is a really good but basic place to start if you need to read about menopause.  It is more a memoir of Alison's experience, and whilst worthy of a read, there are better books out there. I still found it helpful regardless.

Life what Nat To Do: a hot take on the advice you never asked for by Nat's What I Reckon

This is a fun little 'self help' or don't self help book by the fabulous Nat's What I Reckon. If you don't know who he is, google him, and what planet are you living on anyway? Written in his inimitable style, he offers advice that works for him with his mental health (and other) issues. It is frank and funny and really useful. Good for the man in your life, but obviously not for everyone. I love his stuff, I think he is bloody amazing.

The Resilience Project: Let Go: It's time for us to let go of shame, expectation and our addiction to social media by Hugh Van Cuylenburg

The Resilience Project is one of my favourite podcasts, and this is a spoken word book, written and read by its founder. The podcast and book are about mental health and not being so hard on yourself. This delves in to more of that and some of Hugh's personal journey. I found it a really uplifting and really helpful read! And let's face it, we all need help!

Banksy: completed by Carol Diehl

This was a good more updated look at Banksy, it skims over the early years and concentrates mostly on the last decade or so. Looking in more detail at Banksy's art rather than who Banksy is etc. A difficult artist to write about as so little is known about him. But I bloody love Banksy, so anything is better than nothing. It was a good read.

The Colour of Fashion: the story of clothes in 10 colours by Caroline Young

This was an interesting book about colour in fashion over the years. Each chapter focused on a colour and looked at it in history, from way back to modern years. Great photos of amazing pieces of fashion that looked like art. It details the evolution of colour and how pigments change the course of history.

Paris for Beginners by Rachael Coopes

I really wanted to love this, I needed a new Paris book to read as I am so homesick for the city. This was a red hot mess, it jumped around in time in such a way I had no idea what was going on. Rachael is an actress I've never heard of and Toni Peron writing a by-line for the cover should have been warning enough. Just when she gets to an interesting part of Paris she jumps to another part of her life, usually about a lover who did her wrong and we get to hear that instead of great stories about parts of Paris. There is so much amazing to write about Paris, I have no idea how crappy books like this get written. I hate being harsh, but this one really annoyed me. It should have bene marketed as a memoir of her life so far that happens to take place sometimes in Paris.

What I've Been Watching 

Succession S4

What can be said that hasn't been said. These people are truly awful and yet you cannot help but watch and follow them. This final season was exceptional, the writing was exceptional, the acting was a whole other level of exceptional. I am sure everyone has watched it by now, but I still don't want to spoil anything. I said before she started on this show that Sarah Snook has a very underrated actress, but now we all know how good she is. The whole cast is great, but she is really great, as is Kieran Culkin, my eyes go to him every time he is on screen. And he was the character I felt the most sorry for. So this is a crap review, and redundant. Just know I loved this show, and if you haven't watched it, you are really missing out. Go and watch it now.

Barry S4

Barry finished on the same day as Succession, but never really got the same attention as Succession. Nowhere near as many people watched it and that is their loss. It is highly nuanced, but so very worthy of watching. It is dramatic and very funny. Bill Hader - who is always brilliant - plays Barry, an assassin for hire who wants to be an actor. He joins an acting class, led by Henry Winkler - who is utterly magnificent as this nutty acting coach. Barry finds it difficult to leave the assassin business, and when he gets caught up with Chechnyan war lords things take a real turn. 

S3 ended with Barry arrested, so S4 takes a very different turn, for all characters. There are some really out there (in the best possible way) episodes, phenomenal writing and story arcs, and remarkable acting. Anthony Carrigan plays NoHo Hank, a polite and very gay Chechnyan warlord. What a great character, easily one of the best characters on television at the moment. Every scene he is in, he steals it from everyone. Hank is who I will miss the most in this show. The ending was very satisfying and well done, which is hard when there are so many ends to pull together. Beautifully shot, hilarious, sad, emotional, and uplifting. Don't let the violence angle (and it can get violent) put you off Barry, it really is one of the best shows in recent times. If you loved My InBetween you will love Barry.

In Limbo

I really enjoyed this small Australian series, a dramedy. Featured around Charlie who finds his best mate, Nate, dead, possibly by suicide. So the subject matter is dark, but handled with tension and comedy...dark comedy and sometimes regular comedy. The premise is Nate is still hanging around as a ghost, that only Charlie can see and Nate is a real character, hilarious. Whilst this is obviously a fantasy premise, it really works and never feels like fantasy. Charlie is trying to get to the bottom of why this is happening, whilst he is grieving and helping Nate's family to also grieve and live. Much more happens than this of course, but no spoilers. A great cast of familiar faces and terrific writing to pull the story off. Really worth watching.

The White Lotus S1

I recently rewatched this and enjoyed it the second time, but nowhere near as much as the first watching. I guess I knew what was going to happen. This worked so well the first time seeing it. The tension was heightened and built and built from episode to episode. Murray Bartlett's performance is still utterly brilliant as are the rest of the cast. The reason I was rewatching it was Andrew had not seen it. So it WAS great watching it through his eyes, and yes, he loved it and yes he worked out who was going to die, but only moments before it happened. 

Reframed: Marilyn Monroe

This was easily the best documentary I have seen on Marilyn. It does not take the sloppy - she was a victim - route, which is so bloody refreshing. It was in 4 parts and totally remarkable. We all know she was a smart lady, and nowhere near as difficult as she was painted. Most of the issues against her were simple misogyny. And whilst it definitely delved into that, this was not what the documentary was about. It interviewed a lot of people who knew her and worked with her, mostly women and younger actresses who have played her in various movies etc. Their recounts are great and add a huge kudos to the documentary. It still made me feel sad that she was treated so badly and her demise could have been prevented. But then, I've always felt that way. It was a great series and really worth watching, I cannot recommend it enough. On SBS online now.

Escape to the Chateau S9

I've been watching the final series of this favourite show. For the unaware, an eccentric and wonderful English couple buy a run down Chateau in France. He is older, and an engineer, and ex-Army, an amazing Chef and can pretty much fix anything. She is a bit younger, and amazing with interior design. When they but the house their children are a baby and a toddler. They are now in their Tweens and the Chateau looks amazing. Watching them make this place looking so remarkable and watching their event business take off has been an absolute pleasure. It is truly swoon worthy. And they are a delight. I will miss this truly comfort series. It has been a real favourite. They are meant to be doing spin off series, so I guess it is watch this space.

The ABC of with David Wenham

This series has really grown on me. I enjoyed S1, but David felt a little forced and stiff as an interviewer. But this second season, he has relaxed a bit and come into his own. He has had a great array of guests, delving into the ABC archives and looking back at their lives via these videos. Germaine Greer, HG Nelson, and Jack Thompson were exceptional interviews, but the rest were very very good too. They are only 30 mins, which feels just right, so check them out on view if you missed out.

Ningaloo Nyinggulu

This beautiful documentary from one of Australia's best writers and National Treasure, Tim Winton was superb. Set in and around Ningaloo Reef in WA, Tim meets with the indigenous people of the area and scientists who work on and around the reef and together they show us the beauty of the area. And more importantly, the huge amount of animals -land and marine that inhabit the area. Quite an embarrassment of riches the reef and surrounding areas have, so amazing, so stunning. Watching these lovely, laid-back people do their work, looking after this beautiful environment brought me to my knees. Watching a boat full of ordinary hard-working people release Turtles back into the water after caring for them brought me to tears. If you missed this 3-part series, I am sure it is still on iview!

George Michael: portrait of an artist

A lovely documentary about George the man, by the people who knew him. Looking at his incredible talent, somewhat underrated while he was alive, and his beautiful soul, this is a great movie. It covered everything and more. As you get closer and closer to his untimely death, I found myself getting very emotional. I always loved him and thought him especially talented. In fact, I have been listening to Listen Without Prejudice a lot recently, it is a stunning album. If you don't know much about George, you must watch this. If you love him and know it all like me, you will still want to watch this and you will love it too.

The Pretenders: live an Enmore Theatre 

This was filmed back in 2010 when The Pretenders played a double bill with Blondie. Both concerts were filmed. I have yet to watch Blondie. Chrissie, who has been trending this weekend due to their spectacular set at Glastonbury, at the age of 71. It is a great concert, sounds and looks amazing and the set list brilliant. She is phenomenal and comes across like she is still having a ball playing all those great songs.

Documentary Now

I had seen S1 and S2 of this years ago, it is a mock up of classic documentaries. They are all great, but if you have seen the actual documentary it really makes the experience amazing. I knew there was a third season in recent years but there was also a fourth. So all 4 seasons have been playing back to back on ABC2. And I have watched them all, they are brilliant. A range of actors act in them and they can be very funny and also very dramatic. There are some great music ones and a wonderful one about competition Ten Pin Bowling starring Michael C Hall (Dexter). And the 2-parter that is obviously taking from a lot of documentaries by Werner Herzog was hilarious. I almost didn't recognise Cate Blanchett as a dowdy (and dodgy) UK hairdresser, that was great. This is a nuanced watch for sure, but oh so worth it!

Portlandia - entire 8 seasons

Along with Documentary Now, Portlandia has been replayed, all 8 seasons back to back on ABC2. Portlandia is a sketch comedy show starring Fred Armisen (who I love) and Carrie Brownstein (from Sleater Kinney) set in a fictionalised version of Portland, Oregan. They play a lot of characters and are hilarious, and so many big names star in bit pieces. Or actors who have gone on to be big stars. When this was originally aired, they started to mess around with the timing of episodes so it was nice to see some of the later episodes that I missed the first time around.

Put a Bird on it!