The Literary Lunch: Selected Stories

Geoffrey Dean, Hobart: Roaring Forties Press, 2004, 196 Pages, Paperback, $20.00: Reviewed by Bianca Ferguson in the June 2005 issue.

Multi-award winning Australian writer Geoffrey Dean proves once and for all, in his collection The Literary Lunch, that he is a writer in the true sense of the word. It is not mere 'stories' he writes, but people, lives, conditions. Dean reveals ordinary lives that are less than ordinary, and, for the majority of us, lives that never will be known first hand. He hints that the things we dismiss as unnecessary, as futile, or worthless are in fact more worthwhile and important than they initially seem. One of my favorite stories is 'Clown/Juggler/Magician and the Literary Barbecue'. It is about an entertainer who sees a literary barbecue as the perfect opportunity to sell his entertainment. ... read more.