Our latest blog posts
The most anticipated books of 2015
Here is my panoramic survey of titles on the horizon for later in the year – rather a feast, I’m sure you’ll agree! From this (of course very early) vantage point I have the following on my radar:
Australian fiction:
In April a simply great debut novel from Readings’ own A.S. Patric, Black Rock White City; Alice Robinson also on debut with Anchor Point; Robyn Cadwallader’s medieval tale The Anchoress, that is being published around the world…
The Indie Awards Shortlist for 2015
The shortlist for the 2015 Indie Awards have been announced! The Indie Awards are voted for by independent booksellers from around the country.
The shortlisted titles for 2015 include:
Fiction Award Shortlist:
When the Night Comes by Favel Parrett
Amnesia by Peter Carey
Golden Boys by Sonya Hartnett
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
Non-fiction Award Shortlist:
This House of Grief: The Story of a Murder Trial by Helen Garner
The Winners of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2015
The winners for the 2015 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards have been announced.
The winner of the fiction prize is To Name Those Lost by Rohan Wilson.
The winner of the non-fiction prize is The Europeans in Australia by Alan Atkinson.
The winner of the young adult fiction prize is The Protected by Claire Zorn.
The winner of the poetry prize is The Beautiful Anxiety by Jill Jones.
The winner of the drama prize is Resplendence by Angus Cerini.
The winner…
Four free and fantastic events at St Kilda this February
Join us this February for four fantastic, free events at our St Kilda shop, located at 112 Acland St in St Kilda.
Get your blue suede shoes on and join in the St Kilda Festival Live n Local series with Belle Rosco as they perform from their new album, Boom Boom. This wonderful indie pop rock sound is the personification of summer itself.
6pm, Tuesday 3 February
Free, no booking required
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
We are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi
Mateship: A Very Australian History by Nick Dyrenfurth
The Book of Paul: The Wit and Wisdom of Paul Keating by Russell Marks
Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges
Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s ‘Learned’ by Lena Dunham
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (translated by Ann Goldstein)
…
Wild: Book vs. Film
Nina Kenwood and Bronte Coates talk about Cheryl Strayed’s memoir, Wild, and how the recent film adaptation compares to the book.
Bronte: I read Wild based on your recommendation but otherwise I never would’ve picked it up as it didn’t sound like the sort of thing I’d enjoy. I absolutely loved it (of course). Why did you pick it up in the first place?
Nina: I think I read something about it online, and I’d just gotten into hiking…
What we're reading: Nicholas Rombes, Lauren Sams and Jane Gleeson-White
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.
Gerard Elson is reading The Absolution of Roberto Acestes Laing by Nicholas Rombes
After a promising beginning, I was ultimately frustrated by film scholar Nicholas Rombes’ first work of literary fiction. The novel finds a journalist travelling to a remote location to interview a rare film librarian about a selection of destroyed films…
January Children's & Young Adult Highlights
It’s great to see an author-illustrator partnership taking off and I think that’s the case with Clare Freedman and Kate Hindley. Their first book,
, was really good fun and several customers told me it was their pre-schooler’s favourite. The latest,
, is a heart-breaker (probably more so for the adult reading it) but nicely uplifting. Warm and lively illustrations, and the cover alone put a smile on my face.
Staying on the…
Why you should keep track of every book you read
For the past three years, I’ve kept a record of all the books I read in an Excel spreadsheet. I note the title, author, publication date, genre, month I read the book and I give each book a letter grade (I like the report card feel of assigning a letter grade – I feel very authoritative and teacherly). I can’t remember exactly why I formed this habit, but it’s one I’ve stuck to. And now I think that keeping track…
What books should I read before I travel to Japan?
If you’re planning a holiday to Japan you might like to consider reading one of the following books.
The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide (translated by Eric Selland)
A couple in their thirties live in a small rented cottage in a quiet part of Tokyo, and work at home as freelance writers. They no longer have very much to say to one another. One day a cat invites itself into their small kitchen…
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
Grieving the grandmother…
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