Our latest blog posts
The 20 bestselling CDs at Readings in 2016
Here are our 20 bestselling CDs from the past year.
(We’ve also compiled our 100 bestselling books of 2016 and our 20 bestselling DVDs of 2016.)
Our top 20 albums of 2016 include releases from some of the biggest names in music: Van Morrison, Radiohead, Joan Baez and the Rolling Stones; as well as local legends Paul Kelly, Nick Cave and Archie Roach. 2015’s number one bestselling album, 25 by Adele, continued to enjoy strong sales, while Readings favourite…
Familiar stories told from women's perspectives
Women’s voices have been silenced throughout history – their accomplishments and contributions drowned out by those of their male contemporaries. Increasingly we’re beginning to hear their stories in non-fiction, and in literature. Here are some of the best novels that explore traditionally patriarchal stories from the woman’s perspective.
The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
In Margaret Atwood’s clever novella, the classic story of The Odyssey is reimagined from the perspective of Odysseus’ clever and cunning wife, Penelope. While Homer’s titular character…
Costa book awards winners 2016
Congratulations to the winners of the 2016 Costa Book Awards.
These awards honour some of the most outstanding books of the year written by authors based in the UK and Ireland, across five different categories.
The 2016 winners for each category are Golden Hill by Francis Spufford (First novel), Days Without End by Sebastian Barry (Novel), Dadland: A Journey Into Uncharted Territory by Keggie Carew (Biography), Falling Awake by Alice Oswald (Poetry) and The Bombs That Brought Us Together by…
Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week
Double Down (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 11) by Jeff Kinney
The Midnight Gang by David Walliams and Tony Ross
Unleashed (The Adventures of Dog Man Book 2) by Dav Pilkey
We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (the original screenplay) by J.K. Rowling
Girl Stuff for Girls Aged 8-12: Your Real Guide to the Pre-Teen Years by Kaz Cooke
Where is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox and Judy…
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape
The Sellout by Paul Beatty
Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben
Music and Freedom by Zoë Morrison
The Good People by Hannah Kent
The Dry by Jane Harper
Between a Wolf and a Dog by Georgia Blain
Swing Time by Zadie Smith
Everywhere I Look by Helen Garner
It seems that everyone is planning to save money in 2017 with Scott Pape’s (AKA, The Barefoot…
See you all in 2017
2016 has been a huge year for Readings.
We returned as the official bookseller at Melbourne Writers Festival; we opened two new bookshops; we were named Independent Book Retailer of the Year at the 2016 Australian Book Industry Awards; and we won Bookstore of the Year Award at the 2016 London Book Fair International Excellence Awards. We also hosted a stack of fantastic events (including sell-out Town Hall extravaganzas with Gloria Steinem, and Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton), collaborated with…
What we're reading over summer
Our staff share the books they’re planning to read over summer.
‘As usual, I’ll be spending the summer catching up on everything I missed during the year. So far on my pile I’ve got Elspeth Muir’s Wasted, Rajith Savanadasa’s Ruins, Sean Rabin’s Wood Green and Paul Beatty’s The Sellout, just to name a few!’ – Alan Vaarwerk, editorial assistant for Readings Monthly
‘I’m hoping to read all the unread books on my shelves at home this summer…
Our literary resolutions for the new year
Our staff share their literary resolutions for the new year.
‘I so enjoyed the books that my workmates recommended to me this year that one of my resolutions for 2017 is definitely to read more of the books that other people rave about – even if they’re a bit outside what I would normally read. I also probably need to get over my phobia of leaving books unfinished, since every not-so-great book that I slog through until the final page…
TV series to watch over summer
It’s been a really tough year, and summer is the perfect time to log off from social media for a little while, give yourself a break and binge watch your troubles away.
You’ll find my many suggestions below, with a few caveats: I have excluded reality TV, I watch far too many American shows, and my blind spots include Scandinavian crime and animation (sorry, BoJack Horseman fans).
If you’re seeking comfort…
You might be in need of the kind of…
Book series to read over summer
IMMERSIVE LITERARY FICTION
Jay McInerney has written about Russell and Corrine Calloway in three linked novels that are deeply moving in their exploration of contemporary life in America. The first novel is Brightness Falls.
Corrine Calloway is a young stockbroker on Wall Street, her husband Russell an underpaid but ambitious publishing editor. The happily married couple head into New York’s 1980s gold rush, awash with prospects and promise, where the best and brightest vie with the worst and most…
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