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Ten Melbourne literary journals we loved in 2014
In 2014 we featured some terrific Melbourne-based literary journals on our event calendar. Here are ten of our favourites.
Alquimie, edited by Joshua Elias
Distinguished by its content-rich approach and striking design, Alquimie is a new voice in the world of drinks. Forgoing trends and phases in lieu of deeper perspective, this publication presents a wide array of opinion and objectivity, and simplifies the complexities of beverage culture without pretension.
Find their most recent issue
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 Bush: Travels in the Heart of Australia by Don Watson
The Book of Paul: The Wit and Wisdom of Paul Keating by Russell Marks
Nora Webster by Colm Tóibín
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
Only The Animals by Ceridwen Dovey
Richard Flanagan…
What we're reading: Jill Lepore, Kyoko Wada and Nora Ephron
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.
Bronte Coates has been dipping in and out of The Most of Nora Ephron
Last weekend I read Helen Macdonald’s memoir H is for Hawk, which was wonderful and moving. I never thought a goshawk playing with paper would make me burst into tears (this statement basically sums up the entire joy…
Gifts with hidden messages
Make the most of this Christmas season by selecting gifts that will subtly persuade and inspire your friends and family to your own (naturally superior) way of thinking.
Want your co-worker to take a long holiday?
Try: An Innocent Abroad: Life-Changing Trips from 35 Great Writers
Because: Travel will change your life and for the better. Allow your co-worker to discover this through stories.
Want your partner to stop buying lunch out at work?
Our picks for children's and young adult prizewinners in 2014
Australian
The Readings Children’s Book Prize
Song For A Scarlet Runner by Julie Hunt
The Inkys (Australia’s teen choice awards)
The First Third by Will Kostakis
CBCA Book of the Year for Older Readers
Wildlife by Fiona Wood
YABBA Award (children’s choice book award for Victoria) for Younger Readers
Billie B Brown: The Best Project by Sally Rippin
Speech Pathology Australia Awards, Indigenous children category
Deadly D & Justice Jones – Making the Team by Scott Prince and Dave Hartley
…
Five debut Australian books I loved this year
Digital marketing manager Nina Kenwood selects her favourite debut Australian books from this year.
The Feel-Good Hit of the Year by Liam Pieper
This was the first book I came across in 2014 that made me want to start shouting from the rooftops, ‘Everyone should read this!’.
It’s a memoir about Liam’s early life – his childhood through to his twenties – and it tells of how drugs, addiction and loss came to loom over his family. It’s a dark…
The best book I ever received (or gave) as a gift...
Our staff share the best literary gifts they’ve ever received, or given. And also the worst (see here)…
My bookish world is a total mystery to my partner, so as you can imagine he never ventures into a bookshop when it comes to choosing presents for me. This is why I was so staggered and thrilled when he gave me a memoir one year. For Better For Worse was written by a couple, using a very funny dual narrative…
The books by women we read in 2014: Part II
We recently published a blog post about the books by women we’d read in 2014 (as a celebration of the #readwomen2014 campaign). You can find it here.
In response to our post, a customer tweeted back saying it would be nice to hear a male perspective on reading women too… So, here are some of the books by women that our male staff loved in 2014.
Martin Shaw, Books Division Manager:
I must admit that this year there…
The worst book I ever received (or gave) as a gift...
Our staff share the worst literary gifts they’ve ever received, or given. And also the best (see here)…
I remember unwrapping a hardback edition of Roget’s Thesaurus the Christmas after I turned nine. This was the year that I perfected the art of hiding my feelings. I loved books and I loved reading but when I was nine I wanted the Careless Whisper 7” or a Care Bear, not 325,000 words and phrases. But if that sounds ungrateful, it’s…
Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2014 Winners
The 2014 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards winners have been announced with three categories naming joint winners, and two of the winning authors donating their prize money to key organisations working toward change in Australia
Richard Flanagan (this year’s Booker Prize winner) was named a joint winner for the Fiction Award and gave his full $40,000 prize money to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. In addition, Bob Graham was named the winner of the Children’s Fiction Award and donated $10,000 of…
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