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10 Short Stories You Must Read in 2011
by
Larissa Behrendt,
Cate Kennedy, Caroline Overington, James Bradley (Goodreads Author), James Phelan, Jessica Rudd, Charlotte Wood (Goodreads Author), John Birmingham
,
more…
Tempting tales by some of Australia's best writers...
Travis is going to be a big know in the door business... Lucy's love life becomes Jude's pinata... A minion makes a meal of Robert 'Nancy' Mitford...
Whether you like a comedy, romance or something quite different, you'll find plenty to enjoy in this all-new collection exclusive to Get Reading!.
Travis is going to be a big know in the door business... Lucy's love life becomes Jude's pinata... A minion makes a meal of Robert 'Nancy' Mitford...
Whether you like a comedy, romance or something quite different, you'll find plenty to enjoy in this all-new collection exclusive to Get Reading!.
Paperback, 280 pages
Published
2011
by Australia Council for the Arts
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“10 Short Stories You Must Read in 2011″ is an interesting collection of Australian short stories. If I had to pick a theme, I’d say it’s about challenging life.
I picked up a copy at my local library … good karma to all fabulous local libraries … and dived in, searching for a story I wanted to review for the Australian Women Writers Challenge. All the stories are strong in their own fashion, and this is a nicely varied selection, but I decided to go with Charlotte Wood’s “Nanoparticles”.
A few th...more
I picked up a copy at my local library … good karma to all fabulous local libraries … and dived in, searching for a story I wanted to review for the Australian Women Writers Challenge. All the stories are strong in their own fashion, and this is a nicely varied selection, but I decided to go with Charlotte Wood’s “Nanoparticles”.
A few th...more
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As 2011 draws to a close, I just managed to squeeze this one in. Always a great introduction to new authors, this short story collection is part of Get Reading!, Australia’s largest annual celebration of reading and books. There are some fabulous Australian authors included in the book; some established, some newbies. Check it out. It is well worth a read.
The book programme is an Australian Government initiative aimed at promoting books and reading amongst all Australians. It is now in its 10th...more
The book programme is an Australian Government initiative aimed at promoting books and reading amongst all Australians. It is now in its 10th...more
A fairly decent collection of short stories with a nice variety of genres, though it was a bit mixed in terms of quality. The best stories were in the first half – my favourites were Laminex and Mirrors (the first one and my favourite of the lot, I think), Big Knobs, and Piñata. My least favourite was Trust, which was like a rather bad short-story version of The Bourne Identity – I didn’t care a jot about any of the characters in it, because I didn’t know anything about them – it was just all ve...more
I am becoming more & more a fan of short stories, much admiring the skill in writing a short cohesive story which grabs you quick & holds you rapt as these stories have done. My favourites from this selection from such a fine array of Australian authors would be "Trust" / James Phelan, "Pinata" / Jessica Rudd, "Passage" / Caroline Overington, & "The demons of Buttercrack County" / John Birmingham.
Passage by Caroline Overington
This is the fictional story of Paul Bannerman, who became a member of the Jesus People when a teenager, and spent seven years with them, praying and working, near Euroa in Victoria, back in the mid ‘70’s.
Paul had no idea what to do with his life, and one day, when he was wandering into town from uni, dissatisfied with life, he came across Brother Ruhamah, and in the ensuing 24 hours, was convinced to leave with him, and make his way to the commune, where he was wel...more
This is the fictional story of Paul Bannerman, who became a member of the Jesus People when a teenager, and spent seven years with them, praying and working, near Euroa in Victoria, back in the mid ‘70’s.
Paul had no idea what to do with his life, and one day, when he was wandering into town from uni, dissatisfied with life, he came across Brother Ruhamah, and in the ensuing 24 hours, was convinced to leave with him, and make his way to the commune, where he was wel...more
3 likes · like · see review
An interesting mix of genres, this anthology does what it sets out to do: provide a showcase of Australian short stories. The standouts for me were Cate Kennedy's 'Laminex and Mirrors' and Miranda Darling's 'The Existence of Women'.
I enjoyed the book though I don't reckon these stories must be read. At least, some of them.
I like Laminex and Mirrors by Cate Kennedy, Big Knobs by Bill Condon, Pinata by Jessica Rudd, Nanoparticles by Charlotte Wood and Passage by Caroline Overington.
I like Laminex and Mirrors by Cate Kennedy, Big Knobs by Bill Condon, Pinata by Jessica Rudd, Nanoparticles by Charlotte Wood and Passage by Caroline Overington.
Very interesting to read a collection of short stories when I have written so many myself. Most of them, though, failed to grab me. Interesting and well written without any wow factor. These Australian authors shave achieved what I aspire to. I have been criticized for ending some of my stories too abruptly. Unsurprisingly, the stories I liked most in had somewhat abrupt endings, or slightly up in the air endings. My faves were Pinata and The Existence of Women. I can recommend this collection o...more
I've decided I don't like short stories. These guys are all brilliant writers but just as you begin to really like one of the stories it ends :(
A real mix: funny stories, silly stories, teary stories, poignant stories, action, horror, romance ... A good diversion.
For a free book this was a pretty good read, but I'm glad it was free because I would have hated to pay for it and not enjoy it. Most of the stories were average and some made me want to scream "WTF" at the top of my lungs when I finished. However, two stood out for me and have earned at least one of the stars in the rating.
Larissa Behrendt's "The Space Between Us" and Jessica Rudd's "Piñata" were poignant, wistful and moving; they made the collection worth reading. Caroline Overington's "Passa...more
Larissa Behrendt's "The Space Between Us" and Jessica Rudd's "Piñata" were poignant, wistful and moving; they made the collection worth reading. Caroline Overington's "Passa...more
Really enjoyed about half of them but I'm not a big fan of action short stories. A worthwhile read especially for fans of short stories.
I thoroughly enjoyed this collection. Love a short story.
Some stories were good, some were a waste of time.
The first half of this collection is utterly miserable. It picks up half way through though with some interesting stories in the latter half.
I'm not into horror and gore so Birmingham's story, while sharp and even oddly funny, wouldn't have made my top ten.
Jessica Rudd's piece was delightful, in a quirky, poignant and clever way.
Cate 's tale made me smile more than once, and reminded me of teenage volunteering i'd done in a nursing home. It was well structured with vivid, real characters.
Bradley's was intense and hard-hitting. I found it disturbing, but an admirable piece of writing.
More to come.
Jessica Rudd's piece was delightful, in a quirky, poignant and clever way.
Cate 's tale made me smile more than once, and reminded me of teenage volunteering i'd done in a nursing home. It was well structured with vivid, real characters.
Bradley's was intense and hard-hitting. I found it disturbing, but an admirable piece of writing.
More to come.
1 like · like · see review
Great book. There's a few stores that I didnt like, but the others were amazing. Such great writers. They had amazing storylines. To me, a must have on the bookshelf!
A mixed bag, I particularly loved pinata and big knobs... hmm that just sounds wrong...
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