OUR FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH

In Moonland by Miles Allinson

In present-day Melbourne, a man attempts to piece together the mystery of his father’s apparent suicide, as his young family slowly implodes. At the ashram of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in 1976, a man searching for salvation must confront his capacity for violence and darkness. And in a not-too-distant future, a woman with a life-altering decision to make travels through a climate-ravaged landscape to visit her estranged father.

In Moonland is a portrait of three generations, each grappling with their own mortality. Spanning the wild idealism of the 70s through to the fragile hope of the future, it is a novel about the struggle for transcendence and the reverberating effects of family bonds.

Reviewer Jeremy George says of the novel, ‘a striking writing of life, and the lives it leaves behind. It is the work of a novelist more in touch with the potential of the form than I have seen in a long time.’

You can read the full review here.

OUR CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH

I Shot the Devil by Ruth McIver

Erin Sloane was sixteen when high school senior Andre Villiers was murdered by his friends. They were her friends, too, led by the intense, charismatic Ricky Hell. Five people went into West Cypress Woods the night Andre was murdered. Only three came out.

Ativan, alcohol and distance had dimmed Erin’s memories of that time. But nearly twenty years later, an ageing father will bring her home. Now a journalist, she is asked to write a story about the Southport Three and the thrill-kill murder that electrified the country. Erin’s investigation propels her closer and closer to a terrifying truth. And closer and closer to danger.

Our resident crime expert, Fiona Hardy, loved this twisty narrative; ‘This is a raw, box-cutter-sharp noir that will raise your blood pressure with anger, and bleed you dry with pain in the best literary way.’

You can read the full review here.

OUR NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH

Why You Should Give a F*ck About Farming by Gabrielle Chan

Australia has no national food security policy. No national agriculture policy. We know what has been going on with water allocations and there is still no national response. People with the means and access shop at farmers’ markets and order their brunch referring to the origins of their eggs, bacon, butter, tomatoes and greens. But do they really know and understand where their food comes from? And how they can influence decisions made around the land use, trade policy and economic future of Australia?

In this book Gabrielle Chan examines the past, present and future of farming with her characteristically forensic eye. She lays out how our nation, its leaders and eaters must usher in new ways for us to work and live on our unique and precious land. How we must come to terms with the changes being wrought on land by climate and our growing of food. How we must solve the problems they are causing. This important book will change your thinking about food and how you eat.

Reviewer Margaret Snowdon was deeply moved by this book; ‘I ask that if you were to read one nonfiction book this year, please make it this one. From water and soil, to the food on our tables, this is the vital story behind our supermarket shelves.’

You can read the full review here.

OUR CLASSICAL ALBUM OF THE MONTH

The British Project by City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla

Deutsche Grammophon presents conductor Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra’s next instalment of The British Project. This release marks the third chapter of the project, presenting works by Elgar and Vaughan Williams after last October’s release of Britten’s Sinfonia da Requiem. Which was followed earlier this year by a second instalment, presenting the Symphonic Suite from Walton’s opera Troilus and Cressida.

Our reviewer describes this album as a ‘beautiful but strange album of 20th-century British orchestral works’, seeped in equally interesting history. You can read more about this unique classical work here.

OUR YOUNG ADULT BOOK OF THE MONTH

It’s Not You, It’s Me by Gabrielle Williams

Holly Fitzgerald has inexplicably woken up inside the body of an LA teenager called Trinity Byrne in 1980 - trapping Trinity in Holly’s forty-year-old body back in Melbourne, 2020. Mind. Officially. Blown. Holly finds herself navigating a brand-new body, family and cute boy next door - not to mention rock band that might just make it, and potential kidnapper. Meanwhile, lies intersect with truth, hurtling both Holly and Trinity towards a dangerous fate as the connections between them grow deeper and stranger than either could have ever imagined.

Freaky Friday meets Pretty Little Liars - if the Liars were an all-girl punk band from the 1980s - in this highly original soul-swap story from the critically acclaimed author of My Life as a Hashtag. You can read our review here.

OUR CLASSIC OF THE MONTH

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (illustrated by Chris Riddell) by Douglas Adams

It’s an ordinary Thursday lunchtime for Arthur Dent until his house gets demolished. The Earth follows shortly afterwards to make way for a new hyperspace express route, and Arthur’s best friend has just announced that he’s an alien. At this moment, they’re hurtling through space with nothing but their towels and a book inscribed in large, friendly letters: DON’T PANIC. The book is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and the weekend has only just begun …

Our staff reviewer, Tristan, has read this novel countless times, but nevertheless found ‘the illustrations capture the humour and whimsy of the classic sci-fi caper, while providing a new perspective on Adams’ universe.’ You can read her full review here.

OUR KIDS BOOK OF THE MONTH

The Song of Lewis Carmichael by Sofie Laguna, illustrated by Marc McBride

Matthew has dreamed and read and thought about the North Pole for as long as he can remember. And he has done it secretly. It is a place that cannot be tarnished by the world in which he lives - a world in which he struggles to find answers and make friends, while everything seems to come easily to other children.

But one day, a crow called Lewis Carmichael lands at Matthew’s window - a crow who believes in Matthew in the most simple and ordinary ways. Soon, the unexpected voyage of a lifetime begins, and it will change everything…

Our reviewer described it as ‘an utter delight for readers ages 9+ and a magical read-aloud for younger audiences’. You can read the full review here.

For ages 9 and up.