A Heart That Works by Rob Delaney

My husband observed the mammoth pile of discarded tissues next to Rob Delaney’s memoir, A Heart That Works, and asked, “Why do you do this to yourself?” The same question was asked when I watched Ricky Gervais’s After Life, read Yanagihara’s A Little Life, and actually, the list goes on and on. I cry to the point of a migraine. I don’t really know why I go back for more.

So, if you are planning on picking up Delaney’s memoir about the time during which his one-year-old son, Henry, was diagnosed with a brain tumour and then died, know that it is devastating, humorous in parts, confronting and beautifully written with unflinching honesty. Continue reading

The Top 54 from the Best Books of 2022 List of Lists

Presenting the 2022 Commonly-Agreed-by-the-People-Who-Publish-Best-of-2022-Book-Lists-Before-December-31 top 54 books.

(This is my annual community service to book-bloggers – a list of the books that appear most frequently on the 52 lists that I listed on Best Books of 2022 – A List of Lists – enjoy!). Continue reading

I’m waiting for… 2022 edition

Proving that I don’t actually care about my never-really-shrinking-TBR-list is this list of new releases that are on my radar for 2022. Continue reading

Ten years, ten top books

It hadn’t occurred to me to make a list of my top ten books of the decade until I saw such lists popping up everywhere. Given that books, blogging and lists go together like sand and sea, it’s ridiculous that I haven’t been working on my list for months! Continue reading

Bookish (and not so bookish) Thoughts

01. It’s school holidays in Australia. We spent a few days with family in Kyneton (with some mountain-biking in Harcourt and a hike to the summit of Hanging Rock). Continue reading

Putney by Sofka Zinovieff

A few years ago I read a book that was well-written, demanded conversation, and was extraordinarily memorable. And I didn’t recommend it to a single person. Because it was harrowing and devastating and exhausting – you have to be ready for that. Putney by Sofka Zinovieff falls into the same category. Continue reading

Heart Berries: A Memoir by Terese Marie Mailhot

I have a weak point when reading – the loss of a child. Stories about losing a child – through death, family separation, to addiction, to crime – hurt my heart more than any other. I’ve mentioned a passage in Yanagihara’s A Little Life that haunts me because it gets to the very core of the issue.

When the loss of a child was revealed at the beginning of Terese Marie Mailhot’s memoir, Heart Berries, I prepared myself for a tough read.

You asked me for my secret. I told you about the son who didn’t live with me. I told you I lock myself in the bathroom to cry when I remember his milk breath… You said you’d be on the other side of the door. That’s how perfect love is at first. Solutions are simple, and problems are laid out simply. Continue reading

Top ways to make me buy a book

It’s not particularly hard to get me to buy a book. I’ve mentioned some triggers here and here. But publishers, if you’re reading, here are some moreContinue reading