discovered Margaret Merrilees, a writer from Adelaide, when Wakefield Press published her first novel, The First Week. This novel really impressed me (see my review) partly because it was such an authentic portrait of an older woman whose quiet life is shattered by the actions of her adult son. Her world is destroyed and her search for meaning in what he has done takes her on a journey of discovery which is painful and confronting. It was a serious book about serious issues and I thought it was a fine debut.

Demonstrating her versatility as a writer with aplomb, Merrilees followed up with the quixotic Fables, Queer and Familiar. It’s a light-hearted look at the urban lives of a couple of lesbian grannies in Adelaide. The book started life as the online serial ‘Adelaide Days’, which is broadcast by Radio Adelaide, and consists of short episodes linked together to form a novella of sorts. It’s a slim book, only 159 pages, and I romped through it in no time.

The grannies, part of a large and loving family, are long time leftie activists who keep a close eye on current politics, both in South Australia and nationally, with occasional forays interstate as when they are indignant about corruption in NSW politics. They are pro-Gillard and anti-Rudd, and outraged by the treatment of refugees. They are keen participants at Adelaide Writers Week and enthusiastic recyclers of all sorts of junk. And they are quick to notice misogyny whenever it occurs

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2017/02/01/fables-queer-and-familiar-by-margaret-merril... ( )