Lorraine Cobcroft's Blog: Lorraine's Goodread Author Blog

Today, I noticed a review on Amazon of a book I wrote. It raised a question for me.

Why do we read? What is the purpose of stories?

I guess all authors harbor self-doubt, but I've made an art form of doubting myself! This review gave me a very special and unique kind of reassurance. The review suggests that maybe my ideals and philosophies are worth sharing, and my writing has much more than just entertainment value.

What is fiction? Why do we read it?

A fiction writing tutor once told me we read to find the solutions to life's problems. Fictional characters teach us how to live.

A psychologist once suggested to me that many mentally ill people don't read fiction, and that contributes to their illness. They don't learn how others operate in this crazy, challenging world of ours. They don't gain insight into the emotions of others and the way others tackle problems.

Someone very close to me is mentally ill, and he's never read a work of fiction. He declares fiction ''trivial nonsense; a waste of time''. He also has no capacity for empathy. He talks incessantly about the hardships he faces and the hurts he suffers, and he assures everyone that nobody in the world has every suffered so. He trivializes the worries and problems of others and regards those who grieve with contempt.

I wonder would he be different if he shared the struggles and sorrows and the heights of joy that readers experience when reading a well-crafted story?

Why do you read? Do your favourite authors write to enlighten or educate? Or is that an occasional unconscious result of creating make-believe characters, giving them make-believe problems, and having them respond to the challenges we set for them?

Do most stories provide valuable insight into the secrets of success or contentment, or is it only selected works that offer more than entertainment value?

What do you take away from reading the books you enjoy most?

I'm curious! I'll enjoy seeing your responses.

In case you are curious, here's the review in question. The title of the book is ''Mortgaged Goods''.

Does this describe the sort of book you would want to read, or would a review like this be more likely to put you off?

''This uniquely captivating book is far more impressive than it may initially appear. If you read it as a simple narrative, it's still very good, but the importance of the book, and the reason it has stuck with me, is the questions it leaves you asking of yourself once you turn the last page (or swipe...). For both of these characters, we see life "before" and "after", and while most novels have some sort of turning points or crisis around which it revolves, Cobcroft spent more time digging into the emotional carnage and honest self-appraisals that go into the recovery process. This wasn't a book just for women, nor was it a romantic and sappy sad story. It was a rather brutally sincere portrait of life after loss, and the pain of personal reflection. We often take on jobs, relationships, and life paths that aren't particularly healthy or beneficial for ourselves, and many people go years or lifetimes without realizing what really matters. Cobcroft explores the intense emotions of self-confidence and the fortitude of the human spirit. This story isn't simply about a Cinderella story gone wrong.... it's a complex analysis of what it means (and what it takes) to be happy.''

The Last Time I Saw Mother by Arlene J. Chai

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Caridad is summoned to visit her aged mother. Her mother wants, finally, to tell her a truth she has kept from her... a guilty secret that she could not bear to face. But telling finally releases her from her prison of fear.

I found this book enjoyable for two reasons. Firstly, I loved the fact that it transported me to a place I have never visited. The descriptions of the Philippines, and the frequent use of foreign language words gave it a unique flavor. I enjoy historical novels and was interested in the accounts of life in the Philippines during the war.

The author brought the characters to life, and made them refreshingly different in their personality, outlook and philosophies. But they were all believable. It was easy to relate to them and to appreciate what shaped their thinking and beliefs. It was interesting to read about foreign customs and traditions, and how they contributed to shaping the lives of those who were raised to honor them.

The other aspect I found enjoyable was the wisdom it contained. I put the book carefully aside to give to my granddaughter to read when she is older, because there is some wisdom in it that I think may help her.

The arrangement of the story was refreshingly different, swapping between points of view as the four key characters each related their experiences, three of them telling of the same event but from vastly different perspectives. (My editor would hate it. He told me not to write a story this way. But Arlene Chai made it work, and I think I will follow her lead in my next novel.)



View all my reviews

Who (among Aussie readers) didn't count Blinky Bill and his bush land friends among their best friends during childhood?

(Readers outside Australia, google 'Blinky Bill, by Dorothy Wall')

The koala is an Australian icon. It attracts tourism. It drives campaigns for eucalyptus reforestation and preservation of wildlife habitats. Our furry friend is loved, it seems, the world over.

But the koala is in grave danger of becoming extinct.

Greedy developers and irresponsible regulators have converted thousands of hectares of the bush land it calls home to forests of brick and mortar.

Greedy timber merchants have cut down hundreds of thousands of the trees that provide the animals with food and shelter.

Our wildlife has been chased further and further into the remotest parts of the country where it struggles to survive.

On the Tweed Coast - an area where once the koala bred prolifically - there are just 144 of the species left. About 31 of these live in the Black Rocks area. Many of those live in the area immediately adjacent to Black Rocks Sports Ground. It's a key breeding area for koala, osprey, curlew, and other iconic wildlife. Echidnas amble across the roads and into nearby gardens regularly.

There are expensive programs in operation, partly funded by the local council, to re-establish eucalypt forest and preserve the bush land in the area.

Local residents aggressively support those programs, having bought into the area at premium prices specifically because they love living in proximity to beautiful bush land and the wonderful native fauna that inhabit it.

So you would think it logical that Tweed Shire Council would be quick to reject a proposal to convert a small, lightly used sports ground to a high use night sports ground with football towers and 48,000 watt lighting.

You would think the mere suggestion of a liquor license would horrify, and any hint of an expanded 25 ha recreation facility with potential to host motor cross events, go karts, shooting, paint ball, golf, etc. would horrify. Particularly after locals complained bitterly about wild partying at the sports ground with accompanying drag races, vandalism, littering and excessive noise, and council locked the gates on the road entering the sports ground in response, you would think there could be no way any councilor would endorse a proposal that involved opening the road to hoons, and allowing bright lights to blaze well into the night.

You would think... but you would be wrong!

Greed prevails. The almighty dollar speaks all languages, and pursuit of it - not concern for the local ratepayers who elect them - takes precedence over any concern for the environment or our native animal friends. Rich developers influence councilors decisions, it seems.

Tweed Shire Council is said to be looking favourably at a proposal that threatens to kill off Blinky Bill and his mates forever - to deprive future generations of the pleasure of his company and the right of quiet enjoyment of the beautiful habitat that he made his home.

It appears Council approval of the proposal might actually be illegal. Law and policy states that development in and around koala habitats must be ''appropriate''. This isn't. Policy states that sporting facilities should be centrally located and close to schools. This one is many miles away.

There are already adequate sporting facilities in Pottsville, servicing a very small community. Existing facilities are underused. We don't need more. Residents don't want more.

But Blinky Bill and his mates don't generate revenue for councils. Protecting wildlife doesn't win favours from rich land developers whose activities grow council coffers.

So Blinky Bill may soon be nothing but a fond memory - or a mythical literary character that readers think was a figment of Dorothy Wall's imagination.

The cuddly koala might exist exclusively in zoos - or, all too soon, not at all.

I am among the privileged Black Rocks residents who watch them mate in trees just beyond my living room window. My husband often uses a telescopic lens to photograph them chomping happily on the leaves of trees that grow just beyond our fence. We see them in the trees right beside that currently closed road into the sports ground, and we say a quiet thank you that cars can't enter, because we know that they wander across that road often.

But the car tracks are clearly visible where the hoons did wheelies a few months back, and in a few weeks Council is likely to clear the way for that activity to resume and increase.

Our furry friends will have to find new homes, or perish.

I have started a petition at change.org. I'm seeking support for demands that council stop this irresponsible development and observe it's own policy of working to protect koala habitat. You don't need to be a local to influence council's decision. This is a tourist destination - thanks partly to the beautiful bush land that surrounds it and the native animals that breed here.
Council has to listen to all voices - from anywhere in the world.

You can help save Blinky Bill and his mates.

You can help ensure that the lovely furry koala we all love so dearly continues to thrive on the Tweed Coast, and in other areas of Australia where councils, mindful of the precedents being set in Tweed, will feel compelled to respect the wishes of the people and do what is right for the environment and our native flora and fauna.

Please visit Changeorg petition to lend your support.

Blinky Bill will be deeply grateful - and so will I.

A big thankyou to Australian author, Clancy Tucker, for featuring an interview with me on his blog this week.

Read the interview at http://clancytucker.blogspot.com.au/2....

I applaud Clancy for his support for Australian writers. Authors operating in a tiny marketplace need all the help they can get.

It's taken three long years to write, and it's been an emotional roller-coaster. It took forty years for the story to finally unfold and all the secrets to be revealed.

At 59 years of age, ''Paul Wilson'' (not his real name) finally learned what alleged crime he was convicted of at age 7, and why he spent years incarcerated and abused, and 18 years of separation from his loved ones.

"The Pencil Case'' is finally in print, and ''Paul'' is delighted. He wanted his story told. Many who know of it insist it's a story that should widely heard.

Available in ebook form on Amazon Kindle and Smashwords, The Pencil Case will be released as a paperback in US, UK, Canada and Australia next week.

And I've started on my next work - my first full length adult novel. Hope to complete this one in much less than 3 years.