Book & Bookgroup: The Eyre Affair

The book follows literary detective Thursday Next, who is trailing the dangerous Acheron Hades. When Hades begins stealing characters out of books, it's up to Thursday to stop him. The 1985 alternate universe is entirely believable and intriguing - filled with dodos, bookworms, and other inventions. Thursday is a wonderful heroine - strong, yet vulnerable in her own ways. This book brings up many thought-provoking ideas, and keeps you reading till the very end. It's a terrific science-fiction-esque novel without being too 'far out'. Bookgroup doesn't meet for another few weeks so I am not sure what others thought but I loved it (it did help that I recently read Jane Eyre though so remembered many of the details)!

Vedict: 50/50, half of bookgroup loved it, the other half couldn't finish it!

Book: Mozart Maulers

The Mozart Maulers is a comic memoir based on Dorian's experiences as a student at the Conservatorium of Music in Sydney. At the time he was seeing a psychiatrist who encouraged him to externalize his anger and use an alternative to drug therapy: Rugby League. Unable to convince any team to take him on, he formed his own team with other music students at the Con called The Mozart Maulers. They took on Sydney Uni and surprised everyone - by winning! It was a nice little read, not too heavy and with a good outcome. Lots of chuckles and a good look into both the Arts and Sports.

Book: The Game

I kept going with the crime feel and read another Mandasue Heller. This was a good book about Mary who got kicked out of home as a teenager, became a drug addict, prostitute etc. and ended up in the dodgy Manchester underworld, abused by her husband, lying to Police etc. Just a nice easy read!

Book & Bookgroup: Eucalyptus

What can I say except interesting book. Only half of the people in bookgroup managed to get through it. I didn't mind it. What wrecked it for me was that I read it over about 6 weeks in between other books and only in chuncks. Once I got into it it was good but otherwise it definitely wasn't something you could dip in and out of. However, now I can say that I have read a Miles Franklin winner!

Summary: On a property in western New South Wales a man named Holland lives with his daughter Ellen. Over the years, as she grows into a beautiful young woman, he plants hundreds of different gum trees on his land. When Ellen is nineteen her father announces his decision: she will marry the man who can name all his species of eucalypt, down to the last tree.