What do male, 40 something librarians do when they can’t sleep? They read and write book reviews for their blog (first post since 19 January).I didn't know what to make of Carrie Fisher's mini-autobiography, Wishful Drinking! Is it a serious autobiography or a collection of self-mocking anecdotes? How much is accurate and how much is tongue in cheek exaggeration? Do I see the real Carrie Fisher in these pages or the celebrity Carrie? After reading it three times, like forbidden fruit, the answer is both. For me, a closest Star Wars fan, this book was a leap into the unknown as I am not that much interested in the lives of Hollywood celebrities, and I don’t like to find that some of my idols, when I was young and impressionable (i.e. the actors I loved in Star Wars at age 13) are real people with very real problems.This book is a companion piece to Carrie’s one woman show of the same title, and in it she struts her stuff as a raconteur, and presumably in the stage show too, delivering a wide range of anecdotes, many fun, some sad, lots of laughing at herself – a quote at random, from page 111, illustrates much of the book:
“I was probably rebounding from Paul [Paul Simon] when I met Bryan (a week later), but Bryan is really, really attractive. When I met him, he had hair. Actually, I do that, too – I make them bald, I turn them gay, my work is done!"
The book is short (163 pages) and snappy and easy to read; my first read was over in one night. All in all it’s the sort of thing you can read without getting a headache, have some laughs, and look through a window into that parallel universe of Hollywood, California. To tie this up: not high literature, not demanding (unless you have to live Carrie’s life), but fun.Carrie, if you happen to read this can I have your phone number? No? Thought so! How about a signed photo? Very Hollywood of me! Good night all!Bibliographic details: Fisher, Carrie Wishful drinking. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2008. ISBN 13: 978 1 4391 0225 1; price $US 21.00.
In early November I purchased All of Us by Michel Lawrence, a Melbourne based photographer who specialises in portraiture. This is my second encounter, my first was in June when I purchased it for work. Then it made an impact on me. All of Us is a collection of large format colour photographs of immigrants and refugees who have made Australia their home. Michel, in the two years he worked on this project, had a number of goals, but chiefly to "... understand more about Australia today and the people who live here." And the catalyst for this journey - seeing the Cornulla Beach riots of December 2005 on the TV news.
The book connected with me for multiple reasons. At the first viewing (for work) it sold itself with its short and snappy biographies of the people who make up Australia, there was a genuine attempt to find people from all corners of the globe; this might speak to, and connect with some of the students enrolled in ESOL, TPC, welfare/social work courses at my VET college. And finally, for the fine arts students, the portraiture offered good examples of photography that says someting.
Last month at my second look my reasons for liking it were far more complex and personal. While filling in time browsing in a bookshop the cover again caught my eye. The stories of the people, and in particular of the author's father, Maxie, had paralells with my own father. Maxie survivied the Pacific War, and came to Australia in 1946 "because it seemed new and safe"; my father arrived in October 1949 as a refugee from the European War, Australia was a place to start a new life and a haven from the chaos and suffering and uncertainty he had gone through between 1941 and 1948. Many of the biographies in the book are laced with the theme of Australia as a place of safety.
I am also deeply interested in photography and to me many of the photographs tell their own stories. Many show the quiet dignity of the subjects; other portraits show an edginess and wariness in the subject; several people show an obvious pride in their backgrounds and culture and in living in Australia. In short, the shots have an impact as documentary photography.
This book I could relate to, through my understanding of my father's (and mother's) experiences. All of Us shows to me that many others shared similar experiences, heartaches and joys, and found a home in Australia. It helps me better understand my country and her people, in that realising that I concluded that Michel Lawrence succeeded in the task he set himself. I have one criticism of the book: the majority of the subjects came from Melbourne and its environs and not all over the country.
Bibilographic/Availability & Price details:
All of Us / Michel Lawrence. Melbourne, Vic. : Scribe, 2008 (ISBN: 9781921215193 - in hardback; price $AUD 59.95).
There is a companion website at http://www.allofus.com.au/
What do male, 40 something librarians do when they can’t sleep? They read and write book reviews for their blog (first post since 19 January).
