Kathryn's Inbox

TGIF!

If you think that your neighbours are bad, then spare a thought for the residents of Lowland Way. A peaceful, upper middle class street, these residents have made their area a neighbourhood that they can take pride in, thanks to a number of local initiatives. Things begins to change, however, when Darren Booth inherits 1 Lowland Way from his aunt. Darren is the kind of guy who, at best, is inconsiderate, a bit rough and plays by his own rules. At worst, he's a sociopath. Within days, he has all of the neighbours offside. And when a death shatters the peaceful street, all of the other residents are certain of one thing. Darren did it. Except that the police don't agree with him. And then Darren is found dead, under suspicious circumstances.  From there the neighbourhood steadily goes downhill ... I was intrigued--and I admit amused--by the sound of this one. Over the years, I've had my fair share of problematic neighbours from both ends of the spectrum, those who...

The Book Ninja was just so brilliant (or fucking hilarious as I put it in my review last year,) that I was thrilled when I learned that the book's co-authors Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus had penned another novel. This one tells the story of Bea Babbage, a woman whose life is falling apart after she accidentally ruins her best friends wedding. Moving across the country to Melbourne, she attempts to pick up the pieces in her life, discovering a great cafe and a secondhand book that has all kinds of messages scribbled inside along the way. Intrigued by the book and its notes, she begins to search for the person who wrote the notes ... with some surprising results along the way. This one was an easy read that never takes itself too seriously. Bea was an easy character to like and spend time with, and the premise was a lot of fun. It was interesting too, to see her grow and develop, despite the well, massive, obstacle that Cassandra threw in along the way. (Speaking of, I really ...

View this post on Instagram Mural, Glenelg Community Centre Spotted this beautiful mural down at the Bay yesterday. I love unexpectedly coming across pieces of public art 😍 #publicart #art #artoninstagram #glenelgcommunitycentre #glenelg #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Apr 2, 2019 at 5:26pm PDT

Like a lot of young people, Sally Hetherington wanted to make a difference. And so, at age 25, she bought a one-way ticket to Cambodia, a country that she had previously visited and loved, where she hoped that she could help the locals. What she soon learned, however, was that travelling overseas with good intentions, wasn't enough. Many of the local programmes suffered through disempowered staff and an extremely unhealthy white savour syndrome. And so, Sally found a way to make a real difference--by developing a community centre, The Human and Hope Association, with the locals that could be run by the local people. The goal was to make herself redundant to the programme. And after a few years, during which she got to know many of the local people and to understand the local politics and culture, she did exactly that. It's Not About Me tells the story of her time there.  Reading this book was one heck of an education. I'd always been wary of programmes where Austra...

It's an annual tradition on this blog to wish a certain orange badass cat a very happy birthday, so here we go for 2019, Happy Birthday Garfield. Hope there's lots of lasagne coming your way!

View this post on Instagram Golden Fleece Pump I spotted this old petrol pump outside a garage at Glenelg. I don't remember the Golden Fleece company, but my dad informs me that they were bought out by Shell and were the owners of the King Neptune statue that used to be at Darlington. #petrolpump #goldenfleece #glenelg #adelaide #southaustralia #adelaidehistory A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Apr 3, 2019 at 4:51pm PDT

Doreen Green, aka the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl is back. Sort of. In her third graphic novel she has just been sent back in time ... to the 1960s. And while she is slowly trying to acclimatise to a world that has none of the technology that she is used to, her flatmate Nancy is desperately trying to search for her friend. Which isn't exactly easy, considering that Nancy is the only one from her era who can remember Doreen at all. In true Unbeatable Squirrel Girl style this all leads to a confrontation with an old foe ... but will Doreen be beaten this time? Or can she keep her title, Unbeatable Squirrel Girl? This one was a lot of fun. As well as comprising of the comics that make up the time travel story arc, the volume also includes a crossover issue between Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and Howard the Duck. And, quite honestly, I was blown away by how well the two comics and characters worked together. I was quite skeptical that the styles and characters would be too different...

Noughts & Crosses was such a winner that I just had to jump into the sequel at the earliest possible opportunity. And I was not disappointed. I devoured this one in the space of a single day, picking it up whenever I had a spare moment. Following the death of Callum, Sephy is pregnant and alone. Meanwhile, Callum's rogue brother Jude is also alone and living his life the only way he knows how--by hating everyone, hurting those who try to get close to him, and staying on the run. We see alternate chapters from each of their perspectives--Sephy as she struggles with motherhood, post natal depression and the realisation that the divisions between Noughts and Crosses are so deep that they cannot be changed by one person, and Jude as he struggles under the weight of being loved by someone that he is meant to despise until he does something terrible. As was the case with Noughts & Crosses, the author handles her characters and situations with a hefty dose of realism....

It was a horrible crime and one that I recall reading about from my sick bed after a serious injury. Like many, many people in 2015, I was shocked to see on the news and read in the media about a suitcase that was found, dumped near a highway in a remote part of South Australia that contained the remains of a toddler. As the next few weeks and months played out, like others, I learned that it was part of a double murder, of that of a mother and child, one that had played out in two states and was as senseless as it was horrific. In The Lost Girls Ava Benny-Morrison gives the victims Karlie Pearce-Stevenson and her daughter Khandalyce dignity as she tells the horrific story of their murder, the monster behind it and the police investigation that saw justice served. There is no getting around it. This is a horrible crime and it was a terrible thing that happened. I rarely read real life crime books like this one because I find the subject matter too horrible. This time around, h...

The German Girl was such a moving tale that I was absolutely thrilled when I learned that the author, Armando Lucas Correa had penned another novel. The Daughter's Tale opens in New York in 2015. Elise Duval is almost eighty years old. One day, she unexpectedly receives a phone call from Ida Rosen and her daughter Anna who have recently been to Cuba. They have some letters for her. Initially, Elise is confused. She doesn't know anyone in Cuba ... does she? Ida insists on a visit, and she and Anna bring the letters. As Elise reads them--letters written by a woman named Amanda for her daughter Vera--memories of a very different life in Germany and then France come flooding back. From there the reader is whisked away on a tale of survival--and the strength of a mother's love--against the backdrop of one of the most shocking and shameful events of the twentieth century. The author shines as he creates a real emotional bond between the reader and the characters, though i...

View this post on Instagram Big old tree. Spotted this lovely, big shady tree down at Glenelg today. #trees #glenelg #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Apr 1, 2019 at 10:30pm PDT

British author Malorie Blackman paints a bleak but oh-so-educational picture in this YA dystopian. Set in a world that is not unlike the early 21st century, it tells the story of a world divided into two classes based purely upon skin colour. The dark skinned elite, or ruling class, are known as Crosses. The light skinned underclass are known as Noughts. And in there world, mixing is unthinkable. So what happens when Stephy, a Cross teenager from a privileged background falls in love with Callum, a Nought who is fighting hard for his right to an education?  What a revelation this book proved to be! What could have easily veered into the territory of a fluffy YA romance is instead handled cleverly and believably by an author who uses the predicament of her characters to steer the reader toward something far more compelling. The world depicted in this book is cruel and unfair, and no, it doesn't change just because the main characters want it too. Instead, the author depicts ...

View this post on Instagram Leaf Sculpture, Stirling This sculpture is part of a public art trail that makes its way through the Adelaide Hills #stirlingadelaidehills #adelaidehills #publicart #sculpture #leaves #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Apr 11, 2019 at 10:53pm PDT