What we're reading: Patchett, Rushdi
Each week our wonderful staff share the books that they've been enjoying.
Lian is reading These Precious Days by Ann Patchett
Ann Patchett was a guest at this year's Melbourne Writers' Festival, and hearing her speak on a panel with our own Chris Gordon was all the inducement I needed to dive head-first into her delightful collection of essays. These Precious Days is an absolutely charming, desperately relatable, heartfelt and humorous book that provides an insight into the experiences that have shaped one of our best contemporary writers. I've been parcelling the chapters out like precious gems, reading them one at a time so that I can savour each one individually. They're a perfectly-balanced literary treat.
My mother's favourite word is eudemonia – defined as the happiness achieved by the pursuit of a rational, active life – and I cannot think of a better way to describe this book.
Mel is reading Hospital by Sanya Rushdi, translated by Arunava Sinha
A woman undergoes psychiatric treatment for psychosis. But things are a little odd . . . she disagrees with her psychiatrist. Does she really need to be on lithium? Does she know how to get better? Maybe language is more powerful than we think . . .
This is a strange and extraordinary Australian book, that's currently on the shortlist for the Miles Franklin Literary Award!
