Marking this year’s International Women’s Day, Charlotte Wood discussed her award-winning book, The Natural Way of Things, at a National Library event.
Speaking with The Guardian’s, Katherine Murphy, Wood described her experiences of writing the book, which focuses on 10 young women waking from a drugged sleep to find themselves in a run-down, Australian sheep station where they are isolated (no computers or telephones) and subjected to cruel treatment and hard labour from their male oppressors, including having their heads shaved and being tethered together. … Read more.
Hardly surprisingly, Cold Light (the third in the Edith Trilogy) by acclaimed writer, Frank Moorhouse, was a Miles Franklin Award winner. Set in 1950s-1960s Canberra, 700-page Cold Light makes for superb reading. Its main character, Edith Campbell Berry, has extensive experience in working for the League of Nations (before its collapse) and years living overseas (including in Geneva) with her British diplomat husband, Ambrose Westwood, where their work seemed to help save Europe during World War II. … 
This lovely old Queenslander in Hawthorne is a very comfortable and convenient place to stay when visiting Brisbane. Number 12 B&B is only three kms from the city, a short stroll to dining and shopping in nearby Hawthorne Road, or, Oxford Street, Bulimba and a short walk to the stop rivercat stop for the short trip to the city. … 
Dating back to 1890, Yungaburra is charming little village a mere hour and a half from Cairns. This little village features great eateries, hotels and B&Bs and is a great place to wander around to check out its lovely old homes, churches and other historic places. The fourth Saturday of each month features the famous Yungaburra Arts and Crafts Markets, which are said to be the largest and most popular of all the region’s country markets. … 
After a European holiday mostly in Paris, Berlin and Barcelona, we boarded the very comfortable 300-passenger Silversea ship at Barcelona, looking forward to seven days of Mediterranean cruising to various French, Italian and Spanish port towns, and later, having a sojourn in England, including the Lake District.
Steve Lewis and Chris Uhlmann launching their book, The Shadow Game, the third in their trilogy of The Marmalade Files and The Mandarin Code. Set in Canberra and centring largely on journalist, Harry Dunkley, The Shadow Game, has been described by the Sunday Canberra Times as ‘House of Cards, Canberra style’;