Jay Daniel Thompson

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Transnational Literature', vol. 6 no. 2 edited by Gillian Dooley

June–July 2014, no. 362 • 01 June 2014

Transnational Literature is an online, open-access journal that is published by Flinders University. The May 2014 edition certainly lives up to the title. This edition provides an overview of literary texts and theories from across the world. The academic contributions explore a diverse range of topics. These include the work of Marion Halligan, literary representations of Islam and the veil, and ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Crazy Little Heaven' by Mark Heyward

February 2014, no. 358 • 19 January 2014

Crazy Little Heaven provides an account of Mark Heyward’s life in Indonesia. The book offers readers an affectionate insight into this nation and its diverse culture. In 1992, Heyward travelled from Tasmania to East Kalimantan to work as a teacher. He was initially blinded by fantasies of Indonesia as the stomping ground ‘of Joseph Conrad, of the White Rajas of Sarawak … of Tom Harrison, Kin ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Circus and Stage: The theatrical adventures of Rose Edouin and GBW Lewis' by Mimi Colligan

February 2014, no. 358 • 19 January 2014

In Circus and Stage, Mimi Colligan revisits the careers of stage performers Rose Edouin and and her husband, George Benjamin William Lewis, who were significant figures in nineteenth-century Australian theatre but are now ‘largely forgotten’. ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'The Baby Farmers: A Chilling Tale of Missing Babies, Shameful Secrets and Murder in 19th Century Australia' by Annie Cossins

December 2013–January 2014, no. 357 • 01 December 2013

In The Baby Farmers, legal scholar Annie Cossins revisits a bizarre episode in Australian criminal history. Her text focuses on a pair of baby killers who operated in Sydney during the nineteenth century. In October 1892, Sarah and John Makin were arrested after a baby’s corpse was found buried on their farm. An investigation revealed the bodies of twelve more babies, all buried in properties th ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'How to Tell Your Father to Drop Dead' by Jeremy Fisher

December 2013–January 2014, no. 357 • 01 December 2013

The title of Jeremy Fisher’s latest tome is deceptive. This reviewer expected a zany children’s book. Actually, How to Tell Your Father to Drop Dead is a subdued look at masculinity in Australian history. The text comprises autobiographical fragments and short stories. Fisher recalls growing up in a culture where homosexuality was ‘invisible’. He describes the heady days of the Gay Liberat ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Dark Horse' by Honey Brown

October 2013, no. 355 • 27 September 2013

D ark Horse is the latest book from Victorian author Honey Brown. The novel tells of lust and lies between two strangers who come together in an appropriately secluded rural location. Sarah Barnard has recently left an unhappy marriage, and is spending the Christmas period camping with her horse, Tansy. Sarah’s solitude is interrupted by the arrival of a man who calls himself Heath. Sarah is im ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Philosophy in the Garden' by Damon Young

September 2013, no. 354 • 27 August 2013

P hilosophy in the Garden is the latest book from philosopher and social commentator Damon Young. The text contributes to existing studies of the cultural and personal significance held by gardens. Young begins by noting that gardens ‘can console, calm and uplift’, as well as ‘discomfit and provoke’. This range of responses adds to the ‘philosophical value’ of these spaces. Young move ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Transactions' by Ali Alizadeh

July–August 2013, no. 353 • 27 June 2013

Transactions opens with a scene of duplicity and murder. In the following pages, Ali Alizadeh plunges readers into a ‘whirlpool of greed and apathy’. The collection revolves around an assortment of men and women from different parts of the world. We encounter Anna Heinesen, a Danish charity founder who is revealed to be a sex trafficker and religious zealot; Samia, a rich and racist Emirati st ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'The Year It All Fell Down' by Bob Ellis

July–August 2013, no. 353 • 27 June 2013

In The Year It All Fell Down, journalist Bob Ellis revisits 2011, a year that, as the title suggests, produced social and political change on a global scale. The text provides a month-by-month account of this dramatic time. Ellis covers the Queensland floods and the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. He describes the US-sanctioned execution of Osama bin Laden and the mass killings perpetrated by Ande ... (read more)

Jay Daniel Thompson reviews 'Flower Between the Cracks' by Helen Sage

June 2013, no. 352 • 27 May 2013

A Flower Between the Cracks, South Australian writer Helen Sage’s first book, chronicles her experience of caring for a disabled child over a period of several years. Sage’s busy but comfortable life was changed irrevocably when her daughter, Jayne, was involved in a horrific car accident. Prior to this, Jayne had been a psychology honours student who loved ‘rock, blues, playing the piano’ ... (read more)