Bookish Bron: australian women writers

kidlit :: The Battle :: Ashling Kwok

I'm so delighted to be part of the Books on Tour Blog Tour for Ashling Kwok's brand new picture book The Battle. This is a gorgeous book - both the story and those illustrations (by Cara King)! - about facing fears that are holding you back. Ashling was kind enough to answer some questions about the book and the inspiration behind it, so I'll let her tell you more!

Can you please tell us a bit about your latest title, The Battle?

The Battle is the story of a little boy named Edward who is anxious about starting knight school. He’s sure that it will be full of ogres and dragons so he puts on his armour and prepares for battle. As the day progresses, Edward soon realises that the dragons and ogres he imagined don’t actually exist. They were figments of his imagination brought on by his fear.

What are the main themes in the book, and why did you want to write about them?

The main themes are fear, anxiety, friendship, kindness, perception, and the power of the imagination. The Battle was based on real life experience so most of the themes naturally evolved. However, I did try to highlight the role that perception plays in our lives and how sometimes our fears are so strong that they make us see things that aren’t really there.

I would love to know whether there was a particular event or person that inspired this story? And how close is your character, Edward, to the real-life inspiration?

The Battle was inspired by a very special person – my son, Aiden – who developed a fear of going to school when he was 11 years old. He believed that he was being bullied by his friends and that the only way to escape them was to hide away from the world. It took a long time to get Aiden to face his fears and to reframe his thoughts - but we got there in the end!

Edward and Aiden couldn’t be more alike. Everything from their physical appearance, to their mannerisms are exactly the same. Every time I look at Edward, all I can see is my beautiful little boy.

Do you have a favourite part of the story, or an area that was particularly difficult to write? Why?

My favourite part of the story is when Edward realises that his armour is holding him back. I think that’s such a powerful concept because we all wear armour sometimes and don’t realise how much better our lives would be if we let our guards down.

The hardest part to write was the opening paragraph because it reminded me about how terrified Aiden actually was. Watching my son walk into school every morning broke my heart but I knew that if I didn’t send him into battle, he would never learn how to manage his fears.

The themes of the book are pretty universal, and I think will resonate with a lot of readers. How do you hope readers, parents and educators will utilise your book following their literary experience?

I hope that The Battle is not only enjoyable to read but that parents and educators use it as a tool to introduce children to the concept of perception and the fact that how we perceive the world around us directly influences everything we do. If we see ourselves as someone who is weak or unworthy, it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy and we will always struggle in life. If we perceive the world as scary, we will approach people and places with trepidation or choose to hide away. It’s such an interesting and important topic to explore.

The illustrations, by Cara King, are absolutely gorgeous. Are there any little quirks or particular aspects in them you would like to draw our attention to?

When I saw the sample illustration that Cara sent to EK Books, I almost cried. Cara has never seen a picture of my son but Edward is the spitting image of him. Everything from his wavy dark hair, to the look in his eyes, to the way Edward sat on the floor reluctantly getting dressed for school was indicative of my son. I knew from the moment I saw Edward that Cara was the perfect illustrator for the job.

Finally, I’d love to know whether there are other children’s books covering similar themes you have enjoyed, and did you draw inspiration from any of them?

I can’t think of any other picture books that focus on the exact same themes as The Battle but there are lots of fabulous books about overcoming fears, making friends, and starting school such as Jessica’s Box and Sarah’s Heavy Heart by Peter Carnavas.

To be honest, I didn’t draw inspiration from any other books when I was writing The Battle. It was based on an issue my son was going through so I basically watched the story unfold before my eyes. I could feel my son’s pain so deeply that I had all the emotion I needed to tell this story.

Thank you so much!

Massive thanks to Ashling for answering my questions and giving us a peak behind the scenes! And of course to Books on Tour for having me along as part of the blog tour!

xo Bron
***
The Battle by Ashling Kwok
Source: I received a free e-copy via Books on Tour

Ashling Kwok is a Sydney based freelance copywriter - you can find her online here.
You can find Cara King and her gorgeous art on her website Caratoons here.
Find out more about Books on Tour PR & Marketing on the website here.

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#HERSTORY Q&A :: Tea Cooper :: The Girl in the Painting

The first book I read from Harlequin's HERSTORY campaign - featuring historical fiction about women who rebel - was Tea Cooper's The Girl in the Painting. This was my second time reading a book by Tea, having read The Woman in the Green Dress last year, and I absolutely enjoyed both - you can see my reviews here and here.

This week Tea has kindly answered a few questions I asked about The Girl in the Painting, as well as giving us a little sneak peek at what she has coming up for us next.

First, here's a little reminder of what The Girl in the Painting is about...

Maitland 1913 Miss Elizabeth Quinn is something of an institution in Maitland Town. For longer than anyone could remember she and her brother, businessman Michael, have lived in the impressive two-storey stone house next to the church. When she is discovered cowering in the corner of the exhibition gallery at the Technical College the entire town knows something strange has come to pass.

Was it the prehistoric remains or perhaps the taxidermy exhibition that had reduced the whale-boned encased pillar of society to a quivering mess? Or is there something odd about a striking painting on loan from the National Gallery?

Mathematical savant Jane Piper is determined to find out. Deposited on the doorstep of the local orphanage as a baby, she owes her life and education to the Quinns' philanthropic ventures and Elizabeth has no one else to turn to.

As the past and the present converge, Elizabeth's grip on reality loosens. Can Jane, with her logical brain and penchant for puzzles, unravel Elizabeth's story before it is too late?

The historical notes at the back of The Girl in the Painting tell us that it is based around a series of unconnected historical events that really happened. I’d love to know about your inspiration for the story - was there an event in particular that inspired you? Or did the characters come to you first?

Without a doubt the character of Elizabeth came first. Maitland is a fascinating town full of beautifully restored buildings and I could see Elizabeth, in 1911, walking down the street. The focus of the story became Who is Miss Elizabeth Quinn?

I feel like it must be hard sometimes to decide how to bring together historical events into a story like this (which you do so beautifully!), and what to leave out. Were there any really cool stories/events you came across while working on The Girl in the Painting that you would have liked to have included in the book but that didn’t quite fit?

I have a hankering to write an entire book about one piece of research! I have some good friends in Mudgee and I have spent time in the area and visited Hill End several times. I’ve always known that one day it would end up in a book so I revisited Hill End. The museum had been revamped—it used many, many photographs from The Holtermann Collection and brought alive the life and times in the area. So off I went to investigate The Holtermann Collection. I discovered that it wasn’t until after the Second World War that the 3500 wet plate glass negatives had been found in a GARDEN SHED behind a house in North Sydney! I’m trying to ignore my itchy fingers and finish the books I am currently working on! (If you’re interested, they were acquired by the State Library of NSW and have been restored and can be viewed on line.) There’s such a story in that!

I really love the way that we meet Elizabeth and Michael in 1913, and then learn more about them as their younger selves grow. When you were writing them, did you start with them in 1913 and then learn more about them as you wrote? Or did you have an idea of their backstories when you started?

As I’ve said, Elizabeth came first, and Maitland, so the story started there, followed by the question how did they get there!

Did you have a favourite scene to write, or one that was particularly difficult to write?

There was one integral scene which was rewritten. It was very close to the end of the book (Oh! Difficult. Spoilers. I don’t think I want to explain!!) Suffice to say it had ramifications throughout the entire story but after much angst I know it was the right decision!

Can you tell us anything about what you are working on next?

I’m currently deep in the structural edits for my November, 2020 release THE CARTOGRAPHER’S SECRET. It tells the story of Evie Ludgrove who lives in the shadow of her father’s obsession with Ludwig Leichhardt! No more spoilers! I’m also playing with my 2021 story THE PALAEONTOLOGIST. Quite where it will go I am not sure but it is a mystery set in the Hunter Valley, at a ‘real’ place called Bow Wow Gorge! (How could I bypass such a wonderful name?) So this time the setting came before the characters!

Lastly, I’d love to know what you are currently reading, or whether there is something you have read recently and loved that you would like to recommend to us?

Because of my editing I am re reading one of the books that were central to my research for THE CARTOGRAPHER’S SECRET—WHERE IS DOCTOR LEICHHARDT? by Darrel Lewis. I’m also reading one of Nicole Alexander’s books RIVER RUN. I love Nicole’s books and somehow have managed to miss the last couple. I recently finished THE LOST FLOWERS OF ALICE HART which I highly recommend.

Thank you so much!

My pleasure! Thank you for the invitation.

***

Thanks again to Harlequin Australia for sending me this gorgeous book, and the others featuring in the HERSTORY campaign. You can check them all out here, and my other #HERSTORY blog posts are all here.

And, of course, huge thanks to Tea for taking the time to answer my questions so I could share them here!

You can find The Girl in the Painting on Goodreads here, and find out more about Tea and all of her books (check out those beautiful covers on her most recent novels!) on her website here.

xo Bron

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In Allen & Unwin, Australian author

#loveozya :: Deep Water :: Sarah Epstein

March and April have been brilliant months for new releases this year (and there are still a few to come before April is done!). One of my most anticipated books for 20202 - Sarah Epstein's Deep Water was released a week or so ago, and celebrated with an online launch last week. I managed to read it before the event and absolutely ADORED it! I loved Sarah's debut - Small Spaces (my review is here) - and I think this one is just as wonderful.

Henry Weaver is missing.
Three months ago, thirteen-year-old Henry disappeared from The Shallows during a violent storm, leaving behind his muddy mountain bike at the train station.

Mason Weaver is trapped.
While Mason doesn't know who he is or what he's capable of, he knows the one thing binding him to this suffocating small town is his younger brother, Henry.

Chloe Baxter wants answers.
Why would Henry run away without telling her? One of Chloe's friends knows something and she's determined to find out the truth.

As Chloe wades into dangerous waters and Mason's past emerges, a chilling question ripples to the surface: how far would you go to keep a secret?

If you've read my reviews before you'll know I love an authentic friendship, and Deep Water hits that nail on the head. At the heart of this story is a fantastic group friendship, with all kinds of different dynamics happening - crushes and bickering and, of course, Henry's disappearance, are all impacting the friendship and the way is changing feels really natural. I also really enjoyed the setting - the small town vibe comes through clearly without ever feeling caricature-ish.

The story unfolds from two different points of view, and in different directions - Chloe's starts 'now', three months after Henry disappeared, while through Mason we see what happened in the lead up to the event. I think this worked absolutely brilliantly - the voices were different from each other, and it was a really cool way to put details together.

Sarah's Small Spaces remains one of the creepiest YA books I've read, and while this one wasn't exactly creepy, it is dark and there is a really tense atmosphere that builds as the story plays out. I read it in just a few sittings, and with my heart in my throat for most of the book.

Deep Water touches on a lot of different issues throughout, from typical teen worries about crushes and fitting in, to alcoholism and domestic violence - so I would give a content warning for that (as well as the more obvious theme of a missing teen and the fact that the story largely depends imagining what might have happened to them).

I found this one a completely engaging thriller. It was a really satisfying read that kept me guessing, and made me cry a bit at times too! Officially it's YA - adult readers shouldn't let that stop them from picking it up too! (I just realised I said the same thing about Small Spaces!)

xo Bron

***

Deep Water by Sarah Epstein
Out now from Allen and Unwin
Source: I received a free advance copy from Allen and Unwin (Thank you!). All views are my own.
Category: Young adult thriller/suspense (contempory)
Age: 14+
Themes: Family, grief, belonging, missing people, alcoholism, domestic violence, small towns
Format: Paperback
Pages: 400
RRP: $19.99

Deep Water on Goodreads.
Find Sarah Epstein online here.

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#HERSTORY Q&A :: Kerri Turner : The Daughter of Victory Lights

Yesterday I posted my review of The Daughter of Victory Lights (check it out here if you missed it). I loved this book, and today I'm sharing a little Q&A with author Kerri Turner, who was kind enough to answer some questions I had for her about her books and writing. Enjoy!

In the notes at the back of The Daughter of Victory Lights you tell us a bit about some of the actual people/events that you drew on for the story, and I was really struck by how perfectly you have pulled these together into a beautiful story – for instance in the way that Evie’s training on spotlights during the war helps her find a place on the Victory. When you were first inspired to write The Daughter of Victory Lights did you start with the events and then put characters in, or did Evie and Flynn come to you first and you built the story around them?

The characters definitely came first. The very first spark of inspiration for this book was the Victory boat, and from there I quickly became familiar with the character of Evie. I knew she worked on the boat, and that she was not a performer but doing something behind the scenes instead. I had to work my way backward into finding the events that would have led to her working on this boat, and that’s how I came across the 93^rd Searchlight Regiment, which opened up a world of possibility for the story. With Flynn, I knew that he was an American man (as I wanted to give a different perspective of those wartime and post-war years), and I had certain events that I needed him to be around to witness or take part in. I also knew that he was suffering from PTSD as a result of his work during the war and that this would inform a great deal of his story. The Graves Registration Unit fit with everything I had planned, and allowed me to go deeper into the kinds of awful, unheard-of experiences so many suffered through.

One of the key themes that comes up throughout The Daughter of Victory Lights is the difficulty so many people experienced with getting back to ‘normal’ life after the war. Was this aspect of post-war life something that you were particularly interested in drawing out of Evie and Flynn’s stories, and can you tell us a bit about whether you had to approach writing each character differently given the different kind of challenges they faced?

While doing my research (which is when a majority of my storyline is formed), the effects of post-war expectations was a subject matter that I kept coming across again and again. People who had lived through the war brought it up in nearly every interview or memoir I read – whether they were returned servicemen told to be strong, stoic and emotionless leaders of their families, or women systematically silenced when it came to their wartime work and forced back into rigid domestic roles. So while I did have to approach the two characters differently, it was the sameness of their experiences that I ended up wanting to capture. Flynn struggles with PTSD (although it was called shellshock back then), while Evie struggles with the societal expectations of getting married and having children, and the familial rifts caused by not following the excepted life script of the time. For both of them, this results in a sense of not fitting in, of being abnormal or ungrateful; but also of not knowing that everyone else is struggling too. And that’s what it came down to: after the war, despite the many different experiences, despite the fact they’d survived, despite peace being declared and life supposedly getting better, there was this silent, internal struggle that many were going through. A shared experience they didn’t know they were sharing. I wanted to put that on the page.

The Daughter of Victory Lights is your second novel, following The Last Days of the Romanov Dancers which was released in 2019. Was the experience of writing it very different to working on your debut novel?

I actually began work on this novel before I even got a publishing deal for my first book. Which is something I’m very grateful I did, because it helped me avoid the dreaded second book syndrome we hear so much about. After you’ve been through that publishing process once, you suddenly know the expectations that are riding on you and your work. You have the voices of publishers, editors, agents, publicists, reviewers, etc in your head. I think if I didn’t already have a story that I was passionate about and excited to work on, it would’ve been easy to have my own writing voice and creativity drowned out by those other voices. Not because they are trying to stifle you – those people are so supportive and helpful and completely on your side! – but just because you want to live up to all the things you did well, and improve on the things you didn’t. And there’s the added weight of knowing how many people besides yourself put in work on your book, and wanting to make it the best it can be for all of their sakes. One particular difficulty I did have with this book as opposed to my first one though, was that the first drew heavily on my own background training in ballet. That gave me a bit of a crutch to lean on, and a way of boosting my own confidence. I knew what I was talking about, it was my area of expertise, and had lived so many of the experiences I felt I could bring them to life and do them justice. This book, while it still has a performing art in it, didn’t have that same element of bringing my own background into it. I was afraid that it wasn’t going to be received as well – that this book would expose me as a dancer who got lucky instead of a writer. Luckily this hasn’t been the case at all. If anything, it’s been the opposite.

Did you have a favourite scene to write, or one that was particularly difficult to write, and I wonder whether you think they are the same ones that readers might find the most lovely or difficult to read (there were a lot of tears involved in reading this book!)?

Some of my favourite scenes to write actually didn’t make it into the final book! I wrote quite a lot about the secondary characters Humphrey and Bee. Originally we saw both their backgrounds and how the Victory came to be. It was exuberant and colourful, and there were other characters on board the Victory we got to meet. But in the end the story was becoming too cluttered with so many different perspectives. It was one of those ‘kill your darlings’ moments writers need to get so good at! Of the existing scenes, my favourites are what I call the ‘quiet moments’. Those little moments where there’s not a lot of action but there is some sense of human connection. Like Flynn finding Lucy in the sea fog, or the final scene (no spoilers!). I have had a few readers say those are the moments they particularly enjoy too. The most difficult to write was the reveal of what happened to Evie. The why, when and how of it has always stayed the same, but the small details around that event went through multiple changes and multiple drafts. It was definitely an emotional experience working on that scene, and I absolutely did cry every time.

Can you tell us anything about what you are working on next?

I’m actually switching between two different projects at the moment. Both are historical fiction novels, and both once again have a performing arts element to them, although they are set in different times and different countries. The manuscripts are at different stages of completion. I like to set a manuscript aside after I’ve done some major work on it (a completed first draft, or a structural edit, for instance), so I can come back to it weeks or months later with completely fresh eyes. But I can’t spend that time not writing, so that’s why I have more then one project on the go – while one is set aside, I pick up the other one. I don’t have any news as far as publication deals or dates with either of them yet, but fingers crossed I will in the near future!

Lastly, I’d love to know what you are currently reading, or whether there is something you have read recently and loved that you would like to recommend to us?

Because I write historical fiction, it’s also my favourite genre to read. There are so many amazing historical fiction novels coming out right now, and so many of them are focussed on women, which I love because women’s stories haven’t been given as much room throughout history. A few I’ve really enjoyed recently are Josephine’s Garden by Stephanie Parkyn, Fled by Meg Keneally, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

***

Huge thanks to Kerri for 'chatting' about her writing with me!

You can find The Daughter of Victory Lights on Goodreads here.

xo Bron

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#HERSTORY :: The Daughter of Victory Lights :: Kerri Turner

Tonight I'm sharing my review of The Daughter of Victory Lights by Kerri Turner, which is one of the gorgeous novels in Harlequin Australia's HERSTORY : Women Who Rebel campaign. This was a wonderful read! Here's the synopsis from the publisher's website (and you can check it out on Goodreads here):

1945: After the thrill and danger of volunteering in an all-female searchlight regiment protecting Londoners from German bombers overhead, Evelyn Bell is secretly dismayed to be sent back to her rigid domestic life when the war is over. But then she comes across a secret night-time show, hidden from the law on a boat in the middle of the Thames. Entranced by the risqué and lively performance, she grabs the opportunity to join the misfit crew and escape her dreary future.
At first the Victory travels from port to port to raucous applause, but as the shows get bigger and bigger, so too do the risks the performers are driven to take, as well as the growing emotional complications among the crew. Until one desperate night ...

1963: Lucy, an unloved and unwanted little girl, is rescued by a mysterious stranger who says he knows her mother. On the Isle of Wight, Lucy is welcomed into an eclectic family of ex-performers. She is showered with kindness and love, but gradually it becomes clear that there are secrets they refuse to share. Who is Evelyn Bell?

I loved this book and gave it a full five stars.

There was just something really enchanting about the way that Turner tells her story - both the pace of the plot and the development of the characters were spot on for me. I loved that the point of view characters were flawed - and bordering on unlikable, but something about the way their stories were told was so tender that I couldn't help loving them anyway.

The descriptions of Evie and Flynn's experiences during wartime felt so thoroughly researched. I found reading about the work they each did was interesting and awful, heartbreaking but also uplifting - the sense of satisfaction (maybe?) at doing something really comes through. While the descriptions of war were raw and detailed, I thought the writing was respectful and even the most confronting parts didn't feel gratuitous to the story.

One of the key issues drawn out in The Daughter of Victory Lights is the difficulty so many people had with returning to 'normal' life after the war was over. This is something that I find so fascinating - for instance, that soldiers (and others on the front lines) could live through such horrors and be expected to come home and be ok, and that women who experienced such independence were then supposed to go back to their roles as housewives dependent on husbands. I thought the exploration of these themes through Evie and Flynn's stories was really wonderfully done - the characters and their experiences felt so authentic, and the impact of this on the rest of their lives was really clear.

The story that Turner tells is about Evie and Flynn post-war unfolds so beautifully - there were some surprises and, to be honest, quite a lot of tears! This is definitely one to read with a tissue or seven nearby! I absolutely recommend this to lovers of historical fiction, and I'm already excited about whatever Turner is writing next.

Kerri has very kindly answered some questions for me to share here too - I'll pop those up tomorrow!

You can find out more about HERSTORY : Women Who Rebel on the website here.

xo Bron

***

The Daughter of Victory Lights by Kerri Turner

Out now from Harlequin Books Australia (HarperCollins)

Source: I received a copy of from Harper Collins Australia for review. All views are my own.

Category: Historical fiction (WW2, post-war)
Themes: Post-war expectations, feminism, family, found family

Format: Paperback

Pages: 384 pages

RRP: $32.99

The Daughter of Victory Lights on Goodreads

Find Kerri Turner online here.

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Pages

kidlit :: The Battle :: Ashling Kwok

#loveozya :: Taking Down Evelyn Tait :: Poppy Nwosu

#loveozmg May :: The Year the Maps Changed :: Danielle Binks

#HERSTORY Q&A :: Tea Cooper :: The Girl in the Painting

#loveozya :: Deep Water :: Sarah Epstein

#HERSTORY Q&A :: Kerri Turner : The Daughter of Victory Lights

#HERSTORY :: The Daughter of Victory Lights :: Kerri Turner

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