AustLit

'Tim Olsen is the son of arguably Australia's most famous living painter, John Olsen. Son of the Brush is his fascinating, candid memoir of what it was like to grow up in the shadow of artistic genius, with all its wonder, excitement and bitter disappointments.

'Tim's childhood was dominated by his father's work, travelling to Europe and to communities around Australia as John sought inspiration and artistic fellowship. Wine, food, conversation and the emerging sexual freedom of the 1960s wove a pattern of life for the family. It was both the best and worst of childhoods, filled with vibrancy and stimulation, yet fraught with anxiety and eventual sadness as John separated from Tim's mother and moved away from the family.

'Yet the course of Tim's life had been set by the experiences of his childhood, and by the passion for art he got from both his father and his mother (an acclaimed painter in her own right). He has made his life about art as well, though following a different path from his parents. Today Tim is one of Australia's most respected art dealers, with a knowledge of art and artists forged from what is literally a lifetime of close experience. Son of the Brush is a memoir about living in the shadow of your father, and what it takes to chart your own course in life, but it is also about the wider world of art, artists and the joy, excitement and sacrifices of the creative life.' (Publication summary)

'In 1943, a young woman is taken to a Jewish ghetto outside Prague where one of the guards - a Czech gendarme - is quickly drawn to her. Believing he will offer her protection, Hana reluctantly accepts Karel's advances only to find herself alone and abandoned in Auschwitz. Decades later, Karel carries his regrets to Sydney where he and his family try to make a new life for themselves.

'Despite her devotion to the family, Karel's wife is a troubled woman, haunted by a secret that will not leave her as the consequences of her actions as a young woman continue to reverberate both within her family and further afield. Meanwhile, the couple's daughter is still reeling from her husband's infidelities as, unbeknownst to any of them, their cherished granddaughter becomes more and more entangled with her married boss.

'Outwardly harmonious, this is a fractured family whose lives are built on foundations of lies and deceptions - foundations that threaten to completely collapse as old transgressions re-emerge in the lead up to a long-awaited family wedding. Inspired by a true story of wartime betrayal, The Deceptions is a searing, compassionate tale of love and regret within a family whose secrets might better be left alone.' (Publication summary)

'EGGSHELL SKULL: A well-established legal doctrine that a defendant must 'take their victim as they find them'. If a single punch kills someone because of their thin skull, that victim's weakness cannot mitigate the seriousness of the crime.

'But what if it also works the other way? What if a defendant on trial for sexual crimes has to accept his 'victim' as she comes: a strong, determined accuser who knows the legal system, who will not back down until justice is done?

'Bri Lee began her first day of work at the Queensland District Court as a bright-eyed judge's associate. Two years later she was back as the complainant in her own case.

'This is the story of Bri's journey through the Australian legal system; first as the daughter of a policeman, then as a law student, and finally as a judge's associate in both metropolitan and regional Queensland -- where justice can look very different, especially for women. The injustice Bri witnessed, mourned and raged over every day finally forced her to confront her own personal history, one she'd vowed never to tell. And this is how, after years of struggle, she found herself on the other side of the courtroom, telling her story.

'Bri Lee has written a fierce and eloquent memoir that addresses both her own reckoning with the past as well as with the stories around her, to speak the truth with wit, empathy and unflinching courage. Eggshell Skull is a haunting appraisal of modern Australia from a new and essential voice.' (Source: Publisher's blurb)