Read Readings Monthly, November 2015 here

Transcription

FREE
N OV E M B E R 2 0 1 5
BOOKS
MUSIC
FILM
E V E N TS
THE READINGS PRIZE
FOR NEW AUSTRALIAN FICTION
Introducing the 2015 winner
page 6
NEW IN NOVEMBER
ISOBELLE
CARMODY
CARRIE
BROWNSTEIN
KERRY
O’BRIEN
UTOPIA
SEASON 2
RYAN
ADAMS
$32.99
$32.99
$49.95
$29.95
$19.95
page 11
page 13
page 21
page 22
$39.95
page 13
R E A D I N G S M O N T H LY N OV E M B E R 2 0 1 5
3
News
READINGS SUBSCRIBER
SHOPPING DAY
Our annual Readings Subscriber Shopping
Day is on Thursday 19 November! We’re
offering all Readings Monthly and Readings
e-news subscribers 20% off full-priced
books, CDs, vinyl, stationery and calendars,
and 10% off full-priced DVDs. If you
subscribe to the Readings Monthly, simply
bring this month’s cover sheet (with your
name on it) into any Readings shop to
redeem this offer. Otherwise, sign up to our
e-news at readings.com.au before Friday
13 November and we’ll send you an email
that you can bring into shops on Thursday
19 November. Please note, this discount
does not include cards and magazines, is
only available for items in stock (not valid
for special orders or lay-bys) and is not
available online.
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE
WORLD BY STEPHANIE BISHOP
WINS THE READINGS PRIZE FOR
NEW AUSTRALIAN FICTION 2015
Readings Monthly
Free independent monthly newspaper
published by Readings Books, Music & Film
Editor
Elke Power
[email protected]
Editorial Assistant
Alan Vaarwerk
[email protected]
Advertising
Stella Charls
[email protected]
(03) 9341 7739
We’re delighted to announce that
Stephanie Bishop has been named this
year’s winner of The Readings Prize
for New Australian Fiction. Our judges
described her second novel, The Other
Side of the World (Hachette), as ‘elegant,
profound and unforgettable’. Stephanie
Bishop will receive prize money of $4000.
The Other Side of the World is available
from all Readings shops and online for a
special price of $26.99 (was $29.99). For
more information see page 6.
Established in 2014, The Readings Prize
for New Australian Fiction (originally
known as the Readings New Australian
Writing Award) supports published
Australian authors of fiction and
recognises exciting and exceptional new
contributions to local literature. The
award aims to increase the commercial
success of first or second books by
Australian authors. The inaugural winner
of The Readings Prize was Ceridwen
Dovey, whose short-story collection, Only
the Animals, went on to become one of our
bestselling books for 2014.
Graphic Design
Cat Matteson
[email protected]
Front Cover
Readings Monthly cover design by Cat
Matteson using elements from the cover of
Stephanie Bishops’ second novel The Other
Side of the World, which won The Readings
Prize for New Australian Fiction 2015. The
Other Side of the World cover images courtesy
of Hachette, design by Christabella Designs
and photographs courtesy of Trevillion.
Cartoon
Oslo Davis
oslodavis.com
Readings donates 10% of its profits each
year to The Readings Foundation:
readings.com.au/the-readings-foundation
SUMMER READING GUIDE &
READINGS’ BEST OF 2015
This year, instead of publishing a
December–January edition of the
Readings Monthly, we’re putting together
a comprehensive guide to the best books,
music and film of 2015, as voted by all
Readings staff. This eight-page guide
will be available in all Readings shops
throughout December and January, and
will be mailed to all Readings Monthly
subscribers in the first week of December
along with the Summer Reading Guide.
We hope you enjoy our recommendations!
20% OFF VINYL SALE
Make the most of your Melbourne
Cup weekend with 20% off all vinyl!
Handpicked by our passionate music team,
our vinyl collection includes old favourites
alongside terrific new releases. Come and
chat with our specialists in person and
complete your own collection. The sale
runs from Friday 30 October to Tuesday 3
November at Readings Carlton, St Kilda,
Hawthorn and State Library of Victoria
shops. The offer only applies to vinyl
currently in stock, and is not available
online.
MAN BOOKER PRIZE WINNER
This year’s Man Booker Prize winner is
Marlon James for his novel A Brief History
of Seven Killings. Set across three decades,
the novel uses the true story of the attempt
on the life of reggae star Marley to explore
the turbulent world of Jamaican gangs
and politics. Michael Wood, the chair of
judges, said the decision to name James
the winner was unanimous, and that the
work was ‘extraordinary … very exciting,
very violent’. He added that people
should not be daunted or put off by the
subject matter: ‘It is not an easy read, it
is a big book with some tough stuff and
a lot of swearing but it is not a difficult
book to approach.’ The Man Booker Prize
for Fiction is a £50,000 literary prize
awarded each year for the best original
novel, written in the English language, and
published in the UK. A paperback edition
of Williams’ book is available now in all
Readings shops and online at readings.
com.au for only $22.99.
READINGS MONTHLY 2015
COMPETITION WINNERS
Throughout 2015, we’ve been heartened
by the huge response to a range of
competitions we’ve run through the
Readings Monthly. We’ve loved seeing
all your completed crosswords and
colouring in, and reading your responses!
Congratulations to our winners: Bill Walsh
won a Pro-ject turntable valued at $599
as part of our April vinyl sale, Stephanie
Grayston won a Readings voucher for our
Mother’s Day crossword competition,
Shirley Bowman won dinner for four at
the Meatball & Wine Bar, Paul Watson
won two festival weekend passes to the
Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues,
and Marlene Pietsch won a year’s coffee
subscription thanks to Market Lane
Coffee for our Father’s Day crossword
competition. We also celebrated three
winners for our Rivertime colouring-in
competition: Milla Bishop (age category
5-7 years), Zara Chessell (8-10 years) and
Caspa Wallis-Carnie (11-12 years). Thanks
to all who submitted entries – best of luck
for our competitions next year!
4
November Events
5
WORLD WRITINGS
ANTHOLOGY
Home Truths: An Anthology of Refugee and
Migrant Writing is a collection of stories,
essays and poems written by a diverse
group of writers from Africa and Asia. The
anthology is filled with first-hand accounts
of what it means to endure often terrible
wars and dislocations, or to be at odds with
your own culture, and then find yourself
in Australia, full of hope – only to discover
nowhere is paradise.
4
FRANK
BONGIORNO IN
CONVERSATION
WITH CLARE
WRIGHT
The Eighties brings to life the most
controversial decade in Australian history.
Join Frank Bongiorno and author and
historian Clare Wright as they discuss the
high-flying entrepreneurs booming and
busting, torrid debates over land rights and
immigration, the advent of AIDS, a harsh
recession and the rise of the New Right.
Free, but please book at readings.com.au/events
Wednesday 4 November, 6.30pm
Readings Carlton
5
BRIAN
MCFARLANE ON
TWENTY BRITISH
FILMS
Twenty British Films: A Guided Tour is for
anyone who has loved British films. In
choosing twenty films – many of them classics
of their kind – as well as some less wellknown titles, Brian McFarlane communicates
his enthusiasm for the sheer range of British
cinema as well as a keenly critical interest
in what makes these films stay in the mind,
often after many decades and viewings.
Free, no booking required.
Thursday 5 November, 6.30pm
Readings Hawthorn
5
ROBERT POWER
ON TIDETOWN
Free, no booking required
Readings Carlton
8
NIKKI GREENBERG
ON THE
NAUGHTIEST
REINDEER AT THE
ZOO
Join us for more adventures of Ruby the
reindeer, as she returns with even more
Christmas mischief. This time she’s landed at
the zoo. But is she behaving herself? She is not!
Sunday 8 November, 10.30am
Readings Hawthorn
9
12
DAVID PEPPERELL
& COLIN TALBOT
ON THE SWINGING
60s
100 Greatest Australian Singles of the 60s,
by local legends David Pepperell and Colin
Talbot, reflects on the golden years of the
60s, when Australian rock‘n’roll singles
were as good as those made anywhere in
the world. Take a trip back to these classic
records of the 60s, to listen once again and
remember those heady times when long hair
and short skirts changed the world.
To launch her first novel, Lakeland, join
Maureen O’Shaughnessy for a conversation
with Helen Garner on the potential hazards
of delving into family histories in the context
of war. What sort of influence can the
horror of conflict and atrocity have on those
involved and their descendants?
10
BOB BROWN ON
GREEN NOMADS
SULARI GENTILL IN
CONVERSATION
WITH ANGELA
SAVAGE
Readings St Kilda
When former senator Bob Brown gave his
home in Liffey, Tasmania to Bush Heritage
Australia, he had no idea that it would be
the start of a movement. Now, a number of
beautiful places have become safe havens for
Australia’s wild places. In Green Nomads, Bob
takes us on a journey across Australia, visiting
Bush Heritage sites and sharing the beauty
and diversity they represent.
Tuesday 10 November, 6.30pm
Readings St Kilda
11
ROBERT DREWE
ON MEMOIR
WRITING
Robert Drewe, Australian author of the
prize-winning memoirs The Shark Net,
Montebello and his new book, The Beach,
presents a lecture exploring the complexity
of writing a memoir. He will discuss the
literary, personal and public issues involved
in writing within this increasingly popular
and often misunderstood art form.
Free, but please RSVP to
[email protected].
Wednesday 11 November, 6pm
Boyd Centre, 207 City Road, Southbank.
Monday 9 November, 6.30pm
Readings Carlton
9
MAUREEN
O’SHAUGHNESSY
ON LAKELAND
11
MEET THE WINNER
OF THE READINGS
PRIZE FOR NEW
AUSTRALIAN
FICTION
12
MAGGIE BEER ON
ON HER SUMMER
HARVEST
COLLECTION
Adored cook Maggie Beer will be joining us
for afternoon tea and to talk about her new
summertime recipe book, Maggie Beer’s
Summer Harvest Collection. Maggie will be
in conversation with Christine Gordon, our
resident foodie. Together they will discuss
food, life and, of course, love.
Tickets are $50 and include afternoon
tea, wine and a signed copy of Maggie
Beer’s Summer Harvest Collection.
Please book at readings.com.au/events
Thursday 12 November, 2pm–3.30pm
North Fitzroy Star, 32–36 St Georges Rd South,
Fitzroy North
12
DON WATSON ON
HIS WORST WORDS
Nestled on a windswept coastline, life in
Tidetown is quiet and assured. But after
a mysterious slave is shipwrecked on its
shores, time-honoured traditions are
unsettled. In Robert Power’s masterful
third novel, Mrs April, Brother Moses,
Oscar and other much-loved characters that
first appeared in the magical In Search of
the Blue Tiger reconnect in a mesmerising
tale of adventure and spirit.
To celebrate the release of the seventh book
in the award-winning Rowland Sinclair
Mysteries, join Sulari Gentill in conversation
with fellow sister-in-crime Angela Savage.
Give the Devil His Due offers an engaging mix
of history, humour and humanity – this time
driven by black magic, kidnappings, moviestars and, of course, murder! Sulari creates yet
another intelligent mystery over a fascinating
backdrop of Australia and Europe in the 1930s.
Stephanie Bishop’s second novel, The
Other Side of the World, has been named
this year’s winner of The Readings
Prize for New Australian Fiction. Our
judges described this novel as ‘elegant,
profound and unforgettable’. Join Bishop
in conversation with Hannah Kent, guest
judge and author of Burial Rites.
He’s back and he’s got things to say! Join us as
Don Watson takes us through his new work,
Watson’s Worst Words. The English language
is complex and evolving, and can win minds,
hearts and nations. Watson will make you
cringe with recognition, and perhaps shame,
and encourage you to rise up against words
that obliterate all song, meaning and beauty
from communication.
Free, no booking required.
Readings St Kilda
Readings Hawthorn
Readings Hawthorn
Readings Carlton
18
WENDY WHITELEY
& JANET HAWLEY
IN CONVERSATION
We’re absolutely thrilled to be hosting an
evening with Wendy Whiteley and Janet
Hawley. The two will be in conversation
about Hawley’s stunning new book that
shares the story behind Whiteley’s public
garden, Wendy Whiteley and the Secret
Garden. This evening is a must-attend for all
gardeners and art lovers.
Tickets are $20 and include a glass of
wine. Places are strictly limited, please
book at readings.com.au/events
North Fitzroy Star, 32–36 St Georges Rd South,
Fitzroy North
13
ANNABEL CRABB
& ADAM BANDT
ON FOOD &
COOKING
Set politics aside and join us for a tremendous
event with journalist and social commentator
Annabel Crabb as she chats with Adam Bandt
about all things delicious. Celebrating the
release of Crabb’s cook book, Special Delivery,
the night will include wine and tasty samples
from her book.
This event is sold out.
Friday 13 November, 6pm
Readings Hawthorn
18
DAVID WILLIS ON
THE MAJESTIC
Join David Willis for a discussion of his
new book and the Melbourne building that
it explores, The Majestic: Early Apartment
Living in St Kilda. With previously
unpublished letters, building plans,
newspaper reports and business ephemera,
Willis shares the spell-binding story of
this architecturally and socially significant
Melbourne building.
Readings St Kilda
21
STORY TIME WITH
ALISON LESTER
We are delighted to have acclaimed author
and illustrator Alison Lester reading from
her wonderful new book, My Dog Bigsy.
Free, but please book at
readings.com.au/events
Saturday 21 November, 10.30am
Readings St Kilda
23
13
CLINTON WALKER
& ARCHIE ROACH
IN CONVERSATION
Join Clinton Walker and Archie Roach for
a conversion to celebrate the launches of
Walker’s new, rebooted CD Buried Country
1.5 and the new edition of his book, Buried
Country, along with the 25th anniversary
edition of Roach’s Charcoal Lane.
Free, but please book at
readings.com.au/events
Friday 13 November, 6.30pm
Readings St Kilda
16
MARK DAPIN IN
CONVERSATION
WITH CHRIS
FLYNN
R&R is an exhilarating and darkly funny
novel of love, sex and murder set during
the Vietnam War. Join us as Mark Dapin
discusses his new book with Chris Flynn.
Readings St Kilda
LAURA TINGLE IN
CONVERSATION
WITH DAVID MARR
For a reflection on the year that was, join
us as David Marr and Laura Tingle discuss
present-day political cases, examples from
history and reflect on their interviews with
leading political figures. Tingle’s latest
Quarterly Essay, Political Amnesia, reveals
a political culture suffering from profound
memory loss; and Marr’s latest essay, Faction
Man: Bill Shorten’s Path to Power, reflects on
a leader that may never be.
Tickets are $25 and include a copy of either
Political Amnesia or Faction Man. Please book at readings.com.au/events
Monday 23 November, 7pm
Church of All Nations
180 Palmerston Street, Carlton
2
Dec
MARLON
WILLIAMS
IN-STORE
We are truly excited to have singer and
songwriter Marlon Williams visiting our
shop to celebrate his self-titled debut album.
Described as ‘the impossible love child of
Elvis, Roy Orbison and Townes Van Zandt’,
Williams is a two-time New Zealand Music
Award winning singer–songwriter.
Wednesday 2 December, 6.30pm
Readings St Kilda
Mark’s
Say
5
News and views from Readings’ Managing Director,
Mark Rubbo
One of the pleasures of my job is meeting authors and hearing about their books – and as
most booksellers and authors do enjoy a drink, we often meet in most convivial surroundings.
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of meeting Sydney author David Dyer, whose first novel,
The Midnight Watch, will be published by Penguin Random House in March next year. It’s an
historical story based on the sinking of the Titanic and centres on why the British freighter,
the SS Californian, adrift a few kilometres north of the Titanic, did nothing when the Titantic
sent off its distress rockets. Dyer has been fascinated by the Titanic since he was a child and is
well qualified to write the book having served as a ship’s officer and worked for the law firm
that represented the Titanic’s owners. The book has excited publishers around the world and
has been picked by publishers in the US and UK as well as Australia.
If you are not doing anything in late January, you could do a lot worse than hop off to
the world’s most exciting literary festival, The Jaipur Literature Festival. I went last year
on a tour organised by Marieke Brugman and had a fascinating time. As usual, this year’s
guests are an eclectic mix including many from the sub-continent (who I’ve found most
interesting) but also guests from Europe and the United States, including Stephen Fry,
Thomas Piketty, Margaret Atwood and Colm Toibin. Marieke is organising another tour
for 2016, and as well as the Festival tour itself, Marieke is organising talks with renowned
Indian writers Amit Chaudhuri, Tishani Doshi and Ashok Ferrey. Broadcaster Caroline
Baum will moderate the sessions at the heritage hotel, Castle Kanota, which was one of the
locations for The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel film. The dates are 18–26 January and
details can be found at mariekesartofliving.com.
If you want some intellectual excitement earlier than January, you can get it from The
Wheeler Centre which is presenting its first ‘Interrobang – A Festival of Questions’ on 27 and
28 November. It’s a pretty exciting idea: each session is a question, hence the Interrobang,
which if you didn’t know, is a printing term for excited question – a merging of the exclamation
and question marks. Authors and thinkers from Australia and overseas will consider questions
such as: Are Cockroaches Attracted to Human Tears?; Truth is Stanger Than Fiction, Can
Fiction be Stranger than Truth?; and, Why are People Nicer to You on Your Birthday?
Philosopher Raimond Gaita has got the answer to the last one, apparently! Participants include
a whole range of interesting people from scientists to comedians, and Geraldine Brooks, Cory
Doctorow and New Yorker copy editor Mary Norris are flying in to lend a hand. It should be a
lot of fun, but stimulating too of course! Details and bookings at wheelercentre.com
Dear
Reader
Alison Huber,
Head Book Buyer
Dear Reader,
Our book of the month is Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl, Carrie Brownstein’s utterly fabulous
memoir. A number of us here at Readings have been hanging out for this book to arrive, and
like our reviewer, I am completely besotted by it. But I hear your concern, dear reader: you
are worried that it’s ‘not for you’ because you’re not keen on music bios, or perhaps you have
limited interest in the riot grrrl scene and its radical feminist politics, or maybe you are afraid to
admit you’ve never heard of the author or her band, Sleater-Kinney. Don’t worry: Brownstein
will win you over with her prose – it’s so, so good – and her irresistible account of finding (and
finding out) what matters. I really love this book! Speaking of iconic feminists, Gloria Steinem
has also been writing a memoir – My Life on the Road – and it’s in stores now. It’s easy to take
for granted the ground that was won by Steinem and her generation of activists, but life as we
know it would be very different had they not fought so hard. Coincidentally, the collection, I
Call Myself a Feminist, appears this month, with contributions from writers under 30, part of a
growing ‘fourth wave’ of feminists. Allow me to be in the room should they ever meet up with
Brownstein and Steinem!
Brontë aficionados take note: Debra Adelaide uses Wuthering Heights as muse in her new
novel, The Women’s Pages, which explores the transformative powers of reading and writing.
It’s another big month for international fiction releases, with Orhan Pamuk, Isabel Allende,
Umberto Eco, Colum McCann and David Mitchell all releasing new work, as does one of the
originators of my love for the Big American Novel, John Irving. Speaking of such books, if
you’re looking for a whopping great tome to occupy your summer holidays, you couldn’t do
better than the book that has set the US publishing world alight, Garth Risk Hallberg’s 900page epic, City on Fire: it’s on my ‘must-read’ list. Also on that ever-expanding list is another
book garnering a lot of praise internationally, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s The Sympathizer, a story set
in Vietnam in 1975. And while I’m talking about 1975, people who were born that year probably
don’t need reminding that they have (or have had) a significant birthday this year, but they
might be interested to discover that they share that number with Ian McEwan’s first book, the
short story collection, First Love, Last Rites: a 40th anniversary edition is out this month.
Readers of political non-fiction will be excited to learn of the publication of Kerry O’Brien’s
Keating, and Paddy Manning’s investigation into the life and times of our current PM in Born to
Rule. I know more than a few Ancient Rome history buffs will be hanging out for Mary Beard’s
new work, SPQR. Meanwhile, foodies have loads to choose from this month too, including
books from hometown heroes George Calombaris and Karen Martini; and, at last, Black Inc. is
republishing the much-loved classic that has been out of print for many years, Mietta’s Italian
Family Recipes.
And finally, dear reader, this is our last Readings Monthly for 2015. But fear not: our essential
annual catalogue that informs your seasonal reading, the Summer Reading Guide, is imminent
and will be available in stores on Wednesday 18 November (and in The Age on Saturday 21
November); Readings Monthly subscribers will also receive it plus a special newsletter revealing
our staff’s picks for the best books, music and DVDs of 2015 in the post (exact delivery date
depends on where you live, but check your letterbox from 3 December). So you haven’t heard
the last from us yet! In the meantime, happy reading … and congratulations Stephanie Bishop!
6
Winner of
The Readings Prize
Photo of Stephanie Bishop by Craig Peihaopa, courtesy of Hachette Australia.
for New Australian
Fiction 2015
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE
READINGS PRIZE FOR
NEW AUSTRALIAN FICTION
‘The Other Side of the World is a
novel that will undoubtedly provoke
discussion. Beautifully written and
atmospheric, Bishop illustrates the
deep ambivalence one woman feels
towards marriage and motherhood
with breathtaking insight. Her skill as
a writer is unquestionable: she has a
poet's eye for the world, particularly
landscape, and her evocation of
1960s Cambridge and Perth is
exceptional. I look forward to seeing
what she writes next.’
Hannah Kent, guest judge for
The Readings Prize 2015 and
author of Burial Rites.
The Readings Prize for New Australian
Fiction was established in 2014. The
inaugural winner was Ceridwen Dovey
for her collection of remarkable stories,
Only the Animals. It has just been
published in the US and The New York
Times reviewer wrote: ‘These stories
are strange and richly imagined, well
researched and at times haunting and
atmospheric.’
We started The Readings Prize
because we were concerned that many
Australian writers were struggling to
find an audience. Readings has always
prided itself on being a supporter of
Australian writing, but as many of you
may be aware the book industry has
been in the doldrums over the last 3
or 4 years. Readings wasn’t immune
and felt that we’d been neglecting the
writers who most needed our support
in favour of those we felt would be more
commercially appealing. It’s tough
for those writers starting out in their
careers; a good sales figure for their
books may be as low as 3000 copies, and
for many it’s half that.
We were thrilled with the response
to The Readings Prize; we sold
1400 copies of Only the Animals and
hundreds of copies of the short-listed
books. It will be interesting to see how
this year’s winner, The Other Side of the
World, is received. It’s Sydney writer
Stephanie Bishop’s second novel, and
it has already sold very strongly and
met with critical acclaim. It’s less
experimental in perspective than
Dovey’s – Bishop’s is a story told from
human viewpoints! – but it is equally
well written and brave; I hope you all
like it!
Mark Rubbo, Readings managing director
and judge for The Readings Prize 2015
THE READINGS PRIZE 2015 &
JUDGES
The judges for The Readings Prize for New
Australian Fiction 2015 were Mark Rubbo,
Amy Vuleta (manager, Readings St Kilda),
Danielle Mirabella (book buyer, Readings
Hawthorn) and Elke Power (editor,
Readings Monthly). Once the shortlist had
been decided, the Readings judges were
delighted to be joined for the final round
of deliberations by Hannah Kent (Burial
Rites), who returned for a second year as
our guest judge. As an Australian author
and a judge, Hannah’s perceptions about
the purpose and value of The Readings
Prize were insightful:
The Readings Prize for New Australian
Fiction is an extraordinary opportunity for
Australia’s debut and emerging authors. With
limited criteria other than an insistence on
literary merit, it supports and recognises the
finest new voices in Australian fiction by
promoting and celebrating its shortlistees
and winner, and demands that readers pay
attention. All too often, deserving titles
escape the notice of the wider public for a
multitude of reasons. The Readings Prize for
New Australian Fiction works to ensure that
literature which deserves to be read finds its
rightful audience.
THE SHORTLIST
The shortlist for The Readings Prize 2015
included six original and memorable works
of Australian fiction: Hot Little Hands by
Abigail Ulman, Heat and Light by Ellen van
Neerven, In the Quiet by Eliza Henry-Jones,
Last Day in the Dynamite Factory by Annah
Faulkner, Arms Race by Nic Low, and The
Other Side of the World by Stephanie Bishop.
Danielle’s thoughts about the shortlist and
the judging experience this year reflect
how all the judges felt:
It was an honour to be a judge for The
Readings Prize in a year that produced an
outstanding selection of shortlisted titles.
Each author offered unique works of fiction
that as a whole contributed to a refreshingly
diverse and exciting shortlist. Without a
doubt each of these authors will be a huge
part of Australia’s literary landscape in the
future and I look forward to reading each of
their future publications.
THE WINNER
The Other Side of the World was awarded
The Readings Prize, and Stephanie Bishop
received $4,000 in prize money. Amy captured the judges’ opinions when
she described the winner of The Readings
Prize:
The Other Side of the World is a quiet,
delicate novel, but, more so, I would
describe it as bold and unflinching. It
makes an allegory of displacement and
homelessness through looking at immigration
and parenthood, and asks how we belong
anywhere if we suddenly lose our identity.
It is sophisticated and polished, and its
narrative style is original and absorbing.
In response to the news that The Other Side
of the World had won, Stephanie Bishop
said:
I’m so thrilled to receive this year’s Readings
Prize – the shortlist was formidable and
I was honoured to be in the company of
writers that I greatly admire, all of whom
are deserving of recognition. Readings is
an extraordinary supporter of Australian
writing in all its varieties and I’m incredibly
grateful for this. Such an award makes a
huge difference in the life of any writer: it
celebrates, validates and encourages you to
face the next blank page.
Congratulations to Stephanie Bishop and
The Readings Prize shortlistees!
If you would like to know more about
The Readings Prize, the winner, or the
shortlisted books, visit readings.com.au/
news.
Elke Power, chair of judges 2015.
New Fiction
Australian Fiction
THE WOMEN’S PAGES
Debra Adelaide
Picador. PB. $29.99
The Women’s
Pages is a novel
that pays homage to
words, pages and
books written by
women and about
women. The main
character, Dove,
nurses her ill mother
and at her request,
re-reads Wuthering Heights to her. After
her mother’s death, rather than returning
to work, Dove finds herself captivated by
the story and also by the life of Emily
Brontë. Adelaide describes Dove’s
experience of re-reading Wuthering
Heights, ‘The novel had unfolded again
and again to be something different every
time, and she was sick of it because it
meant there would never be a final
reading of this book for her’. Dove also
feels compelled to write her own novel.
She has never written before – her career
is in graphic design – but finds it an
addictive and organic process.
The chapters in Debra Adelaide’s book
alternate between Dove’s experience in
the present, and the novel she is writing.
The novel chapters are about a woman
named Ellis (Wuthering Heights was first
published under the pseudonym Ellis
Bell). Ellis has been brought up by her
father and a housekeeper and has never
known her mother, nor the story behind
her mother’s absence. It is the 1950s, and
Ellis is frustrated by the limited career
options for women, and the expectation
that all women desire only marriage and
children. Ellis is an independent thinker,
and I liked her a great deal.
Adelaide’s book is a novel within
a novel, with references to Wuthering
Heights thrown in for the astute reader.
I would have preferred the whole book
to focus on Ellis and her story from the
1950s to today. The book is also about
imagination, and how and why we use
it. The purpose of Dove’s summoning
of Ellis’s life and story comes into sharp
focus at the end of the novel, and makes
for a satisfying conclusion.
Annie Condon is from Readings Hawthorn
THE BEST AUSTRALIAN
STORIES 2015
Amanda Lohrey (ed.)
Black Inc. PB. $29.99
Award-winning author
Amanda Lohrey curates
twenty pieces of
exceptional short
fiction. Familiar
subjects are examined
from new perspectives:
a teenage girl sneaks
into a famous film
director’s study and steals his diaries;
the life of Picasso is reimagined in
miniature vignettes. The mother of a girl
with hearing difficulties watches her
child grow into increasing
independence. A young woman makes a
poignant voyage to the site of her
brother’s suicide. Elegant, accomplished
and evocative, these short stories move,
delight and inspire.
TIDETOWN
Robert Power
Transit Lounge. PB. Available 2 November.
$29.95
Nestled on a windswept
coastline, life in
Tidetown is quiet and
assured. But after a
mysterious man is
shipwrecked on its
shores, time-honoured
traditions are unsettled,
as rumours of war,
disease and corruption endanger the sleepy
town’s very existence. Will Mayor Bruin
provide a vision for the future? Can Judge
Omega keep evil at bay? Robert Power’s
third novel sees much-loved characters
from In Search of the Blue Tiger reconnect
in an unexpected and mesmerising tale of
adventure and spirit.
NAPOLEON’S LAST
ISLAND
Tom Keneally
Vintage. HB. Available 2 November.
Was $45
32.99
Living in exile on the
island of St Helena,
Napoleon exerted an
extraordinary influence
on young Betsy
Balcombe – her family
befriended, served and
were ruined by their
relationship with the
emperor. How did Betsy get from
Napoleon’s side to the Australian bush?
Tom Keneally recreates Betsy’s friendship
with the ‘Great Ogre’, her enmities and
alliances with his court, and her dramatic
coming of age during her years on the
island, vividly sharing this remarkable tale
and the beginning of an Australian dynasty.
A FEW DAYS IN THE
COUNTRY AND OTHER
STORIES
Elizabeth Harrower
Text. PB. $29.99
Internationally acclaimed
for her five brilliant novels,
Elizabeth Harrower is also
the author of a small body
of short fiction. A Few Days
in the Country brings
together for the first time
her stories published in
Australian journals in the
1960s and 1970s, along with those from her
archives – including ‘Alice’, published this year
in The New Yorker. Essential reading for
Harrower fans, these finely turned pieces
range from caustic satires to gentler
explorations of friendship.
Australian Poetry
THE BEST AUSTRALIAN
POEMS 2015
Geoff Page (ed.)
The Best Australian
Poems is our annual
poetry anthology,
showcasing the immense
and diverse poetic talent
from the country’s best
and emerging writers. In
this collection, you will
find the who’s who of
contemporary poets and the pick of new
voices. Sometimes satirical, sometimes
erotic, covering family, religion, war and
mortality, Geoff Page’s selection celebrates
the vital, the vigorous and the graceful
voices that populate our poetry scene.
THE FOX PETITION
Jennifer Maiden
Giramondo. PB. $24
Jennifer Maiden’s new
collection was written in
response to the social
crises that confront us
now, dealing with
xenophobia and the
rejection of otherness,
taking as its emblem the
fox, representing our fear of the
introduced and ill-reputed. Obama and
Gandhi discuss political effectiveness,
Kevin Rudd tries to explain Manus Island
to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Keith
Murdoch and his son Rupert discuss their
attempts at idealism in the glass penthouse
apartment of the latter.
International Fiction
THE DEVIL IS A BLACK
DOG: STORIES FROM
THE MIDDLE EAST AND
BEYOND
Sándor Jászberényi
Scribe. PB. $24.99
Hungarian war
correspondent
Sándor Jászberényi’s
The Devil is a Black Dog
is a fascinating collection
that sits somewhere on
the plane separating
fiction and nonfiction.
These nineteen
interconnected short
stories work to reinforce the argument that
as readers we sometimes give too much
value to this distinction. While many of
these stories are told from the perspective
of our fictional narrator and war
correspondent Daniel Marosh,
Jászberényi’s own considerable experience
covering conflict in the Middle East and
Africa gives The Devil is a Black Dog
remarkable power. These tales of war
correspondents, combatants and victims
are as affecting as any nonfiction.
Jászberényi’s stories are set in
countries the author has either lived in or
reported from, and all explore the human
side of war through myriad individual
perspectives. From Cairo to the Gaza Strip,
from Benghazi to Budapest, we encounter
mothers, soldiers and journalists. Each
slice-of-life tale lends a relatable face to
the issue at hand. From across the globe
the concept of living each day within
the parameters of a warzone is often too
confounding or alien to even consider,
let alone empathise with. Powerful
fiction like The Devil is a Black Dog set in
places rife with hardship that you might
never travel to allow Western readers to
consider the violent reality that so many
face. This book offers a window into that
reality, simultaneously and disturbingly
presenting the hardened insensitivity of
the reporters and photographers who are
expected to shine a light on these horrors
for the outside world.
This is an exceptionally honest book,
and an unsettling one. Jászberényi never
risks glorifying war and violence, instead
using great sensitivity and a wry sense of
humour to share the stories that he has
7
no doubt personally encountered in his
career. The Devil is a Black Dog is a worthy
companion to Phil Klay’s 2014 National
Book Award winning Redeployment, a
similarly moving collection of exceptional
stories written by a US Marine officer
turned writer. Like Klay’s, Jászberényi’s
debut collection is sharply observed and
intensely affecting.
Stella Charls is the marketing and events
coordinator
THE SYMPATHIZER
Viet Thanh Nguyen
Corsair. PB. $29.99
The Sympathizer is
the debut novel
from Professor Viet
Thanh Nguyen. Told
through the recollections
of an un-named
communist spy, who
doubles as a trusted
lieutenant to a South
Vietnamese General, it casts a wide net
and a new, Vietnamese perspective over a
war that has been largely mythologised
and romanticised in American storytelling.
The narrator, an American-schooled,
half-Vietnamese soldier, recalls a story of
war, betrayal and love in a confession to
his captor, the phantom entity known only
as ‘Commandant’. He begins at the fall of
Saigon, where the General’s compound
is being evacuated, and the lieutenant is
charged with making a list of family and
staff who will be rescued and relocated to
the United States. He manages to secure
places for his closest friends, his ‘blood
brothers’ Man and Bon, who he is also
spying on. From the dangers and deaths of
Viet warzone, the story shifts to a rather
charming, espionage farce in Los Angeles.
Nguyen then takes us to Hollywood,
where the lieutenant meets ‘the Director’,
a stand-in for Francis Ford Coppola, who
has recruited him to consult on a Vietnam
War epic that vaguely resembles the film
Apocalypse Now. Though doubly, or triply,
engaged in the mythology of the revolution,
the narrator must ultimately atone for his
infidelities and watch his loved ones pay
the price for his treachery.
Nguyen’s fresh perspective on America
(he arrived in the United States in the
mid-1970s as a Vietnamese refugee) reads
–marvellously! – as European; his style a
combination of Graham Greene’s Our Man
in Havana, but with a tragic, Camus-like
existentialism bled out in its confessional
framework. Nguyen also stirs much of
his dialogue into his prose, so it reads
like a glass of wine, betraying the rigidity
common to much historical fiction. One of
the best books I’ve read this year.
Jemima Bucknell is the online fulfilment
manager for Readings
THIRTEEN WAYS OF
LOOKING
Colum McCann
Bloomsbury. PB. $29.99
In 2014, Colum
McCann was
assaulted in a one-punch
attack in Connecticut. In
Thirteen Ways of
Looking, the Irish
novelist processes this
traumatic event through
multiple lenses. As
McCann writes in an afterword, the
novella and three shorter stories, while
not autobiographical, are all indelibly
informed by the attack in some way.
The book’s titular novella opens on
8
elderly judge J. Mendelssohn, proud and
sharp-witted even as his body fails him,
bickering with his carer Sally, aching
for his late wife, preparing to meet his
feckless, cynical son for lunch – so it is a
shock when the narrative suddenly jumps
forward to find detectives trawling through
security vision in the aftermath of his
violent murder. As McCann jumps between
Mendelssohn and the detectives, the
inevitability of those final moments add an
extra layer of pathos to his raging against
the dying of the light.
‘What Time Is It Now, Where You
Are?’ is an intriguing metafiction, built
around a writer on a deadline constructing
an initially trite tale of a soldier calling
home from Afghanistan for New Year’s
Eve. As the story is teased out, however,
the characters become more authentic and
nuanced, quickly outgrowing their conceit.
In ‘Treaty’, an elderly nun recognises the
guerrilla who raped her when he appears
on TV as a diplomat thirty years later.
What begins as an exploration of memory,
coping and ageing is transformed by a
disturbing sting in its tail.
‘Sh’khol’ is the collection’s strongest
and most harrowing piece, about a mother
whose son, a deaf adoptee still haunted by a
traumatic childhood in Russia, goes missing.
The piece is racked with grief, anxiety and
longing, and McCann’s fascination with
the body – its limitations, fallibility and
permeability – while present throughout the
collection, is foregrounded here.
Each of the stories in Thirteen Ways
converges around moments of trauma,
varying in their perspective – some in the
moments before, some years after, some
in the frantic present. While not a Grand
Novel in the same sense as McCann’s other
works, Thirteen Ways is an enlightening
and thought-provoking collection.
Alan Vaarwerk is the editorial assistant for
Readings Monthly
A STRANGENESS IN MY
MIND
Orhan Pamuk
Hamish Hamilton. PB. $32.99
As someone who
enjoys a bit of
themed travel reading
I find myself
frequently drawn to
authors whose work
focuses upon a
particular country or
city. Orhan Pamuk’s
relationship with
Istanbul is certainly one of the great
examples of such a focus and A
Strangeness in My Mind is one of his
greatest love letters to Istanbul.
The novel follows Mevlut Karata, as he
leaves his tiny Anatolian village to move
to Istanbul and sell the drink boza on the
street. Naturally he will become rich along
the way. And while things never quite
seem to work out for the hapless Mevlut,
he accidentally elopes with the wrong
girl and the whole fortune and riches
thing evades him, he still manages to find
the blessings in his life. Mevlut’s story is
told from a variety of perspectives, both
from a third party narrator and members
of his sprawling family, and this is a very
endearing and entertaining set up.
Pamuk’s novel is an easy, pleasant read,
but one that does not shy away from the
complexities of the ever-changing Istanbul
and although Mevlut is the hero of the
piece, the protagonist is certainly the city.
This is a beautifully written story with
richly drawn characters and so deeply
invested in Istanbul that you can practically
smell the city as you turn the pages.
Isobel Moore is from Readings St Kilda
SLADE HOUSE
David Mitchell
Sceptre. HB. $27.99
Slade House
came into being
on twitter. A short
280-tweet story
formed and from there
Mitchell found his way
into his latest novel.
Slade House is a short
novel and could be
read as a collection of
stories, all revolving around a mysterious
house hidden away in Slade Alley.
Beginning in 1979 and ending in 2015,
the book opens with the aforementioned
twitter story, fleshed out and developed for
the novel. Young Nathan and his mother
are invited to a soiree at the house, a police
detective investigates some old missing
persons cases and is invited into the house
by a beautiful widow, a bunch of university
students find themselves at a party there, a
journalist follows a story that leads her to
Slade Alley, and a psychiatrist researching
an academic paper is given information
that requires a visit.
Slade House is a ghost story of sorts,
but the world Mitchell creates is far
stranger than that. Readers familiar with
his previous novel, The Bone Clocks, will
know the world of this novel well as it
mines the same territory, with time and
space behaving in unusual ways and souls
entering bodies not their own.
Mitchell writes well, and apart from a
couple of clunky moments of expositionheavy dialogue this weird and imaginative
tale is compelling.
Slade House can be read as a standalone novel but readers might get more
from it by reading The Bone Clocks first.
Mitchell has a habit of referencing his
other books, with places and characters
appearing again in later novels. A little
gift, perhaps, to readers in the know,
and astute readers here will recognise a
character from The Bone Clocks and have a
clue to the ending before it arrives.
Readers might also like to check out
@I_Bombadil on twitter where one of the
characters from Slade House has taken
on a life of their own and the next novel
may very well be unfolding tweet by
increasingly strange tweet.
Deborah Crabtree is from Readings Carlton
NUMERO ZERO
Umberto Eco
Harvill Secker. PB. Available 5 November.
Was $32.99
$27.99
Early on in
Numero Zero,
Umberto Eco’s
protagonist surmises,
‘If you want to win,
you need to know just
one thing and not to
waste your time on
anything else: the
pleasures of erudition
are reserved for losers. The more a person
knows, the more things have gone wrong.’
Eco’s protagonist, Colonna, a selfdeprecating but nonetheless propitious
ghostwriter finds himself at the heart of a
faux-tabloid newspaper in Milan in 1992,
bankrolled and conceived by a mysterious
benefactor as a bargaining chip for access
to the inner sanctum of finance and
politics. Ultimately, Colonna is drawn into
an unravelling mystery and haunted by
the resurrected spectre of Mussolini, that
even his lack of belief in himself cannot
extricate him from.
While the mood, the paranoid
protagonist, and subject matter are
reminiscent of Alberto Moravia’s The
Conformist, the similarities end there.
Numero Zero doesn’t have the brooding
energy or twists of The Conformist, or
the intertextuality, depth and interest in
tabula rasa, memory and perception seen
in Eco’s earlier works The Mysterious
Flame of Queen Loana or In the Name
of the Rose, however it does recount an
interesting time in Italy’s history, with the
advent of stay-behind, the CIA, NATO,
Gladio and secret services.
Eco writes well and fluidly, and
Numero Zero is a tightly packed, quick
read. The fake newspaper premise
allows Eco to divulge the tricks of
cheap journalism: the art of denial, the
propensity for insinuation, conjecture,
even the freedoms of being able to
construct obituaries and horoscopes for
a disdained and imaginary ‘readership’.
Consequently, one wonders if the
underlying commentary is more about
Berlusconi’s media empire during his time
as the longest-serving post-war prime
minister of Italy, even if the novel is set
two years before his rise to power.
However, it is difficult to tell what
Eco desired to convey with this novel.
Part middle-aged love story, part media
critique and conspiracy theory, the result
is a satirical and entertaining novel
from an accomplished author who is
consciously hovering on the surface of a
larger conversation.
Anaya Latter is from Readings St Kilda
CITY ON FIRE
Garth Risk Hallberg
HarperCollins. PB. $32.99
It’s New Year’s Eve,
1976, and New York is
a city on the verge. As
midnight approaches,
a blizzard sets in – and
the unmistakable
sound of gunfire rings
out across Central
Park. The search for
the shooter will bring
together a rich cast of New Yorkers, from
the reluctant heirs to one of New York’s
greatest fortunes, to a couple of Long
Island punks – all connected to one
another, and to the life still clinging to that
body in the park.
THE LITTLE RED CHAIRS
Edna O’Brien
Faber. PB. Available 18 November. $29.99
One of the greats of
Irish literature, Edna
O’Brien returns with
her first new novel in
ten years.
When a wanted
war criminal,
masquerading as a
healer, settles in a
small west coast Irish
village, the community are in thrall. One
woman, Fidelma McBride, falls under
his spell– and in this searing novel,
Edna O’Brien charts the consequence
of that fatal attraction. This is a story
about love, the artifice of evil and the
terrible necessity of accountability in our
shattered, damaged world.
THE JAPANESE LOVER
Isabel Allende
Scribner. PB. Available 5 November.
Was $39.99
$32.99
THE AGE OF
REINVENTION
Karine Tuil
Atria. HB. $29.99
In 1939, as Europe goes
to war, Alma Belasco’s
parents send her to
safety in San Francisco.
There she meets
Ichimei Fukuda, and a
tender love blossoms.
Following Pearl Harbor,
the two are pulled apart
when Ichimei and
thousands of Japanese Americans are
declared enemies by the US government.
Decades later, as a series of mysterious gifts
and letters are sent to Alma, a new
generation learns about Ichimei and this
extraordinary secret passion that has
endured for nearly 70 years.
Manhattan attorney
Sam Tahar appears to
have it all – fame,
fortune, family – but
his charmed life is
built on a lie. A
Tunisian immigrant’s
son growing up in
Paris, Samir Tahar
seemed destined to
stay on the margins – until he became
friends with Samuel Baron. When the
beautiful Nina came between the pair,
Samir fled to America, assuming Samuel’s
identity and leaving his friend trapped in
the French suburbs as a failed writer. Years
later, they meet again, and Samir’s carefully
constructed existence is blown apart.
FIRST LOVE, LAST RITES
AVENUE OF MYSTERIES
Ian McEwan
John Irving
Vintage. PB. $19.99
Doubleday. PB. Available 2 November.
Was $32.99
Forty years on from
first publication, these
stories display
McEwan’s dazzling
early talent. Taut,
brooding and densely
atmospheric, they are
stories of sex and
loneliness, adolescence
and incest, love and
murder, and they linger in the mind long
after they are finished. This special edition
includes an introduction by the author
detailing how he came to write First Love,
Last Rites and rare archive material
including manuscript pages, early publicity
material and the cover of the first edition.
FIFTEEN DOGS
Andre Alexis
Serpents Tail. PB. $19.99
A pack of dogs are
granted the power of
human thought to
settle a bet between the
gods Hermes and
Apollo. Suddenly
capable of complex
thought, the dogs are
torn between those
who resist the new
ways of thinking, preferring the old ‘dog’
ways, and those who embrace the change.
Engaging and strange, full of unexpected
insights into human and canine minds, this
contemporary take on the apologue is an
extraordinary look at the beauty and perils
of consciousness.
CARRYING ALBERT
HOME
$27.99
Juan Diego’s thirteenyear-old sister Lupe
thinks she sees the
future – specifically,
her own and her
brother’s. What might
a young girl be driven
to do if she thought she
could change the
future? As an older
man, Juan Diego travels to the Philippines,
but his dreams and memories of his
childhood in Mexico, travel with him.
Avenue of Mysteries is the story of what
happens to Juan Diego in the Philippines,
his past colliding dramatically with his
future.
An revealing and insightful collection
from one of Australia’s greatest novelists
THE GREAT SWINDLE
Pierre Lemaitre
Maclehose. PB. Available 10 November. $29.99
October, 1918: after
uncovering a callous
war crime by a
commanding officer,
Albert Maillard is
buried alive and left to
face a horrific death
– until Edouard,
another soldier, digs
him out just in time,
binding the fates of the unlikely pair
together. Struggling to readjust to a society
whose reverence for its dead outweighs its
care for the returned, Albert and Edouard
conspire to enact revenge against the
country that abandoned them, with a
scheme to swindle the whole of France on
an epic scale.
Could Mussolini’s execution have been staged as
part of a Fascist plot? Colonna may have stumbled on
the scoop of a lifetime. The evidence? He’s working
on it… Hoaxes, Mafiosi, love, gossip and murder:
Numero Zero is the gripping new conspiracy thriller by
the author of The Name of the Rose.
In his inimitable way, John Irving explores how our
pasts reverberate in our presents and, indeed, our
futures. When Juan Diego travels to the Philippines,
his dreams and memories travel with him.
And while he’s there, events from his past –
in Mexico – collide with his future.
The language of business grows ever more depleted,
while politicians hide in thickets of platitudes and
clichés. Through this compendium of contemporary
cant, gibberish and jargon, Don Watson delivers a
call to arms. The English language can win minds,
hearts and nations. Why don’t we try using it?
New Year’s Eve, 1976 – two gunshots ring out
across New York’s Central Park. The search for the
shooter brings together a disparate cast of New
Yorkers. History and revolution, love and art, crime
and conspiracy are all packed into a single shell,
ready to explode… Then the lights go out.
Homer Hickam
HarperCollins. PB. $29.99
Homer Hickam (senior)
has had enough of his
wife’s pet alligator,
Albert. When Homer
finally tells her ‘it’s me
or the alligator,’ she
says she’ll give it some
thought. After a while,
she concludes there is
only one thing to do: carry Albert home. So
begins a thousand-mile adventure across
America during the Great Depression with
a man, his wife and her pet alligator – the
somewhat true tale of how one crazy road
trip becomes a truly great love story.
Colouring
THIS ANNOYING LIFE
Oslo Davis
Black Inc. PB. Available 18 November. $9.99
Within This Annoying
Life you’ll find scenes of
angst and stress ready to
receive your creative
flourishes. And why not
– we’re all in this mess
together and there’s
nothing we can do
about it! So pick up your
pencils and colour your
way through the pain of everyday life.
9
10
New Crime
Dead Write THE CROSSING
with Fiona Hardy
Crime Book of the Month
J.M. Green
Scribe. PB. $29.99
This time is an unfair part of the year for picking my Book of the
Month. When confronted with Gentill, Disher, Rankin, Galbraith
and more, somehow I’m supposed to make a decision? Of course, like
you, dear reader, I’m just going to gather all the November titles into a
big pile of happiness, hug them to my chest and make no plans for the
next few weekends. And along with those delicious favourites, why not
dig into a debut novel, set in Melbourne’s west and introducing a main
character with an arresting personality (and an excellent surname, if I do say so myself ) in
social worker Stella Hardy?
Hardy is called to a client’s house early one morning, finding a family in mourning over the
death of teenager Adut Chol. She does all she can to ease their grief, until a discussion with
the dead boy’s brother, Mabor, leads to a discovery that stops her in her tracks – her home
address in Adut’s notebooks. Stella knows this can only mean he knows about the one thing
Stella can’t forgive herself for. As she tries to find out how much Adut knew, her friendly
new neighbour goes missing, her errant brother returns to insinuate himself in her life, a
handsome artist asks for her number, Mabor makes some godawful friends, and the next
thing she knows she is being escorted by limousine to luxurious apartments to chat with
high-profile business moguls connected to shifty mining practices. All of this without her
old pal, cop Phuong Nguyen, to help her out – unless they both decide to let go of the past
and take hold of the future with a touch of make-up breaking-and-entering.
Stella is wonderfully likeable – determined but as easily sidetracked as the rest of us, be
it by the internet (guilty) or handsome artists (also guilty). She is sometimes hopeful and
sometimes bitter about the world, her friends, and her family; as an outsider everywhere,
she is full of scathing remarks about people but willing to be called out on it. This is a
powerhouse debut, full of excitement, jokes, brutality and scenic flights over Australia’s
dangerous red centre, and the very bad use of very good money.
GIVE THE DEVIL HIS DUE
CAREER OF EVIL
Sulari Gentill
Robert Galbraith
Pantera. PB. $29.99
Sphere. PB. Was $32.99
My colleagues have long
since learned of my
excitement about a new
Sulari Gentill, and many
are now series-long fans
themselves after listening
to me bluster excitedly
about Rowland Sinclair
and his cronies every time a customer
brings one of her books to the counter.
Rowly is a dashing young man of Australia’s
1920s, well-bred, well-connected, and
doesn’t give a hoot if such things get in the
way of a good time with his bourgeois pals.
And for all his adventures – this time, to
take his handsome new wheels in a race on
the Maroubra Speedway – he always runs
into trouble, fists-up, morals raised, and
ready to save the day. Endless fun,
historically fascinating, tense, gritty, as
always, these are everything you could
want in crime fiction.
DARK CORNERS
Ruth Rendell
Hutchinson. PB. Was $32.99
$27.99
This is, sadly, the last of
Rendell’s books, as she
passed away in May,
leaving a hole in crime
bookshelves everywhere.
Of course, that’s only if
you haven’t already bought
her eighty-plus books –
enough to fill a bookshelf
on their own, really – and no better place to
start, end, or remind yourself of her style,
than with Dark Corners. This is the story of
seemingly average people who do not bring
light to the world – Carl, who indirectly
caused the death of a friend; the tenant
who finds out and blackmails him; the dead
woman’s thieving friend – and an uneasy
yet brilliant and incisive look at humanity
from a truly great writer.
Michael Connelly
Ian Rankin
A&U. PB. Was $32.99
Orion. PB. Available 3 November. Was $32.99
$26.99
GOOD MONEY
$26.99
Sadly, this reviewer wasn’t
able to get her paws on
this book until after
deadline, but here is what
I’m going to assume about
it: I am going to read it in
an excited frenzy; I’m
going to be thrilled at
veteran detective
Cormoran Strike and his colleague Robin
Ellacott being reunited for another case;
something gruesome is going to happen – in
this one, the delivery to Robin of a severed leg
– and I’m going to look at my Harry Potter
collection and be shocked that J.K. Rowling
(under the Galbraith pseudonym) can think
of such things; and when someone in the
shop says to me, ‘I’m looking for a crime book
that–’ I’m going to press this into their hands
before they get any further.
TOM & LUCKY AND
GEORGE & COKEY FLO
C. Joseph Greaves
A book true to its name,
it’s the parallel stories of
Thomas E Dewey
(prosecutor), Lucky
(Charles Luciano, mob
boss), George Morton
Levy (Lucky’s lawyer) and
Cokey Flo (a prostitute
with the power to bring
Lucky down). Based on true events of the
1930s in mob-soaked New York, it centres on
Lucky’s court case for his prostitution
rackets. Dewey is gleeful to catch the
mobster at anything, even after Lucky’s
morally ambiguous saving of Dewey’s life
after whacking the criminal planning on
whacking Dewey. Heavily researched and
with characters as real as your frantic fingers
turning the page, this is an organised crime
story you should organise yourself to buy.
EVEN DOGS IN THE WILD
$27.95
Harry Bosch may be
forcibly retired from the
LAPD, but since when did
a little retirement ever
stop anyone? When his
half-brother, Mickey
‘Lincoln Lawyer’ Haller,
asks for his help in a
murder case that on the
surface appears completely unwinnable,
Bosch initially refuses. But when faced with
the idea that if Mickey is right, a killer is still
out there, he puts his trust in Haller and steps
in to assist. But a cop helping a defence lawyer
is not how the force operates, and soon Bosch
has something much more terrifying than his
unfair dismissal fight to deal with.
Nothing says crime like a
nemesis, and few do crime as
well as beloved Scot, Ian
Rankin. So everyone’s happy
when John Rebus (no longer
a detective, but still
detecting), old friend D.I.
Siobhan Clarke and ex-Complaints now-cop
Malcolm Fox team up, as it were, when Rebus
is the only one who can get through to his old
enemy Big Ger Cafferty, after someone takes
a shot through his window. He’s also received
a note – ‘I’ll kill you for what you did’ – the
same as one found on a recently dead body.
So to find out who wants to kill them, they’ll
need to find out what they did – even if the
victims aren’t entirely sure themselves.
MIDNIGHT SUN
THE HEAT
Jo Nesbo
Garry Disher
Harvill Secker. PB. Available 5 November.
$29.99
Text. PB. $29.99
Running from his own
betrayal, and his likely
end at the hands of the
criminal he betrayed, Jon
hides so far north in
Norway that they are in
eternal daytime. With
some help from locals, he
feels almost safe in a
remote cabin, where, for a while, the biggest
danger is his own mind in this endlessly
bright and disorienting landscape. But
protagonists can never escape their pasts for
long, and soon those who know his real story
are coming for him. Expect long shadows,
heavy blinds, excellent characters and the
strong writing Nesbo is renowned for.
Disher’s back, and so is Wyatt
– his whittled marble slab of
an anti-hero. From a
Melbourne more grimy than
you would ever notice from
its tourist-pocked city streets
and beachside motels, to a
Noosa on the opposite side of the coin from
family friendly, Wyatt cracks his knuckles and
gets his teeth into some juicy crime. And not
as a detective, you hear – Wyatt is more on
the committing than the prevention side, but
hey, no reader feels bad for a terrible person if
their painting gets stolen, do they? Disher’s
Wyatt, perfectly crafted in gripping,
calculated prose, is someone you’ll happily
follow into heists, thefts, and stopping their
own murder.
THE UNDESIRED
THE DROWNING GROUND
Yrsa Sigurdardottir
James Marrison
Hodder. PB. $29.99
Michael Joseph. PB. Was $32.99
Looking for something a bit
on the unnerving side this
month? Hoping to sit
indoors with most of the
lights off and a harsh wind
sending branches scratching
at your window? You’d do
well to read The Undesired, then – the tale
of how two deaths at a juvenile detention
centre in the far reaches of (the already far
from populous) Iceland tie in with a
modern investigation into abuse at the
same place. Odinn is a single father,
grieving alongside his daughter for the wife
he lost, when a colleague dies and leaves
the investigation unfinished. And the
further he looks into it, the closer the
investigation gets to his own family ...
THE HUNTER OF THE DARK
Donato Carrisi
$27.99
Nothing says picturesque
Cotswolds quite like a
pitchfork through the neck,
does it? Detective Guillermo
‘Shotgun’ Downes – exArgentinian, two decades into
his posting, and still treated
like the new kid – knows the victim, Frank
Hurst, a man who’s been on the police radar
after the apparently accidental death of his
wife and the disappearance of two young girls
loosely linked to him, though he was cleared
of any involvement. Downes and new partner
Sergeant Graves are determined to find the
killer – and Downes to make good on the
promise he made to the girls’ parents years
earlier. A chilling psychological thriller.
THE HONOURABLE
ASSASSIN
Little Brown. PB. Available 10 November.
Roland Perry
$29.99
A&U. PB. Available 1 December. $29.99
The stylish Carrisi haunts
bookshelves again, bringing
Rome to life as much as any of
the characters in his work.
This is a breathless pursuit of
a murderer by forensic
analyst Sandra Vega and the
cryptic Marcus, from the Penitenzieri – a sort
of Pope-endorsed crime-fighting team
against evil. Both are adept at finding
irregularities in scenes – Sandra from behind
a camera, Marcus from in front – and when a
nun is found dead in the Vatican, and couples
killed, it will take the best of their skills to
find out who, or what, is causing these deaths.
There’s nothing like a hearty
local murder to get readers
interested – and here,
bestselling historian Perry
kills off a Mexican drug cartel
hitman in a laneway in our
very own (now alarming)
Carlton. Journo Vic Cavalier finds himself
sent to Bangkok to chase the story – and to
chase his own interests, namely the Mexican
cartel that was seemingly involved in the
disappearance of his daughter. From drug
trafficking in Melbourne to Thailand’s heady
streets, Cavalier lives up to his name in
regards to his own personal safety in this
suspenseful thriller.
New Young Adult Fiction
See books for kids, junior and middle readers on pages 18–19
Young Adult Book of the Month
ILLUMINAE: THE ILLUMINAE FILES_01
Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
A&U. PB. $19.99
Illuminae is unlike anything I have ever read previously and I
loved every moment of it. Engrossing and encompassing, the
format follows the structure of a series of documents in various
styles, from email and instant messaging to more abstract
illustrative pieces. There is enough plot in this book for at least
three books, it’s so densely packed in, and to say too much would
ruin the joy of discovery, but it follows Kady, who lives on an illegal
mining colony at the edge of the universe in 2375. A rival tech
corporation attacks the colony and massacres the workers and the survivors are forced to
flee in damaged spaceships, and that’s just the very start of the book!
A truly original and inspiring read that shows great empathy to its characters, and
introduced me to my new favourite character – the almost brutally determined Kady – it
manages to successfully be both fantastically inspiring and also possess a frank earthiness.
The format does require the reader to work more than most books, but this just added a
weightiness and meat to the experience. Illuminae is a truly immersive read and well worth
checking out. We don’t give usually out star ratings in our reviews, but I’d like to make an
exception in this case just so I can give it 6 out of 5!
DARKMERE
Helen Maslin
Chicken House. PB. $17.99
Keen to fit in
with the cool
crowd at her new and
posh private school,
Kate is over the moon
when the popular Leo
invites her to
Darkmere, his newly
inherited castle, for
the summer break. As
Leo and his gang pack themselves into their
cars and head to the mystifying castle, Kate
can’t wait to be with Leo. However, once
they arrive at the castle Kate gets an uneasy
feeling about the place, as well as about Leo
himself.
As the group get into the party spirit
a strange encounter with a drowning girl
starts to spook them all and, as weirder
things start to happen, the group begin to
turn on one another other.
Darkmere reminded me of the old
slasher movies from the 90s, but without
the slasher part! The slasher movies
and Darkmere share an unpending of
expectations with party season and big
summer romances for teens being turned
upside down by a murderous person, or,
in this case, an apparition with unfinished
business.
The nicely interwoven historical story
of the castle and the hideous secrets it
holds were probably what enthralled me
the most, but YA readers who enjoy a ghost
story will have fun with the whole novel.
Ages 15 and up.
Katherine Dretzke is from Readings Hawthorn
LIQUIDATOR
Andy Mulligan
David Fickling. PB. $19.99
From the
bestselling
author of Trash, strap
yourself in for a
thriller where a class
of teenagers battle
wits with an evil
corporation that is
trying to cover up
malpractice and kill
an innocent child.
It’s work experience time at school and each
student has three days in a workplace.
Leela is doing rounds with a doctor, the
twins are at the local newspaper, Spud is
down the drains, Kat Kat will be helping
a reclusive rock star, and Vicky has
been dumped into ‘Assistant Sandwich
Maker’ at a law firm. But this law firm
just happens to do PR for the company
behind the biggest soft drink in the world
– Liquidator. When Vicky stumbles upon
a horrific secret that will destroy lives
she will need most of the kids from her
class and their ingenuity to stop it. Events
build to a nail-biting climax at a globally
televised charity concert – Africa’s
Weeping. Told in multiple voices and
viewpoints, this is an exciting, fast-paced
adventure where the kids outsmart the
adults and change the world. Highly
recommended for both boys and girls aged
11 and up.
Angela Crocombe is from Readings Carlton
WOLF BY WOLF
Ryan Graudin
Orion. PB. Available 5 November. $19.99
Call me naïve,
but I wasn’t
really aware there
was a genre of fiction
known as ‘alternative
history’ until I was
handed Wolf By Wolf
to review. In this
novel, author Ryan
Graudin is exploring
the idea of ‘what if’
Hitler had won World War II and,
unsurprisingly, it’s grim.
Yael was only 6 years old when she was
put into a concentration camp, along with
her mother. It was there that she became
one of the children experimented on by the
Nazis. As the experiments increase, Yael
feels herself changing, until she realises
that she can skin-shift, an ability to change
into other people she has seen or conjures
up. Hiding the results from the Nazi
doctor, Yael skin-shifts her way out of the
concentration camp where she eventually
becomes part of a resistance group.
Now eighteen years old, Yael is ready
for her first mission for the resistance:
to kill Hitler. I’m not usually one to read
action-packed sorts of novels, but for
some reason this one grabbed me. The
idea of exploring an alternative history
was something I was intrigued by, and I’m
sure it is one that young adults will find
interesting and exciting. Recommended for
ages 14 and up. KD
THE RED QUEEN:
OBERNEWTYN BOOK 7
Isobelle Carmody
Penguin. PB. $32.99
The highly
anticipated,
dramatic
conclusion to the
much-loved
Obernewtyn
Chronicles draws
to a close the
journey of Elspeth
Gordie and the
Misfits. Before
Elspeth can
continue her journey to find Sentinel and
prevent it unleashing the horrors of the
Great White, she must fight free of a
strange prison, where people are laid to
sleep forever or cling to a suffocating
existence, believing the world beyond their
walls is already utterly annihilated. But at
the end of her journey, nothing is as she
imagined. She is drawn into the struggle for
a kingdom, only to find the Destroyer is at
the heart of the turmoil, waiting for her.
Somehow she must do what she has sworn
to do, for the sake of the world and all of its
creatures. The highly anticipated, dramatic
conclusion to the much-loved Obernewtyn
Chronicles draws to a close the journey of
Elspeth Gordie and the Misfits.
SIGNS POINT TO YES
Sandy Hall
St Martins. PB. $16.99
Jane, a superstitious
fangirl, takes a
summer job
babysitting the
siblings of her
childhood friend
and new crush, Teo.
Teo doesn’t dislike
Jane, but his best
friend Ravi hates
her. So Teo’s only
hope for a peaceful summer is finally
finding his birth father and a new, less
awkward home. Meanwhile, Jane’s sister
Margo wants to come out as bisexual, but
she’s terrified of how her parents will react.
In a summer filled with secrets and
questions, even Jane’s Magic 8 ball can’t
give them clear answers.
JACKABY
William Ritter
Algonquin. PB. $19.95
Alone and newly
arrived in New
Fiddleham in 1892,
Abigail Rook finds
work as the
assistant to R. F.
Jackaby, an
investigator of the
unexplained with
the ability to see
supernatural beings.
On her first day, Abigail finds herself in
the midst of a thrilling case: a serial killer
is on the loose in New Fiddleham. The
police are convinced it’s an ordinary
villain, but Jackaby is certain the foul
deeds are the work of the kind of creature
whose very existence the local police –
with the exception of a handsome young
detective named Charlie Cane – seem
determined to deny.
11
12
Food & Gardening
with Chris Gordon
MIETTA’S ITALIAN
FAMILY RECIPES
Mietta O’Donnell
Black Inc. HB. $39.99
From Nobel Prize-winner Orhan Pamuk, an
unforgettable tale of an Istanbul street vendor and
the love of his life. Told from the perspectives of
many beguiling characters, this mesmerising modern
coming-of-age epic is sure to take its place among
Pamuk’s finest achievements.
Wicketkeepers: the closest eyewitnesses to cricket’s
story, a unique breed and something of a club. At the
heart of the action, they know the game better than
anyone else on the pitch. Malcolm Knox re-examines
the history of Australian cricket through the eyes of
these talented, resilient players at the centre of it all.
A fresh account of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam’s
1975 Dismissal. New information leads to a dramatic
reinterpretation of events, calling into question the
roles and motivations of key figures. The book covers
the lead-up to the stunning climax on Remembrance
Day 1975, and reveals what happened next.
When he’s away from his restaurant kitchens,
George Calombaris cooks the food he grew up with
– crafted with love and designed to be shared.
This is Greek food but not as you know it. George’s
modern twists on traditional recipes reveal his
unique and adventurous culinary spirit.
Welcome to Melbourne,
where we pride
ourselves on having the
very best café and food
landscape in Australia.
We have this landscape
because there are certain
families and undeniable
creative identities that years ago fostered a
culture so rich and welcoming that we, as a
city, have not dared to look back. Mietta
O’Donnell and her family and friends
represent such culinary trailblazers.
O’Donnell’s grandparents established a
restaurant, Mario’s, when they first arrived
here from Italy, which they ran for 30
years. Influenced by their entertainment
flair, in 1974 Mietta, along with her partner
Tony Knox, opened up the restaurant
Mietta’s in North Fitzroy. And so it began:
a Melbournian tradition of sharing and
rejoicing. This beautifully presented
cookbook is homage to such wondrous
times and provides a concise, pleasing
collection of recipes for classic Italian food.
There are recipes for every antipasto dish
you can imagine, recipes for pizzas and
broths, for game and fish and for desserts.
Mietta’s Italian Family Recipes is also
a history book. It is the tale of the people
and places in our city. Each section has
an introduction by Mietta musing on the
importance of music, art, or theatre, and
the people whose talents delighted her. The
recipes in each section are simple, generous
and achievable. However, don’t buy this book
just for the recipes. Buy this book because
you are proud to be a Melbournian and you
want to know more about many of the people
who have contributed to making this city
the cultural heart of Australia. Buy this book
because you believe in living well, together.
SPECIAL DELIVERY
Annabel Crabb & Wendy Sharpe
Murdoch Books. HB. $39.99
This book makes me sing:
‘For auld lang syne, we’ll
take a cup of kindness
yet…’ Here, in this truly
delightful cookbook,
long-term friends have
created a collection of
recipes that is all about benevolence. Think
Women’s Weekly, but with an air of grit and
humour. As you can imagine, all the recipes
are there from Crabb’s Kitchen Cabinet
television series, as well as some wonderful
extras. There are handy tips at the back the
book on the art of giving food – from the
meaning behind ‘bring a plate’, to dropping
off food for new mums and grieving friends.
All in all, this cookbook is not only about
Australians but also about being generous.
GREEK
George Calombaris
Lantern. HB. Was $59.99
$49.99
I reckon George Calombaris
has been great for
Melbourne. His
restaurants are innovative,
fun and the food served is
delicious. Sure, there are a
few gimmicks, but I
worship his feet every time I eat one of his
souvlakis – whatever time of the night it is.
So if you are like me and reckon Greek street
food, party food and family food is hands
down the gift of gods, then this book is for
you. All his mum’s and his yiayia’s favourites
are listed, and his own specials from his
restaurants. The food is fine, not fancy and
therefore completely accessible. The book is
splashed with street art and there are even
fun stickers included – like I said, there are a
few show tricks, but essentially the book is a
celebration of really good, honest food for
each and every one of us.
TOKYO CULT RECIPES
Maori Murota
Murdoch Books. HB. $49.99
We pride ourselves here in
Melbourne as being the
food capital of the country.
Melbourne, we say, has
become the great culinary
melting pot of the world,
celebrating every nation.
I’m starting to believe, however, that Tokyo
has taken over. It seems like everyone I know
has just returned from Japan and all of those
people are talking about either the Japanese
train system or the delicious fresh food. If we
consider the glorious food in Tokyo Cult
Recipes, it does seem possible that Tokyo is
superior to us in both areas.
This wonderful cookbook has over
100 recipes from Tokyo. Think Japanese
soul food with recipes for miso, sushi, soba
noodles, bentos, and sweets, and – wait for it
– burgers and spaghetti! There are also stepby-step features on key essential cooking
techniques which, in theory, make it all very
accessible. Every recipe has a wonderful
image and dotted throughout the collection
are beautiful pictures of food markets, street
scenes, divine Japanese kitchen interiors, as
well as Japanese producers.
SIMPLY NIGELLA
Nigella Lawson
Chatto & Windus. HB. Was $59.99
$49.99
After a turbulent couple
of years, Lawson has
returned to what she
knows best: simple,
breezy food prepared
with a minimum of fuss.
Lawson understands the
rhythms of a busy person
and her book is designed to be used with ease.
There are no complicated ingredients or
testing methods, but rather straightforward
recipes like Asian-flavoured short ribs and
chocolate-chip cookie dough pots. Welcome
back Ms Lawson, we are delighted to see you.
NEW KITCHEN
Karen Martini
Plum. HB. Was $45
$39.99
You’ve been to dinner
parties where the talk of
the town is some new
diet fad, or some new
grain or seed that is
apparently essential to
our way of life. Perhaps,
like me, you have been
mystified by this talk, or confused by your
friend’s new dietary conditions, and have felt
that to cook some wholesome new grain/
seed/leaf/root dish is beyond you and your
time. Free yourself with Martini’s new book.
Here is a collection of wonderful dishes that
celebrate our new vision of eating well
without all the drama. This is Martini’s
seventh cookbook, and it shows how neatly
her finger is on the pulse of our changing
world of food.
New Nonfiction
Book of the Month
HUNGER MAKES ME A MODERN GIRL
Carrie Brownstein
Virago. PB. $32.99
I don’t think I’d be exaggerating if I were to say that watching
Carrie Brownstein in Sleater-Kinney play a live show in
Brisbane in the early 2000s after the release of their album One Beat
was a life-changing experience for me. Carrie Brownstein and Corin
Tucker’s voices seemed to come from every corner of the full, sweaty
venue; watching that show was like having everything I never knew
about feminism, the riot grrrl, queer, punk and post-punk
movements, and the transcendent potential of women in rock implanted into my ravenous
twenty-one-year-old brain.
‘The idea that ‘hunger makes me a modern girl’ embodies
everything that is crucial, desperate and awakening’
In Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl, Carrie Brownstein lays out her own version of
this type of experience: of music fandom and a desire to perform, of her education by and
participation in a scene that was progressive, radical, and agitating, and of following those
politics and that art through to engage with a much broader audience. She writes, ‘by
the time Sleater-Kinney were a band, there was very little question that the context from
which we came was one of fairly radical politics’, but at the same time, she acknowledges a
tension in that scene of the time, a ‘cringe at the elitism that was often paired with punk …
a movement that professed inclusiveness seemed to actually be highly exclusive’. The
title of the memoir is a lyric from a song on Sleater-Kinney’s 2006 album The Woods. The
idea that ‘hunger makes me a modern girl’ embodies everything that is crucial, desperate
and awakening about the band, about Brownstein’s place in the Pacific Northwest punk
scene through the 90s and early 2000s, and about what brought her there. She writes in
a way that is clear and direct, but also, typically, sharp and lyrical, about her own sense of
yearning and emptiness that saw her seeking out the fringe punk and riot grrrl scene of
Olympia and later Portland. Music, and songwriting, was a way to be a part of something
vital, to fill a void, to be loud, to be whole, witnessed, and present.
While I’m obviously a massive fan of Brownstein’s work, I am not especially partial to music
biographies. Yet reading this particular story was an absorbing, fulfilling and urgent experience.
Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl, is eloquent and honest, and it is effortless to read.
Amy Vuleta is the manager of Readings St Kilda
Music
NOTES FROM THE
VELVET UNDERGROUND
anecdote, Peter Guralnick’s book
brilliantly tells how one man discovered
Elvis, B. B. King, Johnny Cash, and Jerry
Lee Lewis, and how his tiny record label
revolutionised the world.
Howard Sounes
Doubleday. PB. $39.99
In this in-depth,
meticulously
researched and very
entertaining book,
respected biographer
Howard Sounes
examines the life and
work of one of the
most innovative and
intelligent American
songwriters of modern times. Drawing
from interviews with over 140 people from
every part of Lou Reed’s life, Sounes also
sheds entirely new light on the artist’s
creative process, his mental health
problems, his bisexuality, his three
marriages, and his addictions to drugs and
alcohol. This book brings Lou Reed and his
world alive.
SAM PHILLIPS
Peter Guralnick
W&N. PB. $32.99
In 1951, small-town
Alabama native Sam
Phillips made what is
widely considered the
first rock ‘n’ roll record
– Ike Turner and Jackie
Brenston’s Rocket 88.
Just two years later, a
shy kid named Elvis
Presley made his first record in Phillips’
studio. An engaging mix of biography and
Biography
MY LIFE ON THE ROAD
Gloria Steinem
Nero. HB. $29.99
We know about
Gloria, we women.
We know that she has
been supporting us,
urging us and
demanding us to speak
up for decades now.
She has travelled the
world to bring our
stories to a global
platform. She is a tireless, considered
narrator of hope and kindness. Recognised
and admired worldwide for her social
activism in the field of women’s rights,
Steinem’s opus has been to record
observations that make sense of our shared
experience as women. She has constantly
been on the move (thus the imaginative
title) and this book chronicles her travels
from her first experience of social activism
among women in India to her work as a
journalist in the 1960s; from the founding of
Ms Magazine to the historic 1977 National
Women’s Conference. Showing tremendous
irony, humour and vigour, Steinem reveals
her childhood to her life, at age 81, now.
Her accounts are good-natured and
often very funny. There are vignettes of
people she has met, taxi drivers she has
sat with, students she has argued with and
media shock jocks she has talked with. She
says, ‘We need to be long-distance runners
to make a real social revolution. And you
can’t be a long-distance runner unless you
have some inner strength.’ She counsels us
to look after ourselves, to remain alert to
discrimination, and to heed other stories.
For example, she talks about working with
Hilary Clinton and the extraordinary means
by which people showed their hatred for
Clinton – until they met her.
This intimate and beautifully written
book exemplifies her profound devotion
to justice. She discloses her stories as if
we all live by her rules of conduct. It was
Steinem who pointed out, after all, that
the personal is political and the political
in turn is personal. My Life on the Road is
inspiring and, hopefully, for all who read it,
completely and utterly insidious. I want to
be as impatient as Gloria; it gets things done.
Chris Gordon is the events manager for
Readings
HOME IS BURNING
Dan Marshall
H&S. PB. Was $35
$29.99
Dan Marshall
doesn’t care
whether or not you like
him. From the halfcensored profanity on the
middle of his memoir’s
front cover, this selfproclaimed ‘spoiled white
asshole’ is clear about one
thing – having two parents diagnosed with a
terminal illness doesn’t necessarily make
you the sweetest guy. Home is Burning is a
frank, often caustic account of his own
mid-twenties. At the age of 25, Marshall is
forced to leave his ‘perfect life’ in Los
Angeles, complete with corporate job and an
attractive girlfriend, and move back to Salt
Lake City, Utah to live at home and help his
siblings look after his dying parents. His
mother Debi had been living with nonHodgkins lymphoma for 14 years when
Marshall’s father Bob was diagnosed with
ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. As their
parents’ conditions rapidly weaken, the five
siblings in this Sedaris-like clan (or ‘Team
Terminal’, as Marshall puts it) are expected
to pull together and support each other.
This memoir doesn’t read like your
typical, sentimental ‘sick-lit’ – Marshall’s
approach is to deal with adversity through
humour, a technique evident in every page.
The move home is a huge shift for him in
responsibility, and comes with more than
a hearty dose of self-pity. Yet his tendency
to add in punchlines and profanities
works to soften the various blows dealt
with throughout these two years, both for
Marshall and for the reader. ‘Now that I
was back taking care of my dying parents’,
Marshall recalls, ‘people started to treat
me like I was a tragic figure with a heart of
gold, instead of a dickhead.’
The news that the movie rights have
already been picked up, to be directed by
Jonathan Levine and to star Miles Teller,
is proof that the balance of drama and
comedy in Marshall’s story should appeal
to readers. For those who can look past
the explicit language, Home is Burning
is, ultimately, a moving account of a
complicated (endearingly dysfunctional)
family dealing with personal tragedy. If
sarcasm and dirty jokes make you chuckle,
it’s a refreshingly candid, frequently
entertaining read.
Stella Charls is the marketing and events
coordinator for Readings
13
KEATING
Kerry O’Brien
A&U. HB. This signed special edition is
exclusive to Readings and available only
while stocks last. Was $49.95
$39.95
The life of one of
Australia’s most
intriguing public
figures, former Prime
Minister Paul Keating,
as told to the country’s
most influential
political interviewer,
Kerry O’Brien. Paul
Keating is widely
credited as the chief architect of the most
significant period of political and economic
reform in Australia’s history. Twenty years
on, there is still no autobiography or
memoir from the supreme storyteller of
politics. Kerry O’Brien has spent many long
hours with Keating, teasing out the stories,
testing the memories and the assertions,
and this book of revelations fills the gap,
with a treasure trove of anecdotes, insights,
reflections and occasional admissions – a
biography unlike any other.
THE FORGOTTEN
NOTEBOOK
Betty Churcher
MUP. PB. $44.99
In 2014, Betty Churcher
discovered a forgotten
sketchbook from her
travels around the
galleries of the world.
From this she wrote a
final companion
volume to her
bestselling Notebooks
series, but died shortly after completing
the manuscript. Inspired by some of the
world’s greatest artists, Betty’s sketches
and notes bring their artworks to life as
she explores the stories of their creation.
The Forgotten Notebook showcases Betty
Churcher’s greatest talent: sharing the
excitement of discovering meaning in the
great artworks of the world.
EASILY DISTRACTED
Steve Coogan
Century. PB. $35
Born and raised in 1960s
Manchester, Steve
Coogan was told from
an early age he should
‘be on the telly’. Once a
tabloid fixture, Coogan
is now a respected film
actor, writer and
producer, with six
BAFTAs and seven
Comedy Awards. In Easily Distracted he lifts
the lid on the real Steve Coogan, writing with
distinctive humour and an unexpected
candour about a noisy childhood surrounded
by foster kids, his attention-seeking teenage
years, and his emergence as a household
name with the birth of Alan Partridge.
THE LIGHTLESS SKY
Gulwali Passarlay
Atlantic. PB. $29.99
Gulwali Passarlay fled
Afghanistan at the age
of 12, after his father
was killed in a gun
battle, and endured a
terrifying odyssey
across Europe at the
hands of human
traffickers. Somehow
14
making it to Britain, Gulwali is now a young
man intent on changing the world and
highlighting the plight of the thousands who
risk their lives to leave behind the troubles
of their homelands. This harrowing memoir
celebrates the triumph of courage and
determination over adversity.
AMAZING FANTASTIC
INCREDIBLE
Afghanistan and South Sudan. Together,
they tell stories of persecution, violence
and starvation; families separated; life in
mandatory detention; and the challenges of
starting over in Australia. None of these
people chose to be refugees; all chose
survival. A powerful, moving and inspiring
account of human resilience that every
Australian should read.
Stan Lee, Peter David & Colleen
Doran
THE BEACH: AN
AUSTRALIAN PASSION
Simon & Schuster. HB. $45
Robert Drewe
In this gorgeously
illustrated, full-color
graphic memoir, Stan
Lee, comic book legend
and co-creator of a legion
of Marvel superheroes,
shares his iconic legacy
and the story of how
modern comics came to
be. Moving from his impoverished childhood
in Manhattan, through his military training
films during World War II to the rise of the
Marvel empire, this funny, moving, and
incredibly honest memoir is a must-have for
collectors and fans of comic books and
graphic novels of every age.
National Library of Australia. HB. $39.99
POUR ME
A. A. Gill
Weidenfeld & Nicolson. PB. $32.99
A. A. Gill’s compulsive
memoir of the lost year
between the end of his
marriage and the end of
his drinking is about the
black-outs, the collapse,
the despair – but also
about the times of
optimum inebriation,
when it was all golden, when the drink and the
pleasure made sense and were brilliant. Full of
raw and unvarnished truths, exquisitely
written throughout, Pour Me is about lost time
and self-discovery. Lacerating, unflinching,
uplifting, it is a classic about drunken abandon.
BORN TO RULE
Paddy Manning
MUP. HB. Was $45
$39.95
Born to Rule is the
unauthorised biography
that unravels the many
layers of the man who
has just become the 29th
Prime Minister of
Australia. The highs and
lows of Malcolm
Turnbull’s remarkable
career are documented here in technicolour
detail by journalist Paddy Manning. Based on
countless interviews and painstaking
research, it is a forensic investigation into one
of Australia’s most celebrated overachievers.
Will Turnbull crash and burn as he has
before, or has his entire tumultuous life been
a rehearsal for this moment?
Australian Studies
MORE TO THE STORY
Rosemary Sayer
Margaret River Press. PB. $27.95
More to the Story tells the
human stories of refugees
and asylum seekers in
Australia. Rosemary
Sayer writes with
empathy and humility of
her interviews with
refugees from Burma,
From an Indigenous
food source to a
hedonistic
playground, the beach
has long been a
national obsession.
But the beach also has
a dark side as a place
of tragedy, violence and danger, a place
where sharks attack prone surfers and prime
ministers disappear. Robert Drewe’s lyrical
examination of Australian beach culture
combines personal anecdotes with imagery
from some of Australia’s most celebrated
photographers. It’s a book for Australians
dreaming of the beach.
THE BEST AUSTRALIAN
ESSAYS 2015
Geordie Williamson (ed.)
In The Best Australian
Essays 2015, Geordie
Williamson compiles the
year’s outstanding short
non-fiction. Read Helen
Garner on condescension,
DBC Pierre on travel,
Ceridwen Dovey on
autobiography, Tim
Winton on injury, Anna Krien on first love,
and Nicolas Rothwell on the northwest
coast. With bracing essays on politics, music,
literature, history, art, sport and more, this
impressive anthology will entrance,
stimulate and entertain.
Campbell, Andrew Dyson, John Farmer,
First Dog on the Moon, Matt Golding, Fiona
Katauskas, Mark Knight, Jon Kudelka, Bill
Leak, Alan Moir, Peter Nicholson, Bruce
Petty, David Pope, David Rowe, John
Spooner, Ron Tandberg, Andrew Weldon,
Cathy Wilcox, Paul Zanetti, and many more.
THE EIGHTIES
Frank Bongiorno
Black Inc. HB. Was $45
$39.99
GREAT SOUTH LAND
THE SIMPLEST WORDS
Rob Mundle
Alex Miller
ABC Books. HB. Was $45
A&U. PB. Was $39.99
$39.99
Virago. PB. $32.99
$34.99
For many, the colonial
story of Australia starts
with Captain Cook in 1770,
but it was some 164 years
earlier that Dutch seafarers
discovered and mapped
the vast, unknown waters
and land masses in the
Indian and Southern Oceans. Rob Mundle
returns to the water with another sweeping
and powerful account of Australian
maritime history, telling the story of the
European mariners who discovered and
mapped the majority of Australia, but made
no effort to lay claim to it.
Cultural Studies
Peter FitzSimons
Heinemann. HB. $49.99
The late Christopher
Hitchens was an
unparalleled, prolific
writer, who raised the
polemical essay to a new
art form, over a lifetime
of thinking and debating
the defining issues of our
times. This final volume
of previously unpublished essays covers the
themes that define Hitchens the thinker –
literature, religion and politics – and
showcase the notorious contrarian’s genius
for rhetoric, offering sharp rebukes to
tyrants and the ill-informed everywhere.
These essays remind us, once more, of the
fierce, brilliant and trenchant voice of
Christopher Hitchens.
This collection, from one
of Australia’s most
admired and thoughtful
writers, brings together
short pieces written over
the last forty years. Taken
together, they comprise a
most insightful,
intelligent and ruminative
meditation on family, friendship, truth,
memory, and more. Personal and intimate as
these pieces are, this collection forms a kind
of assured autobiography, perhaps of the sort
that only Alex Miller could write. Stories are,
after all, in his blood.
BOLD
David Hardy (ed.)
Rag & Bone Man. HB. $34.95
Christopher Hitchens
THE BEST AUSTRALIAN
POLITICAL CARTOONS
2015
THE SPECTACLE OF SKILL
Russ Radcliffe (ed.)
Random House. HB. Was $79.99
The year in politics as
observed by Australia’s
funniest and most
perceptive political
cartoonists. With Dean
Alston, Peter Broelman,
Warren Brown, Pat
Victoria Pepe (ed.)
Is feminism still a dirty
word? Twenty-five of the
brightest, funniest, bravest
young women from all
walks of life in the UK
were asked what being a
feminist in 2015 means to
them. Is the word ‘feminist’
still to be shunned? Is feminism still thought
of as anti-men rather than pro-human? Is
this generation of feminists – outspoken,
funny and focused – the best we’ve had for
long while? Has the internet given them a
voice and power previously unknown?
AND YET …
Scribe. PB. $29.99
I CALL MYSELF A
FEMINIST
It was the era of Hawke
and Keating, Kylie and
INXS, the America’s Cup
and the Bicentenary. It
was a time when
Australians fought for
social change – for land
rights, women’s rights and
as part of a new
environmental movement. And there were the
events that left many scratching their heads.
Frank Bongiorno brings all this and more to
life. He uncovers forgotten stories and sheds
new light on the ordinary and extraordinary
things that happened to Australia and
Australians during this liveliest of decades.
FROMELLES AND
POZIÈRES: IN THE
TRENCHES OF HELL
In July 1916, Australian
soldiers attacked
entrenched German
positions at Fromelles
and Pozières in northern
France – a bloodbath
described as the worst in
Australia’s entire history.
Yet nearly a century on
from those battles, Australians know only a
fraction of what occurred. This book brings
the battles back to life, illustrating both the
heroism displayed and the insanity of the
British plan. Peter FitzSimons shows why
this is a story about which all Australians
can be proud – and angry.
–brilliantly, convincingly, and with vitality
and immediacy. In this volume, that voice
rings clear through some of his most
unforgettable writings, culled from nine of
his most popular and important books, as
well as never-before-published pages from
his unfinished second volume of memoirs.
There never was, and never will be again, a
voice like this.
Robert Hughes
$69.95
Robert Hughes wrote with
brutal honesty about art,
architecture, culture,
religion, and himself. He
translated his passions – of
which there were many,
both positive and negative
In Australia, the news is
filled with debate around
same sex marriage, and
why we are the last
English-speaking country
to end this discrimination.
Headlines broadcast news
of sports people coming
out, and stories of prominent transgender
people go viral on social media. Behind these
stories, who are the people who have
championed the great changes in Australia
and around the world? In this book, over 50
people – including prominent activists such
as Bob Brown, Sally Goldner and the Hon.
Michael Kirby – tell their stories.
Science
ADAM SPENCER’S
WORLD OF NUMBERS
Adam Spencer
Xoum. PB. Was $34.99
$29.99
What’s a firkin? How fast
is Usain Bolt – really? And
what’s the record for the
most lobster rolls eaten in
10 minutes? All these
questions and more are
answered in this
fascinating snapshot of
the world of numbers by Australia’s funniest
mathematician. From the building blocks of
life, to the games we play and the food we
eat, this is a book for anyone who loves
puzzles and numbers, or is just plain curious
about the amazing world around us.
first Industrial Revolution. David
Wootton’s landmark book changes our
understanding of how this great
transformation came about, and of what
science is.
THE BRAIN
History
David Eagleman
Canongate. PB. $32.99
Locked away in the skull,
the brain somehow
produces the multisensory experience that
comprises human nature.
Bestselling neuroscientist
David Eagleman shows
how the brain constructs
reality, allowing us to
navigate a complex world of decisionmaking. Along the way, he meets nuns,
athletes, convicted criminals, genocide
survivors, and multi-disciplinary experts
from child psychologists to brain surgeons.
The accessible and definitive overview is a
celebration of one of the most extraordinary
stories on earth.
THE BRAIN ELECTRIC
Malcolm Gay
Text. PB. $32.99
Controlling a machine
or prosthetic with your
mind, ‘seeing’ through a
camera located miles
away – such remarkable
feats are now within the
grasp of neuroscience.
Malcolm Gay highlights
the researchers delving
into the intricate workings of the brain; of
the volunteers participating in these
groundbreaking experiments; and of the
developing technologies that will improve
lives and potentially revolutionise human
capabilities. The Brain Electric challenges
our relationship with technology, our
bodies, and what it means to be human.
THE HEART HEALERS
James S. Forrester
Affirm. PB. $29.99
One Australian dies
from heart disease
every 12 minutes. But
hundreds of thousands
have lived thanks to
the greatest medical
breakthrough of our
lives. World-renowned
cardiologist Dr James
S. Forrester tells the story of the misfits,
mavericks and rebels who defied the
accumulated scientific wisdom of the day
to begin conquering heart disease. This is
the pulsating chronicle of a disease and
its cure – a disease that is still with us,
but one that is slowly being worn away.
THE INVENTION OF
SCIENCE
David Wootton
Allen Lane. HB. $69.99
We live in a world
made by science. How
and when did this
happen? This book tells
the story of the
extraordinary
intellectual and
cultural revolution,
kickstarted by the
discovery of America, that gave birth to
modern science and led to a new
rationalism, killing off alchemy, astrology,
and belief in witchcraft and leading to the
SPQR
Mary Beard
Profile. HB. Available 18 November. $49.99
SPQR is the Romans’
own abbreviation for
their state: Senatus
Populus Que Romanus,
‘The Senate and People
of Rome’. SPQR is a new
look at Roman history
from one of the world’s
foremost classicists. It
explores not only how Rome grew from an
insignificant village in central Italy to a
power that controlled territory from Spain
to Syria, but also how the Romans thought
about themselves and their achievements,
and why they are still important to us today.
THE INVENTION OF
NATURE
Andrea Wulf
Quercus. PB. $35
Alexander von
Humboldt is the great
lost scientist: towns,
rivers, mountain ranges,
animals are named after
him – even a region on
the moon. Humboldt
predicted humaninduced climate change
as early as 1800, and he inspired princes and
presidents, scientists and poets alike. The
Invention of Nature traces his ideas as they
go on to revolutionise and shape science,
conservation, nature writing, politics, art
and the theory of evolution, and shows why
his life and ideas remain so important today.
THE CRIME AND THE
SILENCE
Anna Bikont
Heinemann. PB. Available 2 November. $35
On 10 July 1941 a
horrifying crime was
committed in the small
Polish town of Jedwabne
– the town’s entire
Jewish population were
marched into the town
square and killed. Part
history, part memoir, part
investigation, Anna Bikont chronicles the
sources of the hatred that exploded against
Jews. The Crime and the Silence is the story
of a massacre told through oral histories of
survivors, witnesses and perpetrators, and
a portrait of a Polish town coming to terms
with its dark past.
THE MISTRESS OF PARIS
Catherine Hewitt
Icon. PB. $29.99
Valtesse de la Bigne was a
celebrated 19th-century
Parisian courtesan.
Immortalised in the
scandalous novel Nana,
her rumoured affairs with
Napoleon III and the
future Edward VII kept
gossip columns full. But her glamorous
existence hid a dark secret: she was born
into abject poverty, raised on a squalid
Paris backstreet; the lowest of the low.
15
16
Catherine Hewitt’s biography tells, for the
first time ever in English, the forgotten
story of a remarkable woman who, though
her roots were lowly, never stopped
aiming high.
THE OTHER PARIS
Luc Sante
Faber. HB. $55
Paris, the City of Light, the
city of fine dining and
seductive couture and
intellectual hauteur, was
until fairly recently always
accompanied by its
shadow: the city of the
poor, the outcast, the
criminal, the eccentric, the
wilfully nonconforming. Richly illustrated
and thoroughly researched, The Other Paris
gives us a panoramic view of that second
metropolis, which has nearly vanished but
whose traces remain in the contemporary
city, in the culture of France itself, and, by
extension, throughout the world.
THE WITCHES
Stacy Schiff
Weidenfeld & Nicolson. PB. $32.99
side of the Syrian conflict, Hunting Season is
a quest to uncover the truth about how and
why Islamic State came to target Western
hostages, who was behind it and why almost
no one outside a small group of people knew
anything about it until it was too late.
POSTCAPITALISM: A
GUIDE TO OUR FUTURE
Paul Mason
Penguin. HB. $49.99
Over the past two
centuries or so,
capitalism has
undergone continual
change, emerging
transformed and
strengthened. Surveying
this turbulent history,
Paul Mason shows how,
from the ashes of the recent financial crisis,
we have the chance to create a more socially
just and sustainable global economy.
Moving beyond capitalism, he shows, is no
longer a utopian dream – this is the first
time in human history in which we can
predict and shape, rather than simply react
to, seismic change.
philosophical gems, adding new ones that
strike a chord. From Epicurus to Emerson
and Camus, each pithy extract is annotated
with Klein’s inimitable charm and insights.
Reference
P IS FOR PELOTON
Olivier Le Carrer
Suze Clemitson
Black Dog & Levanthal. HB. $29.99
Bloomsbury. HB. $29.99
A fascinating history and
armchair journey to the
world’s most dangerous and
frightful places, complete
with vintage maps and
period illustrations. It
includes 40 locations rife
with disaster, chaos, paranormal activity,
and death, such as the dangerous Strait of
Messina, home of the mythical sea
monsters Scylla and Charybdis and
Aokigahara Forest in Japan, the world’s
second most popular suicide location.
A perfect gift book for all
cycling fans – the A-Z of
cycling from Arriv.e to
Zoetemelk. Beautifully
illustrated by renowned
cycling artist Mark
Fairhurst, P is for Peloton is packed with fun
facts from the amazing to the bizarre, and
stories about the greatest riders in the sport.
Ever wanted to know the difference
between your flamme rouge and your
lanterne rouge? This is the book for you – or
the cycling obsessive in your life.
MAKING A POINT
David Crystal
WINTER IS COMING
Garry Kasparov has been a
vocal critic of Vladimir
Putin for over a decade, even
leading the pro-democracy
opposition in the 2008
Presidential election. In this
bold and important book,
Garry Kasparov argues that
Putin’s dangerous global ambitions have been
ignored for too long – and he won’t be
stopped unless the West stands up to him.
Argued with the force of Kasparov’s worldclass intelligence, conviction and hopes for
his home country, Winter is Coming is an
unmistakable call to action.
Behind every punctuation
mark lie a thousand
stories. The punctuation
of English, marked with
occasional rationality, is
founded on arbitrariness
and littered with oddities.
For a system of a few
dozen marks it generates a disproportionate
degree of uncertainty and passionate
debate. With characteristic wit, clarity and
commonsense, David Crystal gives a
fascinating history of every kind of
punctuation mark, and he offers sound
advice on how punctuation may be used to
meet the needs of every occasion and
context.
Politics
Philosophy
Travel Photography
Atlantic. PB. $29.99
A GOOD LIFE
GREEN NOMADS
Kshama Sawant
Mark Rowlands
Bob Brown
Verso. HB. $39.99
Granta. PB. Available 18 November. $29.99
Hardie Grant. HB. Was $45
In 2013, Kshama
Sawant became one of
the most unlikely and
most exciting
politicians in the
United States, running
for Seattle City Council
as a militant socialist,
with a bold push to
raise the city’s minimum wage to $15 an
hour, more than double the national
standard. This is the story of how Sawant
toppled a 16-year incumbent and
reshaped Seattle’s political culture, and
an inspiring call for more movements to
speak to the scores of people looking for
alternatives to capitalism.
Myshkin was born on a
certain day and died on a
certain day – and he spent
his life trying to answer the
ethical questions of what
came in between.
Discovered by his son after
Myshkin’s death, A Good
Life is one man’s life (birth, death,
education, religion, morality, illness and so
on) told through a philosophical lens.
Profoundly funny and deeply serious, it is
as readable as a novel and as provocative as
the best philosophy.
HUNTING SEASON
James Harkin
Orchard. PB. Available 10 November. $32.99
Hunting Season is James
Harkin’s harrowing
investigation into the
abduction, captivity, and
execution of American
journalist James Foley
and the fate of more than
two-dozen other ISIS
hostages. Based on three
years of on-the-ground reporting from every
Daniel Klein
Gift
Profile. HB. $29.99
AMERICAN SOCIALIST
EVERY TIME I FIND THE
MEANING OF LIFE THEY
CHANGE IT
Sport & Recreation
ATLAS OF CURSED
PLACES
A Pulitzer Prizewinning author
explores one of the
great mysteries of
American history: the
Salem witch trials.
Vividly capturing the
dark, unsettled
atmosphere of 17thcentury America, Stacy Schiff’s magisterial
history draws us into this anxious time. She
shows us how a band of adolescent girls
brought the nascent colony to its knees, and
how quickly the epidemic of accusations,
trials, and executions spun out of control.
Above all, Schiff’s astonishing research
reveals details and complexity that few
other historians have seen.
Garry Kasparov
in Business, draws on her own experience
of working in some of the world’s most
successful businesses and looks at what
women can do to help themselves, and
effect change on a more universal scale.
$39.99
The landscape and
close-up photographs of
Australia’s natural
landscape are ethereal
yet familiar, calming yet
powerful. Green Nomads
is a celebration of
Australia’s wilderness areas, and a
reminder that we surely have something to
celebrate. Paired with Bob Brown’s
personal and insightful anecdotes, this
book will appeal to travellers, tourists,
conservationists, photography enthusiasts
and all those that enjoy the wilderness.
Business
IT HAPPENED ON
A FISHING TRIP
Paddy O’Reilly (ed.)
Affirm. PB. $29.99
Fishing – we do it in
ponds, creeks, great
rivers, the deep sea.
Some fall under the spell
of the chase, some spend
a lifetime trying to tie
the perfect fly, some just like sitting on the
pier for hours. These are tales of the fishing
adventures and misadventures of amateurs
and pros, one-time anglers, families and
friends, in the stunning landscape of Australia
– stories, pictures and hilarious anecdotes
from Australian writers, fishing royalty, and
many more amateur enthusiasts.
Humour
THE WAYWARD LEUNIG
Michael Leunig
Viking. HB. Was $59.99
$49.99
Michael Leunig found
the process of selecting
just 400 pieces for 2012’s
The Essential Leunig so
difficult that he set aside
another 400 for a
subsequent volume. The cartoons in The
Wayward Leunig have also been selected
from five decades of work, and are just as
wide-ranging, potent and original.
Natural History
BIRDLAND
Leila Jeffreys
Text. HB. $29.99
LEAN IN
As a young college student
studying philosophy,
Daniel Klein filled a
notebook with short
quotes from the world’s
greatest thinkers, hoping
to find some guidance on
how to live the best life he
could. Now, from the vantage point of his
eighth decade, Klein revisits the wisdom he
relished in his youth with this collection of
Sheryl Sandberg
Ebury. PB. Available 2 November. $22.99
In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg’s
Lean In became a cultural
phenomenon and its title
became an instant
catchphrase for
empowering women. In
Lean In, Sandberg,
Facebook’s COO and one of
Fortune magazine’s Most Powerful Women
PQ. HB. Available 10 November. $49.99
In Birdland, Australian
fine-art photographer
Leila Jeffreys draws
birds out from their
leafy shadows and airy
territories and presents
a stunning encounter
with some of the
world’s most beautiful birds. Her love and
compassion for her subjects is evident
throughout, and Jeffreys profiles nearly
every species.
Art & Design
with Margaret Snowdon
BUILDING ART
Paul Goldberger
Doubleday. HB. Available 2 November. $69.99
From Pulitzer Prizewinning architectural
critic Paul Goldberger,
comes this engaging,
nuanced exploration of the
life and work of Frank
Gehry, undoubtedly the
most famous architect of
our time. This first fully fledged critical
biography presents and evaluates the work
of a man who has almost single-handedly
transformed contemporary architecture in
his innovative use of materials, design, and
form, and who is among the very few
architects in history to be both respected by
critics as a creative, cutting-edge force and
embraced by the general public as a
popular figure.
NGARRA
Nick Tapper (ed.)
Mossenson Art Foundation. PB. $49.95
As a young man
Ngarra began a long
and successful career
as cattleman. During
quiet times in the wet
season he would walk the country, attending
to ceremonies of life, death and the afterlife:
he was the senior lawman for ceremonies
throughout a vast swathe of the Kimberley. In
his 70s Ngarra turned to art, developing an
electrifying and sophisticated style of
painting and drawing, producing works in
ochre, acrylic and texta. He boldly combined
his unparalleled cultural knowledge with a
unique artistic vision.
PHOTOGRAPHY IS MAGIC
Charlotte Cotton (ed.)
Aperture. PB. $31.99
This critical publication
surveys the work of a
diverse group of artists,
all of whom are engaged
with experimental ideas
concerning photographic
practice and its place in a
shifting photographic landscape being
reshaped by digital techniques. It draws
together current ideas about the use of
photography as an invaluable medium in
the contemporary art world. From Michele
Abeles and Walead Beshty to Daniel
Gordon and Matthew Lipps, Cotton has
selected the artists around the idea of
magic, the properties of illusion and
material transformation that uniquely
characterise photography.
THE SURREALISM
READER
thematic sections: ‘The Annihilation of
Self-Identity’; ‘The Challenge of Otherness’;
‘The Moral Imperative’; and ‘The Tasks of Art
and Poetry’.
PAINTING THE MODERN
GARDEN
Monty Don et al. (eds)
Royal Academy of Arts. HB. $100
Within Europe, the
Impressionists were
among the first to
portray gardens directly
from life, focusing on
their colour and form
rather than using them as a background for
historical, religious and literary themes. This
volume explores the close, symbiotic
relationship between artists and gardens
that developed during the latter part of the
nineteenth and the first part of the twentieth
centuries, centring on Monet, a great
horticulturalist as well as a great artist.
Chapters explore the aesthetic importance
of gardens to these artists, and also their
significance as utopian spaces of imagination
and reverie, as well as of spiritual refuge.
PICTURING PEOPLE
Charlotte Mullins
T&H. HB. $60
Figurative art is
currently riding high.
Contemporary works
depicting the human
form grace the walls of
public institutions and
commercial galleries
alike. Champions of
paint, such as Katherine Bernhardt and
Adrian Ghenie; photographic artists, such as
Gillian Wearing and Cindy Sherman; Charles
Avery’s drawings, Grayson Perry’s tapestries
and Kara Walker’s silhouettes – these and
many other artists from diverse backgrounds
are working in a range of media to explore
new ways to depict the human form.
LISTENING TO STONE
Hayden Herrera
Count as you walk up Numerical Street.
Every page has a numerical treat.
Get your pants altered, get your keys cut,
Open the book before the shops shut.
F
rom the creators of bestselling Alphabetical Sydney comes a walk
up busy Numerical Street, past its laundromats, cake shops, panel
beaters and hair salons. A fresh look at familiar shops and businesses,
the vibrant illustrations and playful verse of Numerical Street
celebrate the jostle and chaos of suburban streetscapes.
w w w. n e w s o u t h p u b l i s h i n g . c o m
COOL, CALM AND COLLECTABLE
T&H. HB. Available 1 December. $55
Combining Isamu Noguchi’s
personal correspondence
and interviews with those
closest to him – from artists,
patrons, assistants, and
lovers – Herrera has created
an authoritative biography of
one of the twentieth century’s most
important sculptors. She locates Noguchi in
his friendships with such artists as
Buckminster Fuller and Arshile Gorky, and
in his affairs with women including Frida
Kahlo and Anna Matta Clark. With the
attention to detail and scholarship that made
her biography of Gorky a finalist for the
Pulitzer Prize, Herrera has written a rich
meditation on art in a globalised milieu.
Dawn Ades et al (eds.)
XS
Tate. PB. $55
Lisa Baker
Drawn mostly from French
and Spanish surrealist
journals, this new collection
gathers together a wide range
of texts dating from the 1920s
up to the late 1990s, none of
which has ever been translated into English
before. The Surrealism Reader features
writings by leading surrealists, including
Aragon, Artaud, Bataille, Breton, Caillois,
Crevel, Dali, Éluard, Mabille, Magritte,
Morise and Tzara, and others largely
unknown to English readers, such as Georges
Henein, René Alleau, Gérard Legrand and
Annie Le Brun. It is divided into four
Braun. HB. $70
Tiny houses have become
increasingly popular in
recent years. Even though
there are many regional
variations, all residences
of this type share a major
feature – on an area of up to 60 square
metres they provide all necessities of life.
Nowadays, they are no longer designed by
individual solo fighters but also by
renowned architects who take on the
simple yet challenging task and develop the
enthralling room concepts and spatial
solutions that are presented in this volume.
From the streets of the world to your living room.
Renowned artist Kyle Hughes-Odgers brings
a new aesthetic to the stress-relieving pleasures
of colouring in.
UNIQUELY AUSTRALIAN STORIES
17
18
Picture Books
Junior Fiction
MOVING TARGET
FAIRYTALES FOR MR BARKER
HARRY MILLER’S RUN
Scholastic. HB. $19.99
Jessica Ahlberg
David Almond & Salvatore Rubbino
Walker Books. HB. $19.95
Walker. HB. $17.95
Continuing on in the fine
tradition of her parents,
Jessica Ahlberg has created a
beautifully detailed and charming
fairytale story. The actual story is
sweet, a chase through various
fairytales after a dog, but the true
highlight here is the illustrations. So much to see on every
page, down to a teeny tiny shopping list for the three bears
(batteries for the burglar alarm) and ‘mud soap’ for the
pigs. Children will absolutely delight in the ‘look and find’
aspect of the storytelling, which really calls to mind one of
the pleasures of Each Peach Pear Plum.
On the face of it, Harry Miller’s
Run describes a magic day in the
early life of Harry (now an old man)
who once ran from Newcastle to South
Shields for a dip in the sea with friends.
But beneath that lies a warm and
touching tale of the pleasure and
wonder to be found in friendship,
human connection and community.
A multi-award winning author, best known for his
insightful and profoundly moving books for children
including Skellig, The Savage and My Dad’s a Birdman, only
a master storyteller like David Almond could evoke such a
sense of place and time with so much joy.
This is an exquisite book, beautifully illustrated
in muted, pastel tones and a story that defies easy
categorisation. Perfect for patient, thoughtful readers who
enjoy some depth.
Highly recommended for ages 7 and up, including adults.
CAN A SKELETON HAVE AN
X-RAY?
Kyle Hughes Odgers
Fremantle Press. HB. $24.99
How does sound taste? Do colours
smell? Why do onions make me cry?
Who builds the wings for birds to fly?
Renowned artist Kyle Hughes-Odgers
brings his unique vision to these and
many other questions. From the
practical to the philosophical, this
book is guaranteed to fire young imaginations!
MY DOG BIGSY
Alison Lester
Penguin. HB. Was $24.99
$19.99
Meet my dog Bigsy. He’s only small,
but everyone knows he’s the boss.
Each morning he visits the animals
on the farm. Squawk, neigh, quack,
moo, baa, oink, cluck, purr, ruff ruff
ruff! What a lot of noise! And all
because of Bigsy! From Australia’s favourite picture book
creator comes this energetic story about a little dog who
causes a big commotion.
SCARLETT, STARLET
Emma Quay
HarperCollins. HB. $24.99
Scarlett loved to dance, and her house
was always filled with rhythm. Her
parents would clap along, and Little
Jazzy Jo-Jo’s paws would tap-tap-tap in
time. But when Scarlett’s dreams of
dancing on a real stage finally come true,
will she find her own rhythm? Will she
shine like a star? From award-winning author Emma Quay
comes a gorgeous new picture book for every little girl
who loves to dance.
Nonfiction
DIARY OF A TIME TRAVELLER
Nicholas Stevenson & David Long
Wide Eyed Editions. HB. $29.99
This fascinating book is not about
time travel at all but is actually a
history book looking at 25 key events and
time periods throughout human
civilization. When Augustus claims that
history is boring, he receives a mysterious
present: a time-travelling diary. All he
needs is to write down the time and place he wants to visit
and he will magically travel there. Augustus journeys with
his professor and gains inspiration from some of the
world’s finest explorers, inventors, leaders, writers,
composers and painters, including Albert Einstein in New
York, Mozart in Vienna, Shakespeare in London, and Nancy
Bird-Walton in Australia. Concluding in 1969 when Neil
Armstrong walks on the moon, this is a highly illustrated
and unusual look at history for readers aged 7 and up.
Angela Crocombe is from Readings Carlton
Athina Clarke is from Readings Malvern
THE BAD GUYS EPISODE 2:
MISSION UNPLUCKABLE
Aaron Blabey
Scholastic. PB. $12.99
The Bad Guys are back with a
daring plan to rescue 10,000
chickens from a high-security cage
farm! But how do you rescue
chickens when one of you is known
as The Chicken Swallower? Join the
Bad Guys as they return for more
dodgy good deeds with a new
member of the team. And watch out
for the super villain who might just be the end of them!
Good deeds – whether you like it or not.
THE CLEO STORIES: A FRIEND
AND A PET
Libby Gleeson & Freya Blackwood
A&U. HB. $16.99
Two more endearing stories about the
little girl who always finds a way to
have fun. Cleo’s best friend is away,
her parents are busy, and there’s
nothing to do but count raindrops - or
tidy her room. Just when she thinks
she’ll never cheer up, Cleo has an idea.
In the next story, Cleo longs for a pet
but her mum and dad say no. Perhaps
the answer is hidden somewhere unexpected.
Middle Fiction
THE BOLDS
Julian Clary
Andersen Press. PB. Available 2 November. $18.99
When a couple of Englishspeaking hyenas migrate from
Africa to England and settle in a quiet
suburban street they soon realise
they’ll need more than just their
human disguise – soon they get jobs,
have pups and live an extraordinary
life.
I loved this outrageous tall tale.
It’s laugh-out-loud funny (with just
the right amount of bottom humour) but also clever
and witty as it good naturedly pokes fun at humans who
perceive themselves as superior to animals.
What’s not to like? Terrific line illustrations bring
an extra layer of fun to a story that’s guaranteed to
have young readers laughing hysterically at the madcap
antics. This little gem of a book is the brainchild of
entertainer, comedian, and now children’s author, Julian
Clary and award-winning illustrator David Roberts.
Highly recommended for ages 6 and up. A comedy
riot for the whole family. Athina
Christina Diaz Gonzalez
A centuries old spear and a 21st
century girl are on a collision
course that could change the future
of the world. What’s the plan? Cassie
has no plan when out of nowhere
her life is threatened and her father
disappears. It turns out she is the
Chosen One but will she live long
enough to find out what that means?
Cassie must make life or death
decisions and also learn who she can trust when she is
thrust into the world of a secret organisation that she is
intrinsically linked with. This is a compelling adventure
that has plenty of mystery and danger to engage readers
as Cassie runs for her life in Rome. However, beware, you
may turn to the last page but the adventure is not over!
Ages 9 to 14. Alexa
OLIVE OF GROVES
Katrina Nannestad & Lucia Masciullo
Harper Collins. HB. $19.99
Olive of Groves is my choicepick for middle readers this
year! A delightful, hilarious read full
of suspense and drama that will keep
readers engaged from beginning to
end.
As the newest arrival at Mrs
Groves’ Boarding School for Naughty
Boys, Talking Animals and Circus
Performers, Olive finds herself fasttalking her way into admission at the school with outlandish
claims to talents she doesn’t possess. The headmistress,
Mrs Groves, is terrified of ‘ordinary little girls’ and puts
Olive on probation to prove that she has the right ‘misfit
characteristics’ to be a student there.
Olive becomes quickly endeared towards a group of
talking rats that share her bedroom and who have the most
peculiar proclivities, but no more than other students in the
school who are just as bizarre. Olive must contend with live
human cannonballs propelled through walls, a pyrotechnic
maniac that sets fire to everything and a compulsive buttersmearer who likes to grease all surfaces around the school.
Olive’s biggest challenge is the school bully, Pig McKenzie,
who is intent on seeing her expelled.
Read on to discover how Olive earns her place in this
school of misfits, takes on the bully and rescues a friend
from a terrible fate.
Natalie Platten is from Readings Malvern
LAUGH YOUR HEAD OFF
Various
Macmillan. PB Anthology. $19.99
This is an anthology of short, funny
stories by nine of the top, awardwinning authors in the kids’ publishing
world, headlined by the King of Kids:
Andy Griffiths. The stories are for all
kinds of kids, both girls and boys, and
there are all kinds of stories. There’s a
story from Andy Griffiths about being a
robot; a story from Jude Rossell about a
cranky fairy; Tristan Bancks explores
Nits and Naplan in his story ‘NitPlan’.
OLD SCHOOL: DIARY OF A WIMPY
KID BOOK 10
Jeff Kinney
Penguin. PB. Available 3 November. Was $14.99
$11.99
Life was better in the old days. Or
was it? That’s the question Greg
Heffley is asking as his town
voluntarily unplugs and goes
electronics-free. But modern life
has its conveniences, and Greg isn’t
cut out for an old-fashioned world.
With tension building inside and
outside the Heffley home, will Greg
find a way to survive? Or is going
‘old school’ just too hard for a kid like Greg?
19
Book of the Month
THE WONDER GARDEN
Kristjana S Williams & Jenny Broom
Wide Eyed Editions. HB. $35
Big, bold and beautiful, The Wonder Garden is a spectacular exploration of five natural
regions of our amazing world. These are habitats that are home to fantastic creatures and
plants, some well known and others more mysterious. Step into the brightly coloured jewel
that is the Amazon Rainforest, home to more than 5 million species of plant, insect and animal
life and over 1500 species of birds. Dive into the Great Barrier Reef where the weird and
miraculous exist, next, brave the Chihuahuan Desert (the what, you ask?) in North America
where conditions are fierce and the fearsome survive. Creep into the Black Forest, a dark and
densely wooded region in Germany, and, finally, climb the Himalayan Mountains to encounter
majestic wildlife that is remarkably good at camouflage.
Wide Eyed Editions maybe a new kid on the block but they are leading the way with
captivating and dazzling nonfiction for children and The Wonder Garden is a perfect
example of this. It is a must for nature-loving readers of any age.
Alexa Dretzke is from Readings Hawthorn
New
Kids’
Books
RUBY REDFORT: PICK YOUR
POISON
FASHION STUDIO
Lauren Child
Walker. Box. $29.95
HarperCollins. HB. $19.99
Create 50 fabulous outfits using
press-out patterns and designer
paper and tissue, complete with
accessories. Then display them in
the chic fold-out studio! Use the
templates and techniques you’ve
learned to create new collections, in your own original
style, season after season. This gorgeous set includes a
designer’s handbook with detailed step-by-step
instructions, press out patterns, a fabulous fold-out studio
and notes on the couture origins of each look. The perfect
gift for fashion lovers and budding designers.
Ruby Redfort: undercover agent,
code-cracker and thirteen-year-old
genius – you can count on her when
you’re between a rock and a hard place.
There’s a lot to lose sleep over in
Twinford: there’s the snakes and the
bivalves, but they aren’t half as
poisonous as the rumours. With so
many twists and turns it’s hard to know
who to trust, particularly when no one trusts you. Will Ruby
make it out in one piece? Well, happy endings are for fairy
tales, bozo.
Novelty
Helen Moslin
Classic
BUILDING MACHINES
LITTLE YELLOW DIGGER
TREASURY
Ian Graham
Betty Gilderdale
Walker. HB. $24.95
Scholastic. HB. $24.99
The perfect introduction to
simple mechanics for budding
engineers everywhere. Explore
the giant vehicles used in the
construction industry – from
trucks and loaders to excavators
and cranes – then build your
very own construction
machines! A must for budding engineers, this unique
interactive book contains all you need to put together 9
working models.
When digging out a drain, the
little yellow digger gets stuck in
the mud. So they bring in a bigger
digger... Since the publication of
the first story more than 20 years
ago. The much-loved stories
about the Little Yellow Digger
have spanned generations of readers to become classics.
All five stories have been compiled in this delightful
treasury collection, which features a special word from
the author, over 20 years on.
Classic of the Month
THE HUNDRED AND ONE
DALMATIANS
Dodie Smith
Egmont. HB. $24.95
Fans of the ever charming
Dodie Smith are in for a treat
with this new edition of The Hundred
and One Dalmatians. Illustrated by
the (almost!) equally charming Alex
T. Smith this really is the perfect
pairing, and Dodie’s story, and the
masses of Dalmatians, are brought to
life by Alex’s beautifully playful and
audacious illustrations. Even the
cover is perfection, with a sublimely
chic Cruella depicted on the jacket and a Dalmatian spotted
hardback hidden beneath.
The real highlight here though is the story. Reasonably
different to the Disney film, the book is sweet and funny,
and at times very stressful! The temperature drops below
freezing whenever Cruella slides onto the page, and Dodie
handles all of the Dalmatians with a deft hand. Her writing
is crisp and effortless, filled with verve and personality and
she has the skill to summon every character to fully appear.
The novel is just perfect for pet lovers and fashion lovers
alike, for the young and the old, and certainly for anyone in
need of a fun and delightful adventure. IM
20
ALMOST
FRENCH
Sarah Turnbull
PB. Was $34
Now $11.95
Sarah Turnbull’s stint in
Paris was only supposed to last a week – but
as the Sydney journalist navigates the highs
and lows of this strange new world, little by
little she falls under its spell: maddening,
mysterious, and charged with that French
specialty – seduction. A delightful, fresh
twist on the travel memoir, Almost French
takes us on a tour fraught with culture
clashes but rife with deadpan humour.
MORE THAN
FRENCH
Philippe Mouchel
HB. Was $39.95
Now $14.95
More than French is the
first cookbook from Philippe Mouchel, a
chef whose commitment to excellence is
matched by his training, technique, and the
depth of his cooking skills and recipes. A
collection of more than 100 recipes, More
than French is a comprehensive cookbook
on cooking and preparing French-inspired
dishes heavily influenced by Philippe’s
work experience and travels, especially
his time in Japan. Each recipe has been
thoroughly tested by renowned food writer
Rita Erlich, the cook to Philippe’s chef.
VALLEY OF
DEATH
Ted Morgan
HB. Was $55
Now $19.95
Valley of Death is the untold
story of the 1954 battle that,
in six weeks, changed the course of history.
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ted Morgan
has written a rich and definitive account of
the remote valley where a great European
power fell to an underestimated insurgent
army, ending French rule in Indochina – and
leading inexorably to America’s Vietnam
War and the quagmire that was to come.
HOW TO MAKE
GRAVY
Paul Kelly
HB & CD Box Set.
Was $125 Now $49.95
Over four nights in 2004
Paul Kelly performed, in
alphabetical order, 100 of his songs from the
previous three decades. In between songs he
told stories about them, and from those little
tales grew How to Make Gravy, a memoir
like no other. This special edition slipcased
package contains Paul Kelly’s much-loved
memoir along with the companion A-Z
Recordings box set and a 64-page booklet of
colour photographs.
DECADE
Rennie Ellis
HB. Was $69.95
Now $39.95
Decade: 1970–1980
showcases Rennie Ellis’
contribution to photography and social
history. The photographs, predominantly
black and white, are accompanied by
extended captions written by Ellis
himself. Decade explores the cultures
and subcultures of the 70s: the political
upheavals, alternative lifestyles and counter
culture, the women’s movement, festivals,
protests, and the emergence of a decadent
and hedonistic society that would later
characterise the 1980s.
DECADENT
Rennie Ellis
HB. Was $69.95
Now $39.95
With an introduction
by photographer and
Rennie contemporary William Yang and an
essay by photographer and art critic Robert
McFarlane, Decadent explores the rise of
the hedonism that we now associate with
the wild, opulent, sometimes tacky and
always decadent 1980s. Ellis’ boundarypushing, racy and sometimes voyeuristic
works capture an Australia that seems
to be revelling in its abandonment of the
politically charged 1970s.
THE MAKING OF
HOME
THINKING IN
NUMBERS
Judith Flanders
Daniel Tammet
HB. Was $45
Now $19.95
HB. Was $49.99
Now $16.95
The idea of ‘home’ as
a special place, where we can be our
true selves, is obvious to us today – but,
as Judith Flanders shows, ‘home’ is a
relatively new idea. In The Making of
Home, Flanders traces the evolution of
the house across continents and centuries,
and shows how the ‘homes’ we know
today bear only a faint resemblance to
‘homes’ though history.
TO THE LETTER
Simon Garfield
Using anecdotes, everyday
examples, and ruminations on history,
literature, and more, Daniel Tammet
allows us to share his unique insights and
delight in the way numbers, fractions,
and equations underpin all our lives. His
provocative and inspiring new book will
change the way you think about numbers
and fire your imagination to view the world
with fresh eyes.
THE BORGIAS
PERFUMES
G. J. Meyer
Luca Turin & Tania
Sanchez
HB. Was $49.95
Now $19.95
HB. Was $29.99
Now $12.95
To the Letter tells the story
of our remarkable journey
through the mail.
From Roman wood chips
discovered near Hadrian’s
Wall to the wonders and
terrors of email, Simon
Garfield explores
how we have written
to each other over
the centuries and
what our letters
reveal about our
lives. To the Letter is a
wonderful celebration of
letters in every form, and a
passionate rallying cry to keep
writing.
The startling truth behind
one of the most notorious
dynasties in history is
revealed in a remarkable new
account, sweeping aside
the gossip, slander, and
distortion that have
shrouded the Borgias
for centuries. G. J.
Meyer offers an
unprecedented portrait
of the infamous
Renaissance family,
drawing from rarely
examined key sources
and bringing fascinating
new insight to the real people
within the age-encrusted myth.
Bargain
Table
WHAT A
WONDERFUL
WORLD
Marcus Chown
PB. Was $27.99
Now $13.95
Why do we breathe? What
is money? Does time really exist? How did
humans get to dominate the Earth? Why
is there something rather than nothing? In
What a Wonderful World, Marcus Chown
uses his vast scientific knowledge and
deep understanding of extremely complex
processes to answer simple questions about
the workings of our everyday lives. Lucid,
witty and hugely entertaining, it explains
the basics of our essential existence.
YEAR ZERO
Ian Buruma
PB. Was $39.99
Now $12.95
Drawing on hundreds
of eye-witness accounts
and personal stories, this
sweeping book examines the seven months
(in Europe) and four months (in Asia) that
followed the surrender of the Axis powers,
from the fate of Holocaust survivors
liberated from the concentration camps,
and the formation of the state of Israel, to
the incipient civil war in China, and the
allied occupation of Japan.
BAKING STYLE
Lisa Yockelson
HB. Was $54.99
Now $29.95
In Baking Style, Lisa
Yockelson presents what
has fascinated her during a lifetime of baking.
In 100 essays and more than 200 recipes,
along with 166 full-color images, Baking Style
is infused with discoveries, inspirations, and
exacting but simple recipes for capturing the
art and craft of baking at home.
NOISE
David Hendy
HB. Was $49.99
Now $16.95
Though we might see
ourselves inhabiting a
visual world, our lives
have always been hugely
influenced by our need to hear and be
heard. Based on the BBC Radio series,
Noise explores the human dramas that have
revolved around sound at various points in
the last 100,000 years, allowing us to think
in fresh ways about the meaning of our
collective past.
HB. Was $39.99
Now $16.95
In Perfumes: The Guide,
scientist Turin and perfume
critic Sanchez combine their talents and
experience to review more than 1,200
fragrances, separating the divine from
the good from the monumentally awful.
Through witty, irreverent, and illuminating
prose, the reviews in Perfumes not only
provide consumers with an essential guide
to shopping for fragrance, but also make for
a unique reading experience.
THE 7 LAWS OF
MAGICAL
THINKING
Matthew Hutson
HB. Was $49.95
Now $14.95
Psychologists have documented a litany
of cognitive biases – misperceptions of
the world – and explained their positive
functions. Now, drawing on evolution,
cognitive science, and neuroscience,
Matthew Hutson shows us that magical
thinking has been so useful to us that
it’s hardwired into our brains. With
wonderfully entertaining stories, personal
reflections, and sharp observations,
Hutson reveals a completely irrational way
of making our lives make rational sense.
MANDELA
Mac Maharaj & Ahmed
Kathrada (eds)
ON THE MAP
Simon Garfield
PB. Was $29.95
Now $12.95
From the early explorers’
maps to Google Maps
and smartphones, Simon
Garfield explores the unique way that maps
relate and realign our history and reflect the
best and worst of us. Packed with fascinating
tales of cartographic intrigue, outsize
personalities, map folding methods and the
strangest maps on the internet, On the Map
is a rich historical tapestry infused with
Garfield’s signature narrative flair.
HB. Was $59.95
Now $24.95
Nelson Mandela occupies a
unique place in our world and in Mandela:
The Authorised Portrait the narrative of his
epic journey to freedom is accompanied
by a comprehensive collection of images
and more than 60 specially commissioned
interviews. World leaders, friends and
associates have all contributed their
individual stories to build a compelling
picture of this inspirational man through
the eyes of those closest to him.
HEARTLAND
THE CURIOUS
WORLD OF
WINE
Richard Vine
HB. Was $39.95
Now $14.95
The Curious World of Wine is a fascinating
miscellany about the colourful characters,
celebrated places, and quirky events
surrounding wine-making. Wine expert
Richard Vine reveals the 400-year-old
vineyard still producing grapes, the history
of the word ‘plonk’ and the story behind the
custom of clinking glasses as a toast. This
book will keep any wine fan entertained.
Australian
Conservation
Foundation
HB. Was $49.95
Now $24.95
Heartland is a commemorative
photographic book of around 200
photographs celebrating 50 years of the
Australian Conservation Foundation,
Australia’s oldest and largest national
environmental group. The uplifting and
inspirational images capture the natural
world across the continent and people
interacting with nature in a myriad of ways.
Heartland also features written pieces from
various Australian writers.
New Film & TV
with Lou Fulco
DVD of the Month
films are among the few made before the
1970s that are still regarded as classics… [his]
films took audiences into places filmmakers,
even today, hesitate to go.’ – The Conversation
UTOPIA: SEASON 2
THE PRINCIPAL
$29.95
Available 4 November. $29.95
If you watched the first season of Utopia, you probably have high
expectations for the second. If you haven’t seen the show before, but
are familiar with the uncannily accurate and hilarious 90s news-parody
Frontline, you’ll have some idea of the relentless deadpan satire of Utopia’s
writers, Rob Sitch, Santo Cilauro and Tom Gleisner. The group’s signature
style of humour works because it resonates; it isn’t merely cynical, it’s
insightful and ultimately finds meaning in human folly – and where it doesn’t find meaning, it
offers comedic catharsis.
Utopia sends up large government departments, along with politicians and PR strategists with
penchants for slogans. In every episode you’ll find instantly recognisable moments of the absurd
in everyday situations (Your taxi driver can’t find you, oh don’t worry, he’s found someone else!), and
the often ludicrous and mundane frustrations of what goes on within institutions many love to
hate (No, that’s on the old server! or Perhaps it would be helpful if the position description included
the job title or mentioned that the role of office manager involves office management?).
This season opens with the fresh hope and optimism of those quiet early weeks in every
new year when people ride their bikes to work and swap caffeine for green smoothies. Their
focus is fresh, their intentions are good and yet they are already behind on their annual report.
The excellent performances from Celia Pacquola, Rob Sitch and Kitty Flanagan continue, but
this cast, across the board, does not miss a beat.
One of the most appealing aspects of this show is that in the midst of all the unsettlingly
plausible (even dangerously recognisable) soundbite-before-idea strategising and hilariously
misdirected energy, there are genuinely appealing and equally true-to-life portrayals of
people who work in institutions like Utopia’s fictitious Nation Building Authority because
they want to do good.
Elke Power is the editor of Readings Monthly
with aplomb … in large part thanks to the
consistently riveting sight of two skilled actors
engaging in a battle of wits.’ – The A.V. Club
Film
THE FINAL DAYS
OF ANNE FRANK
Anne Frank’s world-famous
diary comes to an abrupt end
shortly before she and her companions
were arrested on August 4, 1944. With
eyewitness testimony from camp survivors
and school friends, this is the story of
happened to Anne next, in the horror of the
Nazi camp system.
THEY CAME BACK
‘A zombie flick like none
other, this quietly shivery,
intelligent French film … with
its understated atmosphere of dread, is as
much a philosophical head-scratcher as it
is a nifty nail-biter.’ – The New York Times
CHARLES
CHAUVEL
COLLECTION
DIPLOMACY
MOOMINS ON
THE RIVIERA
$24.95
‘This yarn, based on Tove
Jansson’s Moomins comic strip,
is a wistful and gentle affair, hand-drawn
and far less brash than the typical animated
Hollywood feature … Its charm lies in its
understated quality.’ – The Independent
SUITE
FRANCAISE
‘Rewardingly complex and
disarmingly compassionate …
This handsome adaptation
of Irène Némirovsky’s epic novel vividly
depicts French rural life under the Nazis.’ –
The Guardian
places little faith in anyone: not the justice
system nor the police department, and
definitely not people themselves. But
while one or two individuals may stray, the
herd will inevitably come together toward
righteousness and redemption.’ – The New York Times
Documentary
AWAKE: THE LIFE
OF YOGANANDA
‘Fittingly enlightening, Awake:
The Life of Yogananda is a
vivid, elegantly assembled portrait of the
savvy guru with the cherubic face and
penetrating gaze who brought meditation to
the West.’ – Los Angeles Times
BBC EARTH
COLLECTION
Available 11 November.
Limited edition boxset. $99.95
‘In every David Attenborough
show we are taken on a roller-coaster of
emotion, screaming at the TV, holding back
tears and whooping for joy … [Life Story is] a
hard but beautiful watch, packing in drama,
tears and education.’ – The Daily Mirror
LISTEN TO ME
MARLON
ENID
$19.95
‘A dramatised biography of Enid
Blyton … [Helena] Bonham
Carter’s performance never lost
that faint tremor of self-doubt beneath her
haughtiness, thereby ensuring she stayed
within the bounds of plausibility.’ – Sydney
Morning Herald
‘[Marlon] Brando gets the
portrait his fans deserve… Using
hundreds of hours of audio recordings, Steven
Riley crafts a remarkable documentary that
offers unrivalled insight into what made the
actor tick.’ – The Guardian
THE STAMP OF
AUSTRALIA
$19.95
TV
Available 4 November. 8DVDs.
$79.95
$29.95
‘[A Swedish diplomat’s] effort
to stop a Nazi commander from
blowing up Paris [is] handled
‘The Principal begins as a
well-made entry into a familiar
curriculum about inspirational
teachers … then bam: a student is found dead
on school grounds … Alex Dimitriades is
perfect in the lead role, bringing real heft and
gravitas.’ – The Daily Review
21
‘Chauvel was a major director, producer and
writer of early Australian cinema and his
BROADCHURCH
SERIES 1 & 2
‘[Saluting] 200 years of the
Australian postal service …
the story of the men, the women, and the
indomitable spirit that conquered our tyranny
of distance – and gave us communication
with the world.’ – TV Tonight
‘After two gripping, inventive
[series] endings … Broadchurch
END OF THE TOUR Opens December 3 (M)
SUFFRAGETTE Opens December 26 (CTC)
CAROL Opens January 14 (CTC)
James Ponsoldt's conversational drama is inspired by the fiveday interview between Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky
(Jesse Eisenberg) and acclaimed novelist David Foster Wallace
(Jason Segel), which took place right after the 1996 publication
of Wallace's groundbreaking epic novel, Infinite Jest. As the
days go on, a tenuous yet intense relationship seems to develop
between journalist and subject. The two men bob and weave
around each other, sharing laughs and also possibly revealing
hidden frailties - but it's never clear how truthful they are being
with each other.
Exclusive to Cinema Nova.
Sarah Gavon's thrilling drama tracks the story of the foot
soldiers of the early feminist movement; women who were
forced underground to pursue a dangerous game of cat and
mouse with an increasingly brutal State. These women were
not primarily from the genteel educated classes, they were
working women who had seen peaceful protest achieve nothing.
Radicalised and turning to violence as the only route to change,
they were willing to lose everything in their fight for equality their jobs, their homes, their children and their lives.
Set in 1950s New York, two women from very different
backgrounds find themselves in the throes of love in CAROL.
As conventional norms of the time challenge their undeniable
attraction, an honest story emerges to reveal the resilience of
the heart in the face of change. Directed by Todd Haynes (Far
From Heaven) and adapted from the novel The Price of Salt
by Patricia Highsmith (author of Strangers on a Train and
The Talented Mr Ripley), CAROL is a powerful romance fuelled
by the suspense, danger and exhilaration of forbidden love.
Melbourne’s home of quality arthouse and contemporary cinema
380 Lygon Street Carlton
cinemanova.com.au
22
New M us ic
Album of the Month
1989
Ryan Adams
$19.95
This is not my imagination, right? Taylor Swift’s 1989?
Whilst winding my way through the tracks that Ryan
Adams chose to cover, I had the distinct feeling that he had
decided to perform each track as though he were covering
each one in the style of songs from great artists – such as
early U2 with ‘Style’, Springsteen’s ‘I’m on Fire’ with ‘Shake
It Off’, Oasis with ‘Bad Blood’ and The Smiths with ‘All You Had to Do Was Stay’.
I’m pretty sure that Adams isn’t having a laugh with this homage, but as a listener and
a fan I do find it strange. Not that the songs aren’t everything you would expect of Ryan
Adams: wonderfully produced, lush and intimate. His vocals sound personal, tortured,
and relevant, as though he is singing to you alone. I suppose what annoys me is that the
lyrics don’t hold up. Don’t get me wrong, Swift knows her fans and writes and sings to
them in a style they understand and appreciate. She has written what I believe to be
some great songs across her varied albums but unfortunately, like many artists of her ilk,
I think the image outside of the music also plays a huge role in her popularity. That, I can
truthfully say, is not something that interests me. Too old and too worn down, I’m afraid!
I’m not one of the iPhone and selfie-obsessed generation.
If I was hearing this without having heard Swift’s release (which, other than ‘Shake It
Off ’, I haven’t) then I would say that the lyrics lacked substance, that they were cute and
romantic in a teenage way, and were wrapped in a nice package, but that as a Ryan Adams
release, they are ultimately disappointing. However, something tells me he has a lot up
his sleeve and that although this album is a curiosity to fans, there is enough on it to like.
Highlights include ‘How You Get the Girl’, ‘Out of the Woods’ and ‘I Wish You Would’.
Lou Fulco is from Readings Hawthorn
Pop & Rock
FIRST COMES THE NIGHT
Chris Isaak
Deluxe edition $24.95
Recorded primarily
in Nashville and Los
Angeles, First Comes the
Night is Chris Isaak’s
13th studio album, and the first recording
of all-original songs in over six years. There
are some dark songs, funny songs and
romantic songs, building on Isaak’s stellar
reputation as one of the best and funniest
live performers out there.
ALONE IN THE UNIVERSE
Jeff Lynne’s ELO
$19.95
Alone in the Universe is
the first new ELO music
in 15 years, coming off
a sold-out performance at BBC Radio’s
Festival in a Day in September 2014. As
with ELO’s previous chart-topping albums
over 30 years, Jeff Lynne continues to serve
as producer, songwriter, arranger, lead
singer and guitarist.
IF I CAN DREAM
Elvis Presley & the
Royal Philharmonic
Orchestra
$19.95
An exciting revisit
of Elvis’ work, If I
Can Dream features classic Elvis vocal
performances with brand-new orchestral
accompaniment, along with a duet with
Michael Bublé, and appearances by Il Volo
and Duane Eddy. Focusing on the iconic
artist’s unmistakable voice, the 14-track
album features Elvis’ most dramatic
original performances augmented with
lush new arrangements by the Royal
Philharmonic Orchestra.
LIMIT OF LOVE
Boy & Bear
$21.95
ARIA-award winning
Sydney five-piece Boy &
Bear return with their
third studio album,
fuelled by the momentum they gathered on
the road in 2014. Recorded the old fashion
way – live in the studio, straight to tape,
with virtually no overdubs – Limit of Love
sees the band writing as a collective for the
first time.
THE LIGHT IN YOU
Mercury Rev
$21.95
US alt-rock legends
Mercury Rev return
with their eighth studio
album. Filled with
wondrous and voluminous kaleidoscopic
detail, but also intimate moments of calm,
The Light in You stands up to the very
best that this notable band of maverick
explorers has ever created.
REVOLVE
John Newman
Deluxe edition $24.95
John Newman, one of
the major breakthrough
artists out of the UK in
recent years, follows
his new smash-hit single ‘Come and Get
It’ with his eagerly awaited second album.
The follow up to Tribute, Revolve looks set
to confirm the Yorkshireman as one of the
UK’s most singular talents and consistently
successful artists.
BAYS
Fat Freddy’s Drop
$19.95
The New Zealand
based seven-piece
are back with Bays, a
9-track LP that draws
on the lexicon of genres that have come
to epitomise the band’s sound. The album
journeys through a hybrid of reggae and
jazz, with techno rhythms underpinning
Freddy’s signature horns and Joe Dukie’s
soulful and introspective vocals. Bays
showcases a band truly comfortable in
their skin.
sung in English, Spanish and a mix of the
two languages.
BLUENOTE CAFÉ
Saray Iluminado’s
first full-length
album Nightingales
in the Rose Garden
explores the musical traditions of Sevdah
and Sephardic music, and delves into the
alchemy of the Balkan soul. Featuring
violin, mandolin, lute, oud, clarinet
and ney alongside Nela Trifkovic’s
wailing vocals, the Melbourne fourpiece reveals the four reflections of the
Balkan spirit: the Slavic, the Ottoman, the
Mediterranean and the Jewish.
Neil Young &
Bluenote Café
$21.95
The latest ‘Performance
Series’ release from
Neil Young’s archives collects various
performances captured during his 1988 tour.
The album documents one of Young’s most
funky and heartfelt periods, featuring seven
unreleased songs, and a searing 19-minute
version of the immortal ‘Tonight’s the Night’
from The Pier in New York City.
DARK SKY ISLAND
Enya
$21.95
Enya, producer and
sound engineer Nicky
Ryan, and lyricist Roma
Ryan release Dark Sky Island, a collection
of songs built around themes of journeys
and islands, both incredibly diverse and
innately unified in its sonic production.
Blending lavish layers of sound with sparse,
hymnal tracks and ethereal soundscapes,
the album marks a new chapter in Enya’s
spectacular career.
HEART OF A DOG
(SOUNDTRACK)
NIGHTINGALES IN THE
ROSE GARDEN
Saray Iluminado
$26.95
Jazz & Blues
AMBON
Lloyd Swanton
2CDs. $29.95
Best known for his work
with The Necks and
The Catholics, Lloyd
Swanton developed a
suite of 12 compositions that draw from
the secret diary of his uncle, a World War
II prisoner of war on the Indonesian island
of Ambon. Ambon brings together jazz,
gospel, military and island music to create
something of beauty out of great horror,
offering insight into a little-known tragedy.
RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL
Joe Bonamassa
Laurie Anderson
$21.95
The complete
soundtrack recording of
Laurie Anderson’s new
feature film – her first
in 30 years – Heart of a Dog is a personal
essay encompassing joy and heartbreak
and memory, at the heart of which is a
lament for her late beloved dog. Heart
of a Dog includes musical excerpts from
throughout Anderson’s career – closing
with a song by her late husband, Lou Reed.
COURTING THE SQUALL
CD & DVD. $34.95
In January 2015, Joe
Bonamassa took the
iconic Great Stage at
Radio City Music Hall
for the first time for a sold-out, twonight run, fulfilling his lifelong dream of
performing in one of the world’s most
legendary venues. The recorded set
features over 75 minutes of music as well
as over 2 hours of live footage and a special
45-minute behind-the-scenes featurette.
THAT WOULD BE ME
Harry Connick Jr
Guy Garvey
$21.95
$19.95
After nearly 25 years as
a member of Elbow, Guy
Garvey is setting off alone
for the first time with his
debut solo album. Driven by spontaneity and
experimentation, Garvey and a host of guests
find a sweet spot between Manchester’s
baggy past, Tom Waits and mid-70s David
Bowie, engendering a more clipped and
direct vocal approach.
Multiple Grammy and
Emmy-award winning
Harry Connick Jr’s new
album That Would Be
Me was recorded in London and Nashville,
working with external producers Eg
White and Butch Walker for the first time.
The result is a step out of Connick Jr’s
comfort zone, a carefully crafted record
full of surprises and stirring musical
conjurations, delivering 11 new songs and
new insights into his artistry.
World
THE EPIC
VIVIR SIN MIEDO
Buika
$21.95
A much loved Spanish
singer of West African
descent, Buika is known
for her raw emotion
and has been compared to Nina Simone,
Billie Holiday and Amy Winehouse. Her
music includes influences from jazz
and flamenco to pop, soul and African
polyrhythm. Vivir Sin Miedo is Buika’s first
album to contain her own compositions
Kamasi Washington
$29.95
A carefully constructed
musical daydream, The
Epic is the brazen new
release from young
Los Angeles jazz giant, composer, and
bandleader Kamasi Washington. The
172-minute, three-volume set includes a
32-piece orchestra and 20-person choir
alongside an otherworldly ten-piece
band of the best young musicians on the
planet – The Epic is unlike anything jazz
has ever seen.
THE COMPLETE
RECORDINGS 1991-2007
New C la ss i c a l M u s i c
Classical Album of the Month
BACH & CHINDAMO: THE NEW
GOLDBERG VARIATIONS
Joe Chindamo & Zoë Black
ALFI. ALFI15002. $24.95
When you start listening to this recording, make sure
that ambient noises are at a minimum. The first few
notes on this sublime reinterpretation of Bach’s Goldberg
Variations will sweep you away into a world of tonal delight.
Joe Chindamo and Zoë Black are making a habit of taking music that is old but still loved
and creating new musical ideas from it. They interweave their musical presence with that
of the original composer, in this case Bach, and have created, in a way not dissimilar to
Max Richter’s Four Seasons, a whole new work that pays homage to the master while
proving their own worth as musicians with each and every note.
‘The first few notes on this sublime reinterpretation
of Bach’s Goldberg Variations will sweep you away into
a world of tonal delight.’
According to folklore, Bach wrote the Goldberg Variations for Count Keyserling who
suffered from insomnia. The Count asked Bach to compose something that would lift his
spirits on sleepless nights and that could be performed by his in-house harpsichordist,
Johann Gottlieb Goldberg – hence the name Goldberg Variations. Although today
historians are not convinced of this story, it’s nonetheless a perfect way to introduce a
work that would indeed be just the thing if you suffered insomnia. The gentle opening
aria and slow unfolding of each of the 30 variations would be truly delightful drifting on
the air at 3am.
Chindamo is the compositional force behind the reimagining of these classic variations,
with Black’s soulful violin a very clever antithetical timbre to the sometimes dry piano
textures from the original score. Bach was a big fan of borrowing from other composers
and a firm believer in music evolving over time. This is a sentiment that many classical
musicians share with him and Chindamo. Listening to these Variations you can hear a fresh
perspective on Bach that is inspiring both as a listener and a musician. I can’t wait to see
what they do next.
Kate Rockstrom is a friend of Readings
HANDEL: DUETTI E
TERZETTI ITALIANI
POULENC: PIANO
CONCERTOS
Roberta Invernizzi
Louis Lortie & Hélène Mercier, &
the BBC Philharmonic
Glossa. GCD921517. $29.95
Although
German-born,
some consider Handel
quintessentially
English, thanks to the
renown of his oratorios.
In fact, he was as German as he was
English as he was Italian, such was his
extraordinary ability to set each language
as if it were his native tongue, and to
adopt differing nationalistic styles into his
music as the occasion required. Aged 21,
Handel travelled to Italy in 1706, where
he lived until 1710, during which time he
was influenced by the music of Corelli
and Scarlatti. His Italian sojourn was
hugely important to his formation as
composer for the voice, and it was then
that Handel wrote some of the lesserknown duets and trios performed here by
sopranos Roberta Invernizzi and Silvia
Frigato, and tenor Thomas Bauer.
The often contrapuntal-style vocal
writing is certainly different from the
lyrical music of the Messiah, but the result
is no less moving. Invernizzi’s soprano
is well suited to this repertoire, and her
light voice easily negotiates the frequent
passages of coloratura. Less appealing is
Frigato, whose occasionally loose vibrato
gives the impression of poor intonation,
but the two voices blend beautifully in the
duet ‘Amor gioje mi porge’. However, all
told, this is a fabulous recording.
Alexandra Mathew is from Readings Carlton
Maxim Vengerov
Warner Classics 2564631514.
20CDs. $74.95
The supreme violinist of
his generation – declared
a talent ‘born once in a
hundred years’ by his first teacher – Maxim
Vengerov both embodies and renews the
great Russian tradition in the mastery of
his instrument. He will tour Australia in
November and December.
FRANCESCO CAVALLI:
L’AMORE INNAMORATO
Christina Pluhar &
L’Arpeggiata
Erato. 2564616642.
$24.95
In April 2015, after
L’Arpeggiata performed
L’Amore Innamorato at Carnegie Hall,
James R. Oestreich wrote in his review
in The New York Times: ‘In some ways,
L’Arpeggiata represents the state of the art
in early-music practice … These performers
see conjecture not as a worrisome chore
but as an opportunity; improvisation as a
matter of course; invention as a necessity.’
RAVEL: PIANO
CONCERTOS
Yuja Wang, Lionel
Bringuier & TonhalleOrchester Zürich
DG. 4794954. $24.95
Yuja Wang, young stellar
conductor Lionel Bringuier and celebrated
Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich are the perfect
match to inflame Ravel’s vibrant sound.
The melding of Yuja’s legendary technical
skills with her interpretative intelligence
transforms this album into a profound
musical experience with a haunting and
jazzy sound.
Chandos. CHAN10875 $29.95
Unlike any other,
French pianist
and composer Francis
Poulenc possessed the
ability to seamlessly
weave both farce and
sincerity into a single piece of music. As a
member of the group of composers known
as Les Six, Poulenc was greatly influenced
by Satie, and many of his songs –
composed for his duo partner, baritone
Pierre Bernac – reveal a certain Satien
irreverence. His mature piano works,
however, many of which appear on this
recording by pianists Louis Lortie and
Hélène Mercier, and the BBC
Philharmonic, expose Poulenc’s darker,
more serious side.
The Aubade, sub-titled ‘Concerto
chorégraphique’ (1929), one of the
earlier works presented here, is telling of
Poulenc’s then-depressed state. Angular
intervals and aggressive rhythms give
way to brief moments of tenderness, as
Poulenc musically depicts the love-struck
huntress Diana. Lortie and Mercier join
forces for the final Élégie (1959), composed
in memory of singer and pianist MarieBlanche de Polignac, Poulenc’s dear friend
and colleague. Poulenc’s grief is clear, but
not overt: the opening bars of a sweet,
gently oscillating melody are eventually
drowned out by dissonant cabaret-like
chords. Led by conductor Edward Gardiner,
Lortie and Mercier assert themselves as
supreme interpreters of this repertoire, and
remind us of Poulenc’s genius. AM
Classical Specials
THE ART OF JULIAN
BREAM
Julian Bream
ACMEM211CD. Was $19.95
$9.95 while stocks last
During his years of
performing Julian
Bream was recognised
as one of the world’s leading guitarists,
some would argue, the greatest. His
1959–60 recordings, made at the dawn of
an illustrious career, are the centre-piece of
this edition. Featuring works by composers
such as Malcom Arnold, Lennox Berkeley,
Rodrigo, Ravel Frescobaldi and Turina this
really is a must for lovers of the guitar and
music lovers in general.
MOZART STRING
QUARTETS
Belcea Quartet
Banish awkward
silences with
the in-laws,
stop hearing the
same old stories
from your great
uncle and give
your teenagers a
reason to switch
off their screens.
EMI. 3444552. Was $19.95
$9.95 while stocks last
‘This is Mozart playing
of exemplary poise,
polish and intelligence…
The performers are as adept in balance as
in solo refinement and the recorded sound
has all the requisite clarity and richness of
detail.’ – Strad
Available at Readings
and all good book and
games stores.
RRP $19.95
www.taoc.com.au
23

Read Readings Monthly, November 2015 here

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