Our latest blog posts
Awesomely gross and rude books that kids will love
Digital content coordinator Bronte Coates shares some of our best picks for the grossest, the rudest and the silliest children’s books.
Let’s admit it: kids are gross and they love gross books.
I’m talking bottoms, snail slime, dog breath, smelly socks, boogers, shark guts – that kind of thing. Of course, it’s very likely that you know children who’d turn up their nose at even the whiff of a fart joke, but I bet you also know a lot of…
Which recipe is the best from Hetty McKinnon's new cookbook?
Earlier this week we roadtested seven different recipes from Hetty McKinnon’s new cookbook, Neighbourhood and invited Hetty to come in and select the best one. Here are the results of the cook-off…
Jan Lockwood made ‘Israeli chopped salad with tomatoes, cucumber, radish and feta’ (pg. 123):
No cooking involved here, just chopping, chopping, chopping. You do need a great knife for chopping tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and radish. And another great knife for finely chopping fresh green chilli, Chinese shallots, and…
The bestselling books at Melbourne Writers Festival 2016
We were delighted to be the official booksellers at this year’s Melbourne Writers Festival, which finished up last Sunday. Congratulations to the Melbourne Writers Festival team on another amazing year!
Readings Managing Director Mark Rubbo says: ‘It was a very enjoyable festival and everything went well – we enjoyed ourselves. The program was strong and focused; Maxine Beneba Clarke’s opening address was particularly powerful, as was Richard Flanagan’s address. We were especially excited that Readings staff member Alec Patrić won…
Books, music, film and TV from Indigenous Australians
In recognition of Indigenous Literacy Day, we’ve compiled some collections of our favourite books, music, film and TV from Indigenous Australians. Happy browsing!
Indigenous Australian picture books
Welcome to Country is one of our favourite Indigenous Australian picture book released this year; children’s specialist Angela Crocombe says it ‘belongs on every home bookshelf and in every library’. Wurundjeri Elder Aunty Joy Murphy and Indigenous artist Lisa Kennedy have crafted a spectacular celebration of Indigenous land and culture that takes…
Today is Indigenous Literacy Day
Today is Indigenous Literacy Day.
Literacy unlocks the keys to learning; without those keys the choices available to children are severely limited. As the world becomes more complex and connected it is more important than ever that all our children have access to the education that will help them make the choices that are appropriate to them. Statistically, there has been no significant improvement between 2008 and 2014 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students at or above the national…
Introducing the Readings Young Adult Book Prize
In 2014, we announced two literary prizes intended to support emerging Australian writers: the Readings Children’s Book Prize, and the Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction.
Over the past few years, we’ve been delighted to see our customers embracing both Prizes. We’ve loved the way the Prizes amplify our voices as booksellers, and we’ve loved seeing readers getting their hands on these wonderful books from our local talented authors.
And today we’re so pleased to announce that we…
Jayneen Sanders on Body Safety Education in children's books
by Jayneen SandersIn recognition of National Child Protection Week (4 – 10 September) we chat with Jayneen Sanders – an experienced primary school teacher, author and publisher who actively advocates for sexual abuse prevention education.
Tell us why you decided to write children’s books that address personal safety.
I have three daughters so when they were very young I naturally taught them that their body was their body and no-one had the right to touch it in an unsafe way. I was…
Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week
The 78-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton
Mega Weird (WeirDo Book 7) by Anh Do and Jules Faber
The Call by Peadar Ó Guilín
Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts
Welcome to Country by Joy Murphy and Lisa Kennedy
Mr Chicken Arriva a Roma by Leigh Hobbs
Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley
Uncensored (So Wrong Book 1) by Michael Wagner and Wayne Bryant
Dog Man (The Adventures of Dog Man…
Environment Award for Children’s Literature winners 2016
The winners of this year’s Environment Award for Children’s Literature were announced at the Melbourne Writers Festival! This annual Award is organised by the Wilderness Society and encourages children to take an interest in nature and feel a sense of responsibility for the places we love and our unique wildlife.
This year, the Award included three categories.
Non-fiction
Atmospheric by Carole Wilkinson
Talking about the weather used to be small talk, now it’s the hottest topic on Earth. In Atmospheric…
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
Black Rock White City by A.S. Patrić
Nutshell by Ian McEwan
Grant and I by Robert Forster
Enemy Within – American Politics in the Time of Trump (Quarterly Essay 63) by Don Watson
Harry Potter And The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany
Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil by Melina Marchetta
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and How to Think Smarter About People Who Think Differently by…