Cirrus@Austlit

'Whether it's cancer, a car accident, grief, a natural disaster or a family tragedy, we all experience trauma, and simply surviving takes everything we have. But what happens after that, when you realise that surviving survival might be harder still? With its combination of personal stories and expert information, Life Goes On shows us how to go on.

'In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life. It goes on.' These words - attributed to American poet Robert Frost in 1954 - were hidden in the recesses of journalist and author Megan Maurice's mind after she read them as a teenager. Since she endured and survived treatment for cancer, such a life-changing and traumatic event, they became the only way for her to make sense of what came after.

'After facing her mortality, and all the fear that brought not just for her but for her young daughter, Maurice discovered that once the momentum of pure survival was gone, she had to deal with its aftermath - and there were no tools for that. No guidelines, no rulebooks. Survival seemed easier by comparison. What she wanted to know was: If she was meant to go on, how did she go on? The world around her had not changed, even if she had. There just didn't seem to be a place for her. So she made one.

'Through delving into research on trauma and recovery and discussions with a range of people with lived experiences of trauma and recovery - people who shared their darkest days and greatest worries with her - Maurice has created the very manual she needed but couldn't find, and in the process created a moving and illuminating portrait of not only the hardship of survival but the beauty too. For, when life goes on, there is so much to live for.' (Publication summary)

'Alex Blackwell, captain of the Australian women's cricket team through World Cup and Ashes victories, provides a rare insight into life - the highs and lows - in Australia's most loved sporting team. This is a fascinating account of one of Australia's most accomplished sportspeople and of the game she loves.

'Alex Blackwell lived and breathed our national sport of cricket for thirty years.

'Starting as a kid, she spent her childhood and teen years playing and competing with her identical twin, Kate, who was equally devoted to the bat and ball. But it was Alex who went on to consolidate a spot in the national side, eventually rising to the captaincy, notching up an eye-watering list of sporting achievements and earning her a name as one of the greats of the game.

'But life off field brought challenges of its own. From her professional debut, Alex was unafraid to call out hypocrisy and go in to battle against the traditional hierarchies of the game. Speaking out and becoming a passionate advocate for women and LGBTIQ+ people in sport won her many fans and much respect, but it didn't come without a price.

'Fair Game is an unflinching account of life in Australia's most loved sporting team, told by one of its most lauded members. It reveals not only the extreme dedication and skill it takes to be the best, but also how it feels to be on the outer - even as one of the game's most decorated players.

'Representing Australia 251 times across Tests, one day internationals and T20 matches, no woman in history has played more matches for the Australian Women's cricket team than Alex Blackwell. And no one knows better both the extreme highs and devastating lows that come with playing this majestic but at times brutal game at the highest level.'

Source : publisher's blurb