The plot of Barbara Kingsolver’s new novel rests on absent foundations – literally. In alternating chapters, Unsheltered (Allen & Unwin, 2018) weaves together the stories of two strong, intelligent individuals whose homes are crumbling around them. The homes seem...
“Writers write. And one can’t be surprised if they write what they know.” So says one of the coterie of beautiful, wealthy, fragile women that literary darling Truman Capote called his ‘swans’. Swan Song (Kelleigh Greenberg-Jephcott, Cornerstone, 2018) is a...
As technology transforms everyday life in ‘smart nation’ Singapore, the city-state’s most interesting writers are considering some creative consequences. Imagine, for instance, if all the animals at the zoo were discovered to be robots (so much more manageable!). Or...
What price should you put on integrity? Is allowing a potentially bestselling novel to be published, knowing that it’s not your best work, ‘selling out’? These are just two of the questions troubling critically acclaimed author Helen Owen as she prevaricates about...
