In these sublimely sophisticated tales, Cate Kennedy opens up worlds of finely observed detail. Her stories are populated by people at tipping points in their lives — moments that find them poised between a familiar past and an unfamiliar future. In 'The Testosterone Club', a neglected wife plans an unsavoury revenge on her boorish husband. In 'Resize', a married couple realise their too-tight wedding rings may symbolise wider aspects of their relationship. And in 'Cold Snap', a young boy senses that the newly arrived tree changer may have some sinister intents. Heartbreaking, evocative and richly comic, Dark Roots unveils the traumas that incite us to desperate measures, and the coincidences that drive our lives.

From prize-winning short-story writer Cate Kennedy comes a new collection to rival her highly acclaimed Dark Roots. In Like a House on Fire, Kennedy once again takes ordinary lives and dissects their ironies, injustices and pleasures with her humane eye and wry sense of humour. In 'Laminex and Mirrors', a young woman working as a cleaner in a hospital helps an elderly patient defy doctor's orders. In 'Cross-Country', a jilted lover manages to misinterpret her ex's new life. And in 'Ashes', a son accompanies his mother on a journey to scatter his father's remains, while lifelong resentments simmer in the background. Cate Kennedy's poignant short stories find the beauty and tragedy in illness and mortality, life and love.

'Great short stories have a power like a depth charge, subtext roiling up to the surface at precisely the right moment.' – Cate KennedyIn The Best Australian Stories 2011, Cate Kennedy presents the most outstanding short fiction of the past year.These stories take us deep into our past, into strange and surprising parallel universes, and into unexplored corners of the present. Wonderfully eclectic and brimming with new and familiar voices, this is an ideal companion for summer and a perfect introduction to Australia's finest storytellers.Contributors include Chris Womersley, Karen Hitchcock, Nicholas Jose, Debra Adelaide, Mark Dapin, Marele Day, Louis Nowra, Rodney Hall, Favel Parrett, Mark O'Flynn, Jennifer Mills, Tim Richards, Gretchen Shirm, Michael Sala, Joanne Riccioni, Julie Chevalier, Russell King, Deborah FitzGerald, Rebecca Giggs, Nick Smith, Sarah Holland-Batt, Penny O'Hara, Stephanie Buckle, Kate Rotherham, Miriam Sved, Karen Manton, Sharon...

Once, Rich and Sandy were environmental activists, part of a world-famous blockade in Tasmania to save the wilderness. Now, twenty-five years later, they have both settled into the uncomfortable compromises of middle age — although they've gone about it in very different ways. The only thing they have in common these days is their fifteen-year-old daughter, Sophie.When Rich decides to take Sophie, whom he hardly knows, on a trek into the Tasmanian wilderness, his overconfidence and her growing disillusion with him set off a chain of events that no one could have predicted. Instead of respect, Rich finds antagonism in his relationship with Sophie; and in the vast landscape he once felt an affinity with, he encounters nothing but disorientation and fear.Ultimately, all three characters will learn that if they are to survive, each must traverse not only the secret territories that lie between them but also those within themselves.

'There is little to match the pleasurable, exhilarating rush when we know we are in the hands of a writer with authority. Their power is like a kind of charisma – we allow ourselves to be willingly, absolutely persuaded.' – Cate KennedyIn The Best Australian Stories 2010, Cate Kennedy presents a seductive line-up of the year's most exciting short fiction, featuring the best work from publications around the country alongside pieces published here for the first time.A literary feud unfolds, blow by comical blow, in the books pages of a Sydney newspaper. Ned Kelly's mother has her day in court. And as flood waters slowly rise in a small Australian town, a woman quietly watches and waits.By turns playful, heart-wrenching, intimate and exuberant, these twenty-nine stories reveal the strength and variety of Australian fiction today. The authors include first-timers as well as established masters, and the result is a stimulatingly diverse...

There are imaginary lovers, unattainable lovers, star-crossed lovers and predestined lovers. There is straight love, same sex love and some very curious love. And Love's attendants—cupid, lust, obsession, and betrayal—dance through this volume that contributes to the growing tradition of Australian love. This brand new collection from Inkerman & Blunt is a beautiful companion to Australian Love Poems released last year and still going strong. Its cover features a brilliant silver foil and soft velvet laminate. The internals reflect the design ofAustralian Love Poems creating a matching set. Australian Love Stories is edited by Australia's most respected short story writer, and well loved poet and novelist, Cate Kennedy. The book features stories from award winning local writers who are recognized nationally and internationally such as Bruce Pascoe, Jon Bauer, David Francis, Carmel Bird, Lisa Jacobson, Irma Gold, Tony Birch. There are stories from a host of new...