In Praise of Libraries

January, 2010. A British backpacker stepped off a tall ship in Campbell’s Cove, fresh from sailing tourists around Sydney harbour. Barefoot, wearing the full pirate attire of her new job, she set off through city streets to the NSW State Library, clutching a letter with her new ‘address’ (care of the ship’s owner), intent on … Continue reading In Praise of Libraries

Child’s Play

Wendy caught Jesse in the garden, snail in his mouth. Its shell splintered like soiled wrapping paper, gleaming wetness sliding forth when she pried his lips apart. “It’s got to stop,” she told his mother. Last week it was a worm; on Monday a pile of tight-balled slaters. “We thought he’d choke.” His mother nodded, … Continue reading Child’s Play

Sister

Content warning: implied child abuse. “Knock, knock!” Madeleine listens at the basement door, her Shell-coloured pigtails dusting its fading, Ceylon wood. She smiles at a reply no-one else would hear, and twists the brass knob, carefully, quietly. Beyond the door, the space below yawns in Oolong Black. She checks her surroundings, but the Guild Grey … Continue reading Sister