Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: quirky

  • Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead

    Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead

    If you were to choose a book by its title only, then most people would give Everyone in this room will someday be dead a miss. Don’t. It does focus on death, but with some dead pan humour, a suspected murder case, and a confused young woman, the plot is never predictable.

    When Gilda is a young girl, she discovers the body of her adored pet rabbit. The memory of this, and watching her father, from her bedroom window, as he buries the bunny, recurs in her dreams. It also frames her thoughts and actions as she grows. As an adult, Gilda has moved out of home. She has lost her job and is in a depressive state and as she reads the paper, she reads about a woman who was fatally stabbed by a beach umbrella. Life seems very precarious!

    An advert in the paper shows free therapy sessions given in the local Catholic Church. When Gilda goes along to enquire, the busy Priest thanks her for coming to fill the job of Secretary and shows her to a desk. The previous worker has disappeared, and Gilda’s problem of employment is solved. She is expected to take part in the religious services and not being a Catholic this presents some challenges.

    When Gladys, the previous Secretary, is found dead, police suspect murder. As we follow Gilda’s innermost thoughts, and actions (which have a way of backfiring) we see that she is understandably a suspect in the murder. It is hard to describe the anguish that Gilda feels, and the anxious depressed state she lives in, while laughing at some of the humour and situations that she weaves into her life.

    The end of the book reveals how life, medication, new friends or maturity have had a profound effect on Gilda. Everyone in this room will someday be dead is a very satisfying, quirky read.

  • GAYBCs: A Queer Alphabet

    GAYBCs: A Queer Alphabet

    In this cheeky, wry, very tongue-in-cheek look at what use to be a dry old staple of language, the Alphabet, Rae Congdon has delivered a fresh new perspective to fit in with societies fresh new group of people, the LGBTQIA+ community who, for some reason seem to have need of an entirely new language to suit the times.

    So, what would happen if the Alphabet was to be redesigned, to present this new spectrum to promote a progressive, depending on where you are at in the gender debate, way of representation for the old faithfuls, the traditional letters that have gone on to represent the same things for such a long, long time.

    A now no longer stands for Apple, that humble of fruits but Ally: someone who supports LGBTQIA+ people and causes. H once stood for Hat but now is Heteronormative, that is if you can even say it, meaning the worldview that promotes being straight as the norm. See: every fairy-tale ever.

    Sexuality has replaced Star representing the letter S, which back in the day used to be Snake but now means how we express sexual feelings, desires and behaviour and W for Wedding and the traditional saying of ‘Something old, Something new, Something borrowed, Something blue’, has become transformed into ‘Something bold, Something new, Something real, Something true’!

    The final revamp is to the poor old Zebra who really has stood for Z for such a long time. He/she has now been truncated to simple Ze meaning ‘Ze and they are some gender-neutral alternatives to he and she.’

    Ah, well! In today world of change, sometimes for change’s sake and no other plausible reason, everything is up for a revamp, but as always and in the final words in this engaging look at the ‘modern’ Alphabet:  Each to their own!

    A very gay ABC indeed!

  • Lovesome

    Lovesome

    Narrated by the main character, this romantic story tells of a time in the life of Joni. She is twenty-one and just out of art school. She lives in a tiny apartment where she is working on compiling an art exhibition. Joni’s thoughts and feelings are described carefully, and reflect a young Australian girl beginning to make her way in the world. There are a great many issues that Joni ponders, among them is understanding the various characters that she works with, and why she is still a virgin at twenty-one!

    We follow Joni as she spends her day painting, then gets ready for her job in a French Restaurant. The owner is a passionate woman who can be deeply personal and friendly, or snappy and cold. Our young artist views the male workers, the chef, the dishwasher, and assistant chef, as potential partners. Dave is a sweetie, and Joni fancies him, but one night she leaves her bag behind and returns to the restaurant to find Dave having sex with Lucy, the owner.

    Joni’s best friend Annabelle is a singer- songwriter, who has been recognised for her talents overseas. She has returned home to Sydney for a break and stays at Joni’s place, sleeping on the couch. The girls have been best friends since school, so at first it is no imposition. As the weeks go by, Joni begins to long for a little solitude, but an interview for Annabelle has been set up at the Harland, the restaurant where Joni works. She has been told that a photographer who is filming for the interview is single and cute.  However, he is unable to make the session, so Joni will never find out.

    It is lovely to hear the thoughts that bemuse this young lady. They are quite private and we share in the exhilaration of her late night bike rides home from work, as she rides up hill and views Sydney Harbour at its sparkling best. We also share her fears as she walks down the dark path at night at work, saying, and “There are no ghosts.”

    During the story, Joni learns that characters have many aspects and should not be accepted at face value. It is just another lesson in life for this quirky young woman.