Kathryn's Inbox

View this post on Instagram View past the Book Tree at @dillonsnorwoodbookshop Recently Dillon's underwent some renovations and I think the end result is just beautiful. Bonus question, which Bookshop do you wish more people knew about? #bookshop #booktree #readersofinstagram #books #bookstagram #dillonsnorwoodbookshop #theparadenorwood #norwood #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Aug 25, 2019 at 1:38am PDT

A wife and mother whose one mistake spirals out of control is at the heat of The Lying Room, an intriguing new novel by husband and wife duo Nicci Gerrard and Sean French. Neve is forty-six years old. She is a wife, a mother, a friend and the kind of person that many people warm to instantly and can confide in. For that alone, it is no surprise that Saul, the owner of the successful publishing house that Neve works for, was attracted to her. However, when Neve is invited to his flat one morning, and arrives there to find his dead--and obviously murdered--body, her life begins to spiral out of control. Panic and poor choices are followed by lies and deceptions and the discovery that many of the people around her, from her dear friend and colleague Renata to her own husband, have secrets of their own. And maybe even Saul wasn't the man he claimed to be. But just how far--and for how long--will Neve continue to lie to everyone in order to conceal her affair? Fans of the authors ...

Autobiographies are not normally my thing but after weeks of hearing, "You should read this one Kathryn," from various people (who for the purposes of this blog post shall remain nameless,) I caved and purchased a copy from an excellent local bookstore. After reading a couple of chapters, I soon realised just why it had been recommended to me. A Dream About Lightning Bugs offers readers a clever and insightful glimpse into a unique artist and an extremely successful music career. More that that, it is honest (well, so far as I know,) and readers get a very real glimpse into the man behind the music. Expect a lot of amusing (and occasionally sad,) stories about his childhood and adolescence and the cheap lessons that he learned as he worked hard to get a foot in the door of the music industry. There is also a few glimpses of what went on behind the scenes--including what went on after the famous piano stool throw on Midday. (If you're not familiar with that one, the b...

There are no two ways about it-- Speak is a gritty and painfully real novel about a very serious subject. Melinda Sordino is an outcast. The kind of kid that all of the other Freshmen at Merryweather High go out of their way to avoid. After all, she is not dressed well, she barely talks and during the summer break she committed the ultimate sin--she broke up a party that she and her former friends were attending by calling the police. But almost from the outset, the reader is given a hint that there are compelling reasons behind Melinda's silence and that perhaps she is not been given a fair trial by those around her--from her dysfunctional parents, her former friends from middle school who are trying hard to reinvent themselves and to fit in and by the many teacher and school staff all of whom are suffering due to needless bureaucracy and a lack of direction. And some of them, like Mr Neck, are just arseholes. Then there is Heather, a fake and perky wannabe whose only goal, i...

View this post on Instagram Spotted at Southgate Square #adelaideatnight #adelaide #southaustralia #southgatesquare #sillypostcards A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Aug 25, 2019 at 8:38pm PDT

Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream gets a surprising makeover that features fairies, vampires, Amazons and even a very desirable pizza making selkie in My Name is Not Peaseblossum , the latest novel from Australian author Jackie French. Peaseblossom, has spent his life obeying Queen Tatania and playing his part in her many schemes. A visit to a pizza bar in contemporary Australia, where he meets Gaela, a selkie who makes pizza and is engaged to a vampire soon has him questioning and changing his views. Could it be that Peaseblossom would much rather be known as Pete and that he'd rather be eating pizza? The concept of this one is quite brilliant, taking both a minor character from Shakespeare's play and it's major theme of powerful people interfering in the lives of others of the most trivial of reasons, but at its heart, it's a story for kids in their early teens and the whole thing gets quite tiring early on. I don't want to be too hard on th...

View this post on Instagram Gorgeous Street Art I spotted this mural recently on Franklin Street. I love the murals and bit of artwork that cover our city. #publicart #murals #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Aug 27, 2019 at 6:14am PDT

Every now and again, I find myself thinking back to some small incident or another that occurred long ago, that was troubling enough at the time for me to remember it now, but was not so bad that it somehow scarred me for life. In this particular instance, I found myself in bed at six am, having had a almost decent night sleep, when for no good reason whatsoever I found myself thinking about something that happened at school, oh, about twenty years ago. Inevitably, this led to me thinking about all of the things that I wished I had said at the time. Except that, you know, I didn't say them at the time. And that even if I had said them at the time, most likely the only person who would care about it now is me anyway. But I digress. What happened was this. I was eighteen years old and thanks to circumstances that were beyond my control, I found myself unwillingly suffering through my final year of high school as an adult. This meant that I was someone who could vote (as I did ...

Exciting news! I have a brand new short story available for download. Julie B Sets the Record Straight is about a morning radio announcer who has to interview her least favourite rock star--the man who may or may not have written a song about her when she is in her teens. The whole thing is pretty short and sweet, and I wrote it mostly because I was struggling with my current WIP and needed a distraction, but I think it is enjoyable enough to share with you all. Because it is so short, I have opted to give it away free. You can find it at Smashwords ( here ) iTunes, Kobo and a stack of other cool online retailers. 

Shakespeare's Othello gets a surprising but clever update in New Boy , a story set in an elementary school in Washington DC in the 1970s. Dee is a nice girl, popular with her peers and a bit of a teacher's pet. One morning, however, everything changes for the kids in the sixth grade when Osei, the son of a diplomat from Ghana arrives at the school. Dee is tasked with showing the new boy around, but their newfound friendship soon inspires the jealousy of everyone around them, particularly her friends Mimi and Blanca, and Ian, the manipulative school bully. As Ian twists and turns the situation to his advantage is soon becomes clear that nothing and no one at this school will ever be the same by the end of the day. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, despite the depressing subject manner and fact that the story moved steadily toward a tragic outcome. The author cleverly reworks many elements from Shakepeare's original and puts them in a setting that is totally believable ...

View this post on Instagram Pavement art in Gouger Street I spotted this Picasso inspired gem a little while ago, when the SALA Festival was on. Love it 😍 #publicart #adelaide #southaustralia A post shared by Kathryn White (@kathryns_inbox) on Sep 5, 2019 at 5:17am PDT

Mona is twenty-three years old, somewhat aloof with her emotions and is working as a cleaner because she loves the repetition of vacuuming. At her volunteer job at a needle exchange she meets--and hooks up with--Mr Disgusting, a middle aged drug addict who breaks her heart. This serves as a catalyst for her to travel to New Mexico where she seeks a fresh start but instead finds herself fighting the demons in her past amidst some dysfunctional people. I did not enjoy this book. Granted, it is well written and delivers on everything that the blurb promises. It is a twisted novel about a twisted person and it might just give us a greater insight into human nature due to the fact that it doesn't pull any punches. My problem with it is that despite the claims that the book is laugh out loud funny, it isn't, unless you really get belly laughs instead of the odd smirk out of reading about the worst that could happen. Or maybe it is just me. In the past few months I have re...