From: Perry Shapiro <jodyshapiro>
Date: Tue, 23 Jul 2002 09:31:53 +1000

Hi..am responding to Arthur's comment about Martine Murray's first novel, THE SLIGHTLY TRUE STORY OF CEDAR B. HARTLEY. She has a great voice, that character and I was planning to mention a couple of first time novelists to watch for and she was one. I couldn't put the book down once I started it.

The second is Alyssa Brugman's FINDING GRACE about a first year college student hired to look after a brain damaged adult. It has been shortlisted this year for the Children's Book Council of Australia awards. (not bad for a first novel) Both books mentioned were published by Allen and Unwin and I am really impressed with them as publishers here, bringing out first time writers.

I wanted to mention Gary Crew's Angels Gate which deals with feral children living in the Australian outback. Really gives a great sense of that landscape as does Phipson's Cats and Gillian Rubenstein's story Fox Spell which preceded the Animorph craze and is a great book to hand to kids who loved Hatchett for example.

I think that there are some factors about the difference in the settlement of the US and Australia does reflect in the kinds of books our two countries are comfortable with. The Australian middle grades fiction is much more upfront with language and subject. For example, Diane Wolfer, an author I met recently offers a choice in a pregnant teenager novel and termination is one of the choices. I am not sure that would be so easily accepted in the States.

Some of my Australian friends have said, only partly joking I suspect, that Australians should also celebrate Thanksgiving..being thankful that the pilgrims went to America and the convicts came here. It certainly is a less uptight society here and it is reflected in the novels. Cheers..Jody
Received on Mon 22 Jul 2002 06:31:53 PM CDT