Coping with Stage 4 lock-down.

I know I'm one of the lucky ones. Stage 4 lock-down was inevitable owing to the soaring rates of Covid-19 here in Melbourne but although I miss seeing friends and family, my income has not been impacted. My daily life has been curtailed but I have enough resources to be productive and creative. My ability to be content relies on seven things: regular conversations with my daughter; reading; writing; taking part in online events (I love Zoom;) streaming films/TV/live theatre events, my solitary walks and my little garden.

The amount of online events, many of them free, is staggering. I've listened to podcasts of author interviews, attended Zoom book launches, taken part in Zoom writing time and formal writing workshops (the downside here being, of course, not getting to chat to other participants.) As a result I've come across many more Australian authors and inevitably have bought their books. My book purchases have been - ah, rather frequent - in the past five months. (On the other hand I've bought only one tank of petrol during the same time - judging by my recent mileage I won't have to visit a petrol station until next year!)

I have been a beta reader for someone's debut novel and hope my feedback was helpful. I have a load of other events earmarked for future listening/viewing.

So what have I been reading? As usual a mix of old and new, authors from many different countries, some bought, some borrowed (I managed a trip to my local library during the brief period it was open) some downloaded. I'm continuing my Australian education so here are my books by Australian authors plus a couple of New Zealanders. Unlike my previous list these are not all set in Australia.  There are more awaiting me on my shelves!

Tabitha Bird: A Lifetime of Impossible Days

Alice Bishop: A Constant Hum

Emily Brewin: Small Blessings.

Liz Byrski: Trip of A Lifetime

Marele Day: Lambs of God

Shirley Hazard: The Transit of Venus

Sally Hepworth: The Family Next Door

Sally Hepworth: The Mother-in-Law

Leah Kaminsky: The Waiting Room

Leah Kaminsky: The Hollow Bones

Maya Linell: Wildflower Ridge

Fiona Lowe: Home Fires

Liane Moriarty: Truly, Madly, Guilty

Liane Moriarty: The Last Anniversary

Kate Morton: The Shifting Fog

Joanna Nell: The Last Voyage of Mrs Henry Parker

Charity Norman: The Secrets of Strangers

Stephanie Parker: Josephine’s Garden

Leah Purcell: The Drover’s Wife

Angela Savage: Mother of Pearl

Graeme Simsion: The Rosie Result

Christos Tsiolkas: Damascus

Pip Williams: The Dictionary for Lost Words

Tara June Winch: The Yield

Charlotte Wood: The Weekend

One book, Kate Morton's The Shifting Fog, seemed rather familiar. I realised I had it read back in UK some years ago under a different title - The House at Riverton.  It was borrowed from my local community library, and fortunately was well worth a second read before returning it.  

There is one more book to mention, a non-fiction, Jess Hill's Stella Prize 2020 winner See What You Made Me Do, an in-depth investigation detailing domestic abuse. Not the happiest of reading, certainly but an important contribution to understanding another type of pandemic which has sadly increased world-wide during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic.