Book Review: No Autographs, Please! by Katherine Wiles

No Autographs, Please is the highly entertaining memoir and backstage pass to life in the chorus by decades-long member of Opera Australia, Katherine Wiles.

 

Katherine has a very personable way of writing and I don't think I've enjoyed reading a memoir as much as I enjoyed No Autographs, Please! I found myself eager to pick the book up every chance I could get. High praise from someone who doesn't read much non-fiction.

Written with candour, Katherine writes about life in the chorus; the things that went right and the things that went terribly wrong, the rehearsals, bone-aching tiredness, the glamorous and not so glamorous, the friendships and the behind the scenes hijinks.

 

I've only ever been to the opera once, and that was in high school, but after reading No Autographs, Please! I felt I had a whole new appreciation of all it takes to put on a production. I have a real yearning now to watch a performance and become a part of the whole opera experience.

 

Katherine writes about the wonderful experiences she has had through Opera Australia, the impact of Covid, her battle with stage fright and her favourite onstage performances. All written with humility and real emotion. Katherine's love for all the opera encompasses shines through on every page.

 

You don't need to be an opera fan to enjoy this open, engaging and humorous memoir about life in the chorus line.

 

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

Publisher: Echo Publishing

Publication date: 3rd September 2024

Genre: Non-Fiction / Memoir

Pages: 288

RRP: AU$34.99 (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

 

Book Review: A Single Lifeline by Heidi Coupland

A Single Lifeline

by

Heidi Coupland

Publisher: Echo Publishing

Publication date: 2nd July 2024

Genre: Memoir

Pages: 256

RRP: AU$34.99

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: A Single Lifeline

I'm not a big memoir reader but I really should broaden my reading and seeing as I was sent A Single Lifeline by the publisher I thought I would give it a go. Well, I read A Single Lifeline in one sitting. I very rarely do this, even with crime thrillers.

 

Heidi Coupland's memoir is filled with heart and love. Written whilst her husband was undergoing cancer treatment some years ago and although published now it is narrated in real time.

 

From her husband's diagnosis with Leukaemia through to the treatments, the ups and many downs Heidi shows a strength that comes from the deep love she and her husband have for each other.

Pete's journey through chemo, bone marrow transplant and setback after setback is harrowing and the human will to survive against insurmountable odds is amazing.

Heidi Coupland doesn't try to wring the emotion, preferring to focus on her and Pete's strength through love. It was the generosity of friends and strangers that brought tears to my eyes. Everyone pitching in to help out with their children.

Heidi also covers their early life together, meeting, having children and how their different personalities complement each other.

A Single Lifeline is a raw and honest read as Heidi recounts the emotional as well as the physical journey after a cancer diagnosis.

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

Book Review: The Girls by Chloe Higgins

 The Girls

by

Chloe Higgins

A memoir of family, grief and sexuality

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Imprint: Picador

Publication date: 27th August 2019

Genre: Non fiction / Memoir

Pages: 320

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: The Girls

When Chloe was seventeen she and her mother stayed home, so she could study for HSC exams, whilst her father took her two younger sisters on a ski trip. On the way back from the trip the car was involved in an accident and burst into flames. Both the sisters were killed.

The Girls is what followed, for Chloe, after that fatal day.

 

I find it very hard to review memoirs, especially those that involve grief and mental illness as I've never had this extreme level of grief.  

 

I appreciated that Chloe was candid in her writing. It is no use writing a memoir if you are only going to write the good stuff and gloss over the bad. It's all included; the drugs, the sex and the bouts of depression.

 

The words flow and her writing is easy to read even though the content is tough.

The story jumps around a lot in time and sometimes I found the time stamp hard to figure out.

I am glad writing this book has helped Chloe work through her own grief and by the end of the book I was pleased she was starting to heal.

My rating 4 / 5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Challenges: TBR challenge

                    Non-fiction challenge

Book Review: Don't Make a Fuss: It's only the Claremont serial killer by Wendy Davis

 Don't Make a Fuss

It's only the Claremont serial Killer

by

Wendy Davis

Publisher: Fremantle Press

Publication date: 1st June 2022

Genre: Non-Fiction (memoir)

Pages: 216

Source: own copy

 

Review: Don't Make a Fuss: It's only the Claremont Serial Killer

Don't Make a Fuss is a brave and courageous memoir highlighting the ongoing culture of women's unimportance and  suppression.

 

Wendy was attacked at her workplace by Bradley Edwards. Wendy's attack was minimised and her account ignored by both police and authorities. Edwards went on to murder two, possibly three, women in the Claremont area which sparked a police investigation spanning decades.

Wendy Davis tells her story in this important novel broken up between present-day and the current investigation, and at the time of the attack 30 years ago and how it affected her.

I was appalled how the initial attack on Wendy had little consequence for the perpetrator, brushed under the carpet. However, it affected Wendy's life for years to come.

The story made me angry how crimes against women are being downplayed and because Wendy had a strong personality her trauma was devalued. She was expected to just get on with it.

I can't even fathom the monumental stress she has had to live with during the dragged out court case with years passing from arrest to sentence of this evil man.

I do hope that writing this book has been cathartic for Wendy. However, I am sure that the events of 1990 will be with her forever.

Thank you Wendy for this insightful memoir. We need to make a fuss and not only be heard but also actioned upon appropriately 

4 /5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Review: I Belong to No One by Gwen Wilson

 I Belong to No One

by

Gwen Wilson

Publisher: Hachette Australia

 

Publication day: 1st January 2015

 

Genre: Non Fiction / Memoir

 

Pages: 314

 

Source: Own purchase

 

My review of I Belong to No One

I found Gwen Wilson's memoir riveting. The writing flowed well making it an easy read. However, I didn't think the life she portrays in the book was that harrowing, or much different to any low socioeconomic families of that era.

Brought up by a single mother with mental health problems Gwen explains how neighbours and family often took her in. She was an intelligent and fiery young girl who wasn't afraid of hard work.

I few bad decisions and a stubborn personality sees Gwen hit rock bottom; pregnant and unemployed.

I Belong to No One is heart-wrenching in its reading. Although the author has spared her readers the graphic details of abuse she still manages to clearly portray the injustices and inequality suffered by women in the 70's.

Wilson is an inspiration to all in the way she turned her life around, offered forgiveness and moved forward.

My rating 3/5         ⭐⭐⭐

About the author (from the front of the book)

Gwen Wilson started writing her memoir in her fifties. Essentially self-educated, Gwen worked as a motel receptionist, dental nurse and switchboard operator until at nineteen, in the exciting days of the pre-container era, a chance opportunity saw her land a role in customs clearance on the male-dominated Port Adelaide waterfront. A stable marriage and a successful career in shipping and logistics followed until she retired, after which Gwen entered university for the first time and now holds a Master's degree in Electronic Commerce. Gwen and husband Bill live in Wollongong, New South Wales.

Challenges: Mount TBR challenge (on my shelf since October 2015)

                    Non Fiction readers challenge (memoir)

Book Review: 138 Dates by Rebekah Campbell

 138 Dates

by

Rebekah Campbell

 

The true story of one woman's search for everything

 

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

 

Imprint: A&U New Zealand

 

Publication date: 2nd July 2021

 

Genre: Non Fiction / Memior

 

Pages: 416

 

RRP $29.99AUD 

Format read: Paperback

 

Source: Courtesy of the publisher via DMCPR Media.

 

About the book

 

 On the outside, Rebekah Campbell has an enviable life. She is founder of hot Sydney startup Posse.com, writes a popular blog and gives inspirational talks at conferences for female entrepreneurs.

But when she turns off the light each night, she is alone and terrified of the future. She knows that what's important to her isn't money or startup glory or social media followers. She wants love. She wants a family.

And she is stuck. She hasn't been on a date in ten years. She's too embarrassed to list herself on the internet and can't bear the risk of getting rejected.

She decides to act. She'll take the tactics she's learnt building companies and apply them to finding a man. Her epic journey will take her on dates with 138 different men in Sydney, New York and San Francisco, while at the same time confronting the immense challenges of launching a business.

She'll face exhaustion, humiliation and heartbreak; she'll meet some strange and dangerous characters. And she will strip herself of the ego and expectations that have been holding her back. She will not stop.

138 Dates proves that the end is always worth the effort.

 

My review

 

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Not being the target audience and all.

 

If you follow Rebekah on social media you know how this turns out but this little spoiler didn't affect my reading pleasure.

 

Rebekah is open and honest as she takes on finding love as she would a business venture, organising do's and don'ts lists and practically interviewing her dates. 

I did find her quite judgemental and not very warm when she was on the dates. She was all business.  

I admire her tenacity as she goes on 138 different dates and I enjoyed all the descriptions of the different restaurants and meals she had. 

 

As she combines looking for love with the stress of running a start-up, Rebekah talks a lot about her business and work although I still feel she played down how stressful and time consuming starting your own business is.

 

I really enjoyed this candid and entertaining look at dating in your mid thirties and the call out not to give up on your dreams. However, I feel the real take out was Rebekah's acceptance of herself. It's hard to find love when you don't love yourself.

 

My rating 4 / 5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

 About the author

 

Rebekah Campbell is the co-founder of Hey You, a mobile app used by more than one million Australians to order and pay at cafes. She has kept a blog about her experiences as an entrepreneur which was named 'Best Business Blog' by Smart Company and became a New York Times column in 2012. Rebekah writes a monthly opinion piece for AFR BOSS Magazine and has contributed to MamaMia, Women's Agenda and Stuff. She is a high-profile public speaker who spoke at TEDx Sydney and numerous events for Business Chicks. Rebekah was named a Woman of Influence in 2015 and APEC Young Woman Innovator. She is currently the host and curator of the City of Sydney's virtual event series 'Reboot', supporting 18,000 Sydney business owners to recover from the impact of COVID 19. Rebekah's personal passion is her everything which she finds at the end of this book.  

 

 

Book Review: Good Indian Daughter by Ruhi Lee

Good Indian Daughter

by

Ruhi Lee 

 

How I found freedom in being a disappointment

 

Publisher: Affirm Press

Publication date: 25th May 2021

Genre: Memoir

Pages: 336

RRP: $32.99AUD

Format read: Paperback

Source: Better Reading Preview

 

About the book

 

Long before Ruhi fell pregnant, she knew she was never going to be the ‘good Indian daughter’ her parents demanded. But when the discovery that she is having a girl sends her into a slump of disappointment, it becomes clear she’s getting weighed down by emotional baggage that needs to be unpacked, quickly.

So Ruhi sets herself a mission to deal with the potholes in her past before her baby is born. Delving into her youth in suburban Melbourne, she draws a heartrending yet often hilarious picture of a family in crisis, struggling to connect across generational, cultural and personal divides.

Sifting through her own shattered self-esteem, Ruhi confronts the abuse threaded through her childhood. How can she hold on to the family and culture she has known and loved her whole life, when they are the reason for her scars?

 

My review

 

Ruhi Lee writes with candour and humour. Her memoir, written as she awaits the birth of her first child, is a journey into a life lived with an underlying guilt for not being the daughter her parents had envisaged.

Good Indian Daughter is an engaging read. with Ruhi Lee’s relaxed style of writing I found myself fully immersed in her story. Many areas of Ruhi’s story will resonate with readers, even those not of Indian descent.

Ruhi Lee is a strong voice for girls and women everywhere who are being subjugated and unheard. She speaks openly on bullying, body image problems, religion, misguided advice, depression, anxiety, racism and abuse.

Reading Ruhi’s story made me sad, angry and overwhelmed but Ruhi’s humour throughout also gave me a few laughs which lightened, although didn’t lessen, the overall feel of the book.

Good Indian Daughter is a brave and open story of shedding the guilt and living your own life. 

 4 / 5 stars    ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

About the author 

 

Ruhi Lee's articles, poetry and book reviews have been featured in The Guardian, ABC Life, SBS Voices, South Asian Today and The Big Issue among other publications. In 2019, she was a recipient of the Neilma Sidney Literary Travel Fund and her manuscript was shortlisted for the Penguin Random House Write It Fellowship. In 2020, she was one of the commissioned writers for the Multicultural Arts Victoria's Shelter program. Good Indian Daughter is her first memoir. She lives in Victoria. 

 

 

Challenges entered:  Australian Women Writers Challenge #AWW2021

                                 Aussie Author Challenge #AussieAuthor21

                                 Non Fiction Challenge #2021ReadNonFic 

 

 

 

Book Review: The Women's Doc by Caroline De Costa

 The Women's Doc

by

Caroline De Costa

True stories from five decades delivering babies and making history

 

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Publication date: 4th May 2021

Genre: Non Fiction / Memoir

Pages: 320

RRP: $32.99AUD

Format read: Paperback

Source: courtesy of the publisher

 

About the book

 

When Caroline first started in medicine, being an unmarried mother was frowned on, cane toads were used for pregnancy tests, and giving birth was much riskier than it is today. Her funny and poignant stories of bringing babies into the world show that, while much has changed, women still work hard and it remains a bloody business. A birth plan is no guarantee of a normal birth (whatever that is).

Men have always wanted to control women's bodies, and Caroline has been instrumental in giving Australian women of all backgrounds the opportunity to resist, and to choose when and how they have babies. Her behind-the-scenes stories reveal it's often the little things that win a campaign. 

 

My review

 

The Women's Doc consists of seventy-three short stories centred around the changing world of medicine and childbirth as experienced by Caroline De Costa.  

 

Caroline De Costa is a trailblazer in the area of women's health and giving women more rights over their own body. She has had a colourful and outstanding life studying in Dublin at an early age, becoming an unmarried mother in the late 1960's (a time when this was deeply frowned upon), running contraceptive pills over the border from England to Ireland, opening the first family planning clinic in Ireland and working in villages in PNG. Caroline De Costa has been an advocate for women worldwide.

Many life changing changes for women came about during Dr De Costa's early medical years with many of these changes pioneered by Dr De Costa herself.

 

I am not a big non fiction reader but I do enjoy short story compilations. The Women's Doc was a book I could pick up whenever I had a few spare minutes reading two or three short stories at a time.

The stories aren't in chronological order, jumping back and forward in time, and I found this a bit off putting.

The historical element of the book was very interesting with content on the introduction of anesthesia, the revelation of the need to sterilise equipment, the development of forceps for difficult births and pregnancy testing with toads.

I did find it quite dry and would have liked a bit more humour throughout the book. Most of the birth stories are quite graphic, some even alarming. I did find the historical elements of the book relating to how dangerous childbirth was for women to be fascinating and can appreciate how far we have come both knowledge and procedure wise since then.

The Women's Doc is a no holds barred look at women's health; the highs, the lows, the triumphs and the tragedies.

 

3 / 5   ⭐⭐⭐

 

About the author

 

Caroline De Costa is the first women to become a professor of obstetrics and gynaecology in Australia, and she has been a major contributor to Australian women getting the repoductive health services they need. She is a professor at James Cook University in Cairns, editor of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, author of 15 books and mother of seven children.  

Challenges entered:  Australian Women Writers Challenge #AWW2021

                                 Aussie Author Challenge #AussieAuthor21

                                 Non Fiction Reader Challenge #2021ReadNonFic 

Book Review: Gone to the Woods by Gary Paulsen

Gone to the Woods

by

Gary Paulsen

 

A TRUE STORY OF GROWING UP IN THE WILD

 

Publisher: Pan Macmillan  

Imprint: Macmillan Children's Books 

Publication date: 12th January 2021

Genre: Children's / Teenage / Memoir

Pages: 224

RRP: $16.99AUD

Format read: Paperback

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

About the book

 

From the author of the bestselling Hatchet comes a true story of high-stakes wilderness survival!

At the age of five Gary Paulsen escaped from a shocking Chicago upbringing to a North Woods homestead, finding a powerful respect for nature that would stay with him throughout his life. At the age of thirteen a librarian handed him his first book, and there he found a lasting love of reading. As a teenager he desperately enlisted in the Army, and there amazingly discovered his true calling as a storyteller.

A moving and enthralling story of grit and growing up, Gone to the Woods is perfect for newcomers to the voice and lifelong fans alike, from the acclaimed author at his rawest and realest.

 

My review

 

I'm finding it hard to know where to start with this story. My son, when young, was a huge Hatchet fan. He read the book over and over and talked of it often. This is how I came to know the name Gary Paulsen, so when I heard he had written a memoir of his childhood I jumped at the chance to read it.

Gary Paulsen writes with stark reality, there is no softening around the edges. He writes about life exactly as he lived it and some scenes are quite gruesome. The story contains vivid descriptions of a train load of injured soldiers and also a frenzied shark attack on the passengers of a plane crash. What I found most distressing is that these are actual real events witnessed by Paulsen as a young child.

The story is narrated in third person with Paulsen referring to himself as 'the boy', so it reads more like a fiction novel than the usual memoir with first person narration.

Paulsen takes moments from his life and weaves a story around that event introducing history and education into the narrative.

The boy, at age 5, after living a life of neglect with his mother, is sent to live with his aunt and uncle on a farm. Here he learns to work hard and to live off the land but mostly he learnt how it felt to  belong. Every sight, sound and smell the boy experiences comes alive on the page. These few years are what set him up to survive life when he was taken back by his mother. What followed  was years of neglect, poverty, bullying and hunger.

The story isn't all bleak as Paulsen interjects humour into even the bleakest events.

 

When he discovers the library and the librarian who gently encourages him to read more and more books that broaden his mind a whole new world of hope is opened up to him.

 

Paulsen's writing starts out soft and gentle when he is a young child naive and fragile, as his life moves on you can feel the writing is more jaded, edgy. Then as a teen, 16 - 17, the writing is angry, disillusioned. I find this type of character change through words and sentence structure unique and engaging.

 

Gone to the Woods is a harrowing and moving true life story of resilience, perseverance and the healing power of books. Narrated with warmth and humour it is touching and informative.

This book is being marketed as middle grade but I would recommend 12+ as there are some quite horrifying and descriptive scenes of war and a shark attack.

5/5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the author

Credit: Pan Macmillan

Gary Paulsen has received great acclaim and many awards for his novels written for young people. HATCHET, and its sequel, THE RETURN, are among his best-known works. He has sailed the Pacific and competed in the gruelling 1,049 mile Iditarod dog-sled race across Alaska. He lives with his family in New Mexico, USA.

 

 

 

 

 

Challenge entered: Non Fiction Readers Challenge 

#2021ReadNonFic

 

 

Book Review: The Long Tail of Trauma: A Memoir

The Long Tail of Trauma: A Memoir

by

Elizabeth Wilcox

 

 

Publisher: Green Place Books

Publication date: 11th November 2020

Genre: Memoir

Pages: 268

Format read: eBook

Source: Courtesy of Stephanie Barko Publicist

 

About the book

 

The Long Tail of Trauma covers the lives of five generations of the author’s maternal ancestors from 1904-2018, through Europe and America. The long tail refers to multigenerational family trauma that begins near Liverpool before World War I and continues through Operation Pied Piper and the PTSD era in America.

The author’s journey becomes an exploration into attachment and the legacy of maternal trauma on intergenerational mental health and relationships. Through documenting her forebears’ stories, author Elizabeth Wilcox gives us a greater understanding of what a mother must overcome to erase the epigenetic stain of early childhood trauma.

 

My review

 

Elizabeth Wilcox writes a memoir that at times reads like an historical  novel it is so full of atmosphere and sentiment.

I enjoyed the combination of writing styles that brought to life the story of Anna and Violet.

 

In the Long Tail of Trauma we follow 4 generations of mothers and daughters. Elizabeth explains, through her research, how trauma can be passed down through the generations.

 

The storyline is sourced from extensive research of Elizabeth's family history and uses some creativity concerning her ancestors thoughts and conversations. 

Dispersed between chapters of her great-grandmother's and grandmother's lives are chapters on her own life growing up with a mother with PTSD.

 

Elizabeth Wilcox has given many documentations to support her claims and I found her  memoir and that of the lives of her ancestors, Germans living in England during the outbreak of WWII to be both engaging and fascinating reading.

The Long Tail of Trauma is an interesting study on childhood trauma and its impact on mental health, autoimmune disease, depression, PTSD and suicidal thoughts.

4/5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the author

Photo: Goodreads

Elizabeth Wilcox has worked as a journalist in England, Hong Kong, and the US. She has extensive experience both nationally and internationally as a newspaper columnist, radio presenter, CNBC television news producer, and web producer.

Her first book The Mom Economy (Berkley, 2003) was called “one of the best career books of 2003” by syndicated columnist Joyce Lain Kennedy. Her guest appearances include community and book groups, local and national radio programs, popular podcasts, and network television. Her work has been featured in ABC7 “All About Kids”, Bloomberg Radio, The Boston Herald, Boston Globe, Marketwatch, The Chicago Tribune, CNNfn, Parenting Magazine, Redbook and others.

Elizabeth Wilcox currently consults with educational organizations that promote social and emotional learning and trauma-informed practices for youth.

She lives with her family in Vermont. 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: War Doctor: Surgery on the Front Line by David Nott

War Doctor

by

David Nott

Surgery on the Front line

Publisher: Pan Macmillan 
Imprint: Picador
Publication date: 26th February 2019
Genre: Memoir / Non Fiction
Pages: 320
RRP:  $29.99AUD
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

For more than twenty-five years, David Nott has taken unpaid leave from his job as a general and vascular surgeon with the NHS to volunteer in some of the world's most dangerous war zones. From Sarajevo under siege in 1993, to clandestine hospitals in rebel-held eastern Aleppo, he has carried out life-saving operations and field surgery in the most challenging conditions, and with none of the resources of a major London teaching hospital.

The conflicts he has worked in form a chronology of twenty-first-century combat: Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Darfur, Congo, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Gaza and Syria. But he has also volunteered in areas blighted by natural disasters, such as the earthquakes in Haiti and Nepal.

Driven both by compassion and passion, the desire to help others and the thrill of extreme personal danger, he is now widely acknowledged to be the most experienced trauma surgeon in the world. But as time has gone on, David Nott began to realize that flying into to a catastrophe - whether war or natural disaster - was not enough. Doctors on the ground needed to learn how to treat the appalling injuries that war inflicts upon its victims. Since 2015, the Foundation he set up with his wife, Elly, has disseminated the knowledge he has gained, training other doctors in the art of saving lives threatened by bombs and bullets.

David Nott has written a compassionate story of his years as a volunteer surgeon working in hospitals around the world in war torn areas in Afghanistan, Sarajevo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan, Darfur, Yemen and Gaza. Operating in poorly equipped hospitals with the most basic of instruments.

Nott didn’t come from a privileged background. He describes his sometimes harsh and lonely upbringing. He has achieved his accomplishments through hard work and perseverance. There were wins and failures along the way.

It’s hard for a book like this, with David in the centre of some quite political wars, to not be political however he steers clear of taking sides giving the reader facts and eye witness accounts.

David Nott comes across as humble and sensitive. The inhumanity he witnesses has a profound effect on him and he finds it hard to fit back into normal life. Nott explains his need to help people and the pull to be amidst the trouble and constant danger of a war zone, operating while missiles are reigning down and during sudden blackouts. Survival sometimes was just pure luck.

War Doctor is a fascinating and humbling account of a doctor’s life in a war zone. Written with real compassion for all humankind. David Nott is a true humanitarian.

An emotional afterword by David’s wife Eleanor is filled with love and pride.

  My rating 4.5/5           ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Photo credit Goodreads

David Nott is a Welsh consultant surgeon, specializing in general and vascular surgery. He works mainly in London hospitals, but for more than twenty-five years he has also volunteered to work in disaster and war zones. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2012 Birthday Honours and in 2016 he received the Robert Burns Humanitarian Award and the Pride of Britain Award. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters. 

 

Book Review: An Alice Girl by Tanya Heaslip

An Alice Girl

by

Tanya Heaslip

Publisher:  Allen & Unwin
Publication date: 19th May 2020
Genre: Non Fiction / Memoir
Pages: 344
RRP: $32.99 AUD
Format read: Paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

An extraordinary story of growing up in the late 1960s and early 70s on an outback cattle property

Whether working the mobs of cattle with the stockmen, playing cattleduffing on horseback or singing and doing lessons at their School of the Air desks, Tanya Heaslip and her siblings led a childhood unimaginable to many Australians. Growing up on a vast and isolated cattle property just north of Alice Springs, Tanya tells of wild rides, of making far-flung friends over the Air, of the dangers, the fun and the back-breaking work. As the eldest child, her added responsibility was to look after the littler ones, so she was by their sides dealing with snakes, the threat of bushfires and broken bones.

Tanya's parents, Janice and Grant 'the Boss' Heaslip, were pioneers. They developed Bond Springs Station where water was scarce, where power was dependent on generators and where a trip to town for supplies meant a full day's journey. Grant was determined to teach his children how to survive in this severe
environment and his lessons were often harsh. In a childhood that most would consider very tough, Tanya tells of this precious time with raw honesty, humour, love and kindness. This is the story of an Alice girl.

 

An Alice Girl is the memoir of Tanya Heaslip’s life growing up on a remote cattle station just north of Alice Springs. The story includes her parents early life. Tanya’s memoir is a candid warts and all tale of growing up in this harsh land. Their triumphs and struggles.

Life was hard and filled with responsibility not only for the adults, the children were expected to work as well. Tanya tells of long days helping her father with the stock and the deep connection to the land that develops when it is your life blood, your whole existence. I was actually a bit shocked at how hard the children had to work.

“the land would soon shape the way I felt and thought and lived. It was like an anchor deep inside, holding me fast to the rocks and earth and hills around me.”

Governesses, school of the air, illness, snakes, redbacks, accidents, lack of water, fire; life lessons were hard in such an isolated place.

“We knew that death was ever present in our world. Many things could kill us in the bush.”

Tanya’s life although remote was also filled with friendship and community get togethers and I could just picture the family squashed together in the Heaslip’s little plane, hot and excited, off to visit friends and family.

Even though the Heaslip children’s lives were busy they still did many things me and my siblings did as children of the 70’s. Much the same games and activities, although I must admit we had a lot more free time. Tanya’s most memorable present of a typewriter when she was 10 brought back my own memories of receiving a typewriter for Christmas when I was 11 and like Tanya it was my most precious present ever.

The 24 pages of colour plate photographs of the Heaslip family makes you feel like you are a treasured friend sharing in their life.

Tanya’s memoir ends at the age of 12 as she leaves to attend boarding school. A heart-wrenching scene. But we all know Tanya goes on to great adventures in Alice in Prague. However her love for the land never leaves her.

An Alice Girl is an awe inspiring story of hardship, endurance, determination and ultimately triumph over the elements to make a living in the harshest of conditions.

My rating 4/5          ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 
Tanya Heaslip was born on a cattle station in outback Australia at the height of the Cold War. She grew up to study and then practice Law. In 1989 she travelled to Europe for the first time and in 1994 she moved to the Czech Republic where she taught English for two and a half years. Tanya's first memoir, Alice to Prague, was published to acclaim in 2019.

Tanya now lives in the Northern Territory with her husband. 

This review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie author challenge

  the Australian Women Writers challenge  and the Non Fiction reader challenge

 

 

 

 

 

Blog Tour Book Review: Hug Everyone You Know by Antoinette Truglio Martin

Hug Everyone You Know

by

Antoinette Truglio Martin

Publisher: She Writes Press
Publication date: 3rd October 2017
Genre: Memior
Pages: 325
Format read: eBook
Source: Courtesy of Women on Writing blog tours

 

Antoinette Martin believed herself to be a healthy and sturdy woman—that is, until she received a Stage 1 breast cancer diagnosis. Cancer is scary enough for the brave, but for a wimp like Martin, it was downright terrifying. Martin had to swallow waves of nausea at the thought of her body being poisoned, and frequently fainted during blood draws and infusions. To add to her terror, cancer suddenly seemed to be all around her. In the months following her diagnosis, a colleague succumbed to cancer, and five of her friends were also diagnosed.

Though tempted, Martin knew she could not hide in bed for ten months. She had a devoted husband, daughters, and a tribe of friends and relations. Along with work responsibilities, there were graduations, anniversaries, and roller derby bouts to attend, not to mention a house to sell and a summer of beach-bumming to enjoy. In order to harness support without scaring herself or anyone else, she journaled her experiences and began to e-mail the people who loved her: the people she called My Everyone. She kept them informed and reminded all to 'hug everyone you know' at every opportunity. Reading the responses became her calming strategy. Ultimately, with the help of her community, Martin found the courage within herself to face cancer with perseverance and humor. 

I don’t know of anyone who hasn’t been touched by cancer in some way.

Antoinette Truglio Martin has written a heartfelt memoir of her journey through breast cancer treatment.

Right when life was at its busiest; the Martins were selling their home, their youngest was going off to college and Antoinette was contemplating changing jobs, she gets a call that her recent mammogram showed something suspicious and she needed to have it checked. And so starts Antoinette’s journey!

Antoinette decides to journal her treatment as a way of getting all her pent up feelings and emotions out. These journal entries along with emails to and from family and friends form part of this memoir.

Antoinette explains the different levels of cancer in an easy to understand language but it’s not all medical procedures and jargon. Antoinette lightens the book with family memories, weekends with friends and antics of her dog Petie.

Antoinette has some sound advice for others undergoing treatment; keeping your close group of friends to lean on if needed, sending updates by email so you are not continually explaining your treatment, don’t let the cancer define you, speak up if you are not happy with something.

It feels strange to say ‘I couldn’t put this book down’ for a memoir (they are not usually my preferred reading) but that is how I felt. I kept saying ‘I will just read for a bit longer.’ Antoinette’s voice is inviting and friendly. It’s as though she is there with you having a conversation.

Hug Everyone You Know is a story of friendship, hope and love. A story of survival and strength in the face of adversity.

If you know someone who is or has undergone cancer treatment I urge you to read Hug Everyone You Know.

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My rating  4/5

 

Photo credit: Goodreads

Antoinette Truglio Martin is a life-long Long Islander, teacher, wife, mother, daughter, and friend. She is the author of Hug Everyone You Know: A Year of Community, Courage, and Cancer—a memoir chronicling her first year battling breast cancer as a wimpy patient. Personal experience essays and excerpts of her memoir were published in Bridges, Visible Ink, and The Southampton Review. 

Martin proudly received her MFA in creative writing and literature from Stony Brook/Southampton University in 2016. Antoinette had also written the children's picture book, Famous Seaweed Soup (Albert Whitman and Company), and was a regular columnist for local periodicals Parent Connections (In a Family Way) and Fire Island Tide (Beach Bumming). 

Her blog, Stories Served Around The Table, tells family tales and life's musings. She lives in her hometown of Sayville, New York with her husband, Matt, and is never far from her “Everyone” and the beaches she loves. Since being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in 2012, she strives to not let cancer dictate her life. 

Please stop by the other posts on the Hug Everyone You Know Blog Tour