Exit by Belinda Bauer

 This is one of my favourite books of 2021 so far! I've enjoyed all Bauers previous books, she just has an incredibly talent for telling stories that offer us a real sense of the unexpected and Exit has this in spades...

...lets just say if there was ever a serial killer you would want to share morning tea with, 75 year old Felix Pink is it! 

This light hearted thriller has everything you need...

1- humour

2- secret romances

3- organised crime

Felix is an Exiteer, he takes his role of sitting with a dying person as they take their last breath (and removing all signs of it being a suicide) very seriously. 

The people Felix sits with are terminally ill and in pain, so he feels morally ok with what he does...until it all goes terribly wrong...

The Library Enthusiasts tip...

If you are feeling a little stressed, and let's admit it with all these lockdowns who isn't? Well take a deep breath and relax by checking out your local library what's on events section.

I discovered a meditation and chair yoga session happening at our local libraries this month. Finding something simple enough to become part our daily wellness and self-care routine is vital if we want to find peace and calm in our busy days.

Castles from Cobwebs by J.A.Mensah

 Mensah weaves us a story very much like a spider spins its web...fragment upon fragment, building us a fragile tale about identity, faith and hope.

In Castles from Cobwebs we meet Imani, who was rescued and raised by a convent on a remote Northumbrian Island. 

We follow Imani's journey of who she is, of where she might belong...

... and it is in her sense of discovery that we begin to truly appreciate the beauty in Mensah's poetic words.

Library Enthusiast Live Author Events....

Our world is slowly returning to a new normal and with this development we can welcome back the Sunshine Coast Libraries Live Author Events!

In July we get the opportunity to spend an evening in-conversation with acclaimed Australian author, Kyle Perry.

Check in with your local library to see what Live Author Events they are hosting in your area.

 

Liam Pieper's Sweetness and Light

 This one threw me if I'm honest and I really wasn't too sure how I would take to it. Piepers style of writing is intense at times, he chooses to feed us the main two characters history in such a way that it's easy to lose perspective on their current situation...

...Connor and Sasha, two very different personalities are looking to escape their current lives and choose India as the country to escape to.

Connor is an Aussie grifter, who has several scams on the go...

...romancing single female tourists of a certain age and stealing their credit cards and identity information being his preferred form of employment.

Whilst Sasha has chosen to find herself by spending her hard earned cash on staying in a yoga retreat with a very dubious guru calling the shots.

Both Connor and Sasha have troubled pasts and as we read about their damaged histories, the reasons why they make the choices they do, we see a flicker of hope as they eventually meet, connect and finally see a sweeter, lighter future together...

...or maybe not?

(The messy ending annoyed me somewhat, hence the 2 stars)

The Library Enthusiasts must haves...

...Beeswax Wraps!

Wax wrap workshops are all the rage here, and what a brilliant way to celebrate plastic free July by joining one of these free events at your local library. Not only are you learning a new skill, whilst being more sustainable but all the materials are supplied too!

The Choke by Sofie Laguna

 Once again Laguna gives us her version of a heroine, this time it comes in the form of ten-year-old Justine....

...Justine lives in the Australian outback with her grandfather, a Korean vet who drinks vast amounts of beer. 

We discover she has two half-brothers, an absent dad and if that's not enough Justine is without a mum, dyslexic and feeling very isolated.

This is what Laguna does best, just like those Russian Nesting Dolls...

...she manages to give us a story within a story. 

We learn through Justines overheard conversations what happened to her mum, to her 'Pops' wife, and crucially about her dads long history of violence.

This is an emotional and unsettling novel, which at times is very dark...it is that rarest of books that breaks your heart whilst giving you hope all at the same time.

Library Enthusiast thinking out loud...

Our Yarning, is a Save the Children's Library For All collection designed to offer First Nations children a range of stories that reflect their background with authentic storytelling.

The aim is to have these stories written by Aboriginal people in local Aboriginal languages as well as English...these stories will relate to hunting, fishing, family connections, ceremonies and community life.

Our Yarning's aim is to help make the literacy journey for Aboriginal children a success.

 

 

 

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

 I don't usually read 'haunted house type stories', don't get me wrong I enjoy scary stuff, just not something I would consider my go to genre...

...so yes The Sun Down Motel has some serious supernatural type vibes going on. In fact why anyone would 

a-choose to stay there and 

b- work there is beyond me.

Anyways they do and this means we have ourselves a mystery/supernatural tale told in two parts...

Viv in 1982 and Carly in 2017.

Why these twenty-year old women chose to work the night shift at The Sun Down Motel...

...is in itself a bit of a mystery....but they do and they both soon realise that things are not what they seem.

What I liked about St.James writing was the element of fear she knitted into her story, that sense of how easily someone could just disappear, to vanish, to be here one minute...dead the next. 

Would anyone miss you if you became the victim of a killer?

Library Enthusiasts winter warmer....

There is a Danish concept called Hygge, which is all about creating a warm and cosy atmosphere (the absolute opposite of what you get when you check into The Sun Down Motel) in which to read your latest book, or snuggling up to watch a movie or listen to some music...

...if you want to get some tips on how to create hygge in your own home your local library will have some excellent hygge themed items for you to borrow. So light some gorgeous scented candles and listen to a Hygge eAudiobook or maybe add those marshmallows to that hot chocolate and check out some hygge themed podcasts.

They might just give you the inspiration you need to help transform your place into a cosy space!

Bright Burning Things by Lisa Harding

 Sonya is a single mum living in Dublin, she is a complex, passionate, vivacious woman who is determined that her four year old son Tommy, has the most memorable childhood....ever.

But Sonya has a disease, an addiction that is affecting her ability to to take care of Tommy, which often means Tommy is actually caring for his Mum.

Harding writes with compassion and honesty about Sonya's deep, all encompassing love for her son, we are very aware that this little boy is her world. 

 Harding is also excellent at showing us the chaotic, undisciplined world that is Sonya's due to her addiction to alcohol. We sense her shame, her anger at herself, we feel her struggle...and through it all we are never ever in any doubt as to how much love she has for her son....

...infinite.

Bright Burning Things is a raw tale about the realities of alcoholism, it is written in such a way that at times I felt so immersed in the world of Sonya and Tommy that I almost became disconnected from my own world.

Powerful with beautiful moments of pure and brutal brilliance...5 Brightly Burning Stars.

 Library Enthusiast...

Addictions come in many forms and one Australian suburb wants to introduce the Libraries after Dark program. 

This program (trialled initially in Melbourne) is designed to provide at-risk groups with a range of social or recreational options during the evening...by utilising existing infrastructures such as libraries, the aim is to provide an alternative venue for people who may feel isolated and may be otherwise choosing spaces that promote gambling and alcohol consumption.

Libraries are changing and that can only be a good thing.