Saturday, March 9, 2013

Gabrielle Lord on the books she loved as a child and what inspires her now

Australian crime writer Gabrielle Lord was awarded the Ned Kelly Lifetime Achievement Award last year for her exceptional body of work. Book Club co-host Walter Mason interviewed Gabrielle Lord as part of his Inspirational Conversations series at Ultimo Library, and here he invited her to offer a sneak preview of books and ideas that have inspired her along the way:
Gabrielle Lord
Walter: Could you tell us some books you loved when you were a child or a young woman?

I adored Peter Pan and read it compulsively.  As a young woman I loved D.H. Lawrence, Doris Lessing and some of the Americans [including] Steinbeck.  My fave was British author Graham Greene but I reread him recently and found him a very depressing author which is not surprising considering he himself suffered from depression.


Any books you’d like to recommend now?

Not really! I no longer read as widely as I once did. I wonder, too, if books aren’t a bit similar to that suggestion from the Buddhists that ‘When the pupil is ready, the teacher appears’? A work that sings for me, might not sing for you.  I read mostly non-fiction now.

Have you ever been inspired by a self-help or spiritual book?

The publications from the AA and Al-Anon fellowships are extremely helpful and got me through the early days of recovery nearly 30 years ago now.   There is a lot of wisdom there and it’s not aligned with any sect, denomination or creed.  I find the Psalms can be friends in moments of sorrow and, in the past, I have also found the Old English elegies comforting in a dark kind of way.


Gabrielle Lord has written fourteen adult novels and a series of novels for young adults called Conspiracy 365.
 You can buy Gabrielle's or any other books through our bookstore links, above right. Your comments also support your Universal Heart Book Club.

2 comments:

  1. I loved Gabrielle Lord's Spiking the Girl, a great, trilling read.

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  2. I love them all, Thang - but you know what - I think it may have been you who originally introduced me to Gabrielle's books! I am sure it was you who told me about "Whipping Boy."

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