Many U3A Sunny Coasters will know Joan Benbow from the U3A Lecture she gave about her life nursing in remote communities. She recently released a book about it, A Walkabout Life, launched at Coast Life Midwifery on 22 September 2018. 
for photos and the notes of Jan Johnston’s speech launching the book.
Robicheaux (you know my name) is James Lee Burke’s latest book. It is a crime novel with many twists and turns, with echoes of the old South and an unfavourable view of politics in the area. James Lee Burke writes beautifully. No wonder he is a best-selling author. Dave Robicheaux is a detective in a Parish near New Orleans, and the narrator of the novel.
This has to be a favorite book by a favorite author for Steve Reilly. On his fourth reading, this time in critique mode, he has marked it down a little. 
for his full review.
Steve Reilly thought this book was way longer than it needed to be, with way too much padding etc. He rated it 4. for his full review.
Set in northern WA, Dirt Music won the Miles Franklin in 2002 and was short listed for the Booker in the same year. Steve Riley read the book in 2002 and has now reread it. Steve now rates it a 6 but mainly for the sentence by sentence reading pleasure, rather than the story telling. for Steve’s review.
This book gives the reader a view of a section of American society that President Trump looked to for support. The author grew up in rust belt America. It is a fascinating memoir of a boy made good from tough circumstances.
Steve Reilly was not impressed with this old French classic. and see if you agree with his assessment of the novel and of changes in writing since the 1800s.
Lindsay Robertson says “An extraordinary story with the raw emotions of the main characters reaching to the heart.”
Steve Riley “enjoyed reading this book from the point of view of the history of that time and place, however .. found the read a bit tedious overall, the story too drawn out. “
For their full reviews
Steve Reilly rates this book a 6.
He says it is a page turner but not one of the great crime thrillers. He found it to be a competently written work with a good flow of words but with no ‘wow’ passages. For his full review 
I really liked this book which has been translated from the Dutch. Not attractive characters and the situations could be a bit confronting for some, but I found the book a real page turner. I had to find out what was happening next. 
Lindsay Robertson: “This is an outstanding tale of people in incredibly difficult conditions.”
Steve Reilly: “I really liked this book. I found I looked forward to getting back to it; that’s a good sign for me.”
about what they had to say about this book.
This book won the Man Booker Prize in 2014. It tells the story of a doctor, Dorrigo Evans and is centred around the infamous Thai Burma death railway. It is well written, gritty in parts; a book to be savored, not to be rushed.