Our staff share the books they loved this year, but wouldn’t have read without a recommendation.

‘I picked up Justine Van der Leun’s We are Not Such Things after reading a glowing endorsement from the New Yorker and it’s one of the most powerful books I’ve read this year. It’s a gripping true crime story set in South Africa, during the final days of apartheid.’ – Mark Rubbo, managing director

‘I scored an advanced copy of Liane Moriaty’s most recent book, Truly Madly Guilty, at a conference and it then spent a few months languishing on my desk. I’d already decided that it 'wasn’t my thing’ and ultimately, it took three colleagues to badger me about how much I’d enjoy it before I finally caved. And within 20 pages, I was hooked. Moriaty’s brilliant writing style, pacing and grasp of characterisation puts her up there as one of the best fiction writers I’ve encountered. Her books are accessible for lots of different kinds of readers and I’m enjoying working my way through her backlist.‘ – Lian Hingee, digital marketing manager

'Even though I know picture books are amazing, I find it hard to sit down and focus on them in the way they deserve. But this year so many people recommended Vera Brosgol’s Leave Me Alone to me that I was ultimately forced (by one particular workmate) to abandon my counter duties and go read it. I’m glad I did. The story starts conventionally, with an overwhelmed grandmother trying to find some peace and quiet from the many children crowding her house. Halfway through though, the narrative unravels into an unexpected absurdist masterpiece with psychedelic visuals.’ – Leanne Hall, children’s and YA bookseller

‘Our managing director Mark Rubbo was the first person to mention The Mothers to me when he said in passing that he was reading it and thought it was very good. I promptly bought it, and fell completely in love with this beautifully written coming-of-age novel, which is now one of my absolute favourite books of the year.’

‘I have also read and loved two Tana French novels this year – The Secret Place and The Trespasser. I would never had read either of them if it weren’t for my colleague Lian, who gently pushed French’s excellent crime novels on our entire office. You can find her beginner’s guide to the books here.’ – Nina Kenwood, marketing manager

‘When my colleague Bronte first told me she was reading a book about explorers and pet detectives, I was dubious – more so when I heard that book centred around the world’s rarest tropical fish. But Emily Voigt’s The Dragon Behind the Glass is a rollicking and intriguing mix of gonzo reportage, travel and adventure, and makes you look at the concept of animal ownership and domestication in a whole new light.’ – Alan Vaarwerk, editorial assistant for Readings Monthly

‘One of my favourite part about working at Readings is getting recommendations from my colleagues. In fact, I suspect that more than half the books I read each year come direct from their reviews. Here are a few of my notable reads which I only picked up because of my workmates (and am so happy I did): The Summer Book by Tove Jansson (thanks George!), The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee (thanks Ed!), El Deafo by Cece Bell (thanks Angela!), and Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie (thanks Lian!).’

‘This year I also read Svetlana Alexievich’s Voices from Chernobyl (a new translation of this title has just been released, featuring updated and expanded text) for my book club and it deeply affected me. I immediately sought out her latest work to be translated to English, Secondhand Time, which was voted one of our top ten non-fiction books of the year. Alexievich is one of the most important writers I’ve come across in a long time.’ – Bronte Coates, digital content coordinator

‘A book I wouldn’t have read (had it not been a book club choice) is All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I know it’s a Big Award Winner (including the Pulitzer Prize) but having read several novels dealing with WWII, I thought it would be hard to beat the unique perspective of my favourite one, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. But I persevered and was rewarded with a fresh, moving and beautifully written insight, via the tale of a young German soldier, an engineering genius with a sensitive soul, a blind French girl caught up in the German occupation, and how their lives converge.’ – Jan Lockwood, human resources manager

‘Solid recommendations from trustworthy sources have led to so many of my reading highlights this year. I inhaled Jane Harper’s The Dry because I needed to see whether all the fuss was warranted. The answer is 100% YES – go read it for yourself! I snobbishly judged the cover of Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler but picked it up nonetheless after getting caught up in all the hype from the US. I am so glad I did because I completely adored this lush novel; you can read my review here.’

‘Finally, I don’t read a lot of middle or young adult fiction, but I was encouraged to try Emily Gale’s The Other Side of Summer and Leanne Hall’s Iris and the Tiger by my colleagues. Both books blew me away, and I’ve enjoyed passing on both recommendations to kids and adults alike in recent months.’ – Stella Charls, marketing and events coordinator