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A Few Short Notes on Tropical Butterflies, John Murray
Penguin
Reviewed by Lindsay Wright (Courtesy of Taranaki Daily News)

The dustcover pocket biography of author John Murray is the first inkling that something unusual might be afoot with this book.

Murray is an Australian medical doctor who has put in time at the Iowa Writers' Workshop.

I'd read most of the eight novellas that make up these 274 pages of delightful reading before I found this out and then it all fell into place.

The medical doctor bit falls into place through the book's graphical descriptions of human anatomy and medical procedures and the writers' workshop explains the well-developed plot lines and compassionate characterisations.

But there's also a worldly perspective; Murray views the world through the eyes of some of the least likely people and plumbs situations from all over the planet.

Not a word is wasted as he walks the reader through a captivating company of diverse characters and situations. Every one is plausible – everyone is real.

A Few Short Notes on Tropical Butterflies is a rewarding and entertaining read – it's as diverse a collection of tales as you'll find between two covers anywhere and well worth the flutter.