4 comments about A View from the Ridge.

1. Morris West has written a truly challenging testimony as he nears the end of a fine career and eventful life. For me, he summed up how I feel as a Catholic facing the challenges of the Church at the end of the millenium. His candidness and honesty are refreshing. His ideas worth consideration. And his words often inspiring. I am grateful he took the time to tell me so intimately about his own faith journey



2. With sales of his books having exceeded sixty million copies, Morris West is not only Australia's best-selling writer, but also one of our best-known storytellers. With his so-called `Vatican Trilogy' - `The Shoes of the Fisherman', `The Clowns of God' and `Lazarus' - he virtually invented a genre, the papal novel.

   In the past, West has resisted calls for an autobiography, holding that the `chronicles of my works and days have already been presented under the decent draperies of fiction'. However, having turned eighty, West has put aside fiction to give an account of his twentieth-century pilgrimage.

   The book is not an autobiography as such, but rather part memoir, part philosophical meditation, part spiritual testament. We learn of his early family life before becoming a trainee with the Christian Brothers, of the trials of religious life, and of life as a writer on the international stage. West reflects on the nature of evil, on violence, and on the roles of dissent and prophecy in the Church. He also writes movingly of his encounters with Brother Death.

   West has, over the years, defiantly retained his rightful place as a son of the Church, and in doing so has encouraged countless others troubled by rigid orthodoxies. Changes in the Church in recent decades, and in West's own life and attitudes, are well captured by two pieces of his journalism that are reproduced in full in the book, both about recent popes. The first is a glowing obituary of John XXIII, `The Good Pastor', written in 1963. The second is a very critical reflection on the current pontiff, written on the occasion of the papal visit to Australia for the nation's first beatification (of Mary MacKillop).

   Late in his life, West has given us an uplifting account of his experience of being a Christian in these troubled times. It is written with grace, intelligence and wisdom. [A Selection of the John Garratt Catholic Book Club.]




3. I've long admired West's ability to move me with words. His papal trilogy in particular ranks as one of my favorite in literary fiction. To read this delightfully honest and heartfelt memoir is to gain even greater insight to the wisdom and insights of his fictional work.

   West, long a respectful rebel of sorts, has managed to approach subjects and questions many wish to avoid. In doing so, rather than turning these into platforms for personal grievances, he elevates their importance in community discussion.

   Despite his literary prowess, West manages to come across as an everyday man, a man you'd like to converse with over coffee. No, don't remind me that the most likely place for conversation would be at his deathbed. He may be getting older, nearer to unknown that he says he welcomes willingly, but his words will remain as a part of our culture. His thoughts and ideas will remain to challenge future generations.

   Mr Morris West, thank you for that gift.




4. I started reading this slim volume quite a few months ago and I put it down, never intending to finish it. Some of the early parts of the book rubbed me the wrong way, to the point where I wondered just how much of a true Christian Mr. West really was. Recently, I picked it up and basically started where I left off, and my previous judgementalism gave way to a certain admiration. Morris West has not only the wisdom of a man of advanced years but the worldly experience that gives him a valuable perspective to share on such issues as evil, violence, dissent, and death. He has seen things most of us with never see, and this book is all the more enlightening because of that fact. Although not a Catholic like Mr. West is, I share his experience of a life that is centered around the institution of the church, and can appreciate the love/hate relationship one can have with the Body of Christ. Like many, he cries out for a church that values the person above laws and regulations. I look forward in the future to reading some of his fiction (although much of it is out of print and rather hard to get at this time).

No comments about Wild Card: An Autobiography, 1923-1958.

No comments about The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate: Volume 2 (Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate series).

1 comments about Diary of a Girl in Changi 1941-1945.

1. This book, this author is an inspiration to life itself ! I found, once I started, I could NOT put the book down, and then attended one of her talks and the finer details that came through .. truly amazing, inspiring and awesome ! As you read, YOU are in Changi, YOU are there, feeling every emotion that was felt by the author, crying, laughing .. this is the BEST book I have ever read and I class it up in the levels of the Diary of Anne Frank and more !

No comments about The Right Man for the Right Job: Lieutenant General Sir Stanley Savige As a Military Commander (Australian Army History).

3 comments about Patrick White Letters.

1. patrick white is one of the 20th century's finest novelists - his thick tome of letters compiled by david marr was given to me by someone who knew of patrick white only as a writer from my country- I was living in TX at the time feeling acute homesickness of which, upon reading the book, was immediately cured by page 2 when the reasons why I left australia in the first place came vividly galloping towards me with a loud yawn. The scratchy nib of discontentment mark 400 pages of this old sod's rather boring snippy life with his companion manoly. His mandarin mouthed mug scowling at u courtesy of the brush strokes of Brett on the cover really tell u the whole sad story .. dinner parties, gossip, gardening, writing, gossip, travelling, bitching, writing etc go on and on -- most telling aspect is that patrick wanted all his correspondence destroyed after being read - obviously not enough of his friends took him seriously - so why should we ...



2. What an awful life! As an Australian this dreadful, wizened old cockroach of a man makes me ashamed. Nothing but boring twisted hatred and ingratitude. Why publish such a book at all?



3. I read 2 negative reader reviews of this book on the day I bought it and thought I had thrown my money down the drain. Luckily we all come at books from a different perspective and I am very pleased I stumbled on this 677 page volume of letters written from 1919 to 1990. Reading this is like sitting in someones living room unseen and hearing all from the everyday to the important being discussed. It gives us a strong human connection to this hugely talented, crotchety, driven, private, argumentative man of strong opinions and unpredictably diverse views of the world. Rather than writing him off as a typical Australian as previous reviewers have, I found his letters fascinating, surprising, and a damn good read and his life and thought are very un-typical of Australians of his era in my view. The fact that my house is in walking distance of Dogwoods made their Castle Hill life doubly pertinent to me but in any event I would have enjoyed the book immensely. White's comment about wishing to spend his time on his acreage at Dogwoods rather than 'watching a landscape slowly destroyed by a race whose most pronounced gift is that of creating ugliness' was prescient, a McDonalds now stands nearby opposite a shopping centre carpark. Certainly worth a read.

No comments about Christina Stead: A Biography.

1 comments about Once an Australian: Journeys with Barry Humphries, Clive James, Germaine Greer and Robert Hughes.

1. This book profiles four well-known Australians who have lived abroad for most of their adult lives. The book sets out to "concentrate on the reasons for their expatriatism and consider what aspects of their Australian identity they have retained". Sadly, the author relied totally on secondary sources, and did not speak directly to any of his subjects. This limited his ability to peer into their souls; to discover what effect their lives as expatriates have had on their work, and on them as people. In spite of this serious weakness, the author obviously spent a great deal of time studying his subjects. For anyone looking for an introduction to the lives of these incredibly talented Australians, the book is worth reading.

5 comments about The Naked Island.

1. it is amazing that with all the hardship that these guys went thru, human nature can still make the best of an awful situation.



2. This is an unforgettable book: informative, educational, poignant and often delightfully humorous. It is a tribute to the British and Australian Forces used as slave labour in the construction of the Burma/Siamese Railway and their ability to live with dignity, compassion and decency under the most deplorable conditions imaginable. This book leaves an indelible impression on the reader and should be required reading for each successive generation.



3. One of my first introductions to Australian and Far East reading of WW11, thoroughly enjoyable, could not put it down until it was finished. Would recommend this book to all generations. Has given me the taste to find out more about the Far East and familiarise myself with further Australian literature. Thought only John Pilger could write riveting literature, I was wrong!



4. The Naked Island

   The autobiography of a young australian soldier who spent long years in captivity as prisoner of war of the Japanese.
   The first part is the description of the military life in Malaya before the attack of the Japanese with many ironical notes on that tedious life from the point of view of a soldier.
   The second part is the description of the useless fight of the Australian and British troops against the overwhelming enemy and then the attempt to escape the capture.
   Then the third, and most interesting part, is the description of the life during three long years of captivity in the different prisons where the writer was imprisoned and in the jungle camps where all prisoners were forced to work without food, facing malaria, beri beri and death for starvation.
   A book I would really recommend.
   Are you looking for another absolutely interesting book about a similar experience?
   Read the famous "Behind bamboo" by Rohan Rivett




5. The author went through some really horrific situations but at the same time can describe the strength of the human spirit. The author also has a great sense of humor. I think books like this are rare these days in our politically correct world. Well worth the read.

No comments about Aspoetry: Illustrated Poems from an Aspie Life.