Our latest blog posts

Our top ten bestsellers of the week

M Train by Patti Smith

Just Kids by Patti Smith

The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose

The Thirst by Jo Nesbo (translated by Don Bartlett and Neil Smith)

Being 14 by Madonna King

Utopia for Realists by Rutger Bregman

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape

Earthly Remains by Donna Leon

The White Queen – One Nation and the Politics of Race (Quarterly Essay 65) by David Marr

A Writing Life by Bernadette Brennan

The ever-wonderful Patti Smith…

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Rebel stories for teen activists

Adolescence is traditionally a time of rebellion, and rightly so. Here are some of our best recommendations for teen books that push back against the policies and ideas being promoted by governments around the world – including our own.

Books that rebel against the patriarchy

Maresi by Maria Turtschaninoff

I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

Eat the Sky, Drink the Ocean edited by Kirsty Murray, Payal Dhar and Anita Roy

The Disreputable History Of Frankie Landau-Banks by E.L. Lockhart

Fight

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What we're reading: Tom McCarthy, Jennifer Wright and Michelle Forbes

Each week we bring you a sample of the books we’re reading, the films and TV shows we’re watching, and the music we’re listening to.

Chris Somerville is reading Remainder by Tom McCarthy

It took me a few tries to get into Remainder. There was something about the unnamed narrator’s voice that wasn’t off-putting exactly, but it wasn’t entirely agreeable either. It’s both precise and vague.

What won me over though was its premise. At the beginning of the…

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The Man Booker International Prize shortlist 2017

Congratulations to the authors, translators and publishers shortlisted for this year’s Man Booker International Prize.

Nick Barley, chair of the 2017 Man Booker International Prize judging panel, says: ‘Our shortlist spans the epic and the everyday. From fevered dreams to sleepless nights, from remote islands to overwhelming cities, these wonderful novels shine a light on compelling individuals struggling to make sense of their place in a complex world.’

Here is the shortlist in full:

Compass by Mathias Énard (France), translated…

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10 books for Mother's Day (that aren't pink)

Mother’s Day is the time of year when everything suddenly turns very PINK. Pink flowers, pink cards, pink wrapping, pink slippers, pink books… We ourselves love the colour pink, but we know its not for everyone. And so, in celebration of all things blue, and black, and red, and white – here are 10 Mother’s Day gift ideas that aren’t pink.

The Destruction of Hillary Clinton by Susan Bordo

The result of the 2016 presidential election was widely thought to…

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Five reasons we love Escape to the Moon Islands by Mardi McConnochie

Escape to the Moon Islands by Mardi McConnochie is one of the six books shortlisted for this year’s Readings Children’s Book Prize. Here are five reasons why we think it’s brilliant.

1. The story touches on some big issues, but it’s still a real page-turner.

Like the best of dystopian fiction, this book’s world draws comparisons with the prevalent issues of today, such as climate change and over-zealous government control. Mardi McConnochie has imaginatively crafted a world transformed by a…

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Heather Rose wins the 2017 Stella Prize

The winner of this year’s Stella Prize is The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose.

The Museum of Modern Love is a dazzlingly original novel about the nature of art, life and love. Arky Levin is a film composer in New York separated from his wife, who has asked him to keep one devastating promise. One day he finds his way to The Atrium at MOMA and sees Marina Abramović in ‘The Artist is Present’. The performance continues for…

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Our top ten bestsellers of the week

Utopia for Realists by Rutger Bregman

The White Queen – One Nation and the Politics of Race (Quarterly Essay 65) by David Marr

Earthly Remains by Donna Leon

Prussian Blue by Philip Kerr

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape

The Dry by Jane Harper

The Thirst by Jo Nesbo

A Writing Life by Bernadette Brennan

First, We Make the Beast Beautiful by Sarah Wilson

Who’s Afraid of International Law? edited by Raimond Gaita and Gerry Simpson

Crime fiction dominates…

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Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo

The Treehouse Fun Book 2 by Andy Griffiths, Jill Griffiths and Terry Denton

Really Weird! (WeirDo Book 8) by Anh Do and Jules Faber

In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek

A Most Magical Girl by Karen Foxlee

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

I’m Australian Too by Mem Fox and Ronojoy Gosh

The Secrets We Keep by Nova Weetman

Elizabeth and Zenobia by Jessica Miller

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What we're reading: Elif Batuman, Philip Kerr and Trevor Noah

Each week we bring you a sample of the books we’re reading, the films and TV shows we’re watching, and the music we’re listening to.

Bronte Coates is reading The Idiot by Elif Batuman

I’m a third of the way through The Idiot and loving it. This is such a smart, surreal and absorbing campus novel; Elif Batuman is a sharp and insightful writer, with a talent for bringing out the funny side of everyday life. The eponymous idiot of…

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