Australian journalist Andrew Quilty describes Kabul in the last days of the American evacuation. Australian photojournalist Andrew Quilty has been based in Kabul, Afghanistan, since 2013. He has won many awards for journalism. As the title suggests, August in Kabul chronicles the panicked, chaotic last days of the American backed Afghan government, led by President Ashraf Ghani. Quilty concentrates on the stories of ex-government employees and regular Afghans hurriedly trying to figure out plans for survival. With the Taliban marching on Kabul, and much quicker than anyone predicted, many found themselves ill prepared. Even President Ghani had no real strategy, opting to flee the country at the very last minute. August in Kabul gives a nuanced, layered picture of Afghan society in extraordinary times. Within Kabul, the fear is palpable as people linked to the American backed government fear reprisals from the Taliban. Families move from house to house in an attempt to remain anonymous, ceasing to visit family and friends. Men slip out of their western clothes and military uniforms, hoping to remain unnoticed in the traditional perahan tunban. Government employees desperately scrabble for a place on an evacuation plane. The airport scenes are like something out of Heironymous Bosch – crushing crowds, unsanitary conditions, chronic dehydration and hunger. The situation for women is often dire, even in the supposed safety of the family. Quilty follows the story of one young woman, 19-year-old Nadia. She is feisty and has dreams of studying to advance herself. She'd like to one day own a business. But with the Taliban advancing, and her father and brothers fearful of reprisals against them, they try to marry Nadia off to a Talib. This after she has been repeatedly beaten and terrorised by her brothers. It's sad to write that Nadia actually feels some sympathy for her father and brothers, even after all they have done to her, knowing their predicament. A brutal portrait of Afghanistan just before the fall of Kabul to the Taliban. It is a humbling experience to read this first hand reporting. August in Kabul, by Andrew Quilty. Published by Melbourne University Publishing. $34.99 Release date 2nd August, 2022 Review by Chris Saliba A successful young writer describes a personal season in hell. Oliver Mol found a degree of early success with his debut memoir, Lion Attack! He was broadly feted and received the Scribe Non Fiction Prize for Young Writers. Yet it was this very success that precipitated a chronic, 10-month migraine. Depressed and not knowing what to do with himself, Mol took on a job as a train guard. If he couldn't read or write, at least there was the possibility of staying employed and useful. Train Lord is not so much a memoir about his work as a train guard, although there are plenty of entertaining workplace vignettes interspersed throughout, but more a story of mental breakdown. Mol suffered low self-esteem and depression. It's tempting to surmise that his vaulting ambition as a writer somehow backfired into a crisis of confidence: his migraine affliction made it painful to look at screens, read books or write. What recommends Train Lord is Mol's heartbreaking honesty. He's clearly suffered a season in hell and has managed to put his experiences on paper. The writing is plain and direct, yet haunting and melancholy. Anyone who struggles with their mental health may find a friend in this book. Train Lord: The Astonishing True Story of One Man's Journey to Getting His Life Back on Track, by Oliver Mol. Published by Michael Joseph. $35 Release date: 2nd August, 2022 Review by Chris Saliba The Diamond Brothers detective agency is brought in to investigate a missing computer hacker. Tim Diamond runs his own detective agency, but he's a little slow witted. That's putting things nicely. Thankfully his kid brother, 14-year-old Nick, is totally switched on and able to pretty much run the show. When the beautiful Jane Nightingale approaches the brothers with a mystery to solve – the strange disappearance of her father, a famed computer hacker – it leads them to all sorts of adventure and near death experiences. They soon find themselves being followed by a bunch of thugs, members of the White Crusaders, a nationalist group headed by Neville Fairfax. Can the brothers stop the xenophobic Fairfax from carrying out his evil plans? Where Seagulls Dare is the latest in the Diamond Brothers series of novels and stories by Anthony Horowitz. It's a rip-roaring, laugh-a-minute caper, with poor older brother Tim the butt of many a joke. Tim makes for an endearing goofball, always eager to slip out of a tricky situation and hopelessly unable to focus on the job at hand. Thankfully Nick keeps the investigation on track, and it is his wit and energy that propels the narrative. The plot nods to contemporary events – Neville Chamberlain is loosely based on Nigel Farage, leader of UKIP; Alistair Nightingale, the computer hacker, seems a reference to Julian Assange – although this isn't belaboured. A crowd pleasing adventure story for kids 9+. Adults may get a chuckle out of it too. Where Seagulls Dare, by Anthony Horowitz. Published by Walker Books. $14.99 Review by Chris Saliba Black misdeeds committed in remote New South Wales shatter a small community. On a rural cattle farm in remote western New South Wales lives nine-year-old Parker Davis. He's a rebellious, angry child, much like his mother. The two constantly fight and bicker. It's a relationship that mixes love and hate, but it is the hate which is more bitter and pronounced. Parker's father is a distant figure. Unable to cope with his son he retreats to his farm work, a distant, introverted figure. When Parker's cousin Ruben comes for a visit, the two boys hang out together, but have an uneasy relationship, filled with mutual disdain and rivalry. Ruben is very much a bad seed. A spirit of evil hovers over him. When the two boys come across an unpopular boy named Toby while out walking on the outskirts of the family's property, they do something horrible that will have reverberations for years to come. Parker manages his feelings of guilt through his teenage years by developing close school friendships with Nayley and Hazel. When the three decide to camp together at a regular spot that holds significant memories, along with Nayley's new boyfriend, Jonah, the past comes crowding back in a dramatic way, threatening to blow their close bond apart. James McKenzie Watson won the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize for this debut thriller. It's an eminently worthy winner. Dealing with themes of shame and guilt, Denizen has an irresistibly propulsive quality. The story constantly shifts back and forth in time, creating a sense of suspense and horror as key details are slowly revealed. The tension is pitch perfect and never lags. The rural setting is particularly evocative, highlighting the other themes of the book: toxic isolation, deteriorating mental health and suicide. For readers of Lyn Yeowart's The Silent Listener and Jane Harper, Denizen is sure to be the literary phenomenon of 2022. Denizen, by James McKenzie Watson. Published by Penguin. $32.99 Review by Chris Saliba An evocative and highly original hymn to the Pyrenees by a Catalan artist, poet and writer. Poet and farmer Domènec is struck down by lightning on the Pyrenees mountains. He leaves behind a wife, Sió, and two children, Mia and Hilari. Time moves on, the children grow and another tragedy befalls the family. Hilari is killed in a shooting accident. Like the animals that gain their sustenance on the mountains, human life is also ruthlessly cut down by either natural forces or man's weaponry. The above may make When I Sing, Mountains Dance sound like a straightforward enough narrative. It isn't. These major incidents are almost inconsequential. The novel's real power lies in its idiosyncratic descriptions of nature, environment and history. The story is told through a wide array of voices, some completely unusual – animals, accused witches from the past and even mushrooms. The effect is almost experimental, a rich and strange tapestry of moods, atmospheres and characters. Catalan artist and writer Irene Sola’s second novel may not be to everyone’s taste. The crowd of different narrative voices that cut this way and that may have some scratching their heads. Others may gladly immerse themselves in this wild flower of a book, exulting in its free abandon. This reviewer found it an interesting literary byway, but was thankful for its short duration. When I Sing, Mountains Dance, by Irene Sola. Published by Granta. $27.99 Review by Chris Saliba |
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