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Detective Cato Kwong gets mixed up in dirty politics between Timor and Australia in “Crocodile Tears” by Alan Carter+ We’ve got your summer reads completely covered 

The fifth and final installment in the award-winning Cato Kwong series, “Crocodile Tears” sees Cato’s life on the line with someone from the past as his only hope. A thriller rich in political, cultural and historical detail, Cato’s search for the good guys will twist and turn all the way from Perth to Timor-Leste and Darwin…so hold on to your hat for the exciting climax!

 And…

Join the Tsundoku team for a chat about their favourite books of 2022 and their tips for a great summer read.

Guests:

Alan Carter, author of “Crocodile Tears”

Our Random readers: Rachael, Mads and Annabelle

Picks for your summer reading pleasure:

Michaela Andreyev recommends: “Meshi; A journey in Japanese food” by Katherine Tamiko Arguille, “Holy Woman; a Divine Adventure” by Louise Omer and “Stolen Focus” by Johan Hari  

Sarah Martin recommends: “Runt”by Craig Silvey and “The Unusual Abduction of Avery Confier” by Ilsa Evans. Sarah also recommends “Stolen Focus”

Annie Hastwell recommends: “How to be Idle”by Tom Hodgkinson, “The Candy House” by Jennifer Egan and “Sweetness and Light” by Liam Pieper

Cath Kenneally recommends: “Chai TIme at Cinnamon Gardens” & “Song of the Sun God” by Shankari Chandran and “The Cast Aways of Harewood Hall” by Karen Herbert

Rachael recommends: “Burial Rites” & “Devotion” by Hannah Kent, “The History of Bees” by Maja Lund, “Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine” by Gail Honeyman and “The Dictionary of Lost Words” by Pip Williams

Mads recommends: The Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear.

Annabelle recommends: “The Ella Diaries” & “Ella Goes to Eden” by Meredith Costain, “Little Gem”by Anna Zobel, “Harry Potter” by J.K. Rowling and “Muumitroll” & “Memoirs of Moominpappa” by Tove Jansson

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA

Insta: @fremantlepress

Insta: @alancarter28insta/

Facebook: @FremantlePress

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Are there times when you wonder what sort of world our children and grandchildren will inherit? Grace Chan has created an online world called Gaia in which the people of 2080 take refuge from the climate ravaged earth. Gaia is clean, beautiful and exciting and it’s just announced the opportunity for citizens to shake off their bodies entirely and permanently upload their consciousness to it. Gaia seems to have everything, but is it enough?

And…

Join Annie Hastwell’s discussion with retired ABC Radio host Annie Warburton about Phillip Roth, the author whose book “Portnoy’s Complaint” was considered so filthy in 1969 it was banned from being imported into Australia. The ensuing court battles helped define Australia’s censorship laws and ensured an end to book bans in this country.

Guests:

Grace Chan, author of “Every Version of You”

Annie Warburton and Annie Hastwell discuss Philip Roth’s books “Portnoy’s Complaint” (1969), “The Breast” (1972), “My Life as a Man” (1974), “The Human Stain” (2000), “The Plot Against America” (2004) and “Nemesis” (2010)

Our Random reader: Mads

Grace’s tsundoku contains “Empathy” by Fay Lee, “Everything Feels Like the End of the World” by Else Fitzgerald, “Terminal Boredom” by Izumi Suzuki, “I’m waiting for You” by Bo-Young Kim and “Where the Stars Rise: Asian Science Fiction and Fantasy” edited by Lucas K. Law and Derwin Mak

Mads was first inspired to read by the Ramona Quimby books by Beverley Clearey, then “Tomorrow When the World Began” by John Marsden and the complete works of Jane Austen. These days she’s reading “Raising Girls” by Maggie Dent, “Seeing Other People” and “Love and Virtue” by Dianna Reid, “The Paper Palace” by Miranda Cowley Heller and “A Room Made of Leaves” by Kate Grenville.

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

Insta: @gracechanwrites
Insta: @affirmpress

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When Jayne Tuttle fell in love with Paris she had no idea its quaint charm would be
indirectly responsible for almost killing her. In her first Paris memoir "Paris Or Die" we
meet her as a young aspiring actor dizzy with the joy of life in the City of Light. Her new
memoir "My Sweet Guillotine" confronts and explores the terrifying incident that changed
her Paris existence and her whole life’s direction.
And…
Have 20th century women writers been given the recognition they deserve? Make up
your own mind as Goodwood Books owner, Sarah Tooth, takes Tsundoku on a tour of
the shelves of her newly opened shop. You won’t find a book written by a man, but you
may find writing gems that have been overlooked.

Guests:
Jayne Tuttle, author of "Paris or Die" and "My Sweet Guillotine"
Sarah Tooth, book collector and owner of Goodwood Books
Our Random reader: Eve

Eve has enjoyed
Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
Under Milk Wood - Dylan Thomas
And she enjoys reading crime fiction by …Gary Disher, Devla Tiernan, Anne Cleeves and Chris Hammer

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES

Hardie Grant Books
Insta: @Hardiegrantbooks

Jayne Tuttle
http://www.jaynetuttle.com/

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When Pentecostal preacher Louise Omer started to question her devotion to a religion run by men to keep men in power, she decided to break free. "Holy Woman, A Divine Adventure" is the story of her wandering world pilgrimage looking for a religion that lets women share the power.

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

Louise Omer 

Insta - @/shahouley/

Web - https://www.louiseomer.co

Scribe Publications  @scribepub

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An innocuous little marshmallow shatters the life of a group of friends. As the anniversary of the horrible event looms, each must come to terms with their altered selves and address what their lives can now be.

And

How might we deal with alien life forms determined to destroy us if they were to enter our lives disguised as beloved children?  We compare Wyndham’s chilling sci-fi novel with its 21st century TV adaptation.

Guests: 

Victoria Hannan, author of Marshmallow

Annie Warburton, broadcaster and literature aficionado

Our Random Reader - Justin

Other books that get a mention:

Annie and Sarah have read (or are planning to read!) Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here, The Museum of Modern Love and Bruny by  Heather Rose, The Sea of Tranquility by Emily St John Mandel, Monsters by Alison Croggon and Salt and Skin by Eliza Henry -Jones

The books sitting in Victoria Hannan’s tsundoku are “Lucy by the Sea’ by Elizabeth Strout, “Limberlost” by Robbie Arnott and the forthcoming title “Little Plum” by Laura McPhee-Browne.

Justin has enjoyed Misery by Stephen King, The Beach by Alex Garland, The Killing Fields by Christopher Hudson, Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts, Be Here Now and Polishing the Mirror by Baba Ram Dass and Twelve Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES

INSTA - @victorilhannan

INSTA - @HachetteAus

FB - @HachetteAustralia

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After a “reading slump” Sarah was delighted to be swept away by a powerful new detective, Antigone Pollard; she isn’t afraid of the dark and won’t take no for an answer as she hunts down a sexual predator in the small seaside town of Deception Bay.

And…

Far from being spooked, Cath and Sarah find re-reading Agatha Christie’s crime novels strangely soothing…but both agree she was no poet!

Guests: 

Vikki Petraitis, author of “The Unbelieved” 

Sarah Tooth, second hand bookshop owner and Agatha Christie devotee

Our Random Reader - Alex

Other books that get a mention:

Annie is reading the “Midwich Cuckoos” by John Wyndham and Jane Tuttle’s books about Paris for forthcoming Tsundoku episodes.

Vikki mentions her true crime novels “Rockspider; The danger of paedophiles” and “The Philip Island Murder” which she wrote with Paul Daley. Vikki is currently writing the sequel to “The Unbelieved” 

Cath mentions the Agatha Christie’s books “A Murder is Announced”, “4.50 from Paddington”, “At Bertram’s Hotel” and “They Came to Baghdad” 

Sarah mentions Agatha Christie’s books “The Mysterious Affair at Styles”, “And Then There Were None”, “A Caribbean Mystery”, “The Murder at the Vicarage”, “Death on the Nile” and “Murder on the Orient Express”. Also, Christie’s historical mystery novel “Death Comes as the End” and what Sarah describes as her rather sub-standard poetry in “Poems”. 

Alex mentions “Imagine” by Alison Lester, “Gidja, The Rainbow Serpent” and others by Percy Tresize and Dick Roughsey, “Siddhartha” by Herman Hesse, “Fingerprints of the Gods” by Graham Hancock, “The Alchemist” by Paolo Coelho, “The Four Agreements - a Practical Guide to personal Freedom” by Don Miguel Ruiz, “The Circle” by Dave Eggers, “Cloud Atlas” and “The Bone Clocks” by David Mitchell …and a perennial title in his tsundoku is “Plato’s Republic” by Plato

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES

VIKKI INSTA - @vikkipetraitis

VIKKI FB - @vikki.petraitis.author

WEB - www.vikkipetraitis.com.au

A&U INSTA - @allenandunwin

A&U FB - @AllenandUnwinBooks

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Biologist and award-winning author Danielle Clode embarks on a journey to reveal the true story of Jeanne Barret, the first woman to circumnavigate the world in 1775. We meet an impoverished peasant from Burgundy who disguised herself as a man and sailed on a french voyage around the world from the South American jungles and Magellan Strait to the tropical islands of the Indo-Pacific. Seamlessly weaving together memoir, history and science, Clode unmasks the remarkable woman who, like all explorers, charted her own course for others to follow.

And…

We avid readers know deep down that reading is good for us. But did you know your gut feeling has a name? Bibliotherapy, or book therapy, is an ancient practice that is gaining a resurgence in medical practice. Doctors in Wales now incorporate “book prescriptions” in a holistic approach to mental health concerns and the State Library of Victoria created an online course in bibliotherapy when Melbournians were locked down due to Covid. UniSA PhD candidate, Elizabeth Wells, is studying the therapeutic benefit of being read to aloud when undergoing chemotherapy. She joined Michaela to explain the many ways in which bibliotherapy can benefit us all.

Guests: 

Danielle Clode, author of “In Search of the Woman Who Sailed the World”

To hear a dramatisation of the story go to the History Listen

Elizabeth Wells, PhD Candidate, UniSA STEM. The title of her thesis is “An exploration of the potential benefits of read-aloud programs to the well-being of cancer patients undergoing treatment”

Our Random Reader - Tony

Other books that get a mention:

Elizabeth recommends short stories from her read-aloud program. These include “Great Australian Outback Yarns” by Bill Swampy Marsh, “All Together Now” by Monica McInerny,  “I’ve Got Your Number” by Sophie Kinsella. Other authors of short stories she recommends highly include P.G. Wodehouse, Kitty Flannagan, Geoffrey Archer, Maeve Binchy and Anna Jacobs. One of Elizabeth’s personal favourite books is “The 13th Gift; The true story of a Christmas miracle” by Joanne Huist-Smith.

Elizabeth also mentions The Reading Agency UK (https://readingagency.org.uk) and State Library of Victoria (https://www.slv.vic.gov.au/bibliotherapy)

Michaela recommends a podcast Women Read (with Freya & Mel). In each episode a woman chooses a book she loves and reads the first chapter aloud.

Tony recommends Patrick Susskind’s classic “Perfume”, Elizabeth Knox “The Vintner’s Luck “ and anything by Peter Goldsworthy

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES

INSTA - Pan Macmillan Australia @macmillanaus

INSTA - Danielle Clode @danielleclode

INSTA - University of South Australia @WomeninSTEMUniSA

INSTA - Elizabeth Wells @reading.for.wellbeing

INSTA - Women Read @_womenread

FB - Pan Macmillan Australia - @panmacmillanaustralia

FB - Danielle Clode @danielleclode

FB - Elizabeth Well's research @readingforwellbeing

FB - University of South Australia @unisa

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The Times calls it “ingenious and clever”, the Daily Mail declares it “mind-bendingly clever”, “Psalms for the end of the World” is a sprawling jigsaw of a story that propels its characters through time and space as they explore and discover the relative nature of love and reality.

And…

Dani Vee wasn’t content merely to create a podcast, Words and Nerds, that attracts 50,000 listeners each month, she’s also written a picture book and presides over the “slush pile” at edgy Aussie children’s publisher, Larrikin House. So, what books does Dani rate as “classics” and does she have any advice for aspiring picture book writers?

Guests: 

Cole Haddon, author of “Psalms for the End of the World”

Dani Vee, author of “My Extraordinary Mum” and presenter of Words and Nerds Podcast

Our Random Reader - Monique

Other books that get a mention:

Monique recommends “The God of Small Things” by Arundhati Roy, anything written by Haruki Murakami and “Middlesex” by Geoffrey Eugenides

Cole Haddon refers to the authors Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman and David Mitchell.

Dani Vee mentions “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wild and Judy Blume (author of books including “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing” and “Blubber”), “Charlotte’s Web” by E.B White and The Baby-Sitters Club series by Anne M Martin. She mentions two other Larrikin House books; “My Shadow is Pink” and “My Shadow is Purple”. Michaela mentions “The Happy Prince” by Oscar Wilde. 

Dani Vee’s next picture book is titled “My Epic Dad!”

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES

INSTA - @hachetteaus

INSTA - @colehaddonwashere

INSTA - @DaniVeeBooks-Words & Nerds

INSTA - @larrikinhouse

FB - @HachetteAustralia

FB - @DaniVeeBooks

FB - @Larrikin House

Twitter - @colehaddon

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Death isn’t like in the movies - there’s no grand musical score playing as we leave this world. It’s just the final scene of our wonderful, complex and maybe ordinary life. But, asks author Megan Albany, what’s to be done about all that unfinished business? In The Very Last List of Vivian Walker, Vivian writes a to-do list and so begins a tale both hilarious and heartbreaking.

Music composed by Quentin Grant 

Insta - @ meganalbanywriter

FB - @ meganalbanywriter

Twitter - @ Megan_Albany

Web -meganalbany.com

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Comedian and musician Matt Storer calls in from Perth to talk about stand up, his skit making process and what influences him on the mic.

For more Wormholes follow us on socials below: 
instagram.com/wormholes.podcast
tiktok.com/@wormholes_podcast
facebook.com/wormholespodcast

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