Literature

Hebe (Barbara) Morgan died at Bethanie nursing home, Yanchep on June 13 at the age of 95. For the past 50 years, Barbara was a dynamic and influential presence in the Yanchep community. As well as being an acclaimed author, she founded the Yanchep Community school in 1976, wrote music reviews for The West Australian...

The author of the renowned ‘Silver Brumby’ series of books, Elyne Mitchell, has been nominated to have a park named after her. Wodonga Council is seeking feedback on a proposal for the Elyne Mitchell Park to be established in the Kinchington Estate on the southern outskirts of the city.

The upcoming Words in Winter festival promises diverse sessions exploring crime, ideology, farming, self-publishing, history, and memory. Attendees will delve into the impacts of crime in small communities, the influences of political ideologies, the journey of saffron farming, the intricacies of self-publishing, Melbourne’s history and ancient memory techniques applied in the modern world.

Australians bought 69.8 million new books in 2023, 70.9 million in 2022, and 65.4 million in 2021. In a world where there is so much competition for our attention, Australians continue to read, and we continue to read books written by Australians. Now, you can access the books you want to read through the new ARR.News Bookstore.

Warwick Fry. 'Talking' to some (but not all) AI bots can be like talking to salespersons, call centres, MBAs and marketing executives ... The evolution of AI is leading thinkers (and novelists like Gibson) to revisit philosophical questions like what is consciousness, free will, identity? These are fields of enquiry which have been lacking since the commercialisation of academia ...

Acclaimed children’s author Rory H. Mather is set to brighten up winter school holidays in Southern Downs Regional Libraries when he visits to take mums, dads and kids on an adventure through his captivating children’s books.

Through the recounting of various court cases Jamelle provides an insight into the country court system and that of the local reporters who cover the cases. Jamelle spoke to numerous country journalists who acknowledged the difficulty in writing about local people who’ve appeared in court and the retribution they sometimes faced when names and details are published in their local paper.

Susannah Begbie grew up in Eden Monaro, practises as a rural doctor, and has written a prize-winning debut novel, The Deed, set in the Riverina. Australian Rural & Regional News contributor, Aedeen Cremin, strongly recommends The Deed, which she concludes is "ultimately a morality tale - a highly enjoyable one" and was able to quiz Susannah about her work, her characters and some plot choices.

A black comedy that becomes a feel-good novel? Hard to believe, but this book manages it and does so with style and charm. At first sight the characters are cartoonish ... Why would we want to read about them? Well, it’s worth doing because the first quick sketch is filled out with a sure hand, adding relief, light and shade and very soon the reader can identify with at least some of the characters. It’s still a cartoon, but now a cartoon for a lovely tapestry set in a fertile landscape.

I can see you admiring my library, You’re most welcome to stand there and look, But if you want our friendship to last past today, You won’t ask to borrow a book. “Oh! I’d love to read this one,“ you chortle, As you pull out the best from the rack ...

Nancy Whittaker. Imagine the possibilities when four creative artists let their imagination have its way. And the imaginative approach of world-renowned children’s author, Jen Storer ... Kareen Anchen Cascade Art Gallery Director wrote that in "The Power of Imagination": Einstein famously stated, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

Author Jill Griffiths describes her debut book, 'What's For Dinner?' as “an exploration of the food on the table and the farming that puts it there and what it all means for people who grow food and those who eat it”. Australian Regional & Rural News reporter, Serena Kirby, spoke with Jill recently to learn more about her background, how the book came about and some of the fascinating things she discovered in the process.

Kimberly Grabham. Linda Goldspink Lord is a name many would know and remember.  Linda and her family used to live in Hay, and left the town when Linda was a teenager ... She wrote a book, Crawling Through the Darkness.  

Kimberly Grabham. Tim Booth is the son of Lyn and Ken Booth, formerly of Hay. Tim has written a book, titled, You Called an Ambulance for What? ... details the crazy and curious reasons for people calling emergency services, and are situations he experienced while working as a paramedic in Sydney.  

Georgia Harper invites you to delve into her fascinating journey from psychologist to debut author. From her paddock in Allora and under the watchful supervision of her horse, Georgia penned her first novel What I Would Do to You.

Having read Pip Fioretti's Bone Lands in a sitting and finding it an "extraordinary work", Australian Rural & Regional News contributor, Dr Aedeen Cremin was keen to find out more about this "cracker of a book", its origins and its author.

This is a cracker of a book. I literally could not put it down and read it at a sitting. From the very first page we are plunged into the mind of the main character—we can hardly call him a ‘hero’, though he has performed heroic deeds. A former army officer, badly wounded and literally scarred by his time in the second ‘Boer War’ (1899-1902), Gus Hawkins is by 1911 a policeman, a mounted trooper, stationed in the far west of NSW on the Darling River between Bourke and Wilcannia.

Salt River Road, by WA award winning author Molly Schmidt, is definitely a book with a difference.   Written with a mixture of prose and poetry, it tells the story of the rurally-based Tetley family in the aftermath of the loss of their mother ... Australian Regional and Rural News interviewer, Serena Kirby, chatted with Molly to find out more about the unique and beautiful techniques she used in the book and the personal experiences that shaped her writing.  

I’ve read a number of books that delve into issues surrounding Australian food production and it’s fair to say that I found Jill Griffiths’ book What’s For Dinner? the easiest one to digest (pun intended). Jill is a biologist and journalist who’s been writing about the environment and agriculture for more than three decades and her book is a blend of science, history and lived experience.

Kevin Markwell. Workers involved in the refurbishment of Kyogle Memorial Hall have made an incredible discovery. When they pulled out an old timber cupboard in one of the dressing rooms, they discovered an old notebook sitting among the rat nests and dust.

After the MaldON WalkON booklet was launched mid last year, all printed copies ran out the door. Friends of Maldon Historic Reserve Group Spokesperson Lee Mead said, “Due to the booklet’s popularity and value to Maldon, we have been successful in gaining a community grant from Mount Alexander Shire Council to reprint lots more copies.”