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  1. THE BOARD ROOM

    1. Welcome to BGO!

      Find out more about Book Group Online, learn how to use the board and say hello!

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    2. Board Business

      The place for discussions about BGO and its operation. Suggestions welcome!

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    3. Site News & Support

      This forum is for general announcements and any tips or questions about the site.

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  2. GENERAL FICTION

    1. Central Library

      This is the place to discuss general book-related matters.

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    2. 21st-Century Fiction

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    3. 20th-Century Fiction

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    4. Pre-1900 Fiction

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    5. Poetry and Drama

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    6. Writers' Corner

      Whether you're a professional or budding writer or just write for fun, this is the place to discuss writing - whether it's fiction, non-fiction, comedy, journalism etc.

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  3. FICTION GENRES

    1. Crime, Thrillers & Mystery

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    2. Fantasy & Myth

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    3. Historical & Romance

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    4. Horror

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    5. Science Fiction, Graphic Novels & Manga

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  4. NON-FICTION

    1. Arts & Media

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    2. Biography & Autobiography

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    3. Food & Drink

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    4. History, Politics & Beliefs

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    5. Homelife & Lifestyle

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    6. Life, The Universe & Everything

      This forum covers humanity, nature and all forms of science.

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    7. Reference & Humour

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    8. Sport

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    9. Travel

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  5. CHILDREN & YOUNG ADULTS

    1. Children & Young Adults - General Discussion

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    2. Read To

      Picture Books To Share

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    3. Read Alone

      For Independent Reading

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    4. Read With

      Learning Readers

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    5. Read On

      Teen/Adult Crossovers

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  6. BGO GROUP READS

    1. BGO Book Group Meeting Point

      Current talking points, suggestions and votes.

      1,685
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    2. Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

      39
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    3. Me Talk Pretty One Day - David Sedaris

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    4. Things Snowball - Rich Hall

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    5. Food

      BGO Book Group Reads

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    6. Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner

      The secong group read of 2014

      111
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    7. Book Group Archive

      This is an archive of all the discussions from earlier book group choices.

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  7. ANYTHING BUT BOOKS

    1. General Chat

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    2. Films, Television & Radio

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    3. Music & Culture

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    4. Language & Learning

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    5. Games, Quizzes & Links

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  8. SUBSCRIBERS' AREA

    1. Subscribers' Offers

      Occasionally we are given special offers for promotional purposes. These offers are usually restricted to our Subscribers and posted here, with thanks for their support of the board.

      169
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  • Posts

    • Clavain
      Office-Speak

      By Clavain · Posted

      And undeliverables  Management at my office often use these phrases "We are where we are" and "It is what it is" which always make me smile.
    • MisterHobgoblin
      The Shepherd's Hut

      By MisterHobgoblin · Posted

      I've never read Tim Winton before and didn't quite know what to expect. I'd heard he was a literary surfer (yes, literally, a surfer), and did great description, but also that his material was not particularly plot driven. Perhaps a Western Australian John Banville.    And The Shepherd's Hut was a pretty astonishing surprise. Yes, there's plenty of description, but no surf. Jaxie Clackton is a teenage boy on the run from the authorities, somewhere in mid WA. His brutal father is dead and Jaxie is worried that he'll cop the blame, so he heads out into the bush with a vague plan of meeting up with his girlfriend Lee somewhere up north. So, yes, we get really evocative images of desert, woods, salt lakes, ridges and dirt. Very little water, which becomes a bit of a theme. There are roos and emus and euros. Ants and flies. Sheoaks and jam trees and spinifex.    This barrenness never once got boring thanks to Jaxie's engaging voice. Jaxie is headstrong, has bushcraft and trusts nobody. He has been brought up in a world with no love, and he expects violence and treachery wherever he goes. But lost in the desert, he has to follow the dusty trails of vehicles from which he is hiding. This dilemma, this calculating how far he can trust civilisation is at the heart of the story. Plus, Jaxie's determination to survive.    When Jaxie's tracking leads to the shepherd's hut - and the man who lives there - he has to decide how far he is willing to trust a stranger. The novel is tightly plotted right up to the last paragraph. There is resolution. But there is also so much ambiguity. There are hints about Jaxie's past that suggest it might not be as straightforward as he tells it. There are hints about the shepherd's background that are never really resolved. There are remnants in the desert of previous settlement that are also never resolved. It is done in a way that is haunting rather than frustrating.    The Shepherd's Hut is a short, gripping, taut work that is at least the equal of anything else I have read this year.    *****
    • MisterHobgoblin
      Office-Speak

      By MisterHobgoblin · Posted

      Deliverables - and we're not talking pizzas.  
    • lunababymoonchild
      I just bought/borrowed/received...

      By lunababymoonchild · Posted

      Quiet: The power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, Susan Cain, Amazon kindle e-book.    
    • jfp
      Poetic Wanderings

      By jfp · Posted

      WE like March, his shoes are purple,   He is new and high; Makes he mud for dog and peddler,   Makes he forest dry; Knows the adder’s tongue his coming,          And begets her spot. Stands the sun so close and mighty   That our minds are hot. News is he of all the others;   Bold it were to die        With the blue-birds buccaneering   On his British sky.   Emily Dickinson

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