Culture
Books
Robert Lukins plays a risky narrative game in his third novel
Similar in narrative style to Kafka’s The Trial, Lukins’ new novel, centred on the crimes of a wealthy American family, withholds specific details.
- by Jack Cameron Stanton
Latest
This book is so powerful, it’s hard to resist the urge to cry
Jewish scholar Peter Beinart imagines a world where Jews who support Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and Jews who are utterly opposed make accommodations with each other.
- by Jenna Price
Grief in every detail: Geraldine Brooks on life after loss
Brooks’ memoir of her marriage and grief is vulnerable and tender.
- by Michael McGirr
Rachel Kushner’s Booker-nominated novel questions everything
The Booker Prize-shortlisted author says even when she stays late, she somehow leaves early.
- by Kerrie O'Brien
Opinion
Literature
Once my favourite author, David Sedaris has become a first-class prat
I thought it would be impossible for a writer who revels in shock value to get me offside, but then he started talking about wealth.
- by Annemarie Fleming
The extreme measures writers take for a killer book blurb
Blurbs can be a delicate matter in the book world. They can make or break a literary friendship.
- by David Free
Opinion
WordPlay
‘Bouncy pork’ and ‘clown bus’: The new words that went viral overseas
Before 2025 gets too old, let’s see the alternative coinages that captured the global year that was.
- by David Astle
Japanese fantasy, espionage and colonial adventure: Eight new books
Our reviewers cast their eyes over recent fiction and non-fiction releases.
- by Cameron Woodhead and Steven Carroll
Neil Gaiman accuser files case alleging sexual assault, human trafficking
A New Zealand woman has filed a lawsuit accusing the author of rape and his estranged wife Amanda Palmer of presenting her to him for abuse.
- by Todd Richmond
A solemn reimagining of the 1958 Munich air disaster
The third novel in David Peace’s football trilogy, Munichs is the story of the aftermath of the plane crash that killed eight members of Manchester United’s team.
- by Adrian McKinty
Inside the company that sparked the US-China battle for tech supremacy
From humble beginnings in a greenhouse on top of a block of flats, Chinese company Huawei grew to become one of the world’s most powerful technological empires.
- by Kurt Johnson
Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/culture/books