The address book / Jane Clifton

This new book by Aussie author, musician, actress Jane Clifton is a memoir about the homes she has lived in - all 32 of them at this time.

Jane is a truly international citizen who has resided in Victoria for some time now. The many residences in many countries began as a result of her dad's British Army career and overseas postings. Being of a similar age I very much enjoyed her exploration back into time and place as she searches for "home". Is home the bricks and mortar, the family and friends, or the memories?

If you have only ever lived in the childhood home and the marital home, take a trip with Jane and share her adventures.

Dianne

The address book / Jane Clifton

127 Hours : Between a Rock and a Hard Place

I decided to read this book after seeing the controversial movie. There is a lot of divided opinion about Ralston: some consider him a hero who survived 127 hours in extreme conditions with his arm trapped under a boulder who eventually had to self-amputate to escape the ordeal. Others consider him an irresponsible, arrogant menace who wouldn't have had to cut off his arm in the first place if he'd actually told people where he was going and who is now living off the profits of his own stupidity. Personally, I'm in two minds about the subject: so I decided to read the book.

The first thing I can say is that Ralston clearly isn't a writer. He talks about his previous outdoor climbing and sports experience in such technical detail that it is difficult for the layperson to follow. This doesn't make the book unreadable - you just need to be prepared to concentrate in order to read it.

I also noticed that he sounds extremely arrogant throughout the book. Most of it is taken up with a discussion about everything he has achieved and how amazing it all was. I suspect that this has more to do with his lack of writing experience than a personal flaw. I think he's coming across as arrogant without meaning to and there are other moments in the book when he reflects on past boyish mistakes and expresses deep gratitude for those around him.

His description of being trapped and his mindset at the time is, to say the least, descriptive and this is probably the most interesting part of the book. It was a bit like reading a 'How to survive a boulder pinning your arm' guide and I actually felt as though I learned something: you can create your own rope harness, you can drink your own urine if need be and if you want to cut off your arm with a flimsy knife - break it first. While I could sit through the arm cutting scene in the movie and barely flinch, the description in the book made me cringe - apparently cutting through a tiny nerve in your arm can inflict a whole new level of pain - ouch! Ralston also took photos of his severed arm which are included in the book - now that's dedication to photography.

After reading the book I see Ralston as slightly more hero that villain. He did a stupid thing, but I think we all do that at some point - I'm still in my twenties as Ralston was and I tend to do several stupid things a day. Anyone who survives for that long and cuts off their own arm probably deserves a little fame and fortune. While I felt the book was lacking in many ways (I think I was looking for a bit more detail on Ralston's mindset at the time) it was still readable and a little inspiring. If we had a star rating system I'd give it three stars.

127 Hours : Between a Rock and a Hard Place

"The Mud House: Four Friends,One Block of Land, No Power Tools"

Richard Glover of 702 ABC Radio Drive time fame is the author of  "The Mud House: Four Friends,one block of land, no power tools". For 25 years he built a mud brick house in the NSW bush near Taralga. Working with a friend, journalist Philip Clark, they approached this daunting task with very little skill, a great amount of naivety and a down to earth (excuse the pun) sense of humour. They learnt each job one at a time as the need arose, quite often from books and magazines. Male bonding, fatherhood and friendship are explored and discussed all with a quirky sense of honesty and self depreciation. I rarely read non fiction so I was surprised that I enjoyed this book so much. I doubt that I will ever take on such a challenge myself but I can at least appreciate the huge amount of patience and perseverance it must have taken to achieve their goal. Mr Glover says "I made the house and it made me" that just about sums it up.

"The Mud House: Four Friends,One Block of Land, No Power Tools"

HOW TO MAKE GRAVY by Paul Kelly

This memoir is different, as it is not organised chronologically, written in sequence starting with the letter A.
Each chapter has song lyrics and an article about his family, song writing experiences, life on the road and anecdotes about his interesting and sometimes troubled life, and of course, his achievements.
He reminisces about a taxi ride with Sir Donald Bradman, the early death of his father and his dabbling in heroin.
As I am a big fan of Aussie rock'n'roll, I particularly enjoyed reading about the background to his songs.
So, how do you make gravy?
Quote: "you're cooking a roast, and you throw in a bit of this and a bit of that, and you make gravy! That's what writing this book felt like to me."

Wendy, Sylvania

HOW TO MAKE GRAVY by Paul Kelly

Left for Dead : My Journey Home from Everest - Beck Weathers witb Stephen G. Michaud

This is yet another book related to Mount Everest (I've gone on some kind of Everest reading rampage since coming back from Nepal in November). Left for Dead follows the story of Beck Weathers, a survivor of the 1996 Everest tragedy, as he rebuilds his life - or at least that's how the book is promoted. In realtiy it is more about the breakdown and rebuilding of a marriage centred around mountain climbing.

For those that don't know, Beck Weathers was trapped on Mount Everest near the Summit in 1996 when the infamous storm hit. He was close to death when the rescue party made the decision to leave him. Miraculously, he woke the next day and made the journey back to high camp on his own - all while badly frostbitten and almost blind. He was later rescued from the mountain in a daring helicopter evacuation. Weathers ultimately lost his nose and both hands from frostbite.

This story is essentially not about his struggle to deal with the mental and physical scars of what happened on the mountain, but about his struggle to save his marriage. Weathers, a sufferer of depression, took up mountain climbing as a way of escape. Unfortunately, it also meant neglecting his family and marriage. By the time he went to Everest in 1996 his wife, Peach, was ready to leave him.

The book is written from the perspective of Weathers as well as his close friends and family, including Peach. This gives us a first hand account of the mental scars the family suffered. The children were badly hurt by their father's neglect while Peach is filled with such bitterness that I wondered if the marriage was still intact today. It is a unique read - the first account I've seen of the effect mountain climbing can have on the families of those that pursue the sport.

Overall, I think this is essential reading for any mountain climber. It just shouldn't be marketed as a story about Everest. 

Left for Dead : My Journey Home from Everest - Beck Weathers witb Stephen G. Michaud

Lessons in Letting Go: Confessions of a Hoarder, Corinne Grant

I like Corinne Grant. I've watched her on The Glasshouse and Rove. I identified with her, a country girl a bit younger than me, similar life experience. 

She is hilarious but little did I know until now that she was a hoarder. "Lessons in Letting Go: Confessions of a Hoarder" is her own work and it is brutally honest.

I was quite shocked at the stories of how much stuff she kept and her habit of keeping broken things. And yet I understood her talk of Christmas guilt that might lead you to keep a present that you have never used for years. She couldn't get rid of any clothes because they all brought back memories. This situation was tangled up with a past relationship breakdown.

Thankfully Corinne seems to be on top of things now and has some good advice for everyone. However, I cannot agree with the comment on the back cover of the book describing it as a "delightful memoir", it is harrowing at times but it does have funny moments. Try it.

Lessons in Letting Go: Confessions of a Hoarder, Corinne Grant

Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert

I imagine that most people will have heard of this book, even if they haven’t read it or seen the movie of the same name starring Julia Roberts. I read it a few years ago and remember enjoying it as a ‘feel good’ experience despite the struggles of the author. Trying to recover from a bitter divorce Gilbert begins to examine her life. She travels to Rome where she studies the art of pleasure, to India to explore the art of devotion and to Bali to learn to balance her spiritual nature with worldly enjoyment.

The thing that has made me think again about this book is a comment from a friend not so long ago. Another friend had said that it was life changing and that she needed to read it. The authors’ journey was clearly life changing for her, but it’s a big call to find someone else’s life so inspiring that it is personally life changing. My friend and I chatted about this for awhile and I came away feeling that a book could probably start you thinking in a different way that could eventually become life changing, or it could clarify changes that you had already been making. But for one book to be life changing?

A colleague recently created a display about New Years’ resolutions. As I was walking past it earlier today a particular book caught my eye ‘1000 Books to Change Your Life’. To be honest a quick flick through it did not reveal anything astonishing, but I like the synchronicity of coming across it at this particular time so I’m taking it home for a closer look.

Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert

Other People's Country - Maureen Helen

"Rusty earth stretches into treeless distance...."

This is quality writing with a down-to-earth edge. In her late 50s Maureen Helen decided to become a remote area nurse. In this her first book (she later gained a doctorate in Writing) she gives an intelligent and disturbing account of conditions endured by community nurses in Jigalong WA, among the Martu people. Conditions are made difficult by the dry heat, lack of supplies and isolation, and the feeling of being not quite accepted. It is a detailed insight into the tribal mind; into "sorry business"; into "God's time" (where appointments are missed or forgotten) as opposed to our Western time constricted by timetables. She learns to handle cross-cultural situations with great delicacy. The story is packed with rich humanity, surprises and vivid description, and makes compelling reading.

Janet Samerski - Sylvania Library

Other People's Country - Maureen Helen

Shimmer by Basia Bonkowski

This biography I just could not put down. The author is a Sydney-based writer working in television. Her day by day account of her mother's decline (after a stroke and pneumonia) is told in simple, thoughtful, elegant prose in the present tense, with journeys into her Polish past, and of course, the path we all take when parents die. Other issues she touches upon are Aboriginal dispossession and Aboriginal culture versus European culture. The harrowing emotions experienced during her mother's final two weeks are beautifully expressed - "no one exists outside our fracturing family bubble", as the three siblings make the journey. It is a eulogy for her mother, "Shimmer" represents the chandeliers her mother loved so much. A wise book by a master wordsmith . . . A most satisfying read. Her previous book is also based on personal experience - "Jesse's world: a story of adoption and the global family".

- Sylvania Library

Shimmer by Basia Bonkowski