Cirrus@Austlit

(Introduction)          

'Just like the garden, the fuse box, the bills, bin night and blown light bulbs, this was just something else she'd now have to take care of herself.

'Recently widowed, Miriam Duffy is a respectable North Shore real estate agent and devoted mother and grandmother. She was thrilled when her younger daughter Ally married her true love, but as time goes by Miriam wonders whether all is well with Ally, as she moves to the country and gradually withdraws, finding excuses every time Miriam offers to visit. Their relationship has always had its ups and downs, and Miriam tries to give her daughter the distance she so clearly wants. But is all as it seems?

'When the truth of her daughter's situation is revealed, Miriam watches in disbelief as Ally and her children find themselves increasingly vulnerable and cut off from the world. As the situation escalates and the law proves incapable of protecting them, Miriam is faced with an unthinkable decision. But she will do anything for the people she loves most in the world. Wouldn't you?

'A stunning, gripping novel that goes to the heart of a mother's love and asks what any of us might do when faced with a threat to the people we hold most dear.' (Publication summary)

'A terrible dread took hold in my belly. The only bed left to me was my death bed and I was not ready for that – not yet.

'Elizabeth is a survivor. The unwanted daughter of an executed queen, she endured the perils of her childhood to take the throne as Queen of England. Just a girl at coronation, Elizabeth has now ruled for over four decades, withstanding political upheavals, war and plots against her life.

'But as her life draws to an end, she weighs up all that she has relinquished – love, marriage, family of any kind – for power. She was not just a queen, but a flesh-and-blood woman. Will her last moments be ones of regret?

'Here is the final chapter in the life of a woman who grasped her destiny with both hands and made herself one of the greats of history.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'In this revealingly honest collection, successful Australian women talk about the challenges they have overcome, from sexual assault and domestic violence to racism, miscarriage, depression and loss, and how they let the past go to move forward with their lives. Courageously, the contributors delve deep into how these experiences made them feel, what the personal cost was and why they may have chosen to remain quiet until now. 

'In a time when bragging about sexual assault doesn’t preclude being elected President of the United States, women must stand together and speak out against violence against women. Unbreakable shows that every woman, no matter her success, has a story, and that together we are stronger. 

'In Jane Caro’s words:

        I want to pass on courage and hope to women who have also gone through such things by all of us speaking up about our own experiences. These things do not need to either define us or destroy us. We can find the strength to move forward, and this book shows how successful women have done just that.

'Contributors include Kathy Lette, Mariam Veiszadeh, Tracey Spicer, Lee-Ann Tjunypa Buckskin, Rebecca Lim, Kerryn Goldsworthy, Susan Wyndham, Andie Fox, Dee Madigan, Catherine Fox, Zora Simic, Nina Funnell, Sandra Levy, Polly Dunning and Jacinda Woodhead, with a foreword by Tanya Plibersek.' (Publication summary)

'Australian women like Jane. She says what she thinks. In an era when public figures talk about themselves as brands, this is almost radical. In her memoir, Jane tells us that: her life is not perfect; she has given up trying to control anything; her children are not geniuses; Julia Gillard is fine but she's not a saint; and in her long career in advertising she was bullied by some of the wittiest men in Australia. She also talks frankly about her battle with anxiety. For the anxious among us - one in three Australian women are affected - this memoir offers hope. By example, Jane shows us that anxiety is not a life sentence; it can be managed so long as it is identified and treated; it should not prevent us doing the things in life that bring reward and recognition, and on the other side of anxiety lies the ultimate reward: the freedom to say and do as we please.' (Publication summary)

'The Queen of Scots is dead and they say I killed her. They lie!

'Just a girl to those around her, Elizabeth is now the Queen of England. She has outsmarted her enemies and risen above a lifetime of hurt and betrayal – a mother executed by her father, a beloved brother who died too young and an enemy sister whose death made her queen.

'Not knowing whom she can trust, Elizabeth is surrounded by men who give her compliments and advice but may be hiding daggers and poison behind their backs. Elizabeth must use her head and ignore her heart to be the queen her people need. But what if that leads to doing the one thing she swore she would never do: betray a fellow queen, her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

In 2012, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said a society needs the political participation of women to reach its full potential. Commentator Alan Jones reacted to this by saying: 'Women are destroying the joint ... Honestly.' People around the country responded with passion, disbelief and hilarity. In Destroying the Joint: Why Women Have to Change the World, Australian women reply to Jones's comment and the broader issues of sexism and misogyny in our culture. Edited by Jane Caro, this entertaining and thought-provoking collection includes essays, analysis, memoir, fiction, satire, polemic and tweets from some of our best and brightest. (Back cover blurb)

The collection includes Carmen Lawrence, Monica Duc, Emily Maquire, Krissy Kneen, Catherine Fox, Michelle Law, Melissa Lucashenko, Jennifer Mills, Susan Johnson, Jenna Price, Nina Funnell, Steph Bowe, Dannielle Miller, Lily Edelsein, Yvette Vicnando, Paula McDonald, Abby Cathcart, Christine Milne, Leslie Cannold, Tara Moss, Jennifer Mills, Catherine Deveny, Wendy Harmer, Clementine Ford, Corinne Grant, Stella Young, Penny Wong, and the eponymous organisation, Destroy the Joint.