Our latest blog posts
Our top picks of the month for book clubs
For a candid conversation about sex in the internet age…
Future Sex by Emily Witt
Emily Witt is single, straight, and female, and after moving to San Francisco, she sets off on a quest for personal fulfilment. In these essays, Witt captures the experiences of going to bars alone, online dating and hooking up with strangers. From public health clinics to cafe conversations about ‘coregasms’, she observes the subcultures she encounters with a wry sense of humour, capturing them in…
My best advice for girls who like sport
by Angela PipposThese are exciting times for women (and girls) in sport.
Who’d have thought that the first AFLW game played a few weeks ago would be a lockout? Who’d have thought it would have won its timeslot on television – who’d have thought it would even have been broadcast – hang on a second – who’d have thought there’d even be a national women’s league? If you’d said three years ago that women would be playing in a league of their…
Best new crime reads in February
CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH
The Last Act of Hattie Hoffman by Mindy Mejia
I’ve long been a sucker for American stories set away from the intensity of their cities and in the country’s open heart: those wide endless prairies; the sheriffs who know everyone and ride the thin line between being adored and feared; that down-home American cheesiness that hides an undercurrent of blood as much as the seeds of their farmland. Everyone is suspicious, and a suspect; everyone…
Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week
Welcome to Country by Aunty Joy Murphy and Lisa Kennedy
The Midnight Gang by David Walliams and Tony Ross
In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek and Christine Roussey
Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts
Girl Stuff for Girls Aged 8-12 by Kaz Cooke
King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard
Lion by Saroo Brierley (Young Readers’ Edition)
Unleashed (The Adventures of Dog Man Book 2) by Dav Pilkey
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape
Lion by Saroo Brierley
Between a Wolf and a Dog by Georgia Blain
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford
The Sellout by Paul Beatty
Something for Nothing by Andy Muir
The Toorak Jackpot by Rosemary Macindoe
The Unfortunate Victim by Greg Pyers
4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster
Last week saw the launches of three Australian fiction debuts at our bookshops, and all three have made it…
An interview with Edie Wright of Magabala Books
by Edie WrightAs Australian students and teachers return to school, one of the remotest publishing houses in the world, Magabala Books in Broome (WA) is gearing up to bring new Aboriginal perspectives to primary school classrooms all over the country.
With a grant of $33,550 from the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund, Magabala Books will soon deliver specially created teaching resources for 15 Indigenous stories, via the agency’s Reading Australia website.
Here we chat with Edie Wright, Chairperson of Magabala Books, about the…
12 books to read in February
A Rightful Place edited by Shireen Morris
After more than two centuries, Australians are soon to decide if and how Indigenous Australians will be recognised in the constitution. In this essential book, several leading Indigenous writers and thinkers provide a road map to recognition. These eloquent essays from contributors such as Noel Pearson, Stan Grant, Rachel Perkins, Galarrwuy Yunupingu and Pat Dodson show what constitutional recognition means, and what it could make possible. With clarity and power, they traverse law…
International Dylan Thomas Prize longlist 2017
The 2017 longlist for the International Dylan Thomas Prize has been announced, including a short story collection from Australian author Fiona McFarlane.
This Prize is run by Swansea University and is awarded to the best literary work in the English language written by an author under 40. The winning author will receive £30,000 (A$49,155).
The 12 longlisted titles for this year are…
The High Places by Fiona McFarlane
Pigeon by Alys Conran
The Story of a Brief Marriage by Anuk…
What we're reading: Emily Witt, Arthur Koestler and Ali Land
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.
Ellen Cregan is reading Good Me, Bad Me by Ali Land
I’ve just polished off Ali Land’s extremely chilling novel. While this book is intensely disturbing, it’s very hard to put down. When it comes to crime fiction, I much prefer psychological thrillers over action-packed titles. As such, I like to think I’ve become pretty…
A Galentine's Day tribute: on books and friendship
Galentine’s Day is a holiday that Amy Poehler’s Parks and Recreation character Leslie Knope invented that occurs every year on 13 February, the day before Valentine’s Day. Galentine’s Day is kind of like Valentine’s Day – but instead of celebrating ‘romantic’ love, you celebrate your love for your best girlfriends.
In anticipation of Galentine’s Day, our booksellers share stories of how books have played a role in their own friendships.
‘A dear friend of mine is a wonderful and generous…