Our latest blog posts

The ABIA Book longlists 2016

The Australian Book Industry Awards Academy has announced the ABIA Book longlists for 2016. Congratulations to all the authors, illustrators and publishers.

Biography Book of the Year

Inside by Chris Judd (Allen & Unwin)

Second Half First by Drusilla Modjeska (Penguin Random House)

Plain-speaking Jane by Jane Caro (Pan Macmillan)

Keating by Kerry O’Brien (Allen & Unwin)

Reckoning: A Memoir by Magda Szubanski (Text Publishing)

Born to Rule by Paddy Manning (Melbourne University Publishing)

Flesh Wounds by Richard Glover (ABC…

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What we're reading: Tana French, Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney and Daniel Clowes

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.

Lian Hingee is reading The Secret Place by Tana French

I first discovered Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad series after falling down a Gone Gir-shaped hole. I wanted to find another contemporary crime novel that was smart, didn’t revel in graphic depictions of violence against women, and had interesting, flawed, but ultimately…

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Mark Rubbo interviews Helen Garner

Mark Rubbo talks with Helen Garner about her new book, Everywhere I Look, a collection of her short non-fiction pieces.

What drew you to reportage?

I was faced with an immediate need to make a living, after I got the sack from teaching in 1972. Also, it has always felt natural. It suits me. It gets me into places and situations that I would otherwise be too shy to broach.

I remember asking Peter Carey once whether he drew…

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Winners of the Indie Book Awards 2016

The winners of the Indie Book Awards 2016 have 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 winners for each category, along with comments from our booksellers.

The Fiction winner and the overall Indie Book of the Year winner is…
The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood

‘One of the best books I’ve read in…

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Come visit us at Clunes Booktown Festival

The program for this year’s Clunes Booktown Festival (30 April to 1 May) has been announced. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of this wonderful festival.

For two days each year, the town of Clunes becomes home to the largest collection of new, second hand, rare and out-of-print small-press publications and collectable books in Australia. Readings will again be manning a stall over the weekend, along with a host of book traders from across Australia, and we’re hoping to…

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Why we love Roald Dahl's Matilda

We’re so excited that Dennis Kelly’s musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s Matilda has arrived in Melbourne. A tearaway success on Broadway and in the West End, Matilda: The Musical has won five Tony Awards, and the music and lyrics are from Australia’s very own Tim Minchin.

Here, readers reflect on what makes Matilda such a timeless heroine.

“I absolutely adored Matilda as a child. I loved how smart she was. I loved how she went from being a pawn in…

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Which book should I read from the Stella Prize shortlist?

This year’s shortlist for the Stella Prize features some brilliant books from Australian women, including two story collections, one essay collection, and three novels. Here’s a guide to help you decide which one to read first.

Read this book if…

You love ‘time capsule’ fiction that provides a glimpse into history

Now in her 80s, Elizabeth Harrower is one of Australia’s most celebrated and interesting authors. She published four novels to critical acclaim, and then gave up writing up entirely…

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New editions of prize books

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent

$14.99

Northern Iceland, 1829. A woman condemned to death for murdering her lover. A family forced to take her in. A priest tasked with absolving her. But all is not as it seems, and time is running out: winter is coming, and with it the execution date. Only she can know the truth. This is Agnes’s story.

Shortlisted, Stella Prize, 2014
Shortlisted, Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, 2016

A Few Days in the Country and

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