The pointillist view of US lowlife

James Ellroy's latest effort inflates familiar sleaze in exhausting style, writes Scott Murray. Blood's a Rover By James Ellroy Century, $32.95

Stoner back in gear and chasing island hat-trick

FOURTEENTH place at Donington Park in July was the final straw for frustrated MotoGP star Casey Stoner, who returns to Phillip Island this weekend in a bid to win his third straight home race.

Brambles chief forced out

BRAMBLES has forced out its embattled chief executive, Mike Ihlein, after just over two years, replacing him with the boss of its European pallet division, who has been given the tough task of reviving its under-performing US business.

Brambles finds CEO no longer palletable

Ex-Ford Australia chief to take over

Profits plunge but Boral builds hope on new housing

BORAL has expressed hope the heavily depressed US and Australian housing sectors could stage a recovery next year, after the building materials group reported a 42 per cent fall in full-year net profits to $142 million.

Contador, not Lance, is the man: Riis

Fractured Astana team must unite behind Spaniard in the Tour de France, which starts on Saturday, says a rival boss. Rupert Guinness reports from Monaco.

Pay Tv

Mysteries Of The Shark Coast Discovery, 7.30pm 999 Frontline CI, 4.30pm Little Britain USA Showcase, 7.30pm Biography: John Wayne Gacy CI, 8.30pm

Born In The Usa, Voting In Oz

All over Melbourne, ex-pat Americans are deciding between Obama and McCain. John Elder reports.

Pay Tv

Hell's Kitchen USA Lifestyle, 9.30pm Paddy Whacked: The Irish Mob The History Channel, 5.30pm Space Crab National Geographic, 6.30pm

Inside The Box

Voted into a new job

How Drudgery Is French Kiss Of Death For Players

PROFESSIONAL football isn't fun any more. Sport is now work. Sonny Bill Williams, who walked out on the Bulldogs, has been sending messages to Canterbury for months that he was unhappy in his job.

Riding On A Sheep's Bum

Ian Munro traces an activist plot to topple the Australian wool industry from Virginia, USA.

Job Searchers

Anne Fawcett takes a look inside Google to see if it really is the best place in the world to work.

Briefs

JOB NEWS The Camp Counselors USA job fair is back in town. United States employers from Aspen, Mammoth Mountain, Kirkwood and Snowshoe, among others, will be on hand to discuss jobs as diverse as ski instructors, lift operators, drivers, cooks, child carers and chambermaids. It's aimed at full-ti

Job Hot Spot

The company Camp Counselors USA