REVIEWS

NOVELS

REVIEW 1 by Lauraine McDonald

Meryl Brown Tobin's 'Broome Enigma' is an intriguing read, set in the year 1986 but richly infused with historical facts from the World Wars. Tobin cleverly interlaces these historical insights with a contemporary narrative, creating a vivid portrayal of Broome and its neighboring towns. This blend of past and present adds a unique depth to the story, making it more than just a typical historical novel. The budding romance between Jodie and Joe adds an emotional layer to the story, enhancing the overall experience. Tobin's ability to combine a detailed historical background with a modern-day love story results in a compelling and thought-provoking novel. It’s a perfect mix of romance and historical tipbits making it an ideal read for those interested in a multifaceted story. I’d definitely give 'Broome Enigma' five stars for its engaging approach to blending different genres and eras.

REVIEW 2 by Chrissie Michaels

Broome Enigma, published by The Wild Rose Press Inc. NY, USA 2023

Genre – Romantic suspense

Broome Enigma, a new novel by author Meryl Brown Tobin is centred in two locations during 1986––the outback cosmopolitan Broome and Perth in Western Australia.

The characters come to life both romantically and suspensefully, reflecting the mores of the time period. This is a romantic, demure, love story with a twist, fused by some flirtatious steam, well-suited to the genre.

The author calibrates romance with suspense throughout the storyline, ensuring neither eclipses the other.

For me, the suspense aspects of the plot pulled me in completely. They are a compelling read, with clues revealed to the reader along the way, so much so I read the novel over a few hours one Saturday afternoon. I didn’t want to put it down. It’s a leisurely read, while at the same time providing tension and turning points that entice a reader to read on. There is one action-packed event after another. This is what you expect in a gripping, suspenseful plotline.

I was constantly asking, ‘Are the characters really who they say they are?’

The author skilfully builds the momentum, then interweaves and increases the tension in layers. We zig-zag through the obstacles that hold the main characters back, while hoping upon hope that they can problem solve all the explosive plot bursts that come their way.

The prose is well-crafted, pacing bang on. Even the minor characters have important parts to play in the story. In 1986, old and new attitudes mixed in a changing world. The author deftly considers these nuances in society, in diversity and in the role of women.

In Broome Enigma the plot comes full circle for a seamless and satisfying read. Of course, true to the conventions of the genre there are clues for us to find, where we can tell ourselves, ‘Yes, I was right!’ Finally, there is a little added triumph at the end to make us smile.

There are idiosyncrasies in the American layout and The Wild Rose Press Inc house style, quite different in some parts to those with an Australian editor’s eye. We experience this a little in the book’s cover art, in the manner the characters are dressed quite formally for the beach. I would have liked to see our flagship Aussie beach dress of tees and shorts and thongs. This is a minor interpretive glitch in the cover art of little consequence as the book cover is enticing, the colour palette very Broome. Throughout the story the author successfully conveys the Aussie feel in dress, language and mannerisms, as well as tantalising us with Broome hot spots. All in all, the book art and general layout on the page is easy to the eye and invites the reader into the story; that is what matters.

Who will enjoy this novel: A general adult readership of romance suspense novels. There is an especial drawcard for those who wish a leisurely holiday read, or for any incoming tourists, particularly those holidaying in Western Australia. I foresee this novel stacked on the for sale shelves at airports worldwide.

Broome Enigma is published worldwide by The Wild Rose Press Inc NY, USA, 2023.

Available in print and e book from any of 23 websites online, incl. Amazon, Booktopia, Barnes & Noble, or purchase a signed copy direct from the author via email on h-mtobin@bigpond.com for $30 plus $6 P&H within Australia, if applicable.

POETRY

Review Walk in the Forest, by Meryl Brown Tobin

Reviewed by Christine Edwards

on Walk in the Forest, by Meryl Brown Tobin – Aussie Reviews

Walk in the Forest is the first solo collection of poems by Meryl Brown Tobin. It brings together poetry that has been anthologised in a diverse range of magazines, broadsheets and journals; some have won awards, others broadcast on radio.

Many poems give voice to the poet’s concerns about world peace and justice. She ensures the reader’s discomfort by questioning morality and the condoning of conflict through silence. Tobin’s message is powerfully evoked through keen irony in ‘Tripping the New Millenium’, where following the ‘Killing, killing, killing’ on a global scale comes the question: ‘How about a trip around Australia?’. Western apathy to the plight of human suffering is evident in ‘East Timor’. ‘Rag Dolls’ is a simple but haunting epiphany of the Kurd slaughters. Tobin always comments with deep compassion about contemporary conflicts, highlighting the permanent scars of war where there are no victors.

Her work equally reflects on the importance of everyday relationships, of achieving personal harmony and a fulfilling existence. Hence sections under ‘People’ and ‘Reflection’ evoke the beauty and gentleness of humanity: ‘I drink riches / from others’ thoughts / pour what I have to share / Open to the world’. Inspiring words from ‘Cup’.

In her concern for the environment, Tobin’s poetry brings to mind the phrase ‘Take only photographs, leave only footprints’. She teases readers with the mysteries of Big Cats and Thylacines (‘Sestina: Striped Mystery’) and impresses on us the need to be responsible caretakers of nature: ‘We return as hordes surge in / a babble in a multitude of tongues / St. Kilda Beach transposed / … / Katatjuta’s sunset approaches/’.

Perhaps her three-lined poem ‘Principle of Life’ best sums up the beauty and thoughtfulness, and ultimately uplifting sentiments of this collection: ‘With love and truth your guides / leading through good and evil / take on the world’.

A 120 page A5 paperback with a full-colour laminated cover, Walk in the Forest is available from Readings and selected bookstores and newsagents for RRP $17.50 or direct from the publisher, Ningan Publishing, c/- P0, Grantville, 3984 (P&H incl in price).

Reviewed by Melbourne writer, Christine Edwards, writer of children’s novel is On Board the Boussole (My Story Series, Scholastic Press, 2002).

Review 1

The New Norm

'Changing Landscape' is a chapbook of 24 environmental poems, published by literary publisher Ginninderra Press.

Inspired by her many walks on the beach and in bush, many of the poems reflect Meryl Brown Tobin's great love of the natural environment. Some poems relate to seascapes, landscapes, sightings of waterbirds and woodland birds and other fauna.

Of the chapbook, author and poet Chrissie Michaels wrote, “I could just picture all the observational and deeply sensory moments you captured, so beautifully described."

Another reader, Jill Sutton wrote,” In the first [poem], ‘Call of the Beach’, I love the stillness of the beach. I can see what you describe in each poem. Your descriptions are uncluttered. You see something and prune it down. It’s like a meditation for me. I just love it.”

Reader, Valwyn Beggs wrote: “Enchanting! Such vivid imagery and lyrical writing. I feel there in the scene depicted with their many nuances expressed so colourfully and economically. A delight to read especially aloud.”

Michele Tobin wrote: “I was looking for one [poem]that I might have chosen as a favourite but found too many competing for that honour.”

The title and theme poem 'Changing Landscape' is depicted on the cover with the photo of a cow grazing in a paddock with new houses creeping towards it. The scene in a small rural area is a microcosm for the macrocosm, Earth. Free XpresSion Editor, Peter Pike commented, “Just a simple picture with profound consequences.”

Five poems are devoted to the tragedy of Victoria's Black Saturday, 7 February, 2009. True life stories pay tribute to the heroism and the kindness of some people involved.

Nenia Tavrou, leader of The Society of Women Writers Victoria Perennial Poets workshop, wrote: “‘Churchill under fire’ resonated with me as I identified with the ‘serpents of fire’, ‘eyes glistening’––memories of my time in Mallacoota with Red Cross, along with all the first hand stories I heard.

I love the way you put a number of Black Saturday 2009 poems together because that gives it poignant meaning, rather than just an isolated poem. For once the media and camera crew have left, things don’t just magically return to ‘normal’. That’s when the real work begins. It takes a whole community to work together. Homes, sheds, fences all need to be rebuilt and that takes time, money. Sometimes IDs need to be reissued. There is deep emotional anguish that needs to be worked through.

Thank you for sharing this changing landscape that speaks so clearly of the need to preserve what we have while we still have it."

Marie Ormandy wrote: “What a great job you are doing for Conservation of the Westernport area.

I love the poems that it has inspired, and reflected that your descendants will have that collection which tells so much about you.

A beautiful legacy.”

Meryl Brown Tobin’s message comes through her poems. If we don't work with Nature in a sustainable way, the last two poems demonstrate where we are heading. As stated on the Dedication Page, 'For your children's great-grandchildren to see animals in the wild, act now.'

'Changing Landscape' is available from Meryl Brown Tobin, h-mtobin@bigpond.com, for $6 a copy, $6.20 with P&H, and from Ginninderra Press, Our books (ginninderrapress.com.au) for $6 plus P&H.

Review 2

POETRY REVIEW by CHRISSIE MICHAELS*

on CHANGING LANDSCAPE by MERYL BROWN TOBIN

‘Pastoral Love Stories to Nature’

Meryl Brown Tobin’s latest poetry chapbook Changing Landscape, published by Ginninderra Press in its Picaro Poets series highlights the author’s enduring love of the Bass Coast landscape.

As well it reflects her long time commitment to Victoria’s Bass Coast area as an ecological advocate.

Opening the poetry selection is ‘Call of the Beach’, which begins with the elemental ‘She walks along the beach … It calls to her each morning’. The reader meanders alongside, enjoying the poet’s visualisation of a protagonist who delves into the organic, caringly interacts with the joys of nature surrounding her and keenly observes their wonder in all their sensory detail. These poems are pastoral love stories to nature.

However, there is an abrupt switch at ‘Changing Landscape’, this poem being the publication’s title, signifying that environmental impact and sustainability are central themes to this collection and must not be ignored. A ‘forest of tiled roofs erupts’ and ‘the ‘Rumpelstiltskinian* price to be paid’ become triggers that raise alarm in the reader’s mind.

The forces of nature are unleashed: cataclysmic bushfires where residents ‘watch serpents of fire/slither then roar/along nearby hills’; smoke haze in city, where ‘Melbourne skyscrapers stand sightless’. There are places of country we recognise, places close to the heart. The human experience is one of fear and loss, but mainly of heroics and stoicism.

Meryl Brown Tobin’s passion for the natural world and environmental advocacy imbue this collection. In Changing Landscape she not only writes from inside this world, but asks us from an ethical and ecological perspective to focus on how we too live in the world. The closing poems are a call to us–to ‘demand action, not just stand by’.

'Changing Landscape', a 28 page half A5 size soft-covered booklet, is available from Meryl Brown Tobin, h-mtobin@bigpond.com; Ginninderra Press, Our books (ginninderrapress.com.au); and the Grantville Newsagency. RRP is $6.

*Chrissie Michaels is an author and poet. Details: https://www.chrissiemichaels.com.au/.

PUZZLES

Book Review by Nenia Tavrou of

Puzzle Australia by Meryl Brown Tobin

Puzzle Australia by Society of Women Writers Victoria member, Meryl Brown Tobin, is an informative, educational and interactive tool that can be used in a variety of settings.

Aimed at Upper Primary and Lower Secondary level, it is suitable for adults as well as its subjects are of interest to all age groups.

While this book can be enjoyed by anyone, it can be used in various environments. Puzzles include: wordsearches, wordgrids, crosswords featuring Australian dates, all with answers at the back. The topics covered within the puzzles are educational and unique to Australia – topics such as the 31 islands of the Great Barrier Reef, topics related to early settlement of non-indigenous Australians, Australian wildlife, dinosaurs, The First Australians and much more.

This makes Puzzle Australia useful in the teacher’s classroom as a teaching tool. There are additional games at the end of each puzzle for those who work a little faster than others. This enables the teacher to keep the entire class occupied, interested and working together.

Puzzle Australia is well set out, it has large print and is easy to navigate with its Contents page. It has clear guidelines on how to use the book and gives permission to photocopy for the class of the purchaser of the book only.

If you are looking for an innovative, enjoyable teaching tool, or simply enjoy doing puzzles then Puzzle Australia is for you.

The A4 paperback of 48 reproducible blackline masters, which might be used as a teacher’s aid, or as a puzzle book for children and adults from middle primary age to any age upwards, is available from the publisher Five Senses Education, Five Senses Education - Five Senses Education, RRP $24.95 plus P&H.