Congratulations to Readings staff member Miles Allinson for being named the winner of the 2014 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript!

The award was announced last night at the opening of the Emerging Writers’ Festival where Allinson read from his prize-winning manuscript, ‘Fever of Animals’ which the judges described as elegant and thoughtful. Dense and moody, this is a layered story about one man’s lack of self-knowledge, and about the people, places and memories that slip through his…

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Bronte Coates talks with Andrew Solomon about unorthodox families, including his own.

Far from the Tree is frequently described as a ‘life-changing’ book, and I’d absolutely agree with this statement; after reading the book I’ve viewed my own relationship with my family differently. Do you feel a sense of responsibility for such a reaction from readers?

I’m of course honoured by the designation of it as a life-changing book, and have been especially moved by letters I’ve received that emphasize…

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The Emerging Writers’ Festival kicks off tonight with an electrifying new line-up of writers, events and venues trailed across the Melbourne CBD. To help you navigate this jam-packed-with-goodness program, we’ve asked some of the festival’s guests to share their top picks.

Luke Ryan, author of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Chemo:

Is there any festival on Earth as unlikely as the Emerging Writers’ Festival? A fully-packed, 11-day bacchanal of writing, wisdom and whimsy dedicated solely to…

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The winners of the 2014 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIAs) were announced in Sydney on Friday 23 May.

Readings is the (joint) winner of the Independent Book Retailer of the Year Award, along with Pages & Pages in Sydney.

It was a particularly successful night for Text Publishing, with Graeme Simsion’s The Rosie Project taking out both general fiction book of the year and overall book of the year, and the publisher itself being recognised as small publisher of the…

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The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (including film tie-in edition)

Run for Your Life by Jill Jolliffe

The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka by Clare Wright

The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair by Joël Dicker

Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Little Golden Book by Diane Muldrow

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

The Strays by Emily Bitto

Carrots and Jaffas by Howard Goldenberg

Foreign Soil by Maxine Beneba Clarke

…

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Welcome to our new book advice column where you can ask our wise bookseller Agatha all your tricky (book-related) questions.

I’ve read all of David Gemmell’s books and don’t know what to read next. Who’s an author like him?

This is a tricky question because really, there is no single author that matches Gemmell’s style to perfection. Luckily, his influence is strongly evident in a number of fantasy and historical fiction novels and depending what aspect of his books you…

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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.

Mark is reading A Fighting Chance by Elizabeth Warren

I’ve been having a look through A Fighting Chance by Senator Elizabeth Warren. Warren is considered the unacknowledged leader of the new progressive movement in US politics and people are speculating that this book is her manifesto for a tilt at the White House…

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It was my privilege to attend this year’s Children’s Book Council conference in Canberra last weekend. The theme for the conference was ‘Discovering National Treasures’ and one of my personal highlights was ‘A Bird In The Hand’, an exhibition at the Canberra Museum and Gallery celebrating the thirty-year career of picture book writer and illustrator Bob Graham.

The exhibition was lovingly curated, holding the same wonderful tone as the many household favourites that Bob Graham has given us…

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This month literary journal Going Down Swinging will present a series of shows around Australia featuring spoken word rockstar Derrick Brown. As a special treat for Readings he has answered Jonathan Safran Foer’s ‘Two Minute Personality Test’ questions from his Cultivating Thought Author Series.

What’s the kindest thing you almost did?

I ate bacon from a hog that looked depressed.

What’s your earliest memory?

Standing on my Father’s lunchbox at age 2, looking out the windows at morning while…

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The 2014 Sydney Writers’ Festival kicks off tonight! The good news is that those of us not in Sydney can still follow along at home. Bronte Coates shows you how.

Step 1: Become acquainted with Andrew Solomon’s online persona.

Andrew Solomon’s Far from the Tree is one of the few books I’d ever feel justified describing as ‘life-changing’. Here are stories of families living with exceptional and out-of-the-ordinary children with each new chapter focusing on a particular issue, taking us…

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