Rilke: The Last Inward Man, Lesley Chamberlain Shirley Hazzard, Brigitte Olubsas Super Infinity, Katharine Rundle Philip Larkin: A Writer’s Life, Andrew Motion The Unexpected Professor: An Oxford Life In Books, John Carey The Speckled People, Hugo Hamilton RUNNERS UP The Dictionary of Lost Words, Pip Williams Only, … [Read more...] about Best Books of 2023
Archives for 2023
Final Books 2023
This is a very quick blog about the books I've been reading since my last book blog which was written 29th October 2023. Slim pickings indeed. In part because I have commenced reading Emily Wilson's translation of The Iliad which I am loving and really savouring, so not rushing. I read some of these before I started that, then a couple afterwards … [Read more...] about Final Books 2023
Three Rings: Brisbane
I always had my doubts about the Brisbane Ring Cycle; being prejudiced as I am against Opera Australia (they're so anti Victorian). My doubts exacerbated by how they were advertising this production - all high tech and whizz bang, thousands of screens, computers and so forth. If any opera company was going to overdo presentation hijinks it would … [Read more...] about Three Rings: Brisbane
Three Rings: Bendigo
After the disappointment of Berlin, see my views here, we travelled to Bendigo to see Melbourne Opera's version in March 2023. I was in the middle of chemotherapy, so have not felt up to writing about it until now - the day before the year ends! It started with Das Rheingold on the 24th March 2023. I have only this very poor photo of me about to … [Read more...] about Three Rings: Bendigo
Three Rings: Berlin
Between October 2022 and December 2023 we have seen three Der Ring des Nibelungen cycles. All in cities starting with the letter B. This is the first of my blogs regarding each one. We started in Berlin in October 2022. I've blogged about every other bit of our visit there, including describing a tour of the opera house here (search Berlin on this … [Read more...] about Three Rings: Berlin
Deanne Gilson. Karrap Karrap Beenyak – Flower Baskets of Knowledge.
We went to the opening of this exhibition on Saturday 5th November 2023. It's on at the Dainesinger Gallery in Weston Street Brunswick (just down from Doherty's Gym) until 16th December. The paintings are wonderful, as I expected because I've been to an exhibition of Deanne's before which I've written about here - it's interesting to revisit that … [Read more...] about Deanne Gilson. Karrap Karrap Beenyak – Flower Baskets of Knowledge.