Readings.com.au: Popular Penguins

The Beach

Alex Garland's The Beach was published to immediate acclaim, and has since become a bestselling cult classic and a Hollywood blockbuster. Richard, a gap-year student, is introduced to a beautiful island by the mysterious Daffy. But with drugs and the glamorized violence of Vietnam War films haunting his perception of his Thai paradise, Richard soon finds the hideaway becomes a nightmare. A compulsive adrenaline rush, The Beach is an adventure you'll never forget.

The Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep is the definitive hardboiled detective story and Philip Marlowe the perfect expression of the cynical, world-weary gumshoe. Hired by the crippled General Sternwood to shake off a blackmailer, Marlowe also has to deal with the general's two rebellious daughters, the gamblers and pornographers they run with and, soon enough, some inconvenient murders. Chandler's LA and the gutter-life that populate it made crime fiction what it is today and remain unmatched.

Breakfast At Tiffany's

Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's is a brilliant glimmer of the excitement of 40's New York. Holly Golightly - brashly beautiful with a slim black dress, a mysterious past and dark glasses over varicoloured eyes - entrances all the men she meets, including the young writer living above her, though her recklessness may yet catch up with her. Also containing three short stories, this edition shows the elegance and warmth of Capote's writing at its most flawless.

The Chimney Sweeper's Boy

Barbara Vine's The Chimney Sweeper's Boy is one of the finest, most accomplished and chilling tales of psychological suspense ever written. When a sudden heart attack kills author Gerald Candless, his adoring daughter Sarah embarks on a memoir of her beloved father. But Sarah's investigations turn up someone very different from the man she had known - proof that he wasn't Gerald Candless at all. The Chimney Sweeper's Boy is a troubling tale of taboo, family guilt and personal identity.

The Classical World

Robin Lane Fox's The Classical World brings together the epic histories of Greece and Rome. His panoramic account spans centuries of change, from the foundation of the world's first democracy to the expansion of the Roman Empire, and brings to life such great figures as Homer, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Emperor Augustus. Spellbinding and stimulating, it illuminates two civilizations that dominated the ancient world and still inspire and enlighten us today.

A Clockwork Orange

Anthony Burgess's A Clockwork Orange is the shocking seminal novel that spawned one of the most notorious films ever made. Fifteen-year-old Alex and his thrill-seeking gang regularly indulge in ultra-violence, rape and drugs, but when he is caught and brainwashed by a government psychologist Alex finds his new law-abiding life unbearable. Set in a terrifying dystopian future, A Clockwork Orange is a disturbing exploration of morality and free will.

Congo Journey

Redmond O'Hanlon's Congo Journey is a hilarious and daring trip into the heart of darkness. Striking out for the Marxist-Leninist People's Republic of Congo, O'Hanlon takes an unsuspecting friend to hidden Lake Télé in search of Mohélé-mbembe, the rarely seen Congo dinosaur. But what they find is not quite what they went looking for, making Congo Journey a brilliant tale of a naturalist utterly out of his depth.

The Consolations Of Philosophy

Alain de Botton's The Consolations of Philosophy takes the discipline of logic and the mind back to its roots. Drawing inspiration from six of the finest minds in history - Socrates, Epicurus, Seneca, Montaigne, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche - he addresses lack of money, the pain of love, inadequacy, anxiety and conformity. De Botton's book led one critic to call philosophy 'the new rock and roll'.

Crimes Against Humanity

Geoffrey Robertson's Crimes Against Humanity is a superb and highly influential account of the history of the human rights movement up to the present day. From the French Revolution and the Nuremberg trials to 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq, Robertson traces the developing concept of human rights and shows how far we still have to go. His inspiring narrative is both a masterly history and a clarion call to the global justice movement.

Delta Of Venus

Anais Nin's Delta of Venus is a stunning collection of sexual encounters from the queen of literary erotica. From Mathilde's lust-filled Peruvian opium den to the Hungarian baron driven insane by his insatiable desire, the passions and obsessions of this dazzling cast of characters are vivid and unforgettable. Delta of Venus is a deep and sensual world that evokes the very essence of sexuality.

Empire: How Britain Made Modern World

Niall Ferguson's Empire is one of the most successful and controversial history books of recent years. Brilliantly re-telling the story of Britain's imperial past, it shows how a gang of buccaneers and gold-diggers from a rainy island in the North Atlantic came to build the most powerful empire in all history, how it ended, and how - for better or worse - it made our world what it is today.

Everything Is Illuminated

Jonathan Safran Foer's Everything is Illuminated won the Guardian First Book Award in 2002. It tells the story of a young man who goes to the Ukraine in search of the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. He is aided in his quest by a blind old man, a randy guide dog and a very, very bad translator. It is funny, moving and gripping and we guarantee you won't have read anything quite like it before.

The Fabric Of The Cosmos

Brian Greene's The Fabric of the Cosmos is an astonishing grand tour of the universe and the best layman's guide to current thinking on 'how everything works'. This rollercoaster ride explores the mysteries of space and time; asks questions about the nature of reality, dark matter, space warps and wiggles; and will fundamentally alter the perceptions of anyone that's looked up at the stars and asked themselves: what's it all about?

Going Solo

Roald Dahl's Going Solo is the marvellous account of his life as a young man. He describes getting his first job in Africa and his wartime exploits as an RAF fighter pilot, where he was shot down in the Libyan desert. Continuing the story he began in Boy, the first part of his memoir, the master storyteller conjures up a real-life world as magical and unnerving as any he writes about in his fiction.

The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby brilliantly captures the disillusion of a society obsessed with wealth and status. Young, handsome and fabulously rich, Jay Gatsby appears to have it all, yet he yearns for the one thing that will always be out of his reach, the absence of which renders his life of glittering parties and bright young things ultimately hollow. Gatsby's tragic pursuit of his dream is often cited as the Great American Novel.

A Handful Of Dust

Evelyn Waugh's A Handful of Dust is a satirical depiction of the 'sterile' generation between the wars. It tells the story of bored Lady Brenda Last, who abandons her husband's Gothic pile to conduct an affair with shallow socialite John Beaver of the Belgravia set. A Handful of Dust remains one of the finest tragedies and comedies of ill manners.

High Fidelity

Nick Hornby's High Fidelity is the brilliant story of one man's journey of self-discovery. When Rob - a thirty-five-year old record shop owner and music obsessive - is dumped by Laura he indulges in some casual sex, a little light stalking and some extreme soul-searching in the form of contacting every ex-girlfriend who ever broke his heart. An instant classic, High Fidelity is a hilarious exploration of love, life, music and the modern male.

The History Of Sexuality: The Will to Knowledge Volume 1

Michel Foucault's The Will to Knowledge is the first part of his influential trilogy of books on the history of sexuality. He argues that the recent explosion of discussion about sex in the West means that, far from being liberated, we are in the process of making a science of sexuality that is devoted to the analysis of desire rather than the increase of pleasure. This is a brilliant polemic from a groundbreaking radical intellectual.

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest captured the radical anti-establishment mood of 1960s America. Tyrannical Nurse Ratched rules her psychiatric ward with an iron fist and a penchant for electric shock therapy, so when the boisterous McMurphy arrives - intent on disruption and showing the other patients a good time - a titanic battle of wills emerges. Kesey explores the shadowy boundaries between conformity and individuality, sanity and madness, with devastating effect.

Lolita

Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita is a dark and daring story of obsessive love and transgression. Humbert Humbert's lust for his pubescent step-daughter, Lolita, shocked readers when it was first published in the 1950s; yet the novel was also celebrated for its beautifully lyrical writing. Almost fifty years after its first publication, Lolita remains a powerful tale of perversion and love gone wrong.

Pride And Prejudice

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is the original romantic comedy, brimful of wit and wisdom. When the haughty and aristocratic Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth Bennett, she instantly dislikes him, despite his reputation as a wealthy and eligible bachelor. Are her first impressions correct, or is there more to Darcy than meets the eye? Sharply observed and sparklingly funny, this is one of the most delightful love stories ever written.

How Language Works

David Crystal's How Language Works is a fascinating tour through the world of language from one of today's most renowned experts. It ranges over everything from how children learn to read to what makes words rude or polite, from eyebrow flashes to whistling languages. Unlocking the secrets of communication in an accessible, entertaining way, this exhilarating book sheds light on the endless mysteries of the language we speak, write and read every day.

In Cold Blood

Truman Capote's In Cold Blood is both a masterpiece of journalism and a powerful crime thriller. Inspired by a 300-word article in The New York Times, Capote spent six years exploring and writing the story of Kansas farmer Herb Clutter, his family and the two young killers who brutally murdered them. In Cold Blood created a genre of novelistic non-fiction and made Capote's name with its unflinching portrayal of a comprehensible and thoroughly human evil.

Jane Eyre

Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre to this day entrances readers with its passionate portrayal of a woman struggling to make a life for herself in a cruel and indifferent world. As orphan Jane becomes governess at Thornfield Hall, she falls in love with her employer, Mr Rochester, only to discover that he has a terrible secret, one which may jeopardize their future happiness. Jane Eyre's struggle for independence has echoed with readers ever since.

Kingdom Of Fear

Hunter Thompson's Kingdom of Fear is the wild and outrageous autobiography from the world's most notorious journalist. It's an unrestrained and uncensored account of fast living, hard drinking, sharp writing and unimaginable drug taking; of road trips, girls, guns, bikes and being accused of trying to kill Jack Nicholson. Kingdom of Fear is both personal and political; an explosive life story and a no-holds-barred assassination of contemporary America.

Lady Chatterley's Lover

D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover scandalised the world when it was first published in paperback, and helped put Penguin Books on trial. The powerful depiction of the sexual liaison of Constance Chatterley with the gamekeeper Mellors, while her invalid husband quietly seethes, brilliantly captures the perennial struggle between the classes and the sexes.

The Language Instinct

Steven Pinker's The Language Instinct propelled him to worldwide fame in 1994. His groundbreaking book's premise - that language is instinctual rather than acquired - so shook the foundations of biological science that the reverberations are still being felt today.

Love In A Cold Climate

Nancy Mitford's Love in a Cold Climate is a wickedly funny satire, brilliantly lampooning upper-class society. When Polly, a beautiful aristocrat, declares her love for her married, lecherous uncle - who also happens to be her mother's former lover - she sparks off a scandal that has both disastrous and delicious consequences. Love in a Cold Climate is an unforgettable tale of the absurdities and obsessions of the elite.

Love In The Time Of Cholera

Gabriel García Márquez's Love in the Time of Cholera is a brilliantly crafted, beautifully written story of love and the love-sick. Spurned as a young man, Florentino Ariza has a half century of waiting to fill before a chance to redeclare his love for Fermina Daze comes, when her husband is killed retrieving a parrot from a mango tree. Funny, poignant and heartfelt - enduring and unrequited love have rarely been more movingly expressed.

The Mind Of God

Paul Davies' The Mind of God is a scientific search for the meaning of the universe. Ranging across the cosmos, Davies explores the origin of the universe, the laws of nature, mathematics, the beginning and end of everything. Ultimately, he seeks to provide a glimpse the meaning of it all. This is a book no inquisitive mind can do without.

Mother Tongue

Bill Bryson's Mother Tongue is a hymn to the English language. In examining how a second-rate, mongrel tongue came to be the undisputed language of the globe. Bryson explores English from America to Australia and looks at, among other things, swearing, spelling, spoonerisms and Scrabble. No self-respecting English speaker should open his mouth without reading it.

My Family And Other Animals

Gerald Durrell's My Family and Other Animals is a charming and comic autobiographical novel. Fleeing the gloomy British climate, the Durrell clan move to Corfu carrying the bare essentials of life: acne cures for Margo; revolvers for Leslie; books for Larry and a jam jar full of caterpillars for Gerry. Recounted with warmth and humour, it is a heart-warming portrait of an eccentric family surrounded by a wonderful cast of friends and fauna.

Of Mice And Men

John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is one of the best loved novellas of all time. Two drifters - small, shrewd George and huge, simple-minded Lennie - get work on a ranch, planning to raise enough money to get a place of their own and live off the land, if George can save his childlike, bull-strong friend from getting into trouble. A powerfully moving story of friendship, Of Mice and Men is a simply told masterpiece.

On The Road

Jack Kerouac's On the Road rocked the establishment with its seminal, stream-of-consciousness portrayal of 1950s underground America. Amidst a whirlwind of sex, drugs and jazz, writer Sal Paradise and his hero 'the holy con-man with the shining mind', Dean Moriarty traverse the country in search of life and experience. Wild and exuberant, this life-changing novel defined the Beat generation and inspired countless others.

Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer

Patrick Süskind's Perfume follows the life of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, abandoned at birth in the slums of eighteenth-century Paris, but blessed with an outstanding sense of smell. This gift enables Jean-Baptiste to master the art of perfume making, but one scent evades him: that of a virgin, whom he must possess to ensure her innocence and beauty are preserved. Laced with sense and suspense, this is a beguiling tale of lust, desire and deadly obsession.

The Picture Of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray is the story of a man who makes a devilish pact never to grow old. Dorian Gray remains forever young, indulging in unspeakable pleasures while his portrait bears the mark of his corrupt existence. A beautifully decadent tale of the destructive allure of perpetual youth, The Picture of Dorian Gray is a masterpiece of Victorian gothic horror.

Rabbit, Run

John Updike's Rabbit, Run is a classic story of dissatisfaction and restlessness. Harry 'Rabbit' Angstrom was a star basketball player in high school. Now twenty-six, his life seems full of traps, the biggest being his pregnant wife and two-year-old son. He sets out to escape, but it's not clear if Rabbit is really following his heart or only chasing his tail. Powerfully written, Rabbit, Run gave American literature one of its most enduring characters.

Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders

John Mortimer's Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders sees our eponymous hero tackle his first ever case. It is just after the war and two RAF heroes are found shot dead. Simon Jerold, the son of one of the victims, is the only suspect and young Rumpole is given the hopeless task of defending him. But Rumpole is determined to save his client from the gallows and make a name for himself. His bid to do so opens the first chapter in the story of the law's finest comic creation.

The Secret History

Donna Tartt's The Secret History is the original American campus novel. When Richard Papen joins an elite group of clever misfits at his New England college, it seems he can finally become the person he wants to be. But the moral boundaries he will cross with his new friends - and the deaths they are responsible for - will change all of their lives forever. The Secret History recounts the terrible price we pay for mistakes made on the dark journey to adulthood.

Shadow Of The Sun

Ryszard Kapuscinski's The Shadow of the Sun encompasses forty years of incisive and moving reportage about Africa by one of the world's greatest journalists. From newly independent Ghana to war-torn Rwanda, Kapuscinski captures the sights, sounds, smells and, above all, the real lives of this vast continent. Poetic and profound, this dazzling travelogue has been acclaimed as one of the most significant works on Africa and its people.

Six Easy Pieces

Richard Feynman's Six Easy Pieces is the perfect layman's introduction to the mindboggling universe of physics. In Feynman's safe hands, the reader is introduced to the very basics of atoms, energy, force, gravity and quantum behaviour. If the greatest physicist since the Second World War can't explain it to you, no one can.

Six Thinking Hats

Edward de Bono's Six Thinking Hats is the groundbreaking psychology manual that has inspired organisations and individuals all over the world. De Bono's innovative guide divides the process of thinking into six parts, symbolized by the six hats, and shows how the hats can dramatically transform the effectiveness of meetings and discussions. This is a book to open your mind, unleash your creativity and change the way you think about thinking.

South: The Endurance Expedition

Sir Ernest Shackleton's South is one of the greatest survival stories of all time. In 1914, Shackleton led a party of men hoping to be the first to traverse the Antarctic, but when their ship became crushed by ice 350 miles from land, the expedition soon became a matter of life and death. This is the extraordinary account of treacherous seas, glaciers and relentless cold, and wonderfully encapsulates the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

The Surgeon Of Crowthorne

Simon Winchester's The Surgeon of Crowthorne was an international bestseller and tells an extraordinary true story of murder, madness and an extraordinary friendship in the nineteenth century. It is the tale of James Murray, the compiler of the first Oxford English Dictionary, and his most valued helper: Dr Minor of Crowthorne, who was also a homicidal lunatic, confined to Broadmoor asylum for murder. This is an enthralling and beautifully written work of literary detection.

Tales Of The Unexpected

Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected is a delightfully dark collection of sixteen stories, each with a startling end. Among the unforgettable characters lurk the homicidal wife and her deadly leg of lamb, a conniving and lecherous wine connoisseur and the one-eyed brain at the mercy of his vengeful spouse. Tales of the Unexpected is an astonishing assortment of twisted treats from the master storyteller.

Usage And Abusage

Usage and Abusage is Penguin's classic linguistic reference book that not only tells you how to use English correctly, but is also a declaration of war on its misuse. Covering grammatical problems, words that are commonly abused and confused, matters of style, as well as providing advice on how to communicate clearly and elegantly, it is the perfect reader for every writer.

What Is History?

E. H. Carr's What Is History? is the classic introduction to the theory of history. Exploding the Victorian myth of history as a simple record of fact, Carr draws on sources from Nietzsche to Herodotus to argue for a more subtle definition of history as 'an unending dialogue between the present and the past'. Lively, scholarly and challenging, this book is essential reading for anyone interested in the meaning of history and its role in society.

A Year In Provence

Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence is the much-loved account of an English couple living their dream abroad. When they buy a 200-year-old farmhouse in the South of France, Peter Mayle and his wife little expect the delights that await them - from six-course lunches and epic games of boule, to encounters with charming but unpredictable builders. Both witty and affectionate, this is an idyllic portrait of the pleasures of rural life.