the bookshelf diaries: celeste liddle
The Bookshelf Diaries takes a peek into the reading life of writers, readers and book lovers. Today, Celeste Liddle, who blogs at Rantings of an Aboriginal Feminist, allows us to nose through her novel pile.
What are you reading right now?
Skagboys by Irvine Welsh.
Where did you buy it?
At the Readings discount outlet in Carlton, Victoria. It was $10 and as Trainspotting is one of my favourite films, I couldn’t walk past this prequel.
What’s in your to-read pile?
I’ve been leant volume one of the Obernewtyn Chronicles by Isobelle Carmody so will be giving that a go next. I have a thing about young adult post-apocalyptic fiction. Also in the pile is Dennis Altman’s Homosexual and The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer which I picked up at Gould’s Secondhand Books in Sydney.
What’s the best book you’ve read in the past year?
Probably the Hunger Games series, truth be told. Not particularly taxing but a feminist anarchist main character drew me in straight away. Another book of note would be Mullumbimby by Melissa Lucashenko. I really enjoyed that and related to it a lot thanks to some well-crafted Aboriginal characters.
Where do you like to read?
Outside, propped against a wall. Or in colder months, on my couch.
What’s your favourite book of all time?
Tough ask, as I have been an avid reader my entire life. I have a definite lean toward fiction though. A series that sticks in my mind is the Adrian Mole series by Sue Townsend. How she wove historical events of significance into the life of a rather mundane boy who grew to be a man was wonderful. Thatcherism with humour. The coalition of the willing with self-denial. Plus the character of Pandora Braithwaite was a personal hero of mine. The literature world is a sadder place for Townsend’s passing earlier this year.
What do you read to feel inspired?
I start scanning journal articles for theory that I am interested in. Or I read some quotes. Audre Lorde, Noam Chomsky and Oscar Wilde randomly jump to my mind when it comes to the quotables. Generally, I am a bit of an information gatherer, and so it’s always hard for me to pinpoint where my inspired ideas come from!
Celeste is an Arrernte Australian woman living in Melbourne, and she is the current National Indigenous Organiser for the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU). Celeste is also a freelance writer, and has written for Fairfax, the Guardian and Tracker, amongst others. She blogs personally at Rantings of an Aboriginal Feminist and is particularly interested in Education, Politics, and the arts.
