Cirrus@Austlit

'A new book tells the “death-defying” story of a Melbourne Jewish family who survived the Holocaust – partly through clowning, writes Rosemary Neill When Mindla Horowitz announced that she wanted to marry a circus performer, her father was far from impressed. “A clown is not a husband … nothing good comes from a clown,’’ he declared.' (Introduction)

'In Lucky’s, the debut novel of Sydney writer Andrew Pippos, the story is split between Lucky, the man behind the Lucky’s restaurant franchise, and Emily, jetting in from London in 2002 to write a New Yorker piece on the demise of the chain.' (Introduction)

'Peter FitzSimons’s new book on Breaker Morant is full of surprises, writes Bruce Beresford As a teenager in the 1950s, I remember reading a number of books by Ion Idriess, who, along with Frank Clune, was one of the two writers that concentrated on Australian characters and Australian history. Nonfiction books such as The Cattle King, The Drums of Mer and Lasseter’s Last Ride were exciting tales about my own country and made me realise that films could be made — one day — that told Australian stories.' (Introduction)

'Australian fiction is flourishing with the recent release of books for adults by well-known writers. However, a children’s fantasy story is outselling most of them.'  (Introduction)

'Nan Shepherd was a teacher and writer of mid-century Scotland who attained posthumous fame when her brief account of a lifetime spent walking the Cairngorm Mountains was republished in 2011. Her book, The Living Mountain, deserved its belated accolades. It was heady, concentrated stuff, the literary equivalent of an aged single malt.'  (Introduction)

'Few things are as disappointing as discovering a great novelist writes bad poetry. The effect of this discovery is so strong on me that when I return to the fiction, I often find it dimmed.' (Introduction)