'Fine work from a literary sadist'...

...is how Angie Schiavone's review of Yellowcake in the Sydney Morning Herald today is headed, and she urges you to take your time reading them:

As with Lanagan's previous collections, Yellowcake is not a book to rush through or read in one sitting. Her day-job as a technical writer requires clear, unambiguous writing but Lanagan adheres to no such constraints when it comes to fiction, gliding teasingly in between understandable and mystifying.

These are stories that require concentration, with each line making an important link to the next, and one skimmed-over sentence capable of seeing the reader lose touch with what's being said. Those who give Lanagan their full attention, however (whether they be young adult or older), will be richly rewarded.