Alan Vaarwerk
Alan Vaarwerk is a former editorial assistant for Readings Monthly
Review — 25 May 2015
Leap by Myfanwy Jones
Three years on from a tragedy that claimed the love of his life, twenty-something Joe loses himself in menial work, parkour and his mentorship of a teenage delinquent, using burnout…
Review — 27 Jan 2015
Get in Trouble by Kelly Link
Nobody writes short fiction like Kelly Link. Get In Trouble, her first collection for adults since 2005’s Magic For Beginners, showcases the author’s unique brand of magical realism…
Review — 22 Jul 2014
To Rise Again at a Decent Hour by Joshua Ferris
New York dentist Paul O’Rourke is an avowed atheist in search of something to believe in. Disaffected and lonely after a succession of failed relationships, which saw him less ‘whipped’…
Review — 23 Sep 2014
The Dangerous Bride by Lee Kofman
Lee Kofman loves her husband deeply, and he loves her. But in a marriage full of romance but increasingly devoid of sexual passion, the Russian-born Israeli writer – addicted to…
Review — 24 Aug 2014
The Family Men by Catherine Harris
AFL player Harry Furey should be on top of the world – his team has won the premiership and his place in his family’s footballing dynasty looks assured. But Harry…
Review — 24 Aug 2015
Arms Race by Nic Low
The stories in Nic Low’s Arms Race all take place in worlds that are, in one way or another, at a tipping point. The New Zealand-born writer, now living in…
Review — 7 May 2014
Dear Leader by Jang Jin-Sung
North Korea and its ruling Kim dynasty are often ridiculed in the West as eccentric megalomaniacs with odd habits and funny hair. But for those living under the country’s totalitarian…
Review — 21 May 2014
The Glass Kingdom by Chris Flynn
Amid the dusty showgrounds of bleak regional Australian towns, ex-soldier Ben Wallace and his sidekick Mikey run the Target Ball sideshow in a travelling carnival called the Kingdom. Alongside the…
Review — 25 Mar 2014
Look Who’s Back by Timur Vermes
It’s a setup as bold as it is absurd: Adolf Hitler wakes up inexplicably in 2011 Berlin. Things have changed – there’s no Nazi party, no bombings; the modern Germany…
Review — 26 Feb 2014
Geek Sublime by Vikram Chandra
For most of us, computers and the programs that run on them are tools, designed to make our lives and work easier. But for the developers who build this software…