Our latest blog posts
Ask Agatha: Is it rude to admit I dislike a book that was a gift?
Our wise bookseller Agatha answers all your tricky questions.
I’m half-way through a book I received as a Christmas gift and have just considered throwing it across the room. If the gifter asks me what I thought, is it rude to come clean about how much I hated it? Should I just pretend I enjoyed it?
In this situation, you’re going to need to do some risk assessment: How often do you receive gifts from this person? How likely is…
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi
We are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
The Book of Paul: The Wit and Wisdom of Paul Keating by Russell Marks
Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s ‘Learned’ by Lena Dunham
A World of Other People by Steven Carroll
Amnesia by Peter Carey
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Only the Animals by Ceridwen Dovey
What we're reading: Donna Tartt, Michael Faber and Molly Idle
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.
Fiona Hardy is reading (and rereading!) Flora and the Penguin by Molly Idle
I have a stack of work to do at the moment so I am sadly in-between books. However, I have read one stand-out title recently and not just once, but over and over again.
A Christmas gift from a friend…
Australian young adult books to look forward to in 2015
‘The Year Ahead in Youth Literature’ is a mouth-watering event showcasing the following year’s young adult highlights and hosted by a tireless organisation known as the Centre For Youth Literature (CYL).
Publishers come armed with a 1-minute spiel on their selected titles and anyone who’s interested is invited to come along and take notes. The audience is largely made up of bloggers, teachers, teacher-librarians, authors and publishers, but I also met a young guy who works in a bank, happens…
Our literary resolutions for the new year
Our staff share their literary resolutions for the new year.
One of the things I keep learning way too late is that when someone hands you a book to read, you should read it right away. Too often those books sit untouched on my shelf for months – or years – until the person who once recommended them forgets to ask how I’m enjoying it or becomes suspicious of my evasive ways. For 2015, I am resolved to start any…
What we're reading over summer
Our staff share the books they’re planning to read over summer.
My extensive summer reading list is as follows: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toew, Dept of Speculation by Jenny Offill, The Most of Nora Ephron by Nora Ephron, Nobody Is Ever Missing by Catherine Lacey, H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald, Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit, Young Hearts Crying by Richard Yates, Tracks by Robyn Davidson and Men…
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi
We are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Amnesia by Peter Carey
The Wit of Whitlam by James Carleton
The Book of Paul: The Wit and Wisdom of Paul Keating by Russell Marks
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
The Bush: Travels in the Heart of Australia by Don Watson
Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s ‘Learned’ by…
A beginner's guide to podcasts
Disclaimer: This is a very-much-reflecting-my-own-tastes beginner’s guide to podcasts. It’s not designed to be an exhaustive list but more of a representation of what I’ve personally enjoyed this year when walking to and from work.
Let’s start with the absolute basics.
What even is a podcast and how do I listen to one?
A podcast is basically a radio show you can listen to at any time. You can listen to a podcast by streaming it on your computer (as…
Our in-store calendar & diary sale
Our annual calendar & diary sale kicks off today!
We’re offering 40% off all 2015 calendars and 20% off all 2015 diaries when you purchase in-store.
This offer is only available from our Carlton, Hawthorn, St Kilda, Malvern and State Library of Victoria shops, while stock lasts. (Not available online.)
Please note, our State Library and Malvern shops are closed on Boxing Day. You can find the opening hours for our other shops here.
Catch up on a classic over Christmas
Looking for something to read? Forget the new releases and delve into a past gem.
Martin Shaw recommends Steven Amsterdam
We talk a lot about contemporary Australian writing, but seldom do we look back any further than the 3-12 month window that the publishing industry typically revolves around. So what are already the modern classics of Australian Literature?
For my money, one of them is Steven Amsterdam’s first novel from 2009, Things We Didn’t See Coming.
From the splendid…
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