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Natalie's Book of the Month What Remains by Denise Leith |
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Book News
Headspring Press
Headspring Press is a new website and electronic journal developed to celebrate new writing. They are currently accepting submissions for short fiction, comics, essays and art from new and emerging writers and artists. While longer pieces of work are not currently requested, this may change in the future. For more, click here.
Bel Ami Movie release
Box office sensation Robert Pattinson (of Twilight fame) stars in the adaption of the classic French novel Bel Ami by Guy de Maupassant, a literary powder-keg of its time. This is a story full of sexual intrigue, scandal and manipulation. Set in Paris in the 1880s, handsome, smart, charismatic and resourceful George Duroy (Pattinson), known to his friends as "Bel Ami" is offered a job as a journalist on the newspaper La Vie Francaise and soon makes a great success of his new career. But he also comes face to face with the realities of the corrupt Parisian high society to which he aspires; the sleazy colleagues, the wily financiers and the manipulative mistresses. He swiftly learns to become and arch seducer and blackmailer in a world where love is only a means to an end. He will stop at nothing to move into the high echelons of Paris society. Duory will seduce, manipulate and charm the most powerful and beauitful. To see the preview click here. We have several 2 for 1 tickets to give away for the Australian release of this movie, if you would like one of these simply email, tweet or facebook us!
The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award
Congratulations to Paul D Carter, winner of the 2012 The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award with his manuscript, Eleven Seasons. Paul was awarded a cheque from Vogel's for $20,000. Paul D. Carter is a Melbourne-based English and Creative Writing teacher, so it is great to see those who are teaching can actually preach what they teach. His book will be available for purchase in bookstores nationally today. The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award remains the richest and most prestigious prize for an unpublished manuscript by a writer under the age of 35 in Australia. This year is the 31st awarding of the prestigious prize. The Award has launched the careers of some of Australia's most successful authors, including Tim Winton, Kate Grenville and Andrew McGahan.
Antarctica
Antarctica is amongst the last unspoilt regions of the world. The mysteries of this great white continent have been the root of many unprecedented achievements in Polar exploration. Scott, Shackleton and Amundsen are all names that provoke thoughts bravery and accomplishment. Antarctica, an iBook that is available free on the iPad is based on the Polar Circle-Antarctic Peninsula trip which Esbjorn Tortensson of 50 Degrees North undertook in March 2012. While not a comprehensive guide to Antarctica, the book has been put together to give you an idea of the sights and sounds that you would experience if visiting Antarctica and it features many interactive features. To download the book for free, click here.
The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
The first chapter of Richelle Mead's second book in the Bloodlines Series has now been released. Click here to read it, along with a Q and A with Richelle about the development of this new series!
Enid Blyton fans rejoice
Hachette UK, who have recently acquired the worlwide rights to the Blyton estate (excluding Noddy) will release the 70th annivesary editions with illustrations by artists such as Quentin Blake and Emma Chicester Clark. I am sure most people grew up with Enid Blyton's books, I know I remember them as the first books I read and was captivated by the adventures of Julian, Dick, George, Anne and Timmy (the Famous Five). Although in The Age article, I couldn't believe that some people think Blyton wrote badly and was reactionary - it is a rollicking good story book which political correctness has dampened.
Kobo self-publishing platform
This sounds fantastic. Kobo (ebook provider and retailer) has confirmed that it will launch a self-publishing platform in Australia and New Zealand within the next few months. If you are interested, head to the Kobo website and read the full details.
2012 Literary Festivals
There are now a huge variety of literary festivals where you can get up and close to your favorite authors. Here at OurBookClub we have selected a few that look interesting as well as book signings and events we are attending. Check out our Literary Events section.
Coming Book Releases
2012 is shaping up to be a blockbuster of a year with the release of new books by some of our favourite authors. Natalie and Tracy are just wondering how we can clone ourselves to read them all.
The Chemistry of Tears by Peter Carey
When her lover dies suddenly, all Catherine has left is her work. The long affair had been kept secret from their colleagues at London's Swinburne Museum and now she must grieve in private. Or almost. In an act of compassion, the head of her department gives Catherine a very particular project, something to cling onto: a box of intricate clockwork parts that appear to be the remains of a nineteenth-century automaton, a beautiful mechanical bird. Once she discovers that the box also contains the diary of the man who commissioned the machine, one obsession merges into another. Who was Henry Brandling? Who was the mysterious, visionary clockmaker he hired to make a gift for his ailing son? And what was the end result that now sits in pieces in Catherine's her studio? The Chemistry of Tears is a portrait of love and loss that is both wildly entertaining and profoundly moving, simultaneously delicate and anarchic. Read the reviews of Parrot and Olivier in America and Oscar and Lucinda. The hardback is due on 5 April 2012 with the paperback due on 15 May 2012 and Tracy has already pre-ordered her copy.
Lionel Asbo: The State of England by Martin Amis
An exuberant, acidic satire of modern society and celebrity culture--by a renowned author at the height of his powers which is no parting shot in his literary career (The Independent). Young Desmond Pepperdine desires nothing more than books to read and a girl to love. Unfortunately for him, he's the ward of his uncle, Lionel Asbo (self-named after England's infamous Anti-Social Behaviour Orders), a terrifying yet oddly principled thug who's determined to teach him the joys of pit bulls (fed with lots of Tabasco sauce), internet porn ("me love life"), and all manner of more serious criminality. But just as Desmond begins to lead a gentler, healthier life, Lionel wins £139 million in the lottery, hires a public-relations firm, and begins dating a cannily ambitious topless model and poet. Strangely, however, Lionel remains his vicious, weirdly loyal self, while his problems as well as Desmond's seem only to multiply. Due for release on 6 June 2012 and Tracy has already pre-ordered her copy.
Living, Thinking, Looking by Siri Hustvedt
From the internationally bestselling author of What I Loved and The Summer Without Men, a dazzling collection of essays written with Siri Hustvedt's customary intelligence, wit and ability to convey complex ideas in a clear and lively way. Divided into three sections - Living, which draws on Siri's own life; Thinking, on memory, emotion and the imagination; and Looking, on art and artists - the essays range across the humanities and science as Siri explores how we see, remember, feel and interact with others, what it means to sleep, dream and speak, and what we mean by 'self'. The combination offers a profound and fascinating insight into ourselves as thinking, feeling beings. Released 7 June 2012
Canada by Richard Ford
First, I'll tell about the robbery our parents committed. Then the murders, which happened later. In 1956, Del Parsons' family came to a stop in Great Falls, Montana, the way many military families did following the war. His father, Bev, was a talkative, plank-shouldered man, an airman from Alabama with an optimistic and easy-scheming nature. Del and his twin sister, Berner, could easily see why their mother might have been attracted to him. But their mother Neeva - from an educated, immigrant, Jewish family - was shy, artistic and alienated from their father's small-town world of money scrapes and living on-the-fly. It was more bad instincts and bad luck that Del's parents decided to rob the bank. They weren't reckless people. In the days following the arrest, Del and Berner lock themselves inside the house and wait for the friend their mother said would come. When no-one does, Berner runs away. Del, a solitary child obsessed with bee-keeping and chess, does not have friends to call on. Del is saved before the authorities think to arrive. Driving across the Montana border into Saskatchewan his life hurtles towards the unknown, towards a hotel in a deserted town, towards the violent and enigmatic American Arthur Remlinger, and towards Canada itself - a landscape of rescue and abandonment. But as Del discovers, in this new world of secrets and upheaval, he is not the only one whose own past lies on the other side of a border. In Canada, Richard Ford has created a masterpiece. A haunting and visionary novel of vast landscapes, complex identities and fragile humanity. It questions the fine line between the normal and the extraordinary, and the moments in our lives that take us into new worlds. Released 7 June 2012
Rapture by Lauren Kate
The final book in the Fallen Series sees Luce and Daniel finally together. But for how long? Can history be re-written or are some punishments enternal? With the sky dark with wings, can the angels, both the fallen and the outcast, together with the nephilium save the world from Lucifer and have Luce and Daniel finally broken the curse that has plagued them for eternity? With yet another beautfiful cover, all the answers will be revealed when this final chapter being released in book on 12 June 2012.
The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
The second book in the new Bloodlines Series which is the spin-off from Richelle's hugely popular Vampire Academy Series sees alchemist Sydney still hiding out at a Palm Springs boarding school and trying to protect newly discovered Moroi princess Jill Dragomir. As the students at the school carry on with their blissful ignorance as to the existance of vampires, Sydney, Eddie, Jill and Adrian do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with the threat of forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds and of course the Strigoi, hiding the truth is harder than they thought. Full of new faces, as well as some familiar old ones (yeay Dimitri is back!) this is a must have for fans of her Vampire Academy series. The second book in this new series is out in book on 12 June 2012.
The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The third in the cycle of novels that began with The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game. The Prisoner of Heaven returns to the world of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books and the Sempere & Sons bookshop. It begins just before Christmas in Barcelona in 1957, one year after Daniel and Bea from The Shadow of the Wind have married. They now have a son, Julian, and are living with Daniel's father at Sempere & Sons. Fermin still works with them and is busy preparing for his wedding to Bernarda in the New Year. However something appears to be bothering him. Daniel is alone in the shop one morning when a mysterious figure with a pronounced limp enters. He spots one of their most precious volumes that is kept locked in a glass cabinet, a beautiful and unique illustrated edition of The Count of Monte Cristo. Despite the fact that the stranger seems to care little for books, he wants to buy this expensive edition. Then, to Daniel's surprise, the man inscribes the book with the words 'To Fermin Romero de Torres, who came back from the dead and who holds the key to the future'. This visit leads back to a story of imprisonment, betrayal and the return of a deadly rival. Due for release on 21 June 2012.
Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
A Discovery of Witches was book 1 in the All Souls Trilogy, and it ended on a cliffhanger. Shadow of Night plunges Diana and Matthew into Elizabethan London, a world of spies, subterfuge, and a coterie of Matthew’s old friends, the mysterious School of Night that includes Christopher Marlowe and Walter Raleigh. Here, Diana must locate a witch to tutor her in magic, Matthew is forced to confront a past he thought he had put to rest, and the mystery of Ashmole 782 deepens. Due for release on 10 July 2012.
The Truth by Michael Palin
Keith Mabbut is at a crossroads in his life. After some early success as a writer, he has become a pen for hire, finding work when and where he can. He and his wife have separated and his son and daughter are both grown up. Then he is offered the opportunity of a lifetime - to write the biography of the elusive Hamish Melville, a highly influential activist and humanitarian. Not only does the offer come with the promise of rich financial reward, it is also a chance to write something truly meaningful. His search to find out the real story behind the legend takes Keith to Orissa, the jungle, and the environmental hotspots of India. The more he discovers about Melville, the more he admires him - and the more he connects with the man he once was, an idealist who wanted to make a difference. Due for release on 12 July 2012.
Gold by Chris Cleave
Chris Cleave, the best-selling author of Incendiary and Little Bee (which was optioned for film by Nicole Kidman), is known for writing books with timely topics. This next book is no exception — it’s about Olympic athletes. Gold is the story of Zoe and Kate, world-class athletes who have been friends and rivals since their first day of Elite training. They’ve loved, fought, betrayed, forgiven, consoled, gloried, and grown up together. Now on the eve of London 2012, their last Olympics, both women will be tested to their physical and emotional limits. They must confront each other and their own mortality to decide, when lives are at stake: What would you sacrifice for the people you love, if it meant giving up the thing that was most important to you in the world? Due for release on July.
Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan
“Serena Frome, the beautiful daughter of an Anglican bishop, has a brief affair with an older man during her final year at Cambridge, and finds herself being groomed for the intelligence service. The year is 1972. Britain, confronting economic disaster, is being torn apart by industrial unrest and terrorism and faces its fifth state of emergency. The Cold War has entered a moribund phase, but the fight goes on, especially in the cultural sphere. Serena, a compulsive reader of novels, is sent on a secret mission codenamed Sweet Tooth, which brings her into the literary world of Tom Healey, a promising young writer. First she loves his stories, then she begins to love the man. Can she maintain the fiction of her undercover life? And who is inventing whom? To answer these questions, Serena must abandon the first rule of espionage - trust no one.” Released in August 2012.
The Twelve by Justin Cronin
At the end of The Passage, the great viral plague had left a small group of survivors clinging to life amidst a world transformed into a nightmare. In the second volume of this epic trilogy, this same group of survivors, led by the mysterious, charismatic Amy, go on the attack, leading an insurrection against the virals: the first offensives of the Second Viral War. To do this, they must infiltrate a dozen hives, each presided over by one of the original Twelve. Their secret weapon: Alicia, transformed at the end of book one into a half human, half viral - but whose side, in the end, is she really on? Can't wait, EW have released an excerpt here. Released on 28 August 2012.
Zoo Time by Howard Jacobson
Zoo Time is the follow up to Howard Jacboson's Man Booker 2010 prize winning The Finkler Question. Reading is over. Writing is finished. Publishing is dead. Embittered author Guy Ableman knows this, as does his desperate editor; as does the sad whole of doomed literary London. But Guy is dedicated to his dying art, and continues to write for an audience that doesn't exist, loathed by the few readers he does have - feminists who charge him with misogyny, mothers who accuse him of hating children. Against a backdrop of disappointment, failure and loss, Guy is consumed with the temptation of an illicit affair. It distorts every thought in his head, and becomes his next great novel. Fantasy blurs with reality in this furious, hilarious novel about love, loss, mothers and daughters. Frank, poignant and moving. Released on 30 AUgust 2012.
Also look out for new novels by Salman Rushdie, Zadie Smith, Paul Auster, Danielle Steel, Alexander McCall Smith and Jeanette Winterson.
If you know of any books that are being released in 2012 or if there are any authors or publishers who would like to send us their newest books, please let OurBookClub know, we'd love to review them for our site!
