Madison news - July reading shortlist

The Breaking of Eggs by Jim Powell($29.99, Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
This gorgeously plaintive novel about a writer of travel guides to Eastern Bloc countries during the fall of Communism is suffused with pathos and dry humour. As he raises confronting questions about identity, work
and whether love can be eternal, Powell writes with such acuity and skill that it beggars belief this is his first novel.

The Grand Hotel by Gregory Day ($32.95, Random House)
Day enchants with this tale of a frustrated artist who decides to set up a pub in Mangowak on the south-west Victorian coast. This tour de force about pursuing one’s own fulfilment is a fine reflection of modern Australia. Beautifully drawn characters, compelling flights of fancy and a wonderful sense of mischief abound.

Happily Ever After? by Benison Anne O’Reilly($32.95, Jane Curry Publishing)
After Ellie Cooper has her dream wedding on Sydney Harbour, she discovers that life as a newlywed isn’t quite as peachy as she’d dreamed it would be. This book will inevitably be lumped in with far inferior chick-lit fare – but it deserves better, because it will prompt you to reevaluate your own ideas of forgiveness, unfaithfulness and when to walk away.