In Thought Crimes, Tim Richards takes the reader on a mind-bending ride through a world where nothing is quite as it seems. The lives these stories describe are almost ordinary — but an ambush lurks around every corner.
A novice teacher accepts a job at an unconventional high school where students take ‘self-expression’ to odd and disturbing lengths.
In a trendy beachside suburb, suspiciously perfect babies start appearing on young couples’ doorsteps.
A visitor from the future shakes the life out of a small Australian town.
Blackly funny and irresistibly twisted, these stories peek behind the everyday appearance of things to explore unspoken fears and desires. Destined to become a cult classic, Thought Crimes is a one-way trip through the looking glass.
‘Full of ideas, intellectual energy and finely honed black humour.’— Sydney Morning Herald
‘An impressive collection of short stories…literature that is both entertaining and also thought-provoking’— Courier Mail
‘This form suits [Richards] perfectly…These stories are genuinely imaginative and quietly unsettling thought experiments.’— Sunday Age M Magazine
‘A striking and powerful collection.’— Australian Book Review
‘Richards’ best pieces hold you in a kind of poetic trance.’— the Australian
Tim Richards’ short stories have appeared in the Age, Meanjin, Overland, Heat, The Sleepers Almanac and The Best Australian Stories. He has worked as a television writer (Fast Forward) and script editor, as well as a script assessor and teacher of creative writing.
