Books with author Elizabeth Geoghegan

Eightball strikes hard. Fueled by an abiding sense of loss, the eight stories in this collection take you on a journey across the exploded fault lines of intimacy, unfolding across cities and continents. Whether hitchhiking the Italian Veneto, trekking through a pitch-black Balinese rice field, or queuing for drinks in a crowded Seattle bar, Geoghegan sets her characters adrift in a world that stakes its claim to the enigmatic terrain of desire. This collection of darkly comic, occasionally violent tales is anchored by the eponymous "eightball," a coming of age novella about a sister and brother guided by the inertia of recklessness and self-destruction. A protégé of the late Lucia Berlin, Elizabeth Geoghegan writes lyric, place-driven prose laced with edgy realism and wry wit.

Eightball strikes hard. Fueled by an abiding sense of loss, these eight stories take you on a journey over the exploded fault lines of intimacy, unfolding across cities and continents. Whether hitchhiking the Italian Veneto, trekking through a pitch-black Balinese rice field, or queuing for drinks in a crowded Seattle bar, Geoghegan sets her characters adrift in a world that stakes its claim to the enigmatic terrain of desire. This collection of darkly comic, occasionally violent, tales is anchored by the eponymous “eightball,” a coming of age novella about a sister and brother guided by the inertia of recklessness and self-destruction. A protégé of the late Lucia Berlin, Elizabeth Geoghegan writes lyric, place-driven prose laced with edgy realism and wry wit.

Andy’s best friend died saving him in a deadly game of traffic-chicken. Now Andy’s body is broken and his brain works differently. From the privileged life in Sydney of a Greek-Australian medical student, Andy is stranded in a netherworld existence with damaged people in a derelict Hunter Valley caravan park where cars are stripped of their parts and people of their humanity. At the verge of insanity, Andy must accept his new, real life to survive. He’s lost much, but gained intuition, empathy and an extraordinary skill. Fellow residents, including Lola, an ex-showgirl, and the mysterious and insightful Esther, need his help to escape the tyrannical, gargantuan Leo, owner of the park. Threatening bikies abound but Andy finds allies; a retired coal-miner, a former youth worker, a journalist and Casper, an ugly dog.Andy discovers evidence to solve a cold-case murder and helps local townsfolk thwart a casino development but is charged with murder after fire kills three men in the caravan park.While coming to terms with his new life and learning to live independently again, Andy believes he has become a better person than before the accident. He saves more than one life, rights wrongs, earns a bravery award and falls in love. The new existence he creates is a tribute to people who grow morally stronger in the face of evil, and demonstrates that it is better to successfully follow your own path than to struggle along the course someone else has chosen for you. The accident: 'Andy is too far gone to hear Chris shouting at him to get out of the way. He feels Chris grab his arm, then pull and push him, but it's too late, the cars are there. There's a bang as one hits Chris and clips Andy. Andy spins as Chris flies past, close enough but too fast for Andy to grab him mid-air, and thuds into a power pole at ground level. Andy bounces off the second vehicle like a rag doll, arms and legs flailing as he falls in a tangle. Brakes screech only after the boys are hit. The squeal of tyres, the screams of onlookers, and the bangs and thuds are a hellish symphony.'

Join PJ Mouse, Emily's adorable, slightly featherbrained stuffed animal, on this, his second adventure, along the coast of Queensland, as he snorkels at the Great Barrier Reef, chats with a Loggerhead turtle in the midst of a great undertaking, and explores the tropical rainforest - until he has to be rescued by one of the local friendly wildlife. Educational and fun for the young reader, the PJ Mouse books encourage kids to overcome their fears of the unknown and appreciate, and care for, the world around us.