We recommend 9 books to read in October
Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford
Bookseller Kara Nicholson says: ‘Ford’s writing is explosive, hilarious and incredibly accessible without dumbing down the big theoretical issues too much. In many ways this book is perfect for teenagers (I was going to write teenage girls but it’s essential that boys read this kind of stuff too) and I certainly wish this book had been around when I was a teenager.’
The Birdman’s Wife by Melissa Ashley
Bookseller Annie Condon says: ‘ The Birdman’s Wife is a novel that will appeal to bird fanciers and devotees of John Gould’s monographs. The story is told from the perspective of Gould’s wife, Elizabeth, and begins in 1828 when she is twenty-four, and meets Gould for the first time … It is a wonderful, fictional biography of an exceptional woman.’
Read Annie’s full review here.
The Nix by Nathan Hill
Bookseller Chris Somerville says: ‘While Nathan Hill’s debut novel is certainly ambitious, given that it contains the Chicago riots of 1968, the invasion of Iraq, the recent Occupy Wall Street movement, as well as online gaming, a new, minimal, social media, growing up in the suburbs of the ’80s and, most notably, Norwegian ghosts, what binds this huge novel together is its cynical and somewhat ironic world-view.’
Read Chris’s full review here.
The Good People by Hannah Kent
Editor of the Readings Monthly Elke Power says: ‘ The Good People is a heart-rending parable about ignorance and fear that is convincing in its portrayal of nineteenth-century rural Ireland, and yet also alarmingly reminiscent of issues rife in our own society today. Fear of that which cannot be explained, and of difference, produces questionable behaviours even now. Kent has written a timeless story of human frailty and a gripping period drama.’
The Boy Behind the Curtain by Tim Winton
Managing director Mark Rubbo says: ‘Winton is arguably one of our most loved and respected writers; he writes in a vernacular that is distinctly his but one which resonates strongly with readers. He is also an intensely private person who rarely appears comfortably in public, so that makes this book even more special. It’s probably the closest we’ll get to seeing the interior Winton.’
The Trespasser by Tana French
Digital marketing manager Lian Hingee says: ‘ The Trespasser is a twisty, hard-edged thriller that leaves you feeling uneasy and on edge and desperate to find out where the line lies between truth and fiction.’
Goodwood by Holly Throsby
Editorial assistant for the Readings Monthly Alan Vaarwerk says: ‘Best known and highly regarded as as a singer–songwriter, Holly Throsby’s debut novel is lyrical without being abstruse, colloquial without being contrived. Her characters, while familiar, are nuanced and authentic, and her depiction of small-town life is bang-on in both its endearing and suffocating ways.’
The Dragon Behind The Glass by Emily Voigt
Digital content coordinator Bronte Coates says: ‘Journalist Emily Voigt’s first book is a thrilling deep dive into the strange and dangerous world of the Asian arowana or ‘dragon fish’. Inspired by a meeting with a pet detective tracking an illegal alligator sale in the Bronx, Voigt sets out to learn more about the world’s most expensive aquarium fish and make sense of the cult that surrounds it.’
Read Bronte’s full review here.
Here I am by Jonathan Safran Foer
Events manager Chris Gordon says: ‘I’m calling it: Jonathan Safran Foer’s Here I am is one of the best books of the year. The novel took Safran Foer 10 years to write and the result is a beautiful portrait of a family. I read sections of the book out loud to others. I cried and I laughed. I put the novel down at times and walked around thinking of metaphors and paradoxes. Pick up a copy and let yourself be taken into the world that Safran Foer has created.’
