2017 Australian Women Writers Challenge

Just to say that yes I have signed up for the AWW 2017 challenge.  You can too, if you are interested in reading more books by Austraian women writers.  Just click here.

I think the addition of reviewing classic as well as contemporary books is great.

I have set an overall goal of 15 books - reasonably achievable given that I read 14 this year.

Of those 15, I have set a goal of reading 3-5 classic books and would like to combine that with my love of Virago Modern Classics.  These are the ones that have taken my fancy so far:










I wonder how I'll go.

What guides my choices?  Prizes sometimes such as the Premier's or Prime Minister's Awards and the Book Industry Awards. Sometimes I'll see a review in the Good Reading magazine that takes my fancy.


I like to make myself read outside my normal range and explore crime, children's and young adult to name a few.

I wonder what treats 2017 will bring.

Australian Women Writers' Challenge 2016 - Challenge Completed

I always like to set goals at the beginning of the New Year - particularly with regard to health and reading.  I've met a few challenges this year walking wise with the aid of my beautiful hound Arwen.  

With regards to reading, one of  my favourite goals is the Australian Women Writers Challenge.  

I hoped to read 10 books this year and write 5 reviews for them.  I think I may have fallen short of my goal in the reading department. And while I'm pretty sure I met the writing reviews goal, I confess that some of my reviews are on the short side.  

Here's my year in reading AWW.

1.



I didn't really write a review for this.  This was what I said at the beginning "Oh now this is a nice easy read and not predictable...well not yet anyway..."...I remember being a bit cross with the lead character by the end...she was so unforgiving and I think the other characters (step-brother from memory???) went to a lot of trouble over her and I wondered if that would happen in real life....anyway....not a stand out book for me but not unbearable.


2.



Link to my review on Goodreads.

3.



Link to my review on Goodreads

4.



Link to my review on Goodreads

5.



Link to my review on Goodreads

6.



Link to my review on Goodreads

7.



Link to my review on Goodreads

8.




Link to my review on Goodreads

9.



Link to my review on Goodreads

10.



Link to my review on Goodreads


Oh my goodness!  Look at that !  I met my goal in terms of reading!  In fact...I exceeded it!

Here's a gratuitous photo of me on a glacier taken by my father earlier this year on a fabulous holiday.  I looked pretty pleased with myself don't I?


11.



Link to my review on Goodreads

12.



I'm not going to link to my review on Good Reads because it is ridiculously short.  It's a one-word review- and the word is???? Wonderful!  

Oh and when I first started reading it, I logged the comment - God it's great to be reading a good book.  

I have to say that I am in love with Helen Garner's writing.  I didn't think much of The Spare Room but I have gobbled up everything I have read of hers since.

13.




Link to my review on Goodreads

14.



Link to my review on Goodreads



So that's my year in reading.  I really stepped outside my normal reading boundaries.  I read my first graphic novel. I read a supernatural YA regency novel.  I read crime. I read short stories. I read essays.  I had never read 11/13 authors before.

Did I have a favourite?  Oh this is so hard - Fiona Wright's work is so so smart, so insightful, so thoughtful - I am in awe of her self-knowledge.  And then I really loved Not just black and white - what a story! And what a wonderful tribute to the relationship between mother and daughter - powerful stuff.  But Helen Garner's Joe Cinque's Consolation takes the cake for me because it is ultimately a work of love - beautifully constructed, from the heart, seeking the truth and revealing love. Just beautiful.

Thank you AWW Challenge for taking me beyond my normal reading boundaries and for introducing me to so many good authors.