Category: Review

I picked up Kafka on the Shore after visiting a bookshop in Japan. I was surprised (somewhat naïve) to find very few English books for sale so far on my holiday, so this small selection peaked my interest. However, oddly about half the books were various titles from the same author, Haruki Murakami. So after…

This was a short book that was neatly organised into clear parts. Generally, Matsumoto would describe an item, explain how to clean said item, explain said item in the context of monk like and tie this all together with the general philosophies of Buddhist monks. It covered practical cleaning areas like windows and kitchenware but…

After thouroughly enjoying the first book in this series I was delighted to pick up the sequel, The Da Vinci Code, for just $7 at K-Mart. Dan Brown once again employs similar narrative devices in this book. Again, we follow Robert Langdon on a frantic treasure hunt following a murder. However, this time Brown takes…

A poetry handbook is the first book about writing that I think I have read, and it was excellent. Oliver breaks down poetry like a true craftsman, technically, presenting different techniques and dissecting them for the reader. She peppers her analysis with often humorous opinions on the craft or particular techniques and writes so precisely,…

I think I read this in one day? It was short, I had time and space and I was fascinated by the simple and logical story this book presented. The Invisible doctrine sought to do one thing, reveal the concept of Neoliberalism from behind the increasingly dark cover it lurks behind. Much like Lord Voldemort…

This book spent more time talking about Jimmy Savile then I expected. It felt like a big part of this was Louis trying to make sense of the whole episode himself, and in that way Louis, intentional or not, provided us with a view into himself just as he does many of his other subjects.…

Browsing Brunswick Bound I stumbled on not just this collection of poetry, but a whole suite of Greek-Australian Press. I didn’t realise how active the scene here was and hope to better engage with it! Anyway, I’m thankful that I picked up Kalliope X Speaks and enjoyed the variety and tone of the content. The…

Angels & Demons was a fun book that I finally got to reading after encouragement from a friend. I accept that it isn’t a guilty pleasure, it was a good book! An engaging fast paced story with interesting characters and beautifully weaved interactions with history’s odds and ends. Anyone approaching this with more than the…

After reading Snowing in Bali I wanted to find out more about the South American influence on the global narcotics trade, so when I found Narcoball, a book also touching on football, I had to pick it up. The topic and the stories were cool, but as I read on I realised that they were…

I picked up this book at the airport on the way out of Bali and started it on the plane. Right from the very start I found it intoxicating as Bonella chooses to open with fast paced stories of hedonism and adventure. Bonella wrote this book off of the back of her earlier journalistic work…

I relented, after holding off from personal development books for an extended period I bought into another one, a big one, and thankfully a good one. After passing the typical hyperbolic hooks that start these books (this one was a childhood incident) and ignoring the sad reality of publishing these days (this book was published…

This short novella tells a story in three acts (great now I sound like the blurb). First the imagined world that lives within Chuck, and then major moments from his life. It was written well, very engaging and a fun story that inspired a little wonder in me more than I have felt as of…

Ignore the comments on the covers, Chisholm is no Bourdain. A good writer with a fascinating story to tell? Yes. But to compare him to Bourdain or Orwell seems premature. A Waiter in Paris chronicles the life of Chisholm as just that, a waiter in Paris, however, although experiencing the life for a short period,…

I have been thinking about this for a long time. The importance of objects around the house, how we engage with them, how they influence our behaviour, how they preserve our identities. Coccia touches on this but also more in this collection of themed essays covering rooms, spaces both physical and digital. I enjoyed his…

Seferis has an interesting story. He was born in Smyrna and Greek diplomat, he was also a Nobel prize winner, which isn’t surprising to me because I enjoyed his poetry and also recognised his personal connections. The poems here are all in English so I’m sure they’re missing the rhyming and aesthetics that usually come…

This is the second time that I have read Fooled by Randomness. I felt that this time I was able to comprehend it better, but it did not hit me as the revolutionary work as it did the first time. In this book Taleb discusses his philosophy on randomness, using examples from his life and…

Running Smart acts as a compliment to a hobby runner, discussing topical and novel theories with academic backing. Generally the book was easy enough to get through and had an enjoyable, simple style, but overall it often contradicted itself and offered limited additional practical guidance or insight for runners. My biggest issue with the book…

I first heard of this book after seeing an article in the Neos Kosmos. Just months later I found a copy in the Paperback Bookshop and was told that I purchased it on the first day after its delivery. Turns out that they had such a good reception with Nikos Papastergiadis’ book that they decided…