Category: Reviews

In A Force for Good, Daniel Goleman, journalist and internationally bestselling author of Emotional Intelligence, brings his art to bear on the growing body of popular literature surrounding altruism.

In a series of interviews with the Dalai Lama, Goldman has compiled a part-self-help and part-biographical work which seeks to broaden the audience of the spiritual leader of Buddhism and in particular his message about the need for active compassion and tolerance. The narrative of the book flows from a focus on inner development to that of external interventions, counselling the reader to develop a compassionate character and then exercise this character on the many sorrows in this world.

The writing maintains the Dalai Lama’s teachings as its central foundation expounded through direct quotes and paraphrasing, but takes various detours to supporting examples from diverse fields such as science, sociology and the travails of budding social enterprises. There is an emphasis placed on the Dalai Lama’s immense respect for science and, as such, the capacity to marry scientific insight with fostering a more compassionate world.

The book is an ambitious project, promising that it will reveal the Dalai Lama’s vision for the world. However, of course this is not a book written by the Dalai Lama and in many ways you question how much of the voice of the Dalai Lama you are reading and how much is a liberal paraphrase. Despite this, the writing is elevated by the many simple but fundamental truths contained in the synthesis of the spiritual leader’s thoughts. Further, Goleman’s clear reverence for his subject gives a sense of tremendous weight to every quote.

You can’t help but be delighted by some of the examples in the book detailing the powerful efforts of altruists around the world, even if at times the book reads as an inventory of the ails facing the world like could be found in any newspaper. Ultimately, A Force for Good has the best of intentions and teaches the best of the practices, so one can hardly be too critical. This is certainly a positive introduction to modern charitable work and the overriding need for an infusion of compassion into all human interactions.

As a long-time music journo, band manager, label owner, and author, Stuart Coupe is able to talk about the Australian music industry with more than a little authority. He’s not only a well-informed raconteur, but a man who demonstrates great affection for the industry and its players, both major and minor. Writing a biography, albeit unauthorised, about Michael Gudinski can’t be an easy task; Gudinski’s towering personality and legendary career may be compelling in themselves, but he’s notoriously prickly when it comes to granting interviews or having copy written about him without his personal sanction. Ultimately, Coupe is among a selection of writers who can lay claim to not only having an intimate understanding of Gudinski’s career, but also to having known the man personally.

Gudinksi is a fascinating, exhilarating tour through the wild, impassioned career of Australia’s most influential music mogul. From his early days, back when he was an ambitious teen organising dances in halls across suburban Melbourne, to Consolidated Rock and the halcyon days of early Aussie pub rock, all the way through to his creation of the imposing forces of Premier Artists, Mushroom, and Frontier Touring, Gudinski is an unstoppable force, virtually unmatched in the Australian music landscape.

Depicted as a wild, inspired maverick as much as a shrewd and aggressively competitive businessman, Gudinski is also presented as what he’s also been at his core all along: a passionate music fan who loves nothing more than revelling in the energy surrounding the creative artists he so tirelessly promotes. Coupe recounts some hairy encounters that he and others have had with Gudinski: screaming phone calls, feverish rants delivered from office desktops, champagne flutes hurled against boardroom walls, dismissals, relentless outmanoeuvring and outgunning.

We are given unique insight into his long-standing friendships and associations with other industry personalities, including the indomitable Molly Meldrum, Barnsey, Michael Chugg, and Rupert Murdoch. And we are told, in a frenetic, thrilling storytelling style, of the heart-stopping and often stressful realities behind some notorious events: the nail-biting postponement of the Stones’ 14 On Fire tour; the logistics behind the doomed Alternative Nation; damage control during a Madonna visit; the inspired decision to sign Skyhooks, Split Enz, Paul Kelly, and Kylie. This book is a must for music lovers and anyone seeking an action-packed, electrifying glimpse into the life and times of one of the most energetic, extraordinary and important figures in the history of the Australian music industry.

Gudinksi: The Godfather of Australian Rock ‘n’ Roll – by Stuart Coupe

Bec Stafford

326 pages

Hachette Australia

ISBN: 9780733633102

Publication date: 28 Jul 2015

The planet of Nevermore has been empty – seemingly abandoned by its previously vast population for thousands of years. For Aisha’s archaeologist parents, this is a mystery that needs to be solved – if only they can scrape together the funding for it. Unfortunately, resources for such expeditions are low and, when it looks as though Aisha and her family will be forced to leave Nevermore, Aisha sets off an exploration, hoping to find a treasure worth keeping the expedition funded.

What she does instead is unleash an ancient being, put to sleep six thousand years ago when he became too volatile to manage. Everything about his world has changed since he went to sleep, and all he wants is to find out why. If he is to be loosed on the unsuspecting world, however, Aisha cannot let him go alone.

Khalida is trying to recover from the horrors she has seen and inflicted during her years at war. She’s not doing a particularly good job of it, but when orders come through, calling her back to the precise battle that she had tried to end, she has no choice but to follow. Her niece, Aisha, and Rama, the unbelievably powerful being that Aisha released, are along for the ride – whether Khalida wishes it or not.

As promised in the Kickstarter campaign funding this novel, Forgotten Suns is a rip-roaring adventure in the guise of a space opera. Like any adventure, there is a great journey – though this one spans universes, not just worlds. The world of Forgotten Suns is intricately and tightly woven. Not purely sci-fi, it delves into fantasy at times, seamlessly melding the two genres.

While the mystery at the centre of the story concerns Nevermore, the abandoned planet, and Rama, the ancient being that Aisha awakens, there are other storylines going on that are much more interesting. Khalida’s broken mind and her struggle to keep herself alive, the Psycorps relationship to Military Intelligence, and how it affects the planets they exploit are storylines that are not explored as well as they could be. Much of the issue is that Rama is too powerful for this novel. Any conflict that arises he is too easily able to quash. Psycorps is a genuinely scary organisation and has the potential to be a serious threat, except for Rama’s abilities.

The world of Forgotten Suns is as richly imagined as any space opera should be. Rather than imagining a white-washed future, it delves into a universe diverse in race, sex and sexuality.

Forgotten Suns is a futuristic journey of discovery spanning not only universes but dimensions. Vividly imaginative and almost poetic in metaphorical description, it’s the novel for any aficionado of space opera.

Forgotten Suns – Judith Tarr

Book View Café (April 21, 2015)

ISBN: 9781611384772