In an indeterminate future Australia where everything is run by The Department, Mim’s husband, Ben, goes missing. Unable to track him using the technology that all citizens are fitted with, members of The Department begin asking questions. They claim to be concerned for his welfare, but they take Mim’s passport and those of her two…
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Overnight it has been announced that Maggie O’Farrell has won the 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction with her eighth novel Hamnet. As has become the norm in the age of COVID, the announcement was made during a live digital awards ceremony, with 2020 Chair of Judges Martha Lane Fox announcing O’Farrell as this year’s winner…
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Renowned for her culinary online platform, Ostro, Julia Busuttil Nishimura returns with her latest book, A Year of Simple Family Food. Her debut cookbook, Ostro, was released in 2017 and was short-listed for the 2018 ABIA ‘Illustrated Book of the Year’ and named in Gourmet Traveller’s ‘Best Food Books. Not only is she a celebrated…
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A film director in Hackney with a fox problem in her garden; an escapee from a cult in Japan; a Sydney cafe-owner rekindling an old flame; an English tutor who gets too close to an oligarch; a journalist on Mars, face-to-face with his fate. These are just some of the characters and situations which readers will…
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Back in May COVID-19 forced the inaugural Yarra Valley Writers Festival online. At the time organisers promised a jam-packed day of author live streams for the main festival day in May. But, there was also the promise of continued events into the future, in the form of virtual book clubs and author chats. Four months…
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Imbi Neeme‘s debut novel The Spill was released in June, in the midst of a pandemic. Rather than despairing at the changed world of publishing that her first novel was born into, Neeme embraced the challenges and opportunities that this brought. She has since launched a campaign to support those Victorian Writers who, like herself, were…
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Amidst shutdowns, restrictions, and the ever-present health implications, it’s a trying time for many as we collectively navigate the COVID-19 global pandemic. This is as true of the Australian publishing industry as any other. With freelancers and small presses already working hard to be seen, the difficulty is only increasing, as the online spaces they…
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In the past few years, there has been a river of intrigue surrounding financial freedom flowing through Australia. More and more people are interested in breaking out of the debt cycle, building their wealth and securing their financial futures. One of the most common books people turn to in getting started is Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad,…
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In a virtual ceremony Marieke Lucas Rijneveld’s debut novel, The Discomfort of Evening, translated into English by Michelle Hutchison has been unveiled as the winner of the 2020 International Booker Prize. The £50,000 prize will be split equally between Rijneveld and Hutchison, giving both the author and translator equal recognition. The Discomfort of Evening was…
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COVID-19 continues to disrupt events across Australia. With this disruption also comes opportunities. Events to mark Indigenous Literacy Day usually take place outside the Sydney Opera House. This year due to COVID-19, the event is going online and will be open, for the first time, to everyone Australia wide. The celebrations will be held live…
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The 2020 BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival is all set to go ahead from 10-13 September. This year the festival will be held virtually, in what organisers are describing as a “4-day virtual crime extravaganza”. Each year, the BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival showcases some of the best writers of crime fiction. This year, eight prominent…
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Wendy Williams’ new book The Language of Butterflies is an enchanting look at one of the world’s most beautiful and resilient animals and the role they play in our ecosystem. It’s a trove of facts and treasure and all things butterfly and moth. From evolution, survival, nature and existence, it’s all covered here in great…
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It’s been a week or so since Kathleen Jennings released her debut novella Flyaway into the world. You can read our review of the book here! We caught up with the Brisbane based writer and illustrator to chat about the release of Flyaway! First of all, can you tell us a little about Flyaway? What’s it…
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Life finds a way. Or, in this case, literary festivals find a way. As with many sectors COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the publishing and literary communities in Australia. Plans have been disrupted with author tours, book events, award galas and now literary festivals having to be cancelled or venture online. Melbourne Writers…
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With Lord Rennard dead, Kaylan is on the run. Bound to a powerful Relic she has little control over, she’s headed for Stynos, the one place she might find an ally, and someone who can help her manage this dark and dangerous power. But with Edriast guards on her tail, restless rebels watching from the…
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When Bettina Scott’s father and brothers disappeared, her mother took charge. The wild ways of her childhood were over, and Bettina was moulded into a proper young lady. But, when a mysterious letter arrives and a painted warning appears on their perfect picket fence, Bettina is forced to confront what really happened all those years…
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There are some people who think happiness is as easy to achieve as typing out a smiley-faced emoji. Ariel Gore knows the reality is far more complex. Her latest book, F*ck Happiness: How the Science of Psychology Ignores Women is a deep and insightful look at the positive psychology movement and where it rests in…
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The 2020 Longlist for the Booker Prize has today been unveiled, bringing with it its fair share of surprises. Though the inclusion of one title, Hilary Mantel‘s The Mirror & The Light, will likely shock no-one. That said this year’s longlist looks to be an eclectic mixture of established talents and debut authors. That the majority…
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For those of you not familiar with Anne Tyler, Redhead by the Side of the Road is her 23rd novel. She is a former Pulitzer Prize winner, has been shortlisted for both the Booker Prize and the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and was a participant in the Hogarth Shakespeare project which also saw the likes…
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Tara June Winch has taken out the top prize in Australia’s most prestigious literary award for 2020 for her stunning novel, The Yield. The Miles Franklin Literary Award was announced during a live Youtube broadcast hosted by ABC Radio Sydney/ The Bookshelf‘s Cassie McCullagh. The virtual event was another of the many examples we have seen in…
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Masterchef contestant and beloved fan favourite, Khanh Ong has released his debut cookbook, A Gay Guy’s Guide to Life, Love and Food. After competing in the 2018 series and returning a second time this year for ‘MasterChef Australia: Back To Win’, he is ecstatic to release an innovative cookbook that showcases his vibrant personality. Rather…
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Born into a wealthy Chicago family in the 1870s, Frances Glessner Lee was supposed to marry well and raise a family. A career was never on the cards. Let alone one that would see her recognised as the mother of modern forensics. Instead a chance encounter with an old family friend, George Magrath, changed her…
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The release of Brit Bennett’s The Vanishing Half early last month was met with great excitement, with the book quickly becoming a bestseller. Bennett’s sophomore novel is the story of the Vignes twins, Stella and Desiree, who grow up in an American town called Mallard during the 1960s. There are two things to know about Mallard…
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The Safe Place, the debut novel from actor and author Anna Downes, takes lead protagonist Emily Proudman on a thrilling ride. She loses her apartment, her agent and her job; all in the space of one day. Before she has time to take it all in, her successful and handsome former boss comes to the…
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Anna Pitoniak’s new novel Necessary People has a blurb quote from Stephen King on its front cover, and one from Lee Child on its back. In fact, the first couple of pages of the book are devoted to quotes from publications like Refinery29 and Marie Claire, exclaiming how much their reviewers loved this book. Yet Pitoniak’s second…
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The shortlist for the 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award was announced yesterday evening. As has become the new norm during the COVID-19 pandemic the announcement was made online via a live YouTube presentation. The award, established in 1954, celebrates the best of Australian character and creativity whilst recognising “the novel of the highest literary merit…
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Set in the years immediately preceding and immediately after the American Civil War, Afia Atakora‘s debut novel Conjure Women is an exploration of both what it meant to be a woman and what it meant to be a slave in the Antebellum South. Conjure Women is the story of Rue, a ‘conjure woman’ in a small community made up…
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There is no actual school of life. So what does one do if they want to learn to be an adult? Luckily, the fine ladies who wrote the bestselling book, How to Be Parisian have you covered. They’ve put together a playful, new volume that is chock-full of observations and advice about growing up. It…
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It is hard to believe that Melting Moments is a debut novel. Not only is the name Anna Goldsworthy a familiar one in the Australian literary scene, but the writing inside this novel is so accomplished that it feels effortless to read. Melting Moments is the story of Ruby, following her from her days as a young woman,…
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Mammoth, the new novel from author Chris Flynn, is a witty and compelling mash-up of historical and science fiction, with gags and subtle ecological (and more) messaging nestled side by side. On the face of it, Mammoth, sounds bold, audacious and something that shouldn’t really work. A sentient Mammoth fossil tells his life (and after…
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