Our latest blog posts

Six enthralling novels about women in science

The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert

The Signature of All Things is an extraordinary story of botany, exploration and desire, spanning across much of the nineteenth century. The novel follows the fortunes of the brilliant Alma Whittaker – daughter of a bold and charismatic botanical explorer – who comes into her own within the world of plants and science. As Alma’s careful studies of moss take her deeper into the mysteries of evolution, the man she loves draws…

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Our best comfort reads

Booksellers share their favourite books and best advice for comfort reading.

Nina Kenwood recommends seriously good fantasy.

I don’t think you can go past a good fantasy series for comfort – a nice long read set in a world that isn’t yours can do wonders to take your mind off of your problems. The Harry Potter series are an obvious example. They contain many crucial elements that give me great comfort – boarding school, Englishness, descriptions of food, and the…

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Baillie Gifford Prize longlist 2016

The £30,000 Baillie Gifford prize (formerly known as the Samuel Johnson prize) is the UK’s most prestigious award for nonfiction writing. This year’s longlist has been announced and Chair of Judges, Stephanie Flanders, says that each of these 10 titles ‘takes you on a journey that is as engrossing and imaginative as any novel’.

Here is the longlist in full:

Second-Hand Time by Svetlana Alexievich, translated by Bela Shayevich

The Vanishing Man by Laura Cumming

Being a Beast by Charles…

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Children’s books for Dementia Awareness Month

Today is World Alzheimer’s Day, and September is Dementia Awareness Month in Australia. The theme this year is `You are not alone’ – a great reminder to sit down with the kids in our lives and read about how dementia impacts the people we know and love.

Here are some of our recommendations for children’s books that explore the impact of dementia and Alzheimer’s on families.

Celia and Nonna by Victoria Lane and Kayleen West

Celia loves spending quality time…

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Our top picks of the month for book clubs

For an entertaining, old-fashioned afternoon tea…

Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah with Agatha Christie

Our crime fiction columnist had some concerns about dipping into Sophie Hannah’s imagining of a brand-new Hercule Poirot mystery – Agatha Christie is a singular voice! – but happily, she was entranced by the tale. In her own words, this witty mystery is ‘just too wonderfully delicious’. And we have a strong suspicion this delicious read would go down extremely well with some delicious…

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Why you should read Ruins by Rajith Savanadasa

We’re delighted that Rajith Savanadasa’s debut novel is one of the six books shortlisted for this year’s Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction. Here’s why we think you should read this book.

1. Ruins is a refreshing take on the ‘big, messy, dysfunctional family’ narrative.

Many of us here at Readings are big fans of novels about dysfunctional families (who isn’t?) and it’s an area of literature that’s often dominated by American fiction. So it was exciting to get our…

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What we're reading: Sarah Bannan, Jimmy Barnes and Mary Gaitskill

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.

Chris Gordon is reading Working Class Boy by Jimmy Barnes

Last night, I started reading Jimmy Barnes’ forthcoming memoir about his childhood Working Class Boy. I didn’t expect to be captivated. I didn’t expect that his story would be one of poverty, abuse and addiction. I didn’t expect to be moved by…

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National Book Awards longlists 2016

The longlists for this year’s National Book Awards have been announced. Here they are in full.

Fiction

The Throwback Special by Chris Bachelder

What Belongs To You by Garth Greenwell

Imagine Me Gone by Adam Haslett

News of the World by Paulette Jiles

The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan

The Portable Veblen by Elizabeth McKenzie

Sweet Lamb of Heaven by Lydia Millet

Miss Jane by Brad Watson

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

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