Our latest blog posts

Australian podcasts I got hooked listening to this year

by Alan Vaarwerk

For delicious nuggets of storytelling: Story Club

I’m super jealous of all the cool stuff that goes on at Sydney’s Giant Dwarf Theatre – luckily, podcasts like Story Club help to ease the pain. Hosts Zoë Norton Lodge (author of Almost Sincerely) and Ben Jenkins present a selection of short, snappy stories recorded at their monthly storytelling nights, featuring emerging writers and comedians alongside names like David Marr and Masha Gessen. At around 15 minutes each, the episodes are…

Read more ›

A summer reading guide to OzYA books of 2015

by Bronte Coates

If your teen is looking for some reading material for the summer holidays, here’s a guide to some of the best YA fiction written by Australian authors this past year.

Sci-fi and fantasy

Illuminae: The Illuminae Files_01, from talented Melbourne duo Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, is the YA book that everyone is talking about right now. Set in the distant future (and space), the story is very cleverly told through a series of documents as opposed to a…

Read more ›

Our favourite Christmas books for kids

Christmas is right around the corner, so we’ve selected our favourite books for kids of all ages to get you in the festive mood!

What Do You Wish For? by Jane Godwin and Anna Walker

What’s your Christmas wish? All of the kids in Ruby’s neighbourhood have something different to wish for – things like puppies and camping trips and new toys. But Ruby’s Christmas wish is something different, and she really hopes it comes true. This is a warm…

Read more ›

Our 2015 Christmas Gift Guides

Yes, it’s Christmas time again so to help make your shopping easier we’ve put together a list of guides to help you find the perfect gift for your friends, families, and even your obligations.

GIFT GUIDES FOR YOUR FAMILY

Gift ideas for your parents

Gift ideas for your children

Gift ideas for your siblings

Gift ideas for your significant other

GIFT GUIDES FOR THE HARD-TO-BUY-FOR

Hard-to-buy-for children

Hard-to-buy-for adults

Books for people who don’t read

Our favourite Christmas books for

Read more ›

Making Christmas shopping easy online at Readings

The countdown to Christmas is on, and the team at Readings is here to help you get your gift-buying done with as little bloodshed as possible.

The Readings website allows you to search for books, CDs and DVDs online, and to check stock availability at any of our five shops.

Our knowledgeable staff are on hand to help you choose the perfect gift, and if you can’t make it into a shop simply send us an email at [email protected]

Read more ›

Comics and graphic novels we loved in 2015

Our staff share some of their favourite comics and graphic novels from the past year.

Angela Crocombe, Children’s Book Buyer

One of my favourite graphic novels this year was Kidglovz. This spellbinding graphic novel is both beautiful and heartbreaking. It is the story of a musical child prodigy exploited by his mentor who discovers freedom when he meets petty thief, Shoestring. Kid’s epic hero’s journey from naivety to knowledge of his past, appreciation of his talent and ultimately, awareness…

Read more ›

20 gift ideas under $20

This Annoying Life: A Mindless Colouring Book for the Highly Stressed by Oslo Davis ($9.99)

Within This Annoying Life you’ll find scenes of angst and stress ready for you to add your creative flourishes to. And why not - we’re all in this mess together and there’s nothing we can do about it! So pick up your pencils, give yourself a moment, then colour your way through the pain of everyday life. For adults of all ages.

Men and Cats

Read more ›

The story behind BOLD

by David Hardy

David Hardy is the editor of BOLD: Stories from older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people, a new anthology from Melbourne not-for-profit book publisher, The Rag and Bone Man Press. Here, Hardy tells us about the process of making the book, and why it matters.

BOLD is a collection of stories from more than 60 older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people. They are largely unknown stories outside their circle of family and friends, and all…

Read more ›

The 10 best books I shared with my children this year

by Emily Gale

When I told my children I was leaving my job at Readings, they were shocked. “But where will we get our books from?” they said, which sounds a bit dramatic unless you’ve seen the volume of books I’ve been bringing home since I started the job. I’ve felt very lucky these past four years to have access to such a huge array of beautiful books to test-drive with them. So you can be assured that my family’s top ten books…

Read more ›