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Prime Minister's Literary Awards winners 2016

The winners of this year’s Prime Minister’s Literary Awards have been announced.

The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards celebrate outstanding literary talent in Australia and the valuable contribution Australian literature and history makes to the nation’s cultural and intellectual life.

Congratulations to the winners in each category.

Fiction (Joint Winners)

The Life of Houses by Lisa Gorton

The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood

Poetry

The Hazards by Sarah Holland-Batt

Non-fiction (Joint Winners)

On Stalin’s Team: The years of Living

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Join us for the launch of the Hope Prize anthology

Earlier this year, we were thrilled to be involved with the Brotherhood of St Laurence’s inaugural Hope Prize.

The Hope Prize was established, thanks to the generosity of the late Prudence Myer and the support of her family, to encourage writing that transcends stereotypes of ‘the poor’ and reflects the resilience we know that people show in the face of poverty and testing times.

Judging this Prize really was a community effort. The Brotherhood received over 1,000 entries and…

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The best new crime reads in November

by Fiona Hardy

CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH

Night School by Lee Child

I often try to put local and small-press authors as my books of the month, mainly because they’re great, but also because Readings has an extensive history of author support that I’m very proud to be part of. This month’s book-of-the-month author isn’t in particularly dire need of our support – the new Reacher is gracing movie screens as I type – but, you know, I often overlook big-name authors…

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Our 2016 Christmas Gift Guide: What to buy your parents

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be compiling a host of gift guides to help you with your Christmas shopping.

If they have an artistic sensibility…

Margaret Preston sheds light on the private life of the much-loved Australian artist, featuring her work, photographs and even recipes.

In The Secret Lives of Colour, Kassia St Clair tells the unusual stories of 75 shades, dyes and hues, delving into history, politics and more.

Plant combines photographs and cutting-edge micrograph scans with…

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Our 2016 Christmas Gift Guide: What to buy your significant other

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be compiling a host of gift guides to help you with your Christmas shopping.

If they’re in need of a good laugh…

When Jamie Morton’s dad wrote a self-published erotic novel, Jamie did what few among us would do – he turned the experience into a smash-hit podcast with two friends. My Dad Wrote a Porno is the hilarious annotated book edition of the original erotic novel.

The Wonder Trail is the story of…

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Our 2016 Christmas Gift Guide: What to buy your siblings (and other relatives)

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be compiling a host of gift guides to help you with your Christmas shopping.

If they collect interesting facts…

Adam Spencer’s Time Machine is 2016’s ultimate compendium for curious minds, packed with quizzes, anecdotes and trivia.

In Weird Dinosaurs, John Pickrell examines the latest breakthroughs and new technologies radically transforming our understanding of these creatures.

Featuring Wired writer Matt Simon’s signature blend of science smarts and humour, The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar

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Our 2016 Christmas Gift Guide: What to buy your children

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be compiling a host of gift guides to help you with your Christmas shopping.

FOR AGES 0 - 2

A sauntering cat is seen quite differently through the eyes of a range of different animals in They All Saw A Cat. Little people will pore over the clever visual clues in this deceptively simple perfect picture book.

Admirers of Oliver Jeffers’ playful illustrations will love his idiosyncratic alphabet book, An Alphabet, presented…

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

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

Wormwood Mire (A Stella Montgomery Intrigue) by Judith Rossell

Out by Angela May George and Owen Swan

The 78-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton

Gemina (The Illuminae Files_02) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Lots by Marc Martin

Artie and the Grime Wave by Richard Roxburgh

Hotdog: Book 1 by Anh Do and Dan McGuiness

We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen

Ada

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What we're reading: Jane Harper, Idra Novey and Frank Norris

Each week we bring you a sample of the books we’re reading, the films we’re watching, the television shows we’re hooked on or the music we’re loving.

Ed Moreno is reading Ways to Disappear by Idra Novey

I picked Ways to Disappear off the shelf to have a look and it stopped me in my tracks. From the opening sentence, I was intrigued. I bought a copy that night and read it over the next few days. It’s one of…

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