Book review: A History of Books by Gerald Murnane

GERALD Murnane writes like no other in an exacting style, precise in its arrangement of thoughts through words and sentences.

GERALD Murnane writes like no other in an exacting style, precise in its arrangement of thoughts through words and sentences.

Don't expect a page turner, but rather fiction that is rhythmic, sometimes repetitive, and builds up.

Murnane has been writing for many decades, with nine books published. A History of Books is composed of 29 sections about reading experiences had by the author, none of which are directly named, so the reader is given a puzzle.

Some of these books are obvious, some are not. Murnane obsessively addresses the issue of memory and forgetting, and laces his sections with humour and pathos.

A History of Books
Gerald Murnane
Giramondo Publishing, $26.95