Word On Books
with Jeremy Fenton
Shopgirl
By Steve Martin, Published by Phoenix
Comedian/actor Steve Martin's first novella is a small and mild meditation on the manners of modern romance La La Land-Style.
Mirabelle works in the glove department of an exclusive L.A. store, completing her rare artworks by night, and being pursued/courted by two very different men. One stencils brand names onto amplifiers for a living, but has the style and behaviour of a goat. The other is rich and considerably older than she is – with no intention of staying faithful, let alone for the long haul.
In between bouts of depression and extreme self-doubt, Mirabelle must choose what's best for herself.
Shopgirl is a light and breezy enough work that has its moments of acerbic wit and literary style. Overall a bit more substance wouldn't have hurt.
A million times more rewarding than most of Martin's recent films (try Sgt Bilko or Father of the Bride if in doubt), but less accomplished than his entertaining play Picasso at the Lapin Agile.
The Sharp End
By William Dodson, Published by Macmillan
William Dodson began his working life as a boiler maker/welder before deciding that he wanted to do something a lot more 'unconventional' – a job that would 'untap his hidden potential and challenge him'.
He certainly found the right job.
First working as a prison warder with Correctional Services, he moved on to law enforcement as an ‘elite' officer within the NSW Police Force – specialising in high-risk tactical operations.
Rough, tough and more than a little gung-ho, the book is a wild trip through some of the biggest hostage and siege situations of the past two decades. Dodson is never short of an opinion (usually explosively delivered) on the state of modern policing, particularly when it relates to tactical response and what he calls the 'sharp end' of law enforcement.
It's often not pretty, but Dodson's point that someone has got to do it (and do it with integrity) is well made. It's just that his branch of the NSW coppers comes across as a little boofheaded, yet lacking the machismo and heightened testosterone levels Dodson portrays himself as having in spades. (Those who can't keep up cop the quaint epithet ‘soft cocks'). Given the recent revelations over policing in Cabramatta, he might have a point. He's not afraid to butt heads with superiors and seems to enjoy putting noses out of joint.
The books local relevance comes through Dodson finishing his career in the Force in the Northern Region (of NSW) State Protection Support Unit. He was at the centre of the 'terrorist incident' at Federal MP Larry Anthony's Tweed Heads office in 1998, bragging that he engineered Australia's first assault response to a terrorist problem.
He doesn't have a very high opinion of the current Local Area Commander, Supt. Barry Audsley, and top cop Peter Ryan also gets a serve. When the medically unfit Dodson was offered a desk job on the COPS line recording minor crime incidents, he handed in his badge, then wrote this arresting (sorry!) tale.
Off the Rails – The Pauline Hanson Trip
By Margo Kingston, Published by Allen and Unwin
In 1998, Sydney Morning Herald journalist (and Echo columnist) Margo Kingston spent a month with Pauline Hanson leading up to the Federal election. First released in 1999, her book detailing the time has just been re-released with a new introduction (presumably in the lead up to the next Federal election).
1998 was no ordinary campaign. One Nation crossed all the accepted lines. There was no central organisation and there was no spin doctoring (unless you count David Oldfield's self-aggrandisement). This was politics like it had never been played before in Australia – rough, raw and often emotionally unhinged – as Pauline Hanson's One Nation fumbled through thirty days of intense media scrutiny.
The month culminated in Kingston (and journalistic company) embroiled in the now infamous standoff in Gatton regarding the costing of One Nation's policies at the end of the campaign. Eventually the police were called after Kingston and others refused to leave the public launch. With Kingston subsequently roasted by many as guilty of the number one journalistic taboo, becoming the story yourself.
Another politician – this time Harold Wilson the former British Prime Minister – was responsible for the now ubiquitous quote: 'A week is a long time in politics'. With Off the Rails, Margo Kingston has shown that a month can be an eternity. Highly recommended.
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