Book picks similar to
The Poet by Alex Skovron


21st-century
australia
australian
novella

Roadies: The Secret History of Australian Rock'n'Roll


Stuart Coupe - 2018
    The roadies see it all, and now they are sharing their secrets. Roadies are the unsung heroes of the Australian music industry. They unload the PAs and equipment, they set it all up, they make sure everything is running smoothly before, during and after the gigs. Then they pack everything up in the middle of the night, put it in the back of the truck and hit the road to another town - to do it all over again. They know everything about the pre- and post-show excesses. They bear witness to overdoses, the groupies, the obsessive fans. They are part of - and often organise - all the craziness that goes on behind the scenes of the concerts and pub gigs you go to. From The Rolling Stones to AC/DC, Bob Marley to Courtney Love, Sherbet to The Ted Mulry Gang, INXS to Blondie - these guys have seen it all. And now they're stepping onto the stage and talking.The Roadies' Creed: If it's wet, drink it. If it's dry, smoke it. If it moves, **** it. If it doesn't move, throw it in the back of the truck. 'Fabulous . . . a bold portrait' SYDNEY MORNING HERALD on Stuart Coupe's GUDINSKI

Arthur Phillip: Sailor, Mercenary, Governor, Spy


Michael Pembroke - 2013
    It is a tale of ambition, of wealthy widows and marriage mistakes; of money and trade, espionage and mercenaries, hardship and illness. Beyond the facts of discovery and exploration, this book reveals the extraordinary idealism and the influence of the Enlightenment on the founding of Australia.Michael Pembroke provides a compelling portrait of Arthur Phillip. He carefully weaves together the little-known facts and projects us into life in Georgian England – a time when newly discovered territories were the road to untold wealth.‘At long last, a finely written biography of the astonishing egalitarian who became Australia’s founding father. There are gripping descriptions of his amazing sea voyages and moving accounts of the humanity he brought to the government of a penal colony that only he thought would ever become a nation. The book shows the moral vision of a man who gave history its best example of the possibility of the Reformation of the human spirit.’-Geoffrey Robertson QC‘A gripping life of a quite extraordinary man: the most important enlightenment life story that we’ve never had properly told before.’-Andrew Marr, BBC broadcaster and television host‘The colour and dash of Arthur Phillip’s extraordinary life, lived in amazing times in every corner of the world, is told just brilliantly in Michael Pembroke’s utterly absorbing book, destined to become a classic of Imperial literature.’-Simon Winchester, bestselling author and journalistMichael Pembroke is a writer, judge and naturalist. He spent much of his childhood travelling to many of the maritime ports of the colonial era. His first school was at Sandhurst in England in the grounds of a military academy and his last on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour. He completed his education at Cambridge and now lives and writes in Sydney and at the hamlet of Mount Wilson in the Blue Mountains. In 2009 he wrote Trees of History & Romance, a paean to nature and poetry. He is a direct descendant of Nathanial Lucas and Olivia Gascoigne, who arrived in Botany Bay in January 1788.

Dane Swan: My Story


Dane Swan - 2016
    Taken by Collingwood at pick 58 in the 2001 ‘super draft’, no one saw a future Brownlow medallist but the scruffy kid knew how to get the ball. Right from the start he made two things clear: he didn’t like training and his mates and social life came first. Swan made front page news in 2003, and faced the sack after playing only three senior games. The infamous Collingwood Rat Pack took him under their wing, he thrived under Mick Malthouse’s coaching, and grew into a talented and nerveless big-occasion player with an incredible mix of power and speed. Off the field, his tattoos, deadpan delivery, transgressions and blunt refusal to become an AFL robot meant he was often used as clickbait.Despite mastering the art of appearing not to care about anything, in Dane Swan: My Story, Swan – for the first time – reveals the pride that drove him to succeed, his loyalty to family, mates and the club that gave him many last chances, and how he worked hard, his way. He takes us inside the highs of the premiership, and through the tumultuous years of the transition from Malthouse to Nathan Buckley. Footy might be only a game, but it’s one hell of a ride with Dane Swan.There’s no one like him at all in this day and age.Nick MaxwellOne of the greatest players in the history of this club. He marched to the beat of his own drum, always, off the ground more so than on it, but I always liked the fact that he was an individual. And whatever he was doing, it worked.Eddie McGuireThe bigger the game, the more turned on he was, and that became evident at the peak of his career because he played his best footy on the biggest stages.Nathan BuckleyWhat made Swanny so good? It was talent, hard work and mental toughness to be that consistent.Ben JohnsonIt was quite extraordinary the way that he just got on with it. He loved winning, he loved the challenge and underneath it, he is a very proud person.Mick MalthouseAbout the author: Dane Swan played 258 games for Collingwood Football Club. He achieved the ultimate team success as a premiership player, and his haul of individual awards is impressive: a Brownlow Medal, three Copeland Trophies, five All Australians, an AFLCA Most Valuable Player award, a Jim Stynes Medal, a couple of Anzac Medals, as well as a swag of top-three finishes in many awards. His unbelievably consistent output meant he averaged 26.85 disposals across 15 seasons, second only to Greg ‘Diesel’ Williams. Swan’s career came to an untimely end in round 1 of 2016. He is acknowledged as one of the best modern midfielders and a one-of-a-kind champion of the competition.

The House on Hill Street


Judy Nunn - 2012
    But the neighbours are becoming concerned. Eileen Jameson and the boys haven't been seen for quite some time...When a gruesome discovery points the finger, quite literally, at the Professor's house, Inspector Max Carruthers and Detective Sergeant Lucas Matthews come knocking at the door. It's a day they will never forget ...

The Medicine


Karen Hitchcock - 2020
    In an overcrowded, underfunded medical system, she explores how more of us can be healthier, and how listening carefully to a patient’s experience can be as important as prescribing a pill. These dazzling essays show Hitchcock to be one of the most fearless and illuminating medical thinkers of our time – reasonable, insightful and deeply humane.

A Stolen Season


Rodney Hall - 2018
    . . veteran of the Iraq conflict who has suffered such extensive bodily trauma that he can only really survive by means of a mechanical skeleton.Marianna's has been ruined by men . . . A woman who has had to flee the country after her husband lied to the wrong people.John Philip's by too much money . . . Until he receives a surprise inheritance in the evening of his own life.Rodney Hall, two-times winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award, presents the story of three people experiencing a period of life they never thought possible, and, perhaps, should never have been granted at all...PRAISE FOR RODNEY HALL"Reminiscent of both Joyce and Garcia Marquez" Washington Post"Magnificent. So good that you wish you had written it yourself" Salman Rushdie"A wondrous blend of the fabulous and the surreal" The Australian"Brilliant" David Mitchell

Kerry O'Brien, A Memoir


Kerry O'Brien - 2018
    He has witnessed life changing events, interviewed the great and good, and explained the intricacies of the world to millions of Australians as we sat in the comfort and safety of our lounge rooms. Whether strolling the history-laden corridors of the White House unhindered while waiting to interview Barack Obama, or talking with Nelson Mandela on his first day in the presidential residence in Pretoria in a room filled with the blood-soaked ghosts of apartheid, or receiving a haughty rebuke from an indignantly regal Margaret Thatcher, or exploring ideas with some of the great artists, philosophers and scientists of our time, Kerry O'Brien has sought to unearth the truth behind the news. In Australia, he has watched thirteen prime ministers come and go and has called the powerful to account without fear or favour. In this intimate ground-breaking account told with wit and insight O'Brien reflects on the big events, the lessons learned and lessons ignored, along with the foibles and strengths of public figures who construct our world. The end result is a memoir like no other - an engrossing study of a private life lived in the public eye and wrapped in nearly three-quarters of a century of social and political history.

Daughter of the Territory


Jacqueline Hammar - 2015
    In 1919, her father arrived there on the back of a camel. By the time Jacqueline was born, he’d become a mounted trooper, working in a succession of outback towns chasing down murderers and cattle thieves. Jacqueline’s childhood was spent in isolated bush settlements until her parents sent her to boarding school in Darwin to be ‘civilised’.After finishing school, Jacqueline found herself drawn back to the Territory where she soon met and fell in love with cattleman, Ken Hammar. Together they moved to one of the most inaccessible regions in the Top End. Starting out in a bark hut they’d built themselves, hard work and determination saw them prosper until they had a thriving million-acre cattle station with a more comfortable house, where they brought up their two children.A larger-than-life tale of adventure, survival and love in some of Australia’s most isolated country, Daughter of the Territory is an extraordinary autobiography that zips along at a cracking pace, with one entertaining yarn after another.Jacqueline and Ken Hammar are now in their eighties and live in the hinterland of the Gold Coast.

Issa Hood Love Story: Bailey & Bash


Anna Black - 2018
    He had a rule not to marry or fall in love while he was in the game but, now that that was all behind him, he was ready and looking for a life partner and, from the very first moment that he laid eyes on Bailey Burnett, he knew instantly that she was the one. Bailey, young, smart and beautiful, belongs to Andre and she is no longer happy being his live-in girlfriend. The fact that he lies and is never home is evident that he’s entertaining another woman, but Bailey is in no position to leave him. She gave up her career to play house wifey to a man that still hadn’t proposed in over eight years. Fed up and tired of being misused, she meets her new neighbor Bash and is instantly attracted to him, and it doesn’t take long for her to desire him. An absent Andre gives Bailey an open invitation to get to know Bash and it doesn’t take the two long to discover the chemistry that they share. No matter how much the two of them try to keep their feelings at bay, they can’t resist falling in love with each other. The heart wants what the heart wants and Bash decides to give his heart to Bailey and, in the end, they both decide to be together by any means necessary.

The Amish Bishop


Samantha Bayarr - 2018
    The Bishop is hiding a horrible secret that could expose his sins if he defends his son's sinful acts. For Eva, getting shunned for their sins could be the answer to her prayers.Lily can't forget what she saw; the community thinks she's making things up. When she suffers a breakdown after witnessing her mother's death from what is being called a freak accident, the Bishop says he has no choice but to shun her and her father, claiming it's for the good of the community, but what Lily knows could cause her to become the murderer's next target.

Merry Christmas, Mr. Brown (The Harold Brown Series, #2)


Mishana Khot - 2015
    He’s never had any friends or family to celebrate with him. There’s never been anyone to share his Christmas dinner. He’s never had anyone, except Thomas Cat, for whom he could buy presents. Nonetheless, December has always been his favourite month. But this year, things are going to be different. This year, Harold and Faith Springer-Brown celebrate their first Christmas together as man and wife. And it’s just started snowing in Limberlost, so it looks like it’s going to be a perfect white Christmas. But there’s trouble brewing in the Springer-Brown household.

Issa Hood Love Story: Tokyo & Greek


Princess Diamond - 2018
    He was handsome and rich. Being a drug dealer afforded him the lap of luxury. His birthday was coming up and his wife Tokyo didn’t have the slightest clue what to get him. He already had jewelry, expensive cars, designer clothes, lavish homes, and exotic vacations. Tokyo kept pondering the question: what should I get for a man who had it all? That’s when she thought back to a conversation that she overheard between Greek and his brother Greg. Greek confessed that he had never been with another woman before. That was it, she thought. Giving her husband a pass to be with another woman would make the perfect gift. He would have her permission to be intimate with another woman for one night. Tokyo was warned that bringing another woman into her bedroom wasn’t a good idea, but she was dead set on giving this present to her husband anyway. Easily, Tokyo found a woman named Ocean who Greek would be pleased with. Greek had a type and Ocean was perfect. Tokyo sealed the deal and Ocean was waiting for Greek once the guest left. The only problem was Ocean had ulterior motives. She wanted Greek for herself. This jaw-dropping read is fast-paced, full of surprises, and unpredictable. Travel this journey with Tokyo and Greek as they explore a threesome that challenges their marriage, trust, and threatens their lives. By the end of this book, the happy couple will never be the same. One night of passion turned into a lifetime of pain.

Syx Thirty Sevyn (Situationships Book 3)


Grey Huffington - 2018
    After the rash decision to relocate and join her sister in New York City, she’s forced to adapt to the new environment while - simultaneously - adapting to newfound heartache. The two proves to be complicated, especially when the culprit is still on the loose and hunting her every waking minute. Sevyn Rouge, the heart-stopping brown beauty, freelance writer, and sister of Syx, finally finds her voice. Smitten by the likes of Ace Mallard, the blandness of her life is altered the minute he steps foot into her world. His intriguing persona keeps her up at night long after her computer is shut off and projects are completed. It isn’t until his absence that she realizes commitment may have been a bit far-fetched and it was foolish of her to even consider Ace settling. His flee from Sevyn’s web of sappy Romance novel based fantasies come to a screeching halt only when he accepts and admit that she could possibly be everything that he never knew he wanted.

If Only You Knew


Trenae' - 2018
    The only problem was, while Passion secretly loved the man behind the music, Skillz barely noticed anything besides her amazing voice. Fear of rejection and the realization that they were from two completely different backgrounds was enough to keep Passion secretly proclaiming her love for him through her lyrics. Emotions run high and there is nowhere to hide when the two are forced together for an impromptu tour. Sparks will fly, and secrets will be revealed in this sweet love story.

Fallin for a Jamaican Boss


Tina Marie - 2018
    In his world it was murder or be killed and he planned to stay alive. Zadda walked through life emotionless, never learning how to love or respect anyone until he met Neffi. She tested his patience, had him breaking all his rules but will she push him to the edge? Being the cousin of a Jamaican Don Neffi wasn’t used to hearing the words, no, stop or can’t. But when her baby father’s secrets are revealed some of hers come tumbling out as well. Leaving her single and for the first time without her cousins support. Meeting Zadda she soon finds out she wants more than he can give. Will their love survive murder, secrets and tragedy? Or will Neffi be left alone once again?