Cirrus@Austlit

'A creative and cultural history of Brisbane bookshops by Brisbane writers.

'An anthology of creative non-fiction, essays, and memoirs by authors, editors, journalists, poets, historians, librarians, and bookshop owners (past and present).

'What readers have found on the shelves of Brisbane bookshops has educated and entertained, informed and inspired them to seek further, to think more deeply, to travel across the world and its past. Since the 1840s – despite fire and floods, bombings and police raids – Brisbane bookshops had fed the imaginations and nourished the learning of many generations of readers and scholars who’ve helped to make the city, the nation, and the future a better place.

'The final section of the book contains profiles of the current generation of independent bookshops in Brisbane – new and second-hand/antiquarian; general and specialist.

'Edited by Anne Richards and Matthew Wengert, with Bianca Millroy.

'Cover illustration by Delilah Willsteed.

'Contains writing by: Venero Armanno - Steve Capelin - Matthew Condon - Gareth Dickson - Joanne Dolley - Nick Earls - Phillip Edmonds - Raymond Evans - Simon Farley - Jane Frank - Caroline Gardam - Helen Gregory - Mick Healy - Bruce Heiser - Cheryl Kensett - Jean Kent - Bronwen Levy - David Malouf - Louise Martin-Chew - Bianca Millroy - Sean Phillips - Anne Richards - Julianne Schultz - Nathan Shepherdson - Bill Sutton - Chrissi Theodosiou - Meg Vann - Hugh Watson - Matthew Wengert - John Willsteed.' (Publication summary)

'We gather around the hospital bed in late December 2022 where my Aunty Gail lies, brittle but accepting of the terms on which the cells of her body will soon embark on their mass migration from life to death. Gail is my mother’s sister and the eldest of five. For decades now, her body has been under siege. Cancer has claimed sovereignty over her cells, first in the form of breast tumours, then spreading, node to node. Now, her diagnosis is terminal, her days and breaths numbered. Her body is withering, curling up, transforming.' (Introduction)

'A woman looking for a fresh start in the country knocks on her neighbour's door and uncovers a hostage situation. Turns out new beginnings can be chock-full of surprises.

'In eighteenth century Germany, a housekeeper engages her dangerous gift to unlock a secret door, where she discovers the truth about her father's disappearance - and her enigmatic master.

'Babysitting a bunch of civilian scientists goes sideways after they can't help poking a glowing alien artefact. System failures. Locked outside the airlock door. It's going to be a long day.

'An environmental crusader's home stands in the way of a crucial renewable energy project. But it's more than a house - it's a doorway and the only link to the dead sister she's trying to save.

'A Fae Ranger sent through a portal to Victorian England to stop an assassin faces an impossible choice: save her family or the Fae Realm in a battle between the light and darkness.

'A dating game show contestant finds the last thing she expects behind the stage door and faces the biggest decision of her life, in front of the whole world. Will she follow her head or her heart?

'Doors are a gateway into another space or world. Sometimes they present opportunities, other times barriers, in some cases they're forbidden. Forbidden Doors is the perfect theme for this genre fiction anthology - a collection of fantasy, sci-fi, romance, crime, historical fiction and supernatural short stories from established and emerging Australian authors.'(Publication summary)

'A grieving woman is drawn to a land-locked lighthouse where she meets a party of lost souls in need of a guide. She must face death in order to start a new life.

'The temporary caretaker of a lighthouse finds the perfect hideaway for safeguarding her secret, never expecting to encounter a murder and an unlikely partner in crime.

'While visiting a deep space navigational beacon to conduct routine maintenance, two space adventurers encounter a self-aware AI computer that has her own plans.

'Queensland, 1887. A lighthouse keeper’s daughter is missing, presumed dead. Is she another victim of the Spectre or something even more terrifying?

'A voice from one woman’s past echoes a secret up the lighthouse stairs. The only person who can give her the answers, is the last person she ever wants to see again.

'The estranged daughter of a lightkeeper returns home to South Solitary Island as WWII looms and finds her world upended by her father’s dying request: marry his successor.

'Lighthouses: beautiful, mysterious, dangerous, remote – the perfect setting for this genre fiction anthology – a collection of fantasy, sci-fi, romance, crime, historical fiction, dystopian and paranormal short stories from established and emerging Australian authors.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Eight authors. Eight students. Eight stories. We are the University of the Sunshine Coast’s graduating class of 2018. Our certificates say we are Masters of Professional Practice (Creative Writing). We say, ‘Read our works.’ Celebrate our graduation. Explore eMerge, an anthology from extracts of our novels. You want aliens and a matriarchal society—it’s there. Dystopian Australia—no worries. A childhood robbed—get your handkerchief. A shipwrecked heroine—it’s truly unbelievable. A lighthouse—see inside a family salvaged. An African slave, drummer boy and convict—a founder of Australia. The life of an unwed Victorian mother—experience the unimaginable. An alcoholic motorcyclist—rode around Australia—dry. Different worlds; different stories. Fiction and non-fiction. Brilliant works our foremost goal. These are the journeys of USC Masters. Our continuing mission: to explore our creativity; to seek out new styles; emerging work.... to boldly go where no student has gone before!'

Source: Publisher's blurb.