The sports show for people who don't take sports (or life) too seriously. The secret is that we really don't like sports or even talk about the games all that much. With a focus more on the culture and sociology around sports, the show often wanders into general life discussions. Come be in on the joke with us. If you like it tell your friends and if you don't tell your enemies.
…
continue reading
Nick Azar Podcasts
Every week Nick and Megan get together to talk about the things they've watched recently and any big entertainment news. Occasionally they'll also deep dive into the career of a current popular actor or actress. Their best/worst roles, their favourites and what they'd like to see them do next.
…
continue reading
Australian and international authors talk about their books and how they got published or how they self-published. Listeners, writers and readers will also hear about what's going on in our local writing community.
…
continue reading
Toni Jordan’s book ‘Ternderfoot’ is a coming of age story set in the 70’s.A. L. Booth’s crime novel, ’Death at Booroomba’ includes a mysterious inheritance, a violent murder, a hint of romance and a large dollop of country town gossip.By Toni Jordan with Lisa Moule and A. L. Booth with Jan Goldsmith
…
continue reading
If you had the power to change history would you dare? ‘The Turing Protocol’ by Nick Croydon.'King Tide' is Luke Johnson's debut novel set in a small coastal town where a mutilated body of an adolescent is found. Added to that, a child disappeared some five years before. Are the events linked and who is responsible?An American war hero with harsh l…
…
continue reading
Matt Rogers takes us on a nhilistic journey of murder and corruption with equal parts of philosophy and asceticism in his novel, 'The Forsaken'.Jayne Tuttle's memoir is an exploration of creativity, motherhood and Paris.By Matt Rogers with David McLean and Jayne Tuttle
…
continue reading
Dmetri Kakmi's novel, The Woman In the Well, blends the spiritualism associated with numerous faiths; Christianity, Islam and indigenous belief.Not even a respectable job digging graves can keep an ex-con from a form of corruption that could put him behind bars once again. This is the world of guilt and suspicion that Mark Brandi explores in his la…
…
continue reading
Amie Kaufman's, 'Lady's Knight' features the tournament of the dragon slayers and is a sapphic fairytale.A couple grapple with the breakdown of their relationship on a road trip in the southwest of America where the environmental degredation of the landscape is apparent in Madeleine Watts' novel, "Elegy, Southwest"…
…
continue reading
You have to be smart to be in academia and so is this romance fiction by Jodi McAlister. 'An Academic Affair' has characters and situations which are humorous and not so predictable.In Lucy Nelson's debut short story collection 'Wait Here' the theme is women who will never be mothers: who can't, who don't or won't have children.Both authors also ta…
…
continue reading
Lawyers and politicians were involved with both Federation and the trial and hanging of Jimmy Governor in the historical true crime novel of ‘The Last Outlaws’ by Katherine Biber.The regrets and indiscretions of our past and our present day poor judgement are a continual presence in our lives that, perhaps, only a psychic can give us licence to add…
…
continue reading
The intriguing elements of seances and criminal conduct behind the writing of Dr Jeckyl and Mr Hyde come to the fore as Belinda Lyons-Lee explores the life of Robert Louis Stevenson as narrated by his wife, Fanny Osbourne in 'The Haunting of Mr and Mrs Stevenson'.Shokoofeh Azar's book 'The Gowkaran Tree in the Middle of Our Kitchen' spans fifty yea…
…
continue reading
Thomas Vowles' novel, 'Our New Gods' is a psychological thriller where sinsiter sexuality and murder coincide amongst the queer scene of Melbourne.Elle McFadzean's, The Potion Experiment, is a middle grade fantasy about science and magic.By Thomas Vowles with David McLean and Elle Fadzean with Lisa Moule
…
continue reading
‘The Last Egg’ is a picture story book by Sofie Laguna. It is about love, kindness and loyalty with a fantastical end. Lili Wilkinson has Titch the mouse on an epic journey of magic, heroism and loyal friendship in ‘Bravepaw and the Clawstone of Rotwood Mire’‘Music Camp’ by Penny Tangey is a big hearted story about finding your way when you’re twel…
…
continue reading
A much loved daughter could ruin a family and just what is it, that this family have to hide? Anna Snoekstra has written a very well crafted mystery in ‘The Ones We Love’. Robbie Coburn's verse narrative, 'The Foal in the Wire', is a coming of age tale about survival and the bonds between individuals that both undermine and affirm.…
…
continue reading
Audrey has left her husband and career in advertising. Now she bakes cakes and fortune cookies that tell the bitter truth, but can she start a business with her motley lot of new friends in Catherine Greer’s ‘The Bitter Sweet Bakery Café’.By Catherine Greer wth Jan Goldsmith
…
continue reading
A grandson tries to learn a family story in Andre Dao’s ‘Anam’. Murder and mayhem on the waterfront, marihuana cigarettes and a turf war over brothels, thankfully the Tea Ladies can solve crimes and cement friendships in this, the third book of the series, ‘The Deadly Dispute’ by Amanda Hampson.By Andre Dao with Lisa Moule and Amanda Hampson with Jan Goldsmith
…
continue reading
He wants to be a successful and acclaimed writer. He wants to know all the truths and write her biography even if it requires deceit. Dominic Amerena has written this crafty book about literary theft in ‘I want Everything’. Mystery surrounds a new pandemic that takes the lives of those reaching their ninth birthday in Chris Flynn's, ‘Orpehus Nine’.…
…
continue reading
The bond of friendship can unravel when doubt and superstition start to take hold. And the spiritual comfort we seek in such circumstances can also lead to our undoing. Christine Keighery delves into these notions in her novel, 'We're Not Us Without You'.The gold rush made the city of Melbourne rich but women’s lives and choices were still very lim…
…
continue reading
‘Salty, Spiced and a Little Bit Nice’ has Ellie a type 1 diabetic wanting independence from her controlling family but not wanting to be hurt again by her teenage crush in this romantic comedy by Cynthia Timoti. Gregory Day's anthology of poetry, Southsightedness, connects creativity, the landscape and the artist as a collective whole in verse that…
…
continue reading
Food blogger, Chloe, is competing for an interview with a famous chef in Victoria Brownlee's novel, 'Eat Your Heart Out'.Doctor Hannah Wright must balance her personal and professional life as she treats psychiatric patients at the Menzies Hospital in the latest novel, The Glass House, by Anne Buist and Graeme Simsion.…
…
continue reading
By Her Hand is Marion Taffe's debut novel where the protagonist must write her rage to win her war.Laura McCluskey takes us to an isolated island off the west coast of Scotland where superstition and resistance hamper a murder investigation in her debut novel, The Wolf Tree.By Marion Taffe with Lisa Moule and Laura McCluskey with David McLean
…
continue reading
Peter Norris writes about his upbringing with his career criminal father who was a bank robber and jail escapee in the memoir, The Bank Robbers Boy.Kate Grenville talks about her latest work, Unsettled.By Peter Norris with David McLean and Kate Grenville with Lisa Moule
…
continue reading
A cicada leaves a shell of its former self behind suggesting a past life and this notion is played upon in Ella Ward's novel, The Cicada House.By Ella Ward with David McLean
…
continue reading
Kate Solly has written a cosy crime book ‘The Paradise Heights Craft Store Stitch Up’.Family saga mixes with macabre happenings in ‘First Name Second Name’ Steve MinOn has a dead man walking back through four generations of family history to recover his lost identity.By Kate Solly with Lisa Moule and Steve MinOn with Jan Goldsmith
…
continue reading
Her Gramps has dementia and it is through a time slip that Charlotte relives the moon landing and brings sparks of awareness and her own empathy to him and others in the aged care facility, in Anna Ciddor’s ‘Moonboy’.Several months after her father's death, Belinda Probert discovers that his name is actually Roy. She outlines the journey of discove…
…
continue reading
Alice and Teddy are two women on the fringes of criminality who begin to realize they are implicated in drug running and murder in Fiona Hardy's novel, 'Unbury the Dead'.Three people from different generations, backgrounds and work, form an unlikely connection and this friendship alters the course of their lives in Andrea Goldsmith’s ‘The Buried Li…
…
continue reading
It is not only communicating with the spirits of the dead that is perplexing for Ellen but her feeling towards one of the other members of the family that make up the church in ‘The Spirit Circle’ by Tara Calaby, an intriguing historical mystery.Geraldine Brooks' memoir, ‘Memorial Days’, addresses the nature of loss and grief as she comes to terms …
…
continue reading
Jennifer Wolfe thinks she is fighting just for her family but her survival and the truths she could reveal could bring down a dictatorship. She becomes ‘The Hunted’ in Tayla Holborow’s adventure story. ‘The Thrill Of It’ takes us into the malevolent world of a serial killer dispatching old women. Mandy Beaumont bases her version on real life events…
…
continue reading
Lili Wilkinson's, "Unhallowed Halls', is set on the Scottish moors. It is where dark academia and demons collide. Should the creative arts be inviolable or should artists use their knowledge for personal gain. This is one of the concepts in Alex Miller's latest novel, The Deal.By Lili Wilkinson with Lisa Moule and Alex Miller with David McLean
…
continue reading
The stories and songs coming from a writing course in a women’s prison, brings black humour and a little understanding of these women’s lives and crimes in Valerie Colyer’s ‘Tales that talk to you’Geoff Parkes takes us to the backwater town of Nashville in New Zealand where a Finnish backpacker, Sanna Sorensen, goes missing. The whole town is full …
…
continue reading
Thuy On, once again, explores, language, love and the arts in her latest poetry collection, ‘Essence’.Grace had to contend with grieving parents, conflicted staff and hounded by relentless media for the decision she made at the beach and then the consequences to come to her in this page turning thriller ‘Three Boys Gone’ by Mark Smith.…
…
continue reading
‘You Must Remember This’ by Sean Wilson is an eloquent jumble of a family story with a tender portrait of Grace and her slippages of memory with dementia.When a well-meaning community is challenged by the homeless living close by, it is how they act individually and as a group that make this such a wryly humourous and readable fiction. The book is …
…
continue reading
Blue Lake by David Sornig is part history, part biography and part personal reflection on a much overlooked part of Melbourne's landscape. Situated to the west of the city lies a tract of land, Dudley Flats, that was once a lagoon but embodies the social, industrial and cultural changes to Melbourne over time. It was a marshland, waste dump, shanty…
…
continue reading
When Captain Cook sailed up the east coast of Australia, he renamed many of the landmarks. In ‘Warra Warra Wai’ the names and stories of these landmarks are explained as well as how the Indigenous Australians were impacted by this uninvited visitor. Darren Rix and Craig Cormick have recorded and researched this most interesting book.…
…
continue reading
Ghost Cities by Siang Lu is an epic tale. Historical China with paranoid emperors finds a parralel with megalomaniaical film directors in the present day where empires are build on false promises. But Lu's story goes into the very foundation of language and social attitudes where we begin to question the foundations of what we believe and how socia…
…
continue reading
Peter Rose, long time editor of ABR, talks about the recent edition '2024 Books of the Year', with over 40 contributors. David, Lisa and Jan add the books that resonated with them over the year on Published or not, and we alll discuss different aspects of reading, writing and reviewing.By Peter with Jan, David and Lisa
…
continue reading
'Thoroughly Disenchanted' is Alexandra Almond's take on a fictional world where magic casts a spell on us all and keeps us in thrall without us even knowing.'The Lost Book of Magic' is the last in a fantasy trilogy for middle grade readers by Amelia Mellor.By Alexandra Almond with David McLean and Amelia Mellor with Lisa Moule
…
continue reading
The subtitle says it all – ‘A celebration of joyful rebellion, glorious women and cats’, it is also factually interesting and beautifully illustrated. The author is Anna Go-Go and the title is ‘Cat Lady Manifesto’.Iain Ryan's latest novel,’ The Dream’, is a dark noir thriller set against the backdrop of corruption and dysfunction that was prevalent…
…
continue reading
A rabbit and a grandmother come to stay during lockdown. Will this help a grieving family heal in Melanie Cheng’s ‘The Burrow’.Ginny Dilboong has a unique way of publishing her poetry. She plants her compositions in the earth and by so doing affirms her indigenous ties to the landscape in Nardi Simpson’s book ‘TheBelburd’.…
…
continue reading
‘Six Summers of Tash and Leopold’ by Danielle Binks is a beautiful middle-grade novel for contemporary tmes.Zoe’s Elevator Pitch to her agent says it all…….“A thriller writer who starts dating a celebrity has to deal with a psycho fan who uses everything in her first book against her. The police can’t help her, nobody can help her…except maybe the …
…
continue reading
Darren Rix and Craig Cormick have co-authored ‘Warra Warra Wai’. It is a richly researched book telling of Captain Cook’s Endeavour visit and what happened then, from both historical records and indigenous story telling. Writers block can be a very debilitating condition made all the more problematic when stranded on a remote island where the mytho…
…
continue reading
'Little Puggle's Christmas' is a beautiful Christmas book by Vikki Conley with an Australian setting.The 70's were a time of social revolution and one of the epicentres of the ferment was London where Grace has travelled. Her meeting with Marigold is pivotal to her journey of self discovery which is all revealed in Mira Robertson's novel, 'Grace an…
…
continue reading
Rosalie Ham completes her trilogy of The Dressmaker with ‘Molly’, the mother who challenged society’s norms in wanting changes, fairness for women in the work place and sensible underwear. A humorous and well-crafted story which explains how her daughter, Tilly Dunnage, grew up in Dungatar.Yannick Thoraval’s book ‘The Marriage Gap’ challenges the c…
…
continue reading
As ‘The 113th Assistant Librarian’ Oliver’s life now has seven cats, hundreds of deadly books and he has to learn how to stop people dying in the library. Stuart Wilson has written a magical tome for parents to enjoy reading to their primary aged kids and remember books can be dangerous! After reading Gabriel Bermoser's novel, The Hitchhiker, you w…
…
continue reading
Managing a boutique hotel overlooking a surf beach in Sri Lanka sounds like paradise. Dasha Ross writes about the joy and disasters of trying to do this with her husband John Pinder in ‘Big Trouble Coming’. Tigest Girma creates a world where mortals and vampires coexist in 'Immortal Dark' where betrayal, violence and romance are intertwined and lif…
…
continue reading
Lynette Clarke has written about strangers in London sharing rooms with no personal space. Some will find work, fall in love and forge friendships but one will be driven to violence in ‘The Rat Cage’. Finding time to be yourself given the travails of life besetting you is at the core of Sophie Green's novel, 'Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel'.…
…
continue reading
Guilt, hope and recrimination are at play in Matthew Hooper's debut novel, A Cold Season.The Little Clothes by Deborah Callaghan is about grabbing onto life and claiming your place in it.areBy Matthew Hooper with David McLean and Deborah Callaghan with Lisa Moule
…
continue reading
Casey Nott has written a novel about motherhood, identity and loss in ‘Forgotten’.Fay works as a translator but it is her choice of lover and employer that lead to betrayal, ambition and questioning what love means in Jessie Tu’s ‘The Honeyeater’.By Casey Nott with Lisa Moule and Jessie Tu with Jan Goldsmith
…
continue reading
Amanda Willimott has written an historical thriller, based on an actual trial of a werewolf. ‘Winter of the Wolf' is also about the power of law and religion for educated men while many women had no voice at all for fear of being charged with witchcraft.Keshe Chow takes us back to imperial China and the notion that behind every mirror lies an alter…
…
continue reading
Displacement can be the shift in location from a country, a city or a family. All of these aspects come to life when Aliya and her daughter choose to move to rural New South Wales in Jumaana Abdu’s debut novel ‘Translations’.The pieces of our lives, the influences and experiences, are like a mosaic joining together to make a whole that may be stran…
…
continue reading
Household debt takes on a new meaning when you are a former assassin seeking retribution for the death of a child while, at the same time, trying to manage your domestic life. Mark Mupotsa-Russell explores these dilemmas in his novel, ‘The Hitwoman's Guide to Reducing Household Debt’.Melbourne is the city. It and the characters who just want to be …
…
continue reading
'Together We Fall Apart' is Sophie Matthiesson's novel about running away and coming home against a backdrop of addiction.'The End and Everything Before It' is Finegan Kruckemeyer's first novel where the tale twists upon itself highlighting the development of a town over the course of time where legend and life are intertwined.…
…
continue reading
A small town but with a dark history and when an old woman tells a secret from the past, there is a mystery to unravel and a crime to solve in Amy Doak’s YA novel ‘Eleanor Jones Can’t Keep a Secret’.Courtney Collins explores the universal connection between women that transcends time, cultures and countries in her novel, 'Bird'.…
…
continue reading
