Australian fiction
Anam by André Dao
Anam, the debut novel by Melbourne writer André Dao, is told through the eyes of a human rights lawyer who has paused his life in Melbourne to return to study in Cambridge, England. With his young family in tow…
The Albatross by Nina Wan
Whistles, a rather pathetic nine-hole golf course somewhere in suburban Melbourne, is dying. It is about to be swallowed up by a developer and for Primrose Li, her newly discovered escape will soon be gone. Primrose doesn’t remember exactly why…
Naked Ambition by Robert Gott
A youngish up-and-coming minister gets his portrait painted, a bit bigger than life size. He takes delivery of the canvas, hangs it on his living room wall, stands back admiringly, and when his wife gets home, he presents it to…
The Bookbinder of Jericho by Pip Williams
This story begins in July 1914, several years after Esme hid her first word in The Dictionary of Lost Words. Another young woman is hard at work, this time at the Oxford University Press. The Press was (and still…
Prettier if She Smiled More by Toni Jordan
In a recent interview about writing, Toni Jordan talks about the importance of humour in conversations and within novels. She says it builds resilience and helps with anxiety. I could not agree more. Reading works by Jordan, famous for her…
Crushing by Genevieve Novak
Some people seem to find love like it’s easy. They achieve that Disney fairytale romance, and live happily together forever and ever. So, what about the people who don’t?
After Marnie is dumped by her boyfriend, her fifth in a…
Thirst for Salt by Madelaine Lucas
Madelaine Lucas’s gorgeous debut opens with her unnamed narrator’s discovery of a photo of a man with a little girl: his daughter. She recognises him – Jude, older now than when his life was knotted with hers – the man…
The Anniversary by Stephanie Bishop
One of the most wonderful and satisfying things about being a reader is following the careers of writers whose work you have found and loved, waiting expectantly for their next work, and then being rewarded when that anticipation is justified…
Resistance by Jacinta Halloran
Jacinta Halloran’s fourth novel has been much anticipated, as her previous titles have won awards, and been lauded by authors such as Helen Garner and Fiona Wright. The title, Resistance, refers to a psychological term for failing to engage…
The Wakes by Dianne Yarwood
Are you looking for a novel that is going to tease you a little? Perhaps you are after a story with characters in it that seem quirky enough, true enough, even, to remind you of people you know? Do you…
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