First Thoughts
Southern Cross The Dog begins with the Great Mississippi flood of 1927 and follows a number of characters as they try to survive in the harsh landscape of the American Deep South.
The world of bluesmen, prostitutes and fur trappers is affectionately reanimated in this incredibly ambitious debut novel by young Chinese American author Bill Cheng. It throws you head first into the folklore existence of cursed Robert Chatham and his family living in the impoverished Louisiana backwoods.
But while Southern Cross The Dog is filled with incredibly evocative prose and fine characterisation, it’s slightly let down by the frequent shifts in narrative, character and time period, which can be confusing and disorientating.
It’s an exceptionally promising debut and a remarkable piece of writing, but it’s probably not one for those looking for an easy or uplifting read.
Set in fictional Wendover, Ann Leary’s second novel The Good House is a warts-and-all insight into an affluent New England town, where the nouveau riche and out-priced locals live side-by-side.
Among the philanderers, hedge funders and local fishermen is narrator Hildy Good, a divorced 60-something estate agent who, two years earlier, was forced into rehab by her daughters. Hard-nosed Hildy insists she’s not an alcoholic and explains so with witty defiance. And at first, Hildy’s refreshingly candid assessment of her ’problem’ means you’re almost rooting for her to enjoy that pinot grigio.
As she finds herself mixed up in her friends’ sordid secrets, Leary cleverly portrays Hildy as a lonely woman who is having difficulty figuring out — just as much as the reader is — whether she really is an alcoholic.
The depth with which Leary describes her characters, and the skewed relationship they have with their vices, makes for a compelling, sometimes hilarious, and brilliantly-written novel.
Costa First Novel Award winner Christie Watson’s latest novel, Where Women Are Kings, brings to the fore the uncomfortable realities of the British care system, ritual abuse and mental illness.
Elijah is a seven-year-old boy of Nigerian descent. Put into foster care following his mother’s increasingly unstable state, he is eventually adopted. Believing he has an evil wizard living inside him, Elijah is terrified that he will bring harm to Nikki and Obi, his adoptive parents. Conversely, Nikki and Obi wonder if they are strong enough to help Elijah overcome his past, the horrors of which are slowly revealed by his biological mother’s letters to her son.
Watson’s second offering is deeply moving and disturbing, with a rich narrative that keeps the reader keen — yet fearful — of what happens next.
Alaskan-born David Vann is the international best-selling and prize-winning author of Goat Mountain, the story of a man looking back on one weekend spent with his grandfather, father, and father’s best friend, when he was 11.
Set on a remote, 640 acre ranch in Northern California, the story begins with the foursome setting off on their family’s annual deer hunt, then reaching the secure gate that leads on to the land the family has owned for generations. Here they spot a poacher in the distance and the boy’s father shows his son the man through the viewfinder of his rifle. At that moment, the course of their weekend — and their lives — take a turn for the worst.
Vann’s writing is highly descriptive and many will enjoy stepping into the world he creates, but others might find it slows the story down. The subject matter makes it a gripping read.
Buy this book
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
