This summer, we’ve been busy reading in parks, on beaches, and in the frozen food aisle of our local supermarket. We’ve come across some great picture books for nervous new Preps, adored Raina Telgemaier’s new spin on Ann M. Martin’s The Babysitter’s Club series, and slipped into a seriously psychedelic adventure for tweens.

SUMMER PICKS IN PICTURE BOOKS

Anyone who has ever been the owner of a ball-obsessed dog will appreciate the antics of Arlo in The 12th Dog…

Read more ›

The finalists for the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) awards have been announced. The NBCC honours outstanding writing and fosters a national conversation about reading, criticism and literature.

Fiction

Moonglow by Michael Chabon

LaRose by Louise Erdrich

Imagine Me Gone by Adam Haslett

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Swing Time by Zadie Smith

Non-fiction

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond

Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi

…

Read more ›

This year’s shortlist for the Indie Book Awards has been announced.

Each year, independent booksellers from around the nation get together and vote for their favourite titles in four different categories, as well as their favourite book overall. Here are the shortlisted titles in each category.

Fiction

The Good People by Hannah Kent

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

Where the Trees Were by Inga Simpson

The Last Painting of Sara de Vos by Dominic Smith

Non-fiction

The Hate Race…

Read more ›

Girl Stuff for Girls Aged 8-12 by Kaz Cooke

Unleashed (The Adventures of Dog Man Book 2) by Dav Pilkey

The Midnight Gang by David Walliams and Tony Ross

Double Down (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 11) by Jeff Kinney

In My Heart by Jo Witek and Christine Roussey

Danger Ahead (Friday Barnes Book 6) by R.A. Spratt

Wormwood Mire (A Stella Montgomery Intrigue) by Judith Rossell

We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen

Miss Peregrine’s…

Read more ›

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape

The Dry by Jane Harper

Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford

The Sellout by Paul Beatty

The Good People by Hannah Kent

Music and Freedom by Zoë Morrison

The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben

Community by Hetty McKinnon

Neighbourhood by Hetty McKinnon

Confabulations by John Berger

Scott Pape continues his reign at the top of our bestsellers list with his indispensable money guide, The Barefoot Investor, and we’re pleased to…

Read more ›

Run by State Library Victoria (SLV), the Thursday night book club will be held every Thursday night from 2 February to 6 April 2017. It combines an author Q&A with a lively book club discussion. Each session will take place in the Palmer Hall at the SLV, between 6pm to 8pm, and will focus on one of 10 recently released books by Melbourne authors.

The Thursday night book club is free to attend and no booking is required.

Here is…

Read more ›

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.

Lian Hingee is reading Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

I’ve just finished reading Big Little Lies, which is the second book by Liane Moriaty that I’ve read and, coincidentally, the second book by Liane Moriaty that I’ve absolutely loved.

A death occurs at the Pirriwee Public School ‘Audrey and Elvis’ themed trivia night…

Read more ›

Have you ever loved a book so much you weren’t able to talk sensibly about it? I’ve just finished reading Paul Griffin’s funny, sweet and devastating When Friendship Followed Me Home, and I’m feeling evangelical about it.

12-year-old Ben has spent most of his life in state care before being adopted by an older mum, the indomitable Tess. While Ben is undoubtedly affected by his past, you can see that he’s starting to thrive after two years in a…

Read more ›

Here are our 100 bestselling books from the past year.

(We’ve also compiled our 20 bestselling CDs of 2016 and our 20 bestselling DVDs of 2016.)

We’re thrilled to see several books from smart, powerful women listed in our top ten bestsellers. This includes non-fiction works from Gloria Steinem, Clementine Ford and Helen Garner, as well as compelling, feminist fiction from Charlotte Wood, Hannah Kent and Elena Ferrante.

Of the 100 books below…

39 are fiction (including two scripts…

Read more ›

Here are our 20 bestselling DVDs from the past year.

(We’ve also compiled our 100 bestselling books of 2016 and our 20 bestselling CDs of 2016.)

Crime and historical stories dominate our list of bestselling DVDs of last year – including all five volumes currently available of Un Village Francais. Set in a fictional village of German-occupied France during the Second World War, this popular French drama series comes from writer Frédéric Krivine and principal director Philippe Triboit…

Read more ›