Here - Readings

Transcription

Here - Readings

FREE
SEPTEMBER 2016
BOOKS
MUSIC
FILM
E V E N TS
INTRODUCING
THE READINGS PRIZE
2016 SHORTLIST
NEW IN SEPTEMBER
STEVEN
AMSTERDAM
ANN
PATCHETT
ROBERT
FORSTER
$29.99
$29.99
$35
$24.99
page 6
$26.99
page 7
$29.99
page 15
BARRACUDA
$34.95
page 21
RYLEY
WALKER
$19.95
page 22
R E A D I N G S M O N T H LY S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 6
3
News
FATHER’S DAY
It’s Father’s Day on Sunday 4 September.
We’ve included a handy gift guide in this
issue of Readings Monthly to help you find
the perfect bookish present, and you’ll also
find plenty of ideas in our five shops.
READINGS DONCASTER
OPENING WEEKEND SALE
Readings Monthly
Free, independent monthly newspaper
published by Readings Books, Music & Film
Subscribe
You can subscribe to Readings Monthly and our
e-news by visiting our website:
readings.com.au/newsletters-and-e-news
Editor
Elke Power
[email protected]
Editorial Assistant
Alan Vaarwerk
[email protected]
Advertising
Stella Charls
[email protected]
(03) 9341 7739
Graphic Design
Cat Matteson
colourcode.com.au
Front Cover
The September Readings Monthly cover
features the authors of the The Readings
Prize for New Australian Fiction 2016
shortlisted books. In order of appearance, the
authors are: Julie Koh (Portable Curiosities,
published by UQP; author photo by Hugh
Stewart), Fiona McFarlane (The High Places,
published by Penguin Random House; author
photo by Andy Barclay), Zoë Morrison
(Music and Freedom, published by Penguin
Random House; author photo by Nicholas
Purcell Studio), Sean Rabin (Wood Green,
published by Giramondo; author photo by
Caroline Constantine), Rajith Savanadasa
(Ruins, published by Hachette; photo by
Craig Peihopa) and Lucy Treloar (Salt Creek,
published by Pan Macmillan; author photo by
Nicholas Purcell Studio). All author photos
courtesy of the publishers. To find out more
about The Readings Prize for New Australian
Fiction 2016 shortlist see page 6.
Father’s Day Illustration
Illustration by Eirian Chapman, courtesy of The
Jacky Winter Group.
We’re thrilled to announce that Readings
Doncaster (Shop G089, Ground Level,
Westfield Doncaster, 619 Doncaster Rd,
Doncaster) will be officially opening later
this month. We’re celebrating the Readings
Doncaster opening weekend on Saturday
24 and Sunday 25 September by offering
20% off everything – all books, film, music
and stationery – all weekend! Sale only
available on in-stock items at Readings
Doncaster. Not valid for special orders, laybys or gift cards, or in conjunction with any
other offer. Not valid online. Sale begins
9am, Saturday 24 Sept and ends 5pm,
Sunday 25 Sept.
THE READINGS PRIZE
2016 SHORTLIST
We’re delighted to announce this year’s
shortlist for The Readings Prize for New
Australian Fiction. The shortlisted books are
Portable Curiosities by Julie Koh (UQP), The
High Places by Fiona McFarlane (Penguin
Random House), Music and Freedom by Zoë
Morrison (Penguin Random House), Wood
Green by Sean Rabin (Giramondo), Ruins
by Rajith Savanadasa (Hachette) and Salt
Creek by Lucy Treloar (Pan Macmillan).
Our judging panel comprises Readings
staff, and acclaimed author Maxine Beneba
Clarke will join them as a guest judge to
select a winner from the shortlist. The
winning author will be announced online
and featured in the November edition of
Readings Monthly and will receive a prize
of $4,000. Read more about the shortlisted
titles and the prize on page 6.
INDIGENOUS LITERACY DAY
This year Indigenous Literacy Day is on
Wednesday 7 September. The Indigenous
Literacy Foundation (ILF) aims to raise
literacy levels and improve the opportunities
of Indigenous Australians living in remote
and isolated regions. 10% of funds from
books sold in our shops on Wednesday 7
September will be donated to the ILF.
Cartoon
Oslo Davis
oslodavis.com
Prices and availability
Please note that all prices and release dates
in Readings Monthly are correct at time of
publication, however prices and release dates
may change without notice. Special price
offers apply only for the month in which they
are featured in the Readings Monthly.
Readings donates 10% of its profits each
year to The Readings Foundation:
readings.com.au/the-readings-foundation
STAN GRANT IN CONVERSATION
WITH RICHARD FLANAGAN, IN
SUPPORT OF THE ILF
Readings is honoured to be hosting a
very special evening together with the
Melbourne Athenaeum, the Indigenous
Literacy Foundation and the University
of Melbourne. Join us on Tuesday 27
September at the Melbourne Athenaeum
for a fascinating conversation about politics,
privilege and Australian culture between
two award-winning writers – journalist Stan
Grant (Talking to My Country) and author
Richard Flanagan (The Narrow Road to the
Deep North). Flanagan is the Boisbouvier
Founding Chair in Australian Literature
at the University of Melbourne. Tickets
are $30 per person or $25 concession. All
proceeds will be donated to the Indigenous
Literacy Foundation. For information and
bookings visit readings.com.au/events.
3-FOR-2 OFFER ON A
SELECT RANGE OF BOLINDA
AUDIOBOOKS
Looking to build your collection of
audiobooks? Well, now is your chance –
buy any two from a select range of Bolinda
audiobooks throughout September
and receive a third for free. From Enid
Blyton to Andy Griffiths, Hannah Kent
to Richard Flanagan, both adults and
children will find much to love here.
This offer is available on a select range of
in-stock titles only, while stocks last until
30 September, 2016. The lowest-priced
audiobook is free of charge. Available in
Readings Carlton, Hawthorn, Malvern, and
St Kilda. Not available online, at the State
Library shop, or at Readings Doncaster.
CLASSICAL BOX-SET SALE
The Readings classical box-set sale is
back! With discounts of up to 50%, this
year’s sale includes recordings featuring
JS Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven,
Messiaen, Richard Strauss,Tchaikovsky,
Schubert, Vivaldi and Wagner. These
classics are all performed by greats of the
classical world – John Williams, Yo-Yo
Ma, Kiri Te Kanawa and Renata Tebaldi,
among others. The sale is available in
all Readings shops and online from now
until 30 September, while stocks last.
THE READINGS FOUNDATION
GRANTS OPEN
Applications for The Readings Foundation
grants 2017 will open 9am, Monday 26
September 2016. The Readings Foundation
BOOKINGS (03) 9347 5610 • 313 DRUMMOND ST, CARLTON • LUNCH & DINNER 7 DAYS • 11AM TILL LATE
¬@MASANIDINING MASANI_DINING MASANI.DINING
was established in 2009 to support Victorian
individuals and organisations that wish
to further the development of literacy,
community work and the arts. Applications
must be completed and lodged electronically
by 5pm, Monday 31 October 2016. For more
information please visit
readings.com.au/the-readings-foundation
CZECH & SLOVAK FILM FESTIVAL
The fourth Czech and Slovak Film Festival
of Australia (CaSFFA) is on this year from
14–23 September, with the theme of ‘Text
and Texture’ encompassing all those
points where the cinematic and literary
arts collide. Inspired by Melbourne (2008)
and Prague’s (2014) newly shared status
as ‘UNESCO Cities of Literature’, the 2016
program includes a pick of the greatest
film adaptations of Czech and Slovak
literature, such as Cutting it Short and the
medieval epic Marketa Lazarova, as well as
’60s cult classic Who Wants to Kill Jessie?.
Readings is a proud supporter of The Czech
and Slovak Film Festival. Tickets and full
program details are available at casffa.com.au
WANGARATTA FESTIVAL OF
JAZZ & BLUES
The 2016 Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and
Blues (28–30 October) showcases some of
the world’s finest local and international jazz
and blues artists in a bounty of scintillating
performances. Your weekend in jazz country
might also include sharing a picnic rug
with friends and family in the King George
Gardens enjoying ‘cross-over’ musical acts,
great local food and wine, and live music and
artistic installations on the friendly streets of
Wangaratta. Readings is the official retailer
of the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues.
Tickets and full program details are available
at wangarattajazz.com. Special ticket offer
for Readings customers: When booking
your festival tickets, enter the promotion
code READINGS16 prior to 30 September
and receive discounted tickets to the festival.
4
September Events
13
6
HETTY MCKINNON
IN CONVERSATION
WITH ROHAN
ANDERSON
Hetty McKinnon’s Community was our
bestselling cookbook of last year, and we’re
delighted to be hosting an event celebrating
her newest cookbook, Neighbourhood.
McKinnon will chat with food activist
Rohan Anderson about the inspiration she
finds in her own neighbourhood.
Free, but please book at readings.com.au/events
Tuesday 6 September, 6.30pm
Church of All Nations: 180 Palmerston St., Carlton
12
CHRIS CLEAVE IN
CONVERSATION
WITH GABRIELLE
WILLIAMS
WORDSMITHS ON
THE AUSTRALIAN
NATIONAL
DICTIONARY
The Australian National Dictionary is a
remarkable publication of words and
meanings that have a special significance
in Australian history. Editors Bruce Moore
and Amanda Laugesen will discuss the tome
with fellow wordsmith David Astle.
Readings Hawthorn
14
THE GRESTE FAMILY
ON FREEING PETER
Freeing Peter is the true story of how the
Greste family successfully campaigned for
the Egyptian government to release their son
and brother, Peter Greste, from prison. Hear
brothers Andrew and Michael talk frankly of
their experiences.
Wednesday 14 September, 6.30pm
Readings Hawthorn
16
NICOLA GATES ON
REDUCING YOUR
RISK OF DEMENTIA
Neuropsychologist Nicola Gates will share
advice on how to reduce your risk of
dementia, drawing on her work and from her
new non-fiction book, A Brain for Life.
Friday 16 September at 12.30–1.30pm
Readings Hawthorn
13
ROBERT FORSTER
IN CONVERSATION
WITH BRIAN
NANKERVIS
Drop by our Hawthorn shop to meet visiting
British author Chris Cleave. Cleave will
discuss his work, including his most recent
novel Everyone Brave is Forgiven, with
Australian author Gabrielle Williams.
In Grant and I, Robert Forster tells the story
of the 1980s creative partnership he shared
with Grant McLennan, providing fans with
a never-seen-before glimpse backstage with
The Go-Betweens. Come along to our St
Kilda shop to hear Forster tell stories from
the book, and discuss songwriting, music
and more with Brian Nankervis.
Monday 12 September, 6.30pm
Readings Hawthorn
Tuesday 13 September, 7–8.30pm
Readings St Kilda
New York, 2007: a city where the newly-arrived and
the long-established jostle alike for a place on the
ladder of success. And Jende Jonga, who has come
from Cameroon, has just set his foot on the first rung.
A powerful story of marriage, class, race and the
pursuit of the American Dream.
17
Lance Balchin’s Mechanica is a beautifully
illustrated field guide from the future. At this
workshop, young artists 8 and up can learn
how to create their own steampunk-inspired
illustrations with help from Balchin.
Saturday 17 September, 11am–12pm
Readings Hawthorn
19
Readings Hawthorn
PAUL MITCHELL IN
CONVERSATION
WITH TONY BIRCH
Paul Mitchell’s new novel, We. Are. Family.,
considers the destructive impact of trauma on
future generations. Mitchell will talk about
his work and writing process with author
Tony Birch. Their discussion will be chaired
by Readings’ own Hilary Simmons.
Readings Carlton
20
With the outbreak of the Second World War, a new breed
of reporters joined the ranks of war correspondents - and
through the reach and power of radio Australians back
home heard their voices. A remarkable tale about a group
of men and how they changed the reporting of warr
and how the war changed their lives.
CARMEL BIRD IN
CONVERSATION
WITH LINDY
CAMERON
Carmel Bird’s new novel, Family Skeleton, is a
dark comedy about the secrets families keep,
and why. Come along to hear her chat about
the book with fellow author Lindy Cameron.
19
Born in Paris in 1824, Céleste made her name as
a dancer in the Parisian dance halls, however it
was as the city’s most celebrated courtesan that she
found genuine fame and fortune. This true story
of the Countess Céleste de Chabrillan is a rich and
tempestuous tale of an extraordinary woman
n
far ahead of her time.
A WORKSHOP WITH
ILLUSTRATOR
LANCE BALCHIN
INTRODUCING
BREAD, WINE &
THOU
Bread, Wine & Thou is a new Melbournebased literary periodical that explores our
food and drink culture. The latest issue,
‘Maternal’, walks the reader back through
time, exploring Carlton and the emergence of
the Australian restaurant scene. Bread, Wine &
Thou editor Yossi Klein will be in conversation
with legendary Australian chef, Tansy Good.
This event is supported by Café Di Stasio and Di
Stasio Wines.
Readings Carlton
24
WELCOME TO
READINGS
DONCASTER
As well as holding a 20% off sale (see News,
page 2, for details), we’re hosting special guests
at our Readings Doncaster shop on its opening
weekend. Beloved author and children’s
laureate Leigh Hobbs will be in-store at
10:30am, and bestselling author of The Rosie
Project, Graeme Simsion, will be signing his
new book The Best of Adam Sharp at 2.30pm.
Free, no booking required
Saturday 24 September, all day!
Shop G089, Ground Level, Westfield Doncaster,
619 Doncaster Road, Doncaster
26
CLEMENTINE FORD
IN CONVERSATION
WITH JULIA BAIRD
Writer and social commentator Clementine
Ford’s quest to shine a spotlight on
urgent feminist topics is unrelenting.
Come along to hear Ford discuss her
new book with Julia Baird. Part memoir
and part polemic, Fight Like A Girl
will change the way you see the world.
Tickets are $45 and include a signed copy of Fight
Like a Girl. Please book at readings.com.au/events
Monday 26 September, 6.30–7.30pm
Melbourne Athenaeum, 188 Collins St., Melbourne
26
JOCK SERONG IN
CONVERSATION
Join us as Australian crime author Jock
Serong discusses celebrity, masculinity
and his gripping new thriller, The Rules of
Backyard Cricket.
Readings Hawthorn
26
AN EVENING WITH
JIMMY BARNES
Come along for a special evening with
Australian rock icon Jimmy Barnes as we
celebrate the release of his much-anticipated
memoir, Working Class Boy. Barnes will
tell the story of how his childhood dream
to escape the misery of the suburbs was
realised through rock’n’roll.
Tickets are $55 and include a signed hardback
copy of Working Class Boy. Please book at
readings.com.au/events
Monday 26 September, 8.30–9.30pm
27
STAN GRANT IN
CONVERSATION
WITH RICHARD
FLANAGAN
We are honoured to host this very special
evening together with the Melbourne
Athenaeum, the Indigenous Literacy
Foundation and the University of Melbourne.
Join us for a fascinating conversation about
politics, privilege and Australian culture
between two award-winning writers –
journalist and author Stan Grant (Talking to
My Country) and Richard Flanagan, author
(The Narrow Road to the Deep North) and
Boisbouvier Founding Chair in Australian
Literature at the University of Melbourne.
Tickets are $30 per person or $25 concession.
All proceeds will be donated to the Indigenous
Literacy Foundation. Please book at
readings.com.au/events
27
HANNAH KENT IN
CONVERSATION
WITH ELKE POWER
We’re excited to get our hands on The
Good People – the story of three women
brought together by troubling events in
1825 Ireland and Hannah Kent’s followup to her breakout debut of 2013, Burial
Rites. Kent will discuss the new novel
with Readings Monthly editor Elke Power.
Readings Hawthorn
28
MEET GARTH NIX:
THE FIFTH
INSTALMENT OF
OLD KINGDOM IS
HERE!
The long-awaited fifth instalment of Garth
Nix’s Old Kingdom series is here: Goldenhand
takes place six months after the events of
Abhorsen (published in 2003) and continues
Lirael’s story. We are thrilled to have Nix with
us to talk about the series – for one night only.
Tickets are $25 and include a signed copy of
Goldenhand. Please book at readings.com.au/events
Readings Hawthorn
September
Launches
All launches are free and no booking is
required unless otherwise specified below.
Join us for the launch of Where I Live, a
book written, designed and published by
kids with The Field Trip. It’s about their
homes, friends, families, schools and lives.
Monday 5 September, 5pm
Readings Carlton
Join us as Melanie Joosten launches Anna
Snoekstra’s debut novel, Only Daughter, a
chilling psychological thriller in which the
past and future collide.
Monday 5 September, 7pm
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Gillian Polack’s new
novel, The Wizardry of Jewish Women, a
feminist Jewish Australian story.
Readings Hawthorn
Author Gabrielle Carey will launch Maurilia
Meehan’s wickedly witty new novel, 5 Ways
to be Famous Now.
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Rose Mulready’s
2016 Seizure Viva La Novella Prize-winning
novella, The Bonobo’s Dream, to be launched
by one of last year’s winners, Jane Rawson.
Thursday 8 September, 6.30pm
Readings St Kilda
Join us for the launch of local artist Karen
Allen’s gorgeous new creature-filled
alphabet book, An A–Z of Creatures.
Readings St Kilda
Singer–songwriter, author and filmmaker
Richard Frankland will launch Charlie
Ward’s examination of the Gurindji people’s
famous Wave Hill Walk-off in 1966,
A Handful of Sand.
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Earl de Blonville’s
new non-fiction adventure book, Savage
Coast, which explores leadership resilience
in a turbulent world.
Readings Carlton
Melbourne Writers Festival program
manager Jo Case will launch Laura
Elizabeth Woollett’s The Love of a Bad
Man, which offers fictional imaginings of
real women who were romantically involved
with ‘bad’ men in history.
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Dyna Eldaief’s
mouth-watering new cookbook for the home
cook, The Taste of Egypt.
Friday 16 September, 7pm
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Trevor Barr’s new
novel, Grand Intentions, which was inspired
by real events.
Readings Hawthorn
Join us for the launch of David Henderson’s
history book about German Australian
internment during WWII, Nazis In Our Midst.
Readings Carlton
Join us for the launch of Traces of History
as we recognise the significant contribution
author, writer and historian Patrick Wolfe
made to Australian literature before his
untimely death.
Readings Carlton
A peek at October
TEXT CLASSICS:
4
RECLAIMING
October
AUSTRALIAN
AUTHORS
OF THE PAST
Join us for a discussion about the depth and
breadth of our literary heritage chaired by
Text publisher Michael Heyward. In the
space of four years, Text Publishing has
released 100 Text Classics, most of them
long out of print. This series has brought
numerous extraordinary writers from
Australia and New Zealand to domestic and
international attention, including Elizabeth
Harrower, Kenneth Cook, David Ballantyne,
Amy Witting and Madeleine St John.
Tickets are $15 and include a copy of one novel
from the Text Classics series, as available on the
night. Please book at readings.com.au/events
Tuesday 4 October, 6.30pm
Cinema Nova: 380 Lygon St., Carlton
TIM DUNLOP ON
5
WHY THE FUTURE
October
IS WORKLESS
Join us to hear Tim Dunlop discuss his
new book, Why the Future is Workless. The
landscape of work is changing right before
our eyes as new paradigms emerge including
everything from Uber, Airbnb and the new
share economy to automated vehicles, 3D
printing and advanced artificial intelligence.
Why the Future is Workless is a timely
examination of the future of work.
Wednesday 5 October, 6.30pm
Readings Carlton
Mark’s
Say
5
News and views from Readings’ Managing Director,
Mark Rubbo
As President Obama’s term comes to an end you get a sense of the wellspring of goodwill
toward the President. It’s in stark contrast to Bill Clinton and George Bush, whose presidential
legacies were tainted by tawdriness and disastrous foreign expeditions respectively. Obama is
seen by most as an honourable person who despite being frustrated by a resistant legislature
has managed to push through some of his key policies. Obama is also a reader and is a regular
at Washington’s leading independent bookseller, Politics & Prose. I’ve seen delightful pictures
of Obama and his family shopping at Politics & Prose, surrounded by excited staff. It would
be a bookseller’s dream come true to have the President of the United States as a customer!
Each year around this time Obama takes a few weeks off and the White House releases a
list of books that he’s going to read on his vacation; it’s always an interesting list, nothing too
challenging but intelligent and diverse – what you’d expect for holiday fare. This summer’s
list is no exception with a couple of my favourites on it. Top of the list is William Finnegan’s
terrific surfing memoir, Barbarian Days ($24.99). The book won the Pulitzer Prize earlier this
year and I met Finnegan last month when we were in conversation at our Hawthorn shop. He’s
a charming, literate man obsessed by surfing; he’d tried to go to Bells the day before our event
but couldn’t get hold of a board or wetsuit. The book is not just about surfing; it’s about growing
up and male friendship too – a perfect gift for any man. Also on the list is The Underground
Railroad by Colson Whitehead (special price $27.99), a novel loosely based on the network of
safe houses and people who’d get American slaves to the slave-free north. The New York Times
described it as ‘a brave and necessary book’. Helen MacDonald’s H is For Hawk ($22.99), about
a woman training a goshawk, became an unlikely bestseller. Obama also reveals a penchant for
crime and science fiction in selecting the bestselling crime novel The Girl on the Train by Paula
Hawkins ($22.99) and Seveneves by Neal Stephenson ($24.99). Stephenson has a reputation for
producing gripping, literary science fiction and has deservedly developed a cult following.
One of my favourite charities is the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. Founded in 2005 by
Brisbane bookseller Suzy Wilson, it has developed an impressive and effective suite of programs
to encourage literacy in remote communities around Australia. Each year it donates thousands
of culturally and developmentally appropriate books to remote communities around Australia;
it’s developing an early literacy program for toddlers and preschoolers; and is working with
communities and Australian authors to publish community stories. Although I’m now on the
board and slightly biased, I believe the ILF is on the road to making a real difference to children’s
lives. Wednesday 7 September is Indigenous Literacy Day and Readings will be donating 10% of
our book sales to the cause. In addition, Readings donates $15,000 per annum to the ILF. Imagine
what we could achieve if every person reading this gave $10 on the 7th? You can donate at www.
indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au and help by coming to our fundraising event with Stan
Grant and Richard Flanagan. Thanks in anticipation!
Dear
Reader
Alison Huber,
Head Book Buyer
Here we are in September, which, as the years go on, is really starting to feel like the official start
of the festive season in bookselling and publishing. That means that lots of Big Books for 2016
are about to come your way! For example, you can expect to hear a lot about Ann Patchett’s
new novel, Commonwealth (already a firm favourite amongst early readers, including myself ).
The new Ian McEwan is – well, it’s the new Ian McEwan, so not much more needs to be said
really, does it, aside from that it is called Nutshell and is told with an appropriately McEwanish narrative twist. Jay McInerney’s Brightness Falls (published in 1992) is one of my favourite
reading memories of the 1990s, so I am excited that the third instalment of Russell and Corinne’s
story (following 2006’s The Good Life) is out this month. I saw Matthew Griffin read an extract
from his debut novel, Hide, when I was in the US earlier this year, and I was transfixed; I share
our reviewer’s enthusiasm for this moving story. The wondrous Mary Gaitskill wrote The
Mare in 2015, and it is at last available in an Australian edition this month. Throw in new books
from two more former winners of the Booker Prize (Dirt Road from James Kelman; Selection
Day from Aravind Adiga), a highly anticipated new novel from Jonathan Safran Foer (Here I
Am), the second novel by a recent winner of the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction (The Lesser
Bohemians from Eimear McBride), and a few books getting a lot of attention in the international
literary pages (Kris Lee’s How I Became a North Korean; Imbolo Mbue’s Behold the Dreamers;
Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad), and you’ll see that this month is a big one. Lucia
Berlin’s amazing short story collection, A Manual for Cleaning Women, made a lot of people’s
‘best of 2015’ lists, and while I hand-sold quite a few copies of the imported hardcover late last
year, it’s finally available in paperback, so please do revisit this book.
So much for international fiction: Australia’s writers bring us great things this month too.
One of our most exciting, Steven Amsterdam, publishes his long-awaited new work, The Easy
Way Out. This story of a nurse who assists terminally ill patients seeking death on their own
terms cannot fail to get people talking and thinking about the ethics, realities and necessity of
a dignified exit strategy. Local publishing house Scribe, who celebrated their 40th birthday in
August, have Laura Elizabeth Woollett’s exciting debut, The Love of a Bad Man, a cycle of short
stories that focus on the women who loved the ‘bad men’ of history. Heather Rose was the
inaugural writer in residence at MONA in Hobart during 2012–13, and she spent her time there
working on The Museum of Modern Love, which is based on the work of performance artist
Marina Abramovic: our reviewer calls it her ‘book of the year so far’!
Our book of the month is Grant and I, the memoir from musician, writer and general hero,
Robert Forster. I think I genuinely gasped with excitement when I heard at some point last year
that he was writing this book. Forster is the ultimate stylist, and this work will be a treat for fans
of Forster and The Go-Betweens, and an education for those yet uninitiated. I suggest you buy a
copy immediately. Before I forget, I advise you to look out for The Hidden Life of Trees, by Peter
Wohlleben, released mid-month, a book that I suspect might well be on everyone’s ‘want list’ by
the end of the year. And finally, dear reader, I urge you to explore the full shortlist for this year’s
Readings Prize. As a judge this year, and a vocal participant in the many arguments – I mean
‘discussions’ – we had at the meeting to decide the shortlist, I can say that my fellow judges and
I feel very close to all these books, and we know you’ll find much to enjoy and admire in these
six outstanding works from Australian early career writers.
6
New Fiction
Australian Fiction
THE EASY WAY OUT
Steven Amsterdam
Hachette. PB. Was $29.99
$24.99
Available 30 August
The Readings Prize
2016 judges’ report
T
he Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction
considers first and second books from Australian
authors, and aims to recognise exciting and
exceptional new contributions to local literature.
The six books shortlisted for this year’s Reading Prize tell
stories of complicated families, of relationships good and
bad, of desire and ambition, humour and heartbreak, identity
and loss. The shortlist includes two short-story collections
and four novels, and their settings range from South
Australia in 1835 to Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2008, with an
extraordinary diversity of places and people in between.
The Readings staff judges for this year’s Prize – Tom
Hoskins, State Library Victoria shop manager; Christine
Gordon, events manager; Alison Huber, book division
manager; Nina Kenwood, marketing manager; and Simon
McLean, Hawthorn book buyer – felt that the quality of the
eligible books was extremely high, which is testament to the
depth of emerging talent in Australian literature. Managing
director Mark Rubbo and celebrated author Maxine Beneba
Clarke will join the judging panel to select the winner from
the six shortlisted books. The winner will be announced
online in late October, and will feature in the November
issue of the Readings Monthly, and will receive $4,000.
‘A collection of funny, bold and delightfully weird
short stories. Koh is an ambitious writer with a
unique voice and a wild imagination.
A playful and challenging book.’
Portable Curiosities by Julie Koh
‘In the tradition of the greats of the short form,
this is an accomplished and sophisticated
collection of stories by the author of the
acclaimed novel The Night Guest.’
The High Places by Fiona McFarlane
‘This expertly crafted novel is a profound and
heartbreaking portrait of one woman’s life,
touching on issues of ambition, wealth, class,
and violence.’
Music and Freedom by Zoë Morrison
‘Set in Tasmania, this is a charming, quirky and
very clever debut novel, bursting with literary
references and boasting a memorable cast of
characters. A genuine pleasure to read.’
Wood Green by Sean Rabin
‘A complex and compelling family saga set in
Sri Lanka in the final days of the civil war,
deftly exploring conflicts around gender, class,
generational divide, race and more.’
Ruins by Rajith Savanadasa
‘Set in South Australia in 1835, this beautifully
written and emotionally rich debut novel grapples
with the devastating effects of colonisation and
the harsh realities of frontier life.’
Salt Creek by Lucy Treloar
This is what we
already know
about Amsterdam’s
writing: he spins
recognised worlds
upside down. He has
the ability to see into
the future and then to
discuss, reasonably,
what would happen if this was our actual
reality. We experienced this in his last,
excellent novel, What the Family Knew,
and quite frankly, he’s done it again.
However, this time we are not dealing
with superpowers, but rather with the
more taboo topic of euthanasia. What
issues would emerge, asks Amsterdam, if
this course of action was accessible and
supported? To answer, Amsterdam centres
the narrative on Evan, a legal suicide
assistant. Evan is inevitably quiet about
his role at the hospital with his lovers and
friends, and he’s also quiet about his social
life when he’s with his aging mother. The
Easy Way Out explores those themes of
selectively hiding and disclosing identity as
Evan grapples with all of his secrets.
As his mother comes to terms with
the end of her life, Evan is drawn into a
consideration of the cost of his role. This
novel is a superb example of a multi-layered
story that centres on assisted suicide, but is
also the story of son’s relationship with his
mother. Amsterdam’s writing encourages
discussion and in the end asks the question:
what would you do? This is a brilliant,
compelling novel that is confronting,
courageous and genuinely moving.
Chris Gordon is the events manager for Readings
THE MUSEUM OF
MODERN LOVE
Heather Rose
A&U. PB. $27.99
Available 1 September
I pounced on The
Museum of
Modern Love as soon as
I heard about its subject
matter: the performance
artist Marina Abramovic.
Written by Australian
author Heather Rose,
this blend of fact and
fiction centres on those two and a half
months in 2010 when Abramovic staged
perhaps her most famous work, The Artist
is Present, at MOMA in New York. For the
duration of the exhibition, Abramovic sat
silently in a chair while members of the
public were invited one by one to sit
opposite the artist for an unspecified
period. The apparent simplicity of the piece
(although a monumental feat of endurance
for Abramovic) struck a chord with many
and soon people were camping out
overnight for their chance to sit with
Marina. The Museum of Modern Love
follows the impact of those 75 days from a
variety of viewpoints: a composer, a widow,
a PhD student, an art reviewer, a ghost, a
muse and Abramovic herself.
Reaction to art is of course personal
and similarly the response to this novel
may vary, but I adored it and it is my
book of the year so far. It’s true that the
subject matter is fascinating in itself but
Heather Rose deserves credit for taking
the initial inspiration to create her own
thoughtful, multi-layered work; deftly
grabbing the reader’s attention right from
the beginning and sustaining the multiple
narrative threads throughout. The theme of
connection is predominant and I found the
most significant part of the novel to be how
the characters respond to the exhibition
and whether they are able to take that
experience into their own lives (i.e. truly
connect art to life). This is ultimately a
book for Abramovic fans (if you need some
background try the excellent documentary
also entitled The Artist is Present) but also
for those who love New York and the arts
in general.
Amanda Rayner is from Readings Carlton
THE LOVE OF A BAD MAN
Laura Elizabeth Woollett
Scribe. PB. $27.99
Available 29 August
The women in
Laura Elizabeth
Woollett’s assured
short-fiction collection
The Love of a Bad Man
are the kind that get
under your skin and
stay there. This
collection offers
readers an unusual and affecting reading
experience, coupling true crime with
literary fiction. Each story centres on a
real-life woman enamoured with a ‘bad
man’ – criminals from throughout the 20th
century from across the USA, UK and
Australia. Whether mistresses,
accomplices, or victims themselves, these
women all stand by the men in question,
including Hitler’s young wife Eva Braun,
Jim Jones’ first wife Marceline Baldwin,
and the sister wives of Charles Manson,
among many others.
While some cases are more well-known
than others, Woollett’s skill as a writer
ensures that no prior knowledge of each
crime is needed to fall completely into
each story. The book’s appendix details
the historical information clearly and
succinctly, but The Love of a Bad Man
exists first and foremost as an engrossing
(if sometimes disturbing) work of literary
fiction. Woollett displays a great deal
of talent in locating the reader in each
setting – from a fugitive hideout in 1930s
Joplin, Missouri (‘Blanche’), to the
Saddleworth Moor in the 1960s (‘Myra’), to
1980s suburban Perth (‘Cathy’).
The collection seamlessly strings
together an impressive range of voices, but
the most remarkable aspect of The Love
of a Bad Man is the degree of empathy
displayed for each protagonist. While the
majority of these women are involved,
either directly or indirectly, in an array
of heinous crimes (which makes for
unsettling reading at times), Woollett
presents each woman as complex and,
to varying degrees, remarkably relatable.
These are considered portraits of flawed
and fascinating women, offering a mature
depiction of the lengths to which some
will go for the men they love.
The Love of a Bad Man is an accomplished
and engrossing collection from a young
Australian literary talent. Laura Elizabeth
Woollett is refreshing, challenging and utterly
unique and I’m already looking forward to
her next achievement.
Stella Charls is the marketing and events
coordinator for Readings
WE. ARE. FAMILY.
FAMILY SKELETON
Paul Mitchell
Carmel Bird
Midnight Sun. PB. $24.99
UWAP. PB. $29.99
Paul Mitchell’s
first novel is an
exploration of
Australian masculinity
and the suffocating
limitations we place
on our boys and men.
The first page is a
family tree, but not a
sprawling tangle that
reaches back and across oceans, rather it is
truncated and limited to living generations.
This the theme of the book: that people
become so caught up in familial
relationships that they can’t bring
themselves to make changes, despite the
internecine nature of their situation.
Mitchell moves us around this family tree,
through time and from branch-to-branch,
building up the characters and the story in
a non-linear fashion. It is a story of
domestic violence – both visceral and
psychological – and the seeds of
dysfunction and decay that it sows.
The characters are not instantly
recognisable. They begin as archetypes,
the Stevensons, and their particularly
bland Australian names suggest they are
almost interchangeable. Bernie sits atop
this structure, a brute and a drunk. The
son is named Ron and the grandsons
Peter, Terry and Simon, the uncles, two
brothers, named Nick and Tim. The book
is driven almost entirely through the male
perspective and their various degrees of
failure, longing and regret. It is a saga too,
of marriages in disrepair, of depression
and madness, of ill-gotten money and
regret by the truckload. The Stevensons
scrabble about for meaning and hope, their
hopes and voices muffled by the spectre of
past and family.
What Mitchell does particularly well
is capture Australianness. Hardship,
mistakes, dim-wittedness – these
are universal. But the vernacular is
unmistakably ours, as nowhere else would
you tell your brother to ‘rack off ’, or
donate money to ‘the Salvos’. There is a
touch of Tim Winton in this, of getting the
finer details right. Though grim at times,
Mitchell’s debut is a fine novel, cleverly
structured and expertly wrought, and he is
without doubt a writer to watch.
From inside her Toorak
mansion, Margaret O’Day,
widow of funeral director
Edmund Rice O’Day,
secretly surveys her
family in the garden.
Everyone, including
Margaret herself, is
oblivious to the secrets that threaten to be
uncovered by a visiting American relative
who is determined to excavate the O’Day’s
family history. How far will Margaret go in
order to bury the truth? Deftly woven with
elegant wit and with compassion, this dark
comedy is about what you can unearth if
you dig deep enough.
Scribe. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Dominic and Mary are
twins, but they are also
opposites: Dominic is
thoughtful and quiet,
Mary is passionate and
impetuous. When Mary
escapes to Melbourne in
pursuit of sensuality and
art, Dominic must
shoulder the mantle of family
responsibility. But the past cannot be left
behind so easily. Set in an era of social
constraint but profound genetic discovery,
The Science of Appearances examines how
the complex interplay of heredity and
environment makes, shapes, and
sometimes breaks us.
$24.99
On the cusp of 50, Adam
Sharp has a loyal partner,
earns a good income and is
the music-trivia expert at
quiz nights. But something’s
missing. Two decades ago,
his part-time piano playing
led him into a passionate
relationship with Angelina Brown, and now
he can’t shake off his nostalgia for what might
have been. Then, out of nowhere, Angelina
gets in touch. What does she want? Does
Adam dare to live dangerously? How far will
he go for a second chance?
H A P P Y FAT H E R ’ S D AY
WILD ISLAND
Jennifer Livett
A&U. PB. $29.99
FICTION
From piranha-infested
waters to mining
company boardrooms,
triumphs and disasters
on the gold trail.
International Fiction
COMMONWEALTH
HISTORICAL FICTION
New Indie Reads
TRUE ADVENTURE
Harriet Adair has come to
Van Diemen’s Land with
Mrs Anna Rochester,
trying to unearth longburied secrets. Meanwhile,
Sir John Franklin
uncovers some secrets of
his own when he replaces
Colonel Arthur as Governor. This dazzling
modern recreation of Jane Eyre ingeniously
entwines Charlotte Bronte’s iconic love
story with Sir John Franklin’s great tale of
exploration and empire – a brilliant and
historically accurate depiction of colonial
society in the 1800s that proves fiction and
history are not so different after all.
Big waves, black
magic and mad
Aussie expats make
for dangerous surf.
On Australia’s vast
southern oceans,
sealers and their
captives must
cooperate or die.
COMI
N
SOON G
Ann Patchett
Bloomsbury. PB. Was $29.99
$26.99
If you enjoy stories
that explore the
nuances of big, messy,
irresistible families, then
this new novel from
Orange Prize-winning
author Ann Patchett is for
you. Commonwealth is an
immersive read that drops you right into
the thick of one such family.
The story opens on a stiflingly hot day
in 1960s Southern California. Looking
to escape his wife Teresa and their four
children, Bert Cousins shows up uninvited
(and with an unexpected bottle of gin
The cowboy capitalists
of Perth’s 1980s just
rode into town and
PI Frank Swann is in
the firing line.
SHORTLISTED
NED KELLY
AWARD 2016
CRIME
Jacinta Halloran
Text. PB. Was $29.99
CRIME
THE SCIENCE
OF APPEARANCES
Graeme Simsion
CRIME
Robbie Egan is the operations manager for
Readings
THE BEST OF ADAM SHARP
There’s a killer on
the loose in Broome
and it’s no croc.
fremantlepress.com.au
Iris Foster is
the Fire Lady –
psychological
profiler and
suspected arsonist.
7
8
in hand) to Beverly and Fix Keating’s
christening party for their second daughter.
When he develops a sudden passion for the
hostess, he sets in motion the dissolution of
both marriages and within a few years the
Keating and Cousins children are spending
their summers together in Virginia.
Patchett follows the two families over the
next five decades, tracing the ways their
lives fold into one another. The tangled
relationships that develop between them all
will likely be familiar to anyone who comes
from a blended family themselves.
While the novel’s narrative is fractured
by continual shifts in time and perspective,
the story largely circles around two key
events that are inexorably entwined. One is
a tragedy and the other is a book – a thinlyveiled fictional imagining of the former.
Patchett poses questions about the stories
families tell about themselves: how do they
begin? What is their significance? And,
what happens when the cracks in them are
exposed?
On a purely sentence level, Patchett is
a delight. The novel’s tone is wonderfully
matter-of-fact and wry, especially when the
characters are at their most vindictive –
the first time that Teresa is able to send
the children to Bert without a chaperone
she purposefully forgets a suitcase, ‘A
bold manoeuvre she would never have
attempted when Bonnie or Wallis was on
duty’, and gleefully imagines him hitting
the ground running. Highly recommended.
Bronte Coates is the digital content
coordinator for Readings
HIDE
Matthew Griffin
Bloomsbury. PB. $28
Matthew Griffin’s
debut novel is a
beautiful character study.
Wendell and Frank fall in
love in an era before gay
liberation and they
remain stuck in that time
for over fifty years, unable
to trust a world that has
moved on without them. When Wendell
first catches sight of Frank during one cold
twilit afternoon just after the Second World
War, he thinks Frank is the tallest man he
had ever seen as he observes him standing
on the train tracks in front of Wendell’s
taxidermy business, his shoulders hunched
and constricted by his ill-fitting jacket. So
begins a relationship between the two men
during a time when their love could jail or
institutionalise them.
Heartbreakingly, cutting themselves
off from family and friends for decades
they come to rely and trust no one but each
other. The purchase of a small house in
the North Carolina countryside affords a
freedom of sorts. For years living remotely
they venture into town together only when
vital, going about their errands pretending
to be strangers in order not to draw
attention to their lifestyle. But after arriving
home from a grocery run one afternoon,
Wendell discovers eighty-three-year-old
Frank lying in their vegetable garden. Their
secret life together is in danger of exposure.
This is one gorgeously written novel. I
cannot tell you how many times I re-read
paragraphs aloud just to actually hear their
composition. It’s so refreshing to read a
love story about two older men, especially
when it’s a relationship that has spanned
years in the shadows. Being a gay man in
my forties in a committed relationship for
the last fifteen years, this struck a chord
with me even though I came of age in a
time after gay lib. This is not a political
novel, but while we are still yearning for
marriage equality here in Australia the
isolation that Wendell and Frank find
themselves in resonated with me.
Jason Austin is from Readings Carlton
her journey, Whitehead brilliantly recreates
the unique terrors of the pre-Civil War era.
The Underground Railroad is both a kinetic
adventure tale and a powerful meditation on
the history we all share.
BRIGHT, PRECIOUS DAYS
BEHOLD THE DREAMERS
but things begin to get complicated. The
Mare is a devastating portrait of the
unbridgeable gaps between people, and the
search for fairytale endings that don’t exist.
THE LESSER BOHEMIANS
Eimear McBride
Jay McInerney
Imbolo Mbue
Text. PB. $29.99
Bloomsbury. PB. $29.99
Available now
HarperCollins. PB. $29.99
Occasionally a
slight snobbery
emerges from working in
a bookshop. With all the
books out there, not all
are equally worthy of our
time. Is every book
amazing? Life changing?
No, but if it’s enjoyable
often that’s expressly what you want and
need in a book.
And then there’ s the slight shame and
delight associated with the deceptively
simple story – how can I enjoy this so much
when I am reading it so fast, consuming it
like a candy bar? – it is tempting to assume
the writing must be simplistic to a fault;
but there’s real art and form behind a
rollicking story, well-defined characters
who resonate, who are alive in your mind
as you read.
With Bright, Precious Days by Jay
McInerney, I grappled with some of
these questions. Gradually I found myself
grinning as I read, drawn in. There’s no
reason why the quintessential New York
story can’t be compelling.
The easy languor of well drawn
characters, Russell and Corinne Calloway
and their rich or famous friends made for
addictive reading. The satirical edge of
their habits and conversations, the pattern
of their lives – cheat on or be cheated on,
get reservations at exclusive restaurants
and speculate about real estate and charity
functions – was, in some ways, predictable,
but nevertheless, fun.
This is the third time McInerney has
written about these characters, starting
with Brightness Falls, The Good Life and
now Bright, Precious Days – but each can be
read independently. McInerney’s fondness
and familiarity with the characters
is evident, as we follow their daily
exhortations in the lead up to the Lehman
Brothers financial crisis and the election of
Obama in 2008.
Just as Armistead Maupin did for San
Francisco, McInerney does for New York:
artfully weaving vignettes in concentric
circles that radiate out from Corinne
and Russell at the heart. We should coin
a subgenre for this – the authors who
substantiate and perpetuate the mythical
qualities of these cities so that their fictions
and facts become indistinguishable.
New York, 2007: Clark
Edwards is a senior
partner at Lehman
Brothers bank, in need of a
chauffeur, and too
preoccupied to check the
paperwork of his latest
employee, Jende Jonga,
who has come from
Cameroon. Jende’s new job draws him and
his family into the privileged orbit of the
city’s financial elite. But when the financial
crisis threatens everything they have
worked for, each must decide how far they
will go – and what they will sacrifice – in
pursuit of their dreams.
An eighteen-year-old girl,
recently arrived in London
from Ireland, is enrolled in
drama school. She is eager
to make an impression, to
do well. She meets a
man – older, a wellregarded actor in his own
right – and falls for him.
But he’s haunted by more than a few demons,
and their tumultuous relationship might be
the undoing of them both. Set across the
bedsits and squats of mid-90s north London,
The Lesser Bohemians is a story of love,
innocence, discovery and renewal.
Anaya Latter is from Readings St Kilda
THE UNDERGROUND
RAILROAD
THE COSMOPOLITANS
Anjum Hasan
Xoum. PB. $29.99
Qayenaat is a middleaged critic at the edge of
the Bangalore art scene.
When the return of her
former protégé, now a
hugely successful artist,
brings back painful
memories, Qayenaat
commits an unforgivable
crime, fleeing to rural India to escape its
repercussions. There she forms a
relationship with the local monarch whose
palace, like the region, has fallen into
disrepair. Asking questions about art, love
and class, The Cosmopolitans is a rich and
engaging novel, by turns tender and satirical.
NUTSHELL
Ian McEwan
Jonathan Cape. HB. Was $32.99
$27.99
Trudy has betrayed her
husband, John. She’s still
in the marital home – a
dilapidated, priceless
London townhouse – but
not with John. Instead,
she’s with his brother,
the profoundly banal
Claude, and the two of
them have a plan. But there is a witness to
their plot: the inquisitive, nine-month-old
resident of Trudy’s womb. Told from a
perspective unlike any other, Nutshell is a
classic tale of murder and deceit from one
of the world’s master storytellers.
Colson Whitehead
THE MARE
Hachette. PB. Was $32.99
Mary Gaitskill
$27.99
Serpent’s Tail. PB. $29.99
HOW I BECAME A
NORTH KOREAN
Krys Lee
Faber. PB. $29.99
Three young lives
converge at ChineseNorth Korean border
region – Danny, a
Chinese-American
teenager visiting his
missionary mother;
Yongju, a privileged
North Korean student
escaping persecution
after the Dear Leader has his father killed;
and Jangmi, a poor smuggler trying to
protect her unborn child. As they struggle
to survive in a place where danger seems to
close in on all sides, in the form of
government informants, husbands, thieves,
abductors, and even missionaries, they
come to form a kind of adopted family.
DEAR MR M
Herman Koch
Text. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Once a celebrated writer,
M’s greatest success came
with a suspense novel
based on a real-life,
unsolved disappearance.
But that was years ago, and
M has all but faded into
obscurity – but not when it
comes to his bizarre, seemingly timid
neighbour who keeps a close eye on him. A
writer in decline, a teenage couple in love, a
missing teacher – thanks to M’s novel,
supposedly a work of fiction, multiple lives
seem linked forever – until something
unexpected spins the story off its rails.
HERE I AM
Jonathan Safran Foer
Hamish Hamilton. PB. Was $32.99
$27.99
Available now
Cora is a slave on a
cotton plantation in
Georgia, an outcast even
among her fellow
Africans. Caesar, a
recent arrival from
Virginia, tells her about
the Underground
Railroad, and they plot
their escape – but
matters do not go as planned. As Cora
encounters different worlds at each stage of
Recovering alcoholic
Ginger can’t have a baby
of her own – so she and
her husband sign up to an
organisation that sends
poor inner-city kids to
stay with country
families. That’s how
Velveteen Vargas, an
eleven-year-old Dominican girl from one of
Brooklyn’s toughest neighbourhoods, arrives
in their lives. Ginger is instantly besotted,
This is the story of a
fracturing family in a
moment of crisis. Over the
course of three weeks in
present-day Washington
DC, three sons watch their
parents’ marriage falter
and their family home fall
apart. Meanwhile, a larger catastrophe
engulfs another part of the world: a massive
earthquake devastates the Middle East,
sparking a pan-Arab invasion of Israel.
With global upheaval in the background
and domestic collapse in the foreground,
Jonathan Safran Foer explores the true
meaning of home.
A MANUAL FOR
CLEANING WOMEN
Lucia Berlin
Picador. PB. $19.99
The stories in A Manual for
Cleaning Women make for
one of the most remarkable
unsung collections in
twentieth-century
American fiction. With
extraordinary honesty and
magnetism, Lucia Berlin
invites us into her rich, itinerant life: the
drink and the mess and the pain and the
beauty and the moments of surprise and of
grace. Her voice is uniquely witty, anarchic
and compassionate. A decade after her
death, Berlin is set to become the writer
everyone is talking about.
THE NAKANO THRIFT SHOP
Hiromi Kawakami
Portobello. PB. $27.99
When Hitomi takes a
job on the cash register
of a neighbourhood
thrift store, she finds
herself drawn into a
very idiosyncratic
community – there’s the
enigmatic ladies’ man
with several ex-wives;
his sister, the artist who never married;
and Hitomi’s shy but charming co-worker
Takeo. As curios are bought and sold, each
one containing its own surprising story,
Hitomi and Takeo begin to fall for one
another – and find themselves in the
centre of their own drama.
SELECTION DAY
protestors, gentrifiers, karaoke bars, house
parties and cultish self-help seminars,
washing up in each other’s lives once again.
HARMLESS LIKE YOU
September’s To-Read List
Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
John Murray. PB. $32.99
Available 30 August
Written in startlingly
beautiful prose, Harmless
Like You is set across New
York, Berlin and
Connecticut, following the
stories of Yuki Oyama, a
Japanese girl fighting to
make it as an artist, and
Yuki’s son Jay who, as an adult in the
present day, is forced to confront his
mother who abandoned him when he was
only two years old. An unforgettable novel
about the complexities of identity, art,
adolescent friendships and familial bonds,
offering a unique exploration of love,
loneliness and reconciliation.
Told from a perspective unlike any other,
Nutshell is a classic tale of murder and
deceit from one of the world’s master
storytellers.
Sapiens showed us where we came from.
Homo Deus shows us where we’re going.
The stories behind one of the world’s
worst sporting disasters: The night that
fifteen young men of the Mornington
Football Club would never make it home.
Ten years after the high-profile
kidnapping of two young boys, only
one returns home... By the international
number one bestselling author of Tell No
One and Fool Me Once.
Melina Marchetta’s gripping new novel
Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil is part
family saga, part crime fiction, and wholly
unputdownable.
The story of a fracturing family in a moment
of crisis from the bestselling author of
Everything Is Illuminated.
The extraordinary true story of how an
ordinary Australian family took on the
Egyptian government to get Peter Greste
out of prison.
Australia’s favourite cricket writer on
how one player – and his photograph –
changed a sport and a nation.
THE SECRET DIARY OF
HENDRIK GROEN, 83 1/4
YEARS OLD
Hendrik Groen
Penguin. PB. $32.99
Available 29 August
Hendrik Groen may be
old, but he is far from
dead. So he sets out to
write an expose – a year
in the life of his
Amsterdam care home,
revealing all its ups and
downs. Holland’s
unlikeliest hero has
become a cultural phenomenon in his
native Netherlands and now he and his
famously anonymous creator are
conquering the globe. The Secret Diary of
Hendrik Groen will delight older readers
with its wit and relevance, and will charm
and inspire us all.
Aravind Adiga
THE WINTERLINGS
Macmillan. PB. $29.99
Available 30 August
Cristina Sanchez-Andrade
Scribe. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Fourteen-year-old
Manju is good at cricket
– if not as good as his
elder brother Radha. He
knows that he hates his
domineering and
cricket-obsessed father,
admires his brilliantly
talented brother and is
fascinated by CSI and
curious and interesting scientific facts. But
when Manju meets Radha’s great rival, a
boy as privileged and confident as Manju
is not, he is faced by decisions that will
challenge both his sense of self and of the
world around him.
After a long absence, two
sisters return to the small
parish of Tierra de Chá in
Galicia, from which they
fled as children – but for
the local villagers, their
return stirs up memories
best left alone. When
news arrives that famous
American actress Ava Gardner is shooting a
movie in Spain and that lookalikes are
wanted, the sisters have a chance to make
their dreams come true. But the family
secrets that led to the Winterlings’ return
won’t stay buried for long.
PRIVATE CITIZENS
DIRT ROAD
Tony Tulathimutte
James Kelman
OneWorld. PB. $26.99
Canongate. PB. $29.99
Capturing the anxious,
self-aware mood of the
noughties, Private Citizens
embraces the
contradictions of our new
century. The novel’s four
whip-smart narrators –
idealistic Cory, Internetlurking Will, awkward Henrik, and vicious
Linda – are torn between fixing the world
and cannibalising it. In boisterous prose
that ricochets between humour and pain,
the four estranged friends stagger through
the Bay Area’s maze of tech startups,
Music-obsessed teenager
Murdo wishes for a life
beyond his Scottish island
home, and dreams of
becoming his own man.
Tom, battered by loss,
stumbles backwards
towards the future,
terrified of losing his dignity, his control, his
son and the last of his family life. Both are in
search of something new as they set out on
an expedition into the American South. On
the road we discover whether the hopes of
youth can conquer the fears of age.
9
10
New Crime
‘The bravest,
most intrepid
and honest reporter
who went where others
didn’t dare’
Dead Write THE RULES OF BACKYARD
with Fiona Hardy
TELL THE TRUTH SHAME THE DEVIL
Melina Marchetta
Penguin. PB. Was $32.99
$27.99
Available 29 August
Like many readers, I’ve adored Melina Marchetta since my English
teacher issued Looking for Alibrandi as a Year 11 text and we all
gleefully discussed it in class since all of us actually happily read it
instead of reading the study guide and bluffing our way through exams.
Here, Marchetta has written her first novel for adults, and it’s a crime book – and nothing
could have prevented me from enjoying it.
Beginning near Calais, where a bus full of international students has been bombed, it
follows British ex-Chief Inspector Bish Ortley as he rushes headlong into Calais, in mortal
fear for the daughter, Bee, who was on that bus, even as he is still burning from grief over
the death of his son. Bee turns up – mostly fine, apart from what she has seen – but Bish
realises another name on that bus is familiar.
‘Marchetta is a wonderful storyteller, with every interaction
important, thrilling, enjoyable or all of the above, and every
character gifted with such an honest, gloriously vivid life of their
own that reading the whole thing in a searing rush of pages in one
sitting is irresistible.’
Violette LeBrac, sullen teenager and bomb survivor, is seventeen years old, and thirteen
years ago her extended family was arrested for its part in a supermarket bombing that killed
twenty-three people. Thirteen years ago, Bish was the one who took Violette from her
mother Noor’s desperate arms and placed her in care as Noor was jailed for life. The media
immediately latches onto Violette and her family history, even though she’s been living
peacefully in Australia for years, but before anyone can prove anything, Violette and another
student vanish. Bish is struggling enough with his own daughter when suddenly he has
another teenager to worry about – but the deeper he delves into Violette’s whereabouts, the
more he realises that, even back then, his assumptions were clouded by judgement.
As the media and the public become more and more frenzied with sightings of Violette,
even to the point of people engaging in violent acts towards anyone who looks remotely
suspicious, Bish searches further for the truth – of what happened thirteen years ago; of
what kind of father, husband and police officer he became after his son’s death; and of what
happened to get a bomb onto a bus of schoolkids. Marchetta is a wonderful storyteller, with
every interaction important, thrilling, enjoyable or all of the above, and every character
gifted with such an honest, gloriously vivid life of their own that reading the whole thing in a
searing rush of pages in one sitting is irresistible.
CLOSED CASKET: THE
NEW HERCULE POIROT
MYSTERY
Sophie Hannah
I must confess that I
glared rather frostily at
the new Hercule Poirot
mysteries written by
Sophie Hannah,
thinking they could not
be as wonderful as
Agatha Christie’s divine
books –the ones that got
me into crime fiction all those years ago,
little yellowed books I picked up from
markets and school fairs. And yet, picking
this up, I was utterly entranced – here
were all the trappings of a Christie book:
oversized estate, weeping servants, a
great old mix of extravagantly named
characters thrown into rooms to outscandalise each other with witty and
caustic repartee as Poirot sits quietly in a
corner letting his little grey cells do all
the work for him. Here, Poirot and
Inspector Edward Catchpool are called to
the grand home of children’s author Lady
Athelinda Playford, who declares to her
family that she’s changing her will –
leaving her vast estate to her dying
secretary instead of her two children. But
why, if she will outlive him, would she do
such a thing? It becomes increasingly
apparent that someone will become a
Jock Serong
Text. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Crime Book of the Month
The Guardian
CRICKET
victim at this gathering … but who? Oh,
it’s just too wonderfully delicious.
THE JEALOUS KIND
James Lee Burke
Orion. PB. Was $32.99
$27.99
The fitting end to the
loose trilogy that began
with the Holland family
in Wayfaring Stranger
and Rising Sun, this
instalment follows
seventeen-year-old
Aaron Holland
Broussard as he makes
his way to adulthood in a 1952 that is less
polka-dots-and-milkshakes and more
mobsters-and-mayhem. Houston at that
time is a brutal place: the murder capital of
the world, a place steeped in violence and
one that Burke (who would also have been
seventeen in 1952) knows well.
After he’s involved in an altercation at
a drive-in while defending a girl in a fight
with rich local thug, Grady Harrelson,
Aaron finds that confrontation can lead to
dire consequences for everyone he loves.
That’s a brief summary that can’t give much
away, but Pulitzer-nominated Burke has a
glorious sense of prose and here the harsh
realities of youth in a dark place are set
in the foreground against the onset of the
Korean War and the bitter results of WWII
trauma, while Burke’s razor-sharp dialogue
and flawlessly flawed characters all meet in
a perfect storm of literature.
Jock Serong won last year’s
Ned Kelly Award for best
debut crime novel for his
previous book Quota–and
deservedly so, since it was
an excellent book. His
lyrical prowess – laconically
Australian, laced with no
small amount of shrewdness and wit – shines
again with The Rules of Backyard Cricket,
which opens with Darren Keefe tied up and
shot in the boot of a car, considering his fate
as the Geelong Road spins out through the
hole in the tail light he watches it through.
And so he considers how he got from scrappy
kid playing endless backyard cricket with his
older brother Wally to shameless sporting
celebrity and mischief-maker to a man clearly
on his way to a fiery end in a burnt-out car.
Seventies Australia is in its glorious, orangetinted nostalgic best in Serong’s matchcalloused hands, and Darren’s hapless
suburban boy is recognisable as those you
know personally or see in the media. And no,
you don’t have to know cricket to know that
this is a winner.
DARKTOWN
Thomas Mullen
Little, Brown. PB. $32.99
With the American fight for
racial equality ongoing –
especially in the current
climate of police
shootings – Darktown’s
devastation remains
relevant, despite being set
some seventy years ago. In
Atlanta in 1948, the city has its own black
police force, but the members are restrained
by white authorities, unable to arrest white
people or even drive a squad car, and are
unable to enter the Atlanta Police Station,
instead reporting to the basement of a
segregated YMCA. So when two of the cops
in the black police force find a black woman
dead and the suspect is not only white but
also ex-police, they have to overcome the
bone-deep hatred and bigotry of those
around them to find justice for her by toeing
the line and attempting to find allies in the
white police force that sees nothing in the
systematic abuse of African-American
suspects. This is a galling, brilliant,
unmissable slice of fictional history, and one
that is all too factual.
NOTHING SHORT OF DYING
Erik Storey
S&S. PB. $29.99
Like a hard whiskey on a
soft summer night, this is
the type of book sharp and
edgy enough to give you a
paper cut and tough enough
that you won’t even
whimper and look for a
bandaid. Clyde Barr is fresh
outta jail and sixteen years out of the
Colorado town he grew up in, but when he
gets a call from his sister, Jen, asking for help,
there’s nothing he can do but say yes. Back
home he goes, and it’s just one solid night’s
sleep in a hotel before he’s being chased by
criminals – well, criminals worse than he –
along with a bartender named Allie, and he’s
on his way to save the sister who once saved
him. This is a fast and dirty thriller and you’ll
enjoy every damn page of it.
R E A D I N G S M O N T H LY FAT H E R ' S DAY S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 6
SELECTION DAY
Aravind Adiga
Available 30 August
Fiction
DEAR MR M
Herman Koch
Text. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
From various perspectives, Herman
Koch tells the dark tale of a writer in
decline, a teenage couple in love, a
missing teacher, and a single book that
entwines all their fates. Thanks to this
book, a work of fiction based on a reallife disappearance, everyone seems
to be linked forever, until something
unexpected spins the ‘story’ off its rails.
NUTSHELL
Ian McEwan
Jonathan Cape. HB. Was $32.99
$27.99
Available 29 August
Trudy has betrayed her husband,
John. She’s still in their priceless
London marital home, but she’s there
with John’s brother, the profoundly
banal Claude, and the two of them
have a plan. But there is a witness
to their plot: the inquisitive, ninemonth-old resident of Trudy’s womb.
Nutshell is a classic tale of murder
and deceit from a master storyteller.
SEEING THE ELEPHANT
Fourteen-year-old Manju is good
at cricket – if not as good as his
brilliantly talented brother Radha –
and is fascinated by science and
forensics. But when Manju meets
Radha’s great rival, a boy as privileged
and confident as Manju is not, he faces
decisions that will challenge his sense
of self and of the world around him.
A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG
WIFE
Tommy Wieringa
Scribe. PB. $19.99
Available now
Edward Landauer, a brilliant
microbiologist in his forties, meets
a beautiful young woman. When
Edward and Ruth marry, Edward is
the happiest man in the world. But
after the birth of their long-awaited
son, Edward no longer recognises his
great romance or his wife.
BRIGHT, PRECIOUS DAYS
COMMONWEALTH
Jay McInerney
Ann Patchett
Bloomsbury. PB. $29.99
Available 24 August
Bloomsbury. PB. Was $29.99
In 2008 Russell clings to the illusion
of downtown bohemia in New York,
while Corrine longs for more space
for their twins. When a friend’s
posthumous, autobiographical novel
garners a cult following, the memory
of their friend begins to haunt the
couple, and their marriage feels
increasingly unstable.
$26.99
In 1964 Bert Cousins, the deputy
district attorney, shows up at Franny
Keating’s christening party, uninvited
and drunk. When Bert kisses Franny’s
mother, the two families are joined
in a tragic spiral. In 1988, Franny
recounts her family’s story to her idol,
a famous author, with unexpected and
wide-reaching ramifications.
NEVERNIGHT
Jay Kristoff
THE WINDY SEASON
Available now
Sam Carmody
In a land where three suns almost
never set, Mia, daughter of an
executed traitor with a gift for
speaking to shadows, joins a school of
assassins and seeks vengeance against
those who destroyed her family.
Treachery and trials await her, and
to fail is to die. But if she survives to
initiation, Mia will be one step closer
to the only thing she desires.
A&U. PB. $29.99
Available now
A young fisherman is missing from a
small West Australian town and Paul,
his younger brother, is the only one
who seems to be actively searching.
Taking Elliot’s place on the crayfish
boats, Paul soon learns how many
opportunities there are to disappear on
the vast and lonely coastline. A vividly
Australian story of an inhospitable
town and its residents.
Portland Jones
TRULY MADLY GUILTY
Margaret River Press. PB. $24
Available now
Liane Moriarty
THE MIDNIGHT WATCH
Macmillan. PB. Was $32.99
David Dyer
$27.99
Available now
Hamish Hamilton. PB. $32.99
Available now
Six responsible adults. Three cute
kids. One yapping dog. It was just
an ordinary backyard barbecue on a
Sunday afternoon. They were friends
of friends. They could so easily have
said no. But Clementine and her
husband Sam can never change what
they did and didn’t do that beautiful
winter’s day.
On a wretchedly cold night in the
North Atlantic, a steamer stopped in
an icefield sees distress rockets on
the horizon. Why did the midnight
watchman of the SS Californian,
Herbert Stone, look on while
the Titanic sank? Reporter John
Steadman knows there’s another
story lurking behind the official one.
THE SALAMANDERS
THE TOYMAKER
MUSIC AND FREEDOM
William Lane
Liam Pieper
Zoë Morrison
Transit Lounge. PB. $29.95
Available now
Hamish Hamilton. PB. Was $29.99
Vintage. PB. $32.99
Available now
Arthur lives in a hut by the Hawkesbury
River, the detritus of suburban life
gradually encroaching. When Rosie, the
adopted daughter of his father’s second
wife, returns from England to visit,
their time together raises childhood
memories of their father Peregrine, a
famous and controversial artist, and
what happened at a holiday by the
ocean years ago.
Adam Kulakov likes his life. His toy
company brightens the lives of millions
of children, and fulfils the vision of
his grandfather, Arkady, a survivor
of Auschwitz reaching the end of his
life. As the past reaches for Arkady,
a mistake threatens to bring Adam’s
world tumbling down and upend
everything the Kulakov family think
they know of the world.
A poignant story of the relationship
between Frank Stevens, an Australian
soldier sent to the Vietnamese
highlands to recruit and train local
tribes, and his Vietnamese translator,
Minh. Nearly fifty years after the
war, Minh, now living in Australia
and seriously ill, remembers the
experiences they shared and discovers
that even amongst his traumatic
memories, there is consolation and joy.
$26.99
A prodigious piano talent, Alice
Murray is sent from her rural
Australian home to a boarding school
in the bleak north of England. Years
later, she meets Edward, an Oxford
economics professor who sweeps her
off her feet. But Edward is damaged,
and she’s trapped. She clings to her
playing and to her dream of becoming
a concert pianist until disaster strikes.
Crime Fiction
Politics & Australian Studies
THE BLACK WIDOW
ERROR AUSTRALIS
YIJARNI
Daniel Silva
Ben Pobjie
HarperCollins. PB. Was $32.99
Affirm Press. PB. $29.99
Available now
Erika Charola & Felicity
Meakins (eds)
$27.99
Available now
Art restorer and spy Gabriel Allon is
about to become the chief of Israel’s
secret service. But on the eve of his
promotion, events lure him into
the field for one final operation.
ISIS has detonated a massive bomb
in the Marais district of Paris, and
a desperate French government
wants Gabriel to eliminate the man
responsible before he can strike again.
WATCHING EDIE
Camilla Way
Available now
Beautiful, creative, a little wild –
Edie caused a stir when she walked
into Heather’s life. Back when they
both had dreams and before it all
went terrifyingly wrong. Years
later, Edie is pregnant and alone,
desperately trying to rebuild her
life. But someone’s been watching
her, waiting for the chance to prove
what a perfect friend she can be.
THE GIRL IN GREEN
Derek B. Miller
Scribe. PB. Was $32.99
$27.99
Available now
British journalist Thomas Benton
hasn’t seen disgraced US army
soldier Arwood Hobbes since
Desert Storm, where a girl in a
green dress died in Arwood’s arms.
22 years later, a new coalition has
left behind another post-war Iraq,
and a video has gone viral. A video
of a mortar attack in Kurdistan
that, astonishingly, may have killed
the girl in green again.
THE RULES OF
BACKYARD CRICKET
Jock Serong
Text. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Darren has two big talents: cricket
and trouble. No surprise, then, that
he becomes an Australian sporting
star of the bad-boy variety, one
who can seemingly get away with
anything – until the day we meet
him, middle-aged, in the boot of a
car: gagged, cable-tied, a bullet in
his knee. Everything seems to point
towards a shallow grave.
Aboriginal Studies Press. PB. $39.95
As a country obsessed by reality
television, it’s easy to neglect the
reality of our nation and how it came
to be. TV columnist, comedian and
history buff Ben Pobjie recaps the
history of Australia. From a small
patch of rapidly cooling rock to one
of the modern-day major powers of
the sub-Asian super-Antarctic nextto-Africa region, Pobjie provides a
visceral, and often hilarious, sense
of our nation’s defining events.
THE TURNBULL
GAMBLE
THE GAME OF THEIR
LIVES
Wayne Errington & Peter Van
Onselen
MUP. PB. $29.99
Malcolm Turnbull leads a party whose
culture he doesn’t exactly share.
After achieving his lifelong dream of
becoming prime minister, his ambitions
in the role are unclear. While the
narrow election win may have justified
the gamble to place him in office, does
Turnbull have the leadership qualities
to break the cycle of division and
instability of the last decade?
WHAT A TIME TO BE
ALIVE
Mark Di Stefano
MUP. PB. $27.99
In 1966, approximately 200 Gurindji
stockmen and their families walked
off Wave Hill Station in the Northern
Territory, driven by poor treatment of
Aboriginal workers, decades of killings,
stolen children and other abuses by
early colonists. Told in both English
and Gurindji, these compelling and
detailed oral accounts are a fascinating
and challenging record of the frontier
battles and the Stolen Generations.
Nick Richardson
Available now
As the Great War raged in 1916, two
teams of Australian soldiers played
an Australian Rules football match in
London. More than just an exhibition
match , it also reflected sport’s role
in driving young athletes to enlist.
Now, 100 years on, Nick Richardson
rekindles an incredible moment in our
history and pays tribute to the men
who played the game of their lives.
THE NEW RUSSIA
Mikhail Gorbachev
Wiley. HB. Was $49.95
$44.95
Available now
Buzzfeed’s Mark Di Stefano reveals a
diary of the 2016 election campaign and
shows how an Australian election is
made. Taking you into the bizarre world
of staged photo-ops, booze-drenched
regrets and dirty direct messages, Di
Stefano uncovers how the campaigns
manufacture, massage and manipulate
their parties, policies and principles.
In this new work, Russia’s elder
statesman Mikhail Gorbachev
draws on his wealth of knowledge
and experience to critique the
performance and motives of the Putin
regime, as well as wider problems in
the region and the world. The New
Russia stands as a testament to one
of the greatest and most influential
statesmen of the twentieth century.
THE GREAT MULTINATIONAL TAX RORT
CONVICT TATTOOS
Martin Feil
Scribe. PB. $32.99
Available 29 August
Tax avoidance is legal, but its abuse
by multinational corporations
around the world has had a
devastating effect on governments
and honest local competitors – as
well as individual taxpayers. Martin
Feil’s exposé is a call to action for
citizens and governments to restore
a fair taxation system.
Simon Barnard
Text. HB. $39.99
Available 29 August
Australian convicts were possibly the
world’s most heavily tattooed Englishspeaking people of the nineteenth
century. Each convict’s details, tattoos
included, were recorded when they
disembarked. Simon Barnard has
meticulously combed through those
records to explore various aspects of
tattooing, from symbolism to inking
methods, to their use as a means of
identification and defiance.
BLACK TEETH
MOMENTS IN TIME
Zane Lovitt
Jim Davidson
THE 15:17 TO PARIS
Text. PB. $29.99
Available now
NLA. PB. $44.99
Available now
Jason Ginaff works at home,
researching people on the internet –
job candidates doing bucket bongs on
Instagram, the prospective new head
of sales stripping for a hens’ night.
He’s been searching for something
on his own time, too – the phone
number of the man he believes to be
his father. Rudy Alamein is looking
for the same man – the difference
being, Rudy wants to kill him.
Old postcards have an immediacy
about them that is striking: they give
us a glimpse of another life, another
time. Among the 300 postcards in this
book, most from the late 1880s to the
1950s, there are postcards of just about
everything – war and peace, disasters
and celebrations, holidays and home
life, rural and city living, love for the
Old Country and pride in Australia.
Anthony Sadler, Alek
Skarlatos, Spencer Stone,
& Jeffrey E. Stern
Text. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
On 21 August 2015, an ISIS terrorist
boarded a train in Brussels bound
for Paris with an AK-47, a pistol, a
box cutter, and enough ammunition
to obliterate the 554 passengers on
the crowded train. But his attack was
foiled by three American friends.
This is their extraordinary story.
DARK MONEY
THE BARBER BOOK
THE SUMMER OF ’82
Jane Mayer
Phaidon
Dave O’Neil
Scribe. PB. $35
Available now
Phaidon. HB. $29.95
Available now
Nero. PB. Was $29.99
America is in an age of profound
economic inequality. Employee
protections have been decimated,
and state welfare is virtually nonexistent, while billionaires and big
businesses make astounding profits at
the expense of the environment and of
their workers. Investigative journalist
Jane Mayer exposes the network
of billionaires trying to buy the US
electoral system – and succeeding.
A fun guide to the most popular
men’s hairstyles of the 20th century,
including instructive line drawings to
achieve the ‘total look’. With a focus
on the personalities, cultures, fashions
and events that inspired each look, The
Barber Book also includes a directory
of the world’s finest barber shops.
Available now
TRILLION DOLLAR
BABY
Paul Cleary
Black Inc. PB. $27.99
Available 29 August
For most of its history, Norway
eked out a marginal existence from
fishing, forestry and shipping. But
since 1969, when the country found
one of the world’s biggest offshore
oilfields, Norway has taken a nonrenewable resource and turned it
into a financial asset that can last
for generations to come. This is the
story of how they did it.
WHERE ARE OUR
BOYS?
Martin Woods
NLA. PB. $49.99
Available now
In 1914, newspapers supplied daily
maps to explain the progress of the
Great War to the public at home. For
every campaign and battle, these
maps conveyed a semi-fictional war
story of Australian and Allied exploits
abroad. Martin Woods tells the story
of these maps – sometimes beautiful,
sometimes misleading – and how they
helped to convey the conflict and the
immense human costs of war.
THE CHASER’S
AUSTRALIA
The Chaser
Available now
The Chaser’s Australia is a
comprehensive guide to everything
that makes Australia one of the top
196 countries in the world today.
Featuring fewer verifiable facts than
Wikipedia, but still more accurate
than an Andrew Bolt column,
The Chaser’s Australia includes
everything you thought you wanted
to know about Australia, but didn’t.
PLANTING DREAMS
Richard Aitken
NewSouth. HB. $49.99
Planting Dreams celebrates the artists
and imaginations that have shaped
Australian gardens. Respected garden
historian Richard Aitken explores the
environmental and social influences
that have helped to produce our
unique gardening culture.
THE MUSIC THAT
MATON MADE
Andrew McUtchen, Jeff
Jenkins & Barry Divola
Scribe. HB. $75
Available now
From Bill May’s backyard workshop
on the outskirts of Melbourne to
the favoured instrument of Elvis
Presley and the Rolling Stones, the
Maton guitar is an inspiring success
story. Published to coincide with
Maton’s 70th anniversary, this is a
comprehensive tribute to a guitar
range loved around the world.
MEN AND THEIR SHEDS
Craig Wetjen
Echo. HB. $45
Available now
Intricate and illuminating, these
photographs showcase the private
relationship between a man and his
shed. Photographer Craig Wetjen
travelled thousands of kilometres
and discovered that as well as being
places for tinkering and repurposing,
some sheds hold treasures and are
museum pieces in their own right.
Biography
FINDING A WAY
Graeme Innes
UQP. PB. $29.95
Available now
Thomas Rid
Blind from birth, Graeme Innes was
blessed with a family who instilled
a belief in his own abilities and the
determination to persevere. After
a long and successful career – from
lawyer to company director to Human
Rights Commissioner – he shares
his story of challenges, failures, and
overcoming discrimination.
Scribe. PB. $35
Available now
THE GOOD COP
General Interest
RISE OF THE
MACHINES
As lives offline and online merge even
more, it is easy to forget how we got
here. Rise of the Machines reclaims
the spectacular story of cybernetics,
a control theory of man-and-machine
and one of the 20th century’s pivotal
ideas. Drawing on interviews with
hippies, anarchists, sleuths, and spies,
this is a revealing insight into our
anxious embrace of technology.
Justine Ford
Available now
Part biography, part true-crime, part
thriller, The Good Cop tells the story
of veteran homicide detective Ron
Iddles’ incredible life in crime. From
his working methods and instinct for
human behaviour to his determination
to make good out of bad, his quest for
a safe society is clear.
$26.99
Do you remember finishing your last
Year 12 exam, waiting for your results?
Forming a band, fighting skinheads,
making a bomb and getting arrested?
Or did all this only happen to Dave
O’Neil? That’s what this book is
about – 10 weeks stuck in limbo in the
summer of ’82, and a hilarious and
heartfelt journey of a boy becoming a
man in suburban Australia.
THE GIRL WITH THE
LOWER-BACK TATTOO
Amy Schumer
HarperCollins. HB. Was $29.99
$24.99
Available now
She’s provocative and original and
so is her memoir – Amy Schumer
can’t see a limit without pushing it.
Covering everything from losing her
virginity to abusive relationships,
from make-up to the non-negotiable
necessity of orgasms during sex, Amy
goes there.
EVATT
John Murphy
NewSouth. HB. Was $49.99
$44.99
Even decades after this death, HV
‘Bert’ Evatt remains a polarising
figure. Many in Labor still consider
him the man who ‘split the party’.
Looking at Evatt’s personal life
as well as his controversial and
eventually tragic public career, John
Murphy pieces together some of the
puzzles that have lead Evatt to be
considered erratic, even mad.
BRETT WHITELEY:
ART, LIFE AND THE
OTHER THING
Ashleigh Wilson
Text. HB. Was $49.99
$44.99
Available now
Arguably Australia’s most celebrated
artist, Brett Whiteley won the
Archibald, Wynne and Sulman
prizes in the same year – his prices
soared, as did his fame. Yet addiction
took its toll, and an inglorious end
approached. Handsomely illustrated,
this dazzling biography reveals for
the first time the full portrait of a
mercurial artist.
PABLO ESCOBAR:
MY FATHER
Juan Pablo Escobar
Ebury. PB. $35
Available 29 August
When infamous drug lord Pablo
Escobar died, his then teenage son
vowed revenge, but later denounced
his father’s violent legacy. My
Father is the intimate story of a man
who was celebrated by some as a
benevolent Robin Hood figure and by
others as the dangerous leader of the
most ruthless mafia organisation in
human history.
Food & Wine
ALIMENTARI
Keenly anticipated each year by
winemakers, collectors and wine
lovers, the Halliday Wine Companion
remains the industry benchmark for
Australian wine. In his inimitable
style, James Halliday shares detailed
tasting notes, vintage-specific ratings
and details, and information about
wineries and winemakers.
Available now
‘Alimentari’ means ‘good food and
camaraderie’ – and that is just what
is celebrated at this cult Melbourne
cafe. Like having your favourite café
at home, this book shares the secrets
of their best recipes: perfect for easy
weeknight dinners, entertaining with
friends, and lazy breakfasts.
$32.99
Available 30 August
Hetty McKinnon is back with a second
cookbook that is as sure to delight as
Community. These salad and dessert
recipes are inspired by many different
places around the world – from
Brooklyn to the Mediterranean, Asia,
Australia and more.
MILK. MADE.
Nick Haddow
Hardie Grant. HB. $55
Available now
Milk.Made. is a comprehensive tour
of the art of cheesemaking and eating.
Including interviews with cheesemakers
and over 60 comprehensive recipes,
Milk.Made. covers everything you need
to know about buying, storing, serving
and cooking with cheese.
MY YEAR
WITHOUT MEAT
Richard Cornish
MUP. PB. $29.99
Available now
When self-confessed meat addict
Richard Cornish decided to give up
eating meat for a year, he uncovered
some surprising truths about what
it means to eat meat today. My Year
Without Meat is a fascinating and
hilarious journey that will change the
way you see your food and prepare
your evening meal.
RECIPES FROM THE
WOODS
Jean-Francois Mallet
Phaidon. HB. $59.95
Respected French chef and writer
Jean-Francois Mallet shares 100
delicious recipes featuring game and
foraged ingredients. From sautéed
venison with port and chestnuts to
stuffed partridge with kale, these
beautifully illustrated dishes show
the pleasures of cooking game and
wild foods at home.
THE GREAT AUSTRALIAN
BEER GUIDE
James Smith
Hardie Grant. HB. $29.99
Available now
No matter how much you know about
beer or what you like to drink, the
2017 edition of The Great Australian
Beer Guide is sure to please your
palate. Join beer expert James Smith
in his never-ending quest to discover
Australia’s best breweries and beers.
Echo. PB. $32.95
Available now
$33.99
Plum. PB. Was $39.99
James Halliday
$33.99
Hardie Grant. HB. Was $39.99
Hetty McKinnon
CHAMPIONS ALL
Hardie Grant. PB. Was $39.99
Linda Malcolm & Paul Jones
NEIGHBOURHOOD
HALLIDAY WINE
COMPANION 2017
Matt Zurbo
Champions All is a warts-and-all look
into the inner workings of Australian
Rules football from the 1940s to now,
told through stories big and small.
Over 170 of footy’s greatest players and
coaches, cult heroes and characters
share their life stories and the stories of
their teams, teammates and times.
COMEBACK
James Button
MUP. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
Travel
SHANNON
BENNETT’S
LONDON
Shannon Bennett
Hardie Grant. HB. $49.99
Available now
Acclaimed chef and restaurateur
Shannon Bennett and travel writer
Scott Murray compare their
experiences of London from boutique
hotels to fine-dining restaurants
and hip eateries. The result is an
entertaining guidebook to the city.
THE SHEPHERD’S LIFE
James Rebanks
Penguin. PB. $24.99
Available now
The first son of a shepherd, who was
the first son of a shepherd himself,
James Rebanks and his family have
lived and worked in and around
the Lake District for generations.
In evocative and lucid prose, James
takes us through a shepherd’s year,
offering a unique account of rural
life and a fundamental and intimate
connection with the land.
GHOST EMPIRE
Richard Fidler
ABC. HB. Was $39.99
$34.99
Available now
In 2014, Richard Fidler and his son,
Joe, made a journey to Istanbul. Fired
by Richard’s passion for the rich
history of the dazzling Byzantine
Empire, we are swept into some of the
most extraordinary tales in history.
Ghost Empire is a beautifully written
ode to a lost civilisation, and a father–
son adventure far from home.
Sport & Recreation
HOLDEN
Will Hagon & Toby Hagon
Macmillan. HB. $59.99
Available 30 August
When Holden announced it would
stop building cars in Australia, a fourwheeled heartbeat stopped. Holden
was Australia’s car, and there was a
connection to the brand, its cars and its
place in shaping our culture. Lavishly
illustrated with never-before-seen
photos, artwork, and sketches from the
Holden archive, this book follows the
rise and fall of a nation’s car.
As a boy, James Button fell in love
with the Geelong Football Club. But
as the years wore on and the defeats
mounted, it became clear his team
would never win a flag. Comeback
tells the story of his glorious mistake
and Geelong’s resurgence, and reveals
why so many of us are gripped by an
unreasonable passion for the game.
THE PETER THOMSON
FIVE
Tony Walker, Peter Thomson
MUP. PB. $45
Available now
Peter Thomson won five golf Open
Championships – an extraordinary
feat. On the 50th anniversary of his last
Open Championship, Thomson talks
about his life and golf in this beautifully
illustrated memoir which includes
photos from his own scrapbook and
maps of the greens he played on.
BOOMER
Brent Harvey
Available now
They told Brent Harvey he was too
small to make the big time – yet
in 2016, the pocket rocket known
affectionately as ‘Boomer’ broke the
all-time games record. Over 21 seasons
with North Melbourne, Boomer has
seen it all – this autobiography not
only captures a one-club man and AFL
legend but also takes us deep inside one
of the oldest footy clubs in Australia.
FIFTEEN YOUNG MEN
Paul Kennedy
Heinemann. PB. $34.99
Available 29 August
On a cold, cruelly blustery night in 1892,
a maritime tragedy meant that fifteen
young men of the Mornington Football
Club would never make it home. Paul
Kennedy reveals the stories behind
the tragedy and the trauma of families
and friends, but also the irrepressible
optimism, love and resilience that would
come to define a budding nation.
BOMBER
Mark Thompson, Martin Blake
Michael Joseph. HB. $45
Available now
Mark Thompson has had more than
his fair share of challenges and dramas
in his career. After 34 years as a player
and coach, Thompson has taken the
opportunity to reflect on the game that
shaped him and to reveal the personal
cost of his involvement at the top level.
His legacy is some of the greatest footy
to be played in the modern era.
New Nonfiction
Book of the Month
GRANT & I
Robert Forster
Viking. PB. Was $35
$29.99
Available 24 August
As Robert Forster tells it near the end of his affecting, up-tempo
memoir, the decision to write Grant & I was not his. The
morning after his death by heart attack in 2006, aged 48, the voice of
Grant McLennan – co-founder, with Forster, of the beloved Australian
rock band The Go-Betweens – rung out in his bandmate’s head, telling him: ‘Put to paper
everything that happened to us, write our adventures down’.
A lyricist par excellence, known for peppering his songs with the fittings of his life, it’s
only to be expected that Forster should apply a twist of poetic license to this momentous
event; think of it as a final act of self-mythology from a band who put it on almost-equal
footing with the crafting of their ingenious, infectious pop and rock and roll songs.
‘We get Forster as drolly eloquent observer to his own life,
McLennan the unquiet heart of it all.’
Considering the high concentration of red-letter episodes in Forster’s story, he is to be
admired for the way he cuts through much of the lore surrounding himself and the group;
nowhere to be found is the po-mo legerdemain of his hero Bob Dylan’s slippery Chronicles.
Instead, we get Forster as drolly eloquent observer to his own life, McLennan the unquiet
heart of it all. Even when life sees them pulled in different directions – both artistically and
geographically – the man he first met at 17 in an undergraduate literary studies classroom
is never far from centre frame.
The current vogue for all things of 1980s vintage makes Forster’s long-gestating
memoir well-timed. Key episodes detail Forster’s time of impoverished squat living in
’80s London with then-girlfriend Lindy Morrison, drummer in the band’s classic lineup, as part of the same exodus of Australian post-punk bands that saw The Moodists,
The Triffids and The Birthday Party all vying to crack the lucrative UK and European
markets. The move would briefly position The Go-Betweens as label-mates to a young
band on the ascendant named The Smiths, a group whose meteoric success stands in
stark contrast to The Go-Betweens’ career of near misses and thwarted ambitions,
frustrations attended by withering financial implications.
It’s startling to read of this now justly revered group hopping embarrassingly from label
to label through no apparent fault of their own. Of course, due credit caught up with the
The Go-Betweens, slowly accreting both internationally and at home. As Forster outlines
amid a fond recollection of the day he pitched the band’s name to McLennan, he attended
the opening of Go Between Bridge in their native Brisbane in 2010.
As a survey of a sui generis career, as a glimpse into the formation and working methods
of a superlative songwriter, and as an ultimately poignant chronicle of a friendship, Grant &
I weaves a memorable story with wit, art and heart. Not unlike a Go-Betweens song.
Gerard Elson is from Readings St Kilda
Politics
TRILLION DOLLAR BABY
Paul Cleary
Norway’s discovery
and development of
huge oil reserves in the
North Sea has led to the
creation of the largest
sovereign wealth fund in
the world. In contrast,
Australia’s resource boom
has been met with the growth of national
debt. While Australia’s growth in debt has
been the more familiar story among resourcerich developed countries, in Trillion Dollar
Baby, Cleary seeks to elucidate how Norway
managed to avoid the resource curse.
Quickly realising that it would have only
one chance to gain from this non-renewable
bonanza, Norway swung into action with
a firm taxation basis and direct investment
into all areas of exploration, extraction, and
processing of petroleum. An unshakeable
public and governmental consensus that the
resources of Norway must be managed to the
benefit of the nation as a whole underpinned
Norwegian resource policy from the first
moments of oil exploration. Paul Cleary
energetically lays out the policy decisions and
the subsequent fiscal management decisions
that enabled Norway to take control of its
multinationals and their accounting
practices. This book was written before the
release of the Panama papers, however Feil
mentions in the preface that these
documents exposed tax evasion and
avoidance by wealthy individuals and his
book is about the tax minimisation strategies
of multinational corporations which he
argues is a far greater problem.
One of the main tactics used by
corporations is called ‘transfer pricing’, a
mechanism that allows parent companies
(who have little responsibility to pay tax
anywhere as they are ‘multinational’) to
overcharge their subsidiaries (who do have
an obligation to pay tax in the country in
which they’re operating) for goods and
services in order to minimise their profits
on paper and therefore reduce their tax bill.
Feil calls this the ‘global multinational crisis’
(GMC) and he asserts it is having far more
destructive consequences than the global
financial crisis.
This is such an important topic but
one that can be difficult for the lay reader
to engage with. I would have liked more
anecdotes, Feil’s writing comes alive when
he turns to personal anecdote and I wanted
more of these. I would have also liked
more devil’s advocate arguments, Feil puts
everything down to greed and I think many
would argue that it’s more complicated
than that. Having said that, the Australian
focus of this book is a great help for relating
to some of the more difficult economic
concepts, and Feil also explores our trading
history and lays out some solutions for
the future. Ultimately Feil concludes that
corporate tax is a social justice issue and
‘transfer pricing has become the global
monster that threatens the social fabric of
the entire world’. Scary stuff, but writing a
book that shines a light on this hidden world
is certainly a step in the right direction.
Kara Nicholson is from Readings Carlton
THE 15:17 TO PARIS
Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos,
Spencer Stone, & Jeffrey E. Stern
Text. PB. $32.99
Available 29 August
resources boom and turn from a nation in
debt to most of Europe to one of Europe’s
creditors within a generation.
An unexpected pleasure of Trillion
Dollar Baby is the diversion into the world of
deep sea diving. A thrilling story of human
adventure in the treacherous North Sea,
Cleary evokes the frontier adventure of
individual divers working at the edge of
existing technology and human endurance.
This poignant chapter on the human
cost of oil exploration and development
unexpectedly brought me to tears.
It is in finding this balance of human story
and clearly articulated economic and fiscal
description that Cleary succeeds in creating
the compelling tale of how Norway beat the
oil giants and won a lasting fortune.
On 21 August 2015, an ISIS
terrorist boarded a train in
Brussels bound for Paris
with an AK-47, a pistol, a
box cutter, and enough
ammunition to obliterate
the 554 passengers on the
crowded train. But his
attack was foiled three American friends –
Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos and Spencer
Stone. The 15:17 to Paris is the story of what
compelled three lifelong friends to run
towards danger instead of from it – towards
humanity, not away from terror.
Marie Matteson is from Readings Carlton
FIFTEEN YOUNG MEN:
AUSTRALIA’S UNTOLD
FOOTBALL TRAGEDY
THE GREAT
MULTINATIONAL TAX
RORT: HOW WE’RE ALL
BEING ROBBED
Martin Feil
Scribe. PB. $32.99
Available 29 August
Having spent decades
working for the
Australian Taxation Office,
the Customs department
and in private accounting
firms, Martin Feil has a
true insider’s insight into
the murky world of
Australian Studies
Kennedy reveals the stories behind the
tragedy, capturing the trauma of families
and friends suffering almost unbearable
loss, but also the irrepressible optimism,
love and resilience that would come to
define a budding nation.
ATOMIC THUNDER: THE
MARALINGA STORY
Elizabeth Tynan
NewSouth. PB. $34.99
In 1950, prime minister
Robert Menzies blithely
agreed to British atomic
tests that that wreaked
havoc on Indigenous
communities and turned
the land into a radioactive
wasteland – and left the
public completely in the dark. This book is
a comprehensive account of the whole saga,
from the time that the explosive potential
of splitting uranium atoms was discovered,
to the uncovering of the extensive secrecy
regime many years after the British had
departed, leaving an unholy mess behind.
QUARTERLY ESSAY 63,
ENEMY WITHIN:
AMERICAN POLITICS IN
THE TIME OF TRUMP
Don Watson
Don Watson takes a
memorable journey into the
heart of the United
States – and the strangest
election campaign that
country has seen. Watson
reflects on the rise of
Donald Trump and finds a deeply fearful
and divided culture. He explores alternate
futures – from Trump-style fascism to
Sanders-style civic renewal – and suggests a
Clinton presidency might see a new
American blend of progressivism and
militarism. Enemy Within is an eloquent,
barbed look at the state of the union and the
American malaise.
THE DEATH OF HOLDEN
Royce Kurmelovs
Hachette. PB. $32.99
Available 30 August
When Holden announced
the closure of its Adelaide
factory, it struck at the
very heart of Australian
identity. How could a car
that was so beloved – and
so popular – be so
unprofitable to make? The
story of Holden’s collapse is about patriotic
revheads and suburban drivers; it’s about
sustaining industry in Australia; it’s about
communities of workers and what happens
when the work dries up. It’s about what
happens when an icon falls to its knees in
front of a whole nation.
Paul Kennedy
1787
Heinemann. PB. $34.99
Available 29 August
Nick Brodie
On a cold, cruelly blustery
night in 1892, a maritime
tragedy meant that fifteen
young men of the
Mornington Football Club
would never make it
home. The catastrophe
was one of Australia’s
worst – yet somehow, for more than a
century, this calamitous event slipped
from Australia’s consciousness. Paul
15
Hardie Grant. PB. $29.99
1787 traces just how
‘discovered’ the southern
continent was before
British colonisation – not
only by the Indigenous
Australians who had
lived and prospered for
thousands of years, but
also the sailors, traders, fishermen and
many others who had visited our shores.
16
By charting the encounters between the
Portuguese, Dutch, Malay, French, and
others with Australia and its original
people, 1787 shows Australia as a vast and
active land participating in a shared
global history.
talking about.
WHAT A TIME TO BE
ALIVE
Clive James
Mark Di Stefano
MUP. PB. $27.99
This is the ugly and
un-sanitised diary behind
the curtain of the 2016
double dissolution
election campaign – a poll
fought between two wildly
ambitious men who want
to win their first election,
whatever it takes. Documenting the daily
ride of an historic election campaign and
taking you into the bizarre world of staged
photo ops, booze-drenched regrets and
dirty direct messages, Buzzfeed’s Mark Di
Stefano reveals how the two campaigns
manufacture, massage and manipulate their
parties, policies and principles.
Cultural Studies
KNOWN AND STRANGE
THINGS
Teju Cole
Faber. PB. $29.99
The latest book from
Teju Cole is a
collection of essays, put out
over a number of years,
from various magazines
and loosely arranged into
three categories: reading,
seeing and travel. While it
would be easy to find the essays disjointed
no matter how they’ve been curated, there’s
an incredible amount of insight that builds
and builds, and while they do move from
cultural criticism to travelogue to memoir,
Cole’s essays are something much more
interesting when they land in-between.
Starting off with a meditation on
James Baldwin, Cole moves on to a range
of subjects, such as the collected poems
of Derek Walcott, a visit to grave of WG
Sebald, the music of Bach and Beyoncé,
an interview with fellow writer Alexander
Hemon, a meeting with VS Naipaul and
a small consideration of the work of
Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe.
For those familiar with Cole’s work
this kind of erraticism is not a surprise.
His fiction is filled with these kinds of
diversions and meditations, and while the
range of subjects is definitely interesting,
what’s much more illuminating, and to be
honest more substantial in this book, is the
opportunity to see the unfolding pattern of
Cole’s thoughts.
Talk of Derek Walcott’s use of metaphor
as a ‘fine surprise’ is later invoked in a book
review where metaphor is ‘a ferry for the
uncanny, a deployment of images so exact the
ordinary becomes strange and the strange
becomes familiar.’ A review of Julius Caesar
contains a story about Abraham Lincoln
predicting his own death in a dream.
When pushed on his own process,
Cole says that he finds the distinction
between non-fiction and fiction ‘odd’ and
that ‘painters know that everything is a
combination of what’s observed, what’s
imagined, what’s overheard and what’s
been done before.’ In Known and Strange
things his gives us a glimmer of what he’s
Chris Somerville is from Readings Carlton
PLAY ALL:
A BINGEWATCHER’S
NOTEBOOK
Yale. HB. $35.95
Available 15 August
Since serving as television
columnist for the London
Observer from 1972 to 1982,
Clive James has witnessed a
radical change in content,
format, and programming,
and in the very manner in
which TV is watched. Here
he examines this unique cultural revolution,
providing a brilliant, eminently entertaining
analysis of a television landscape profoundly
altered by the advent of Netflix, Amazon, and
other platforms, that have helped to usher in
a golden age of unabashed binge-watching.
History
HOMO DEUS: A BRIEF
HISTORY OF TOMORROW
Noah Yuval Harari
Harvill Secker. PB. $35
Humans are the only species
in Earth’s long history that
has single-handedly changed
the entire planet, and we no
longer expect any higher
being to shape our destinies
for us. In this vivid,
challenging new book, Yuval Noah Harari
examines the implications of our newly
acquired divine capabilities, from our
desperate pursuit of happiness to our dogged
quest for immortality. He explores how
Homo sapiens conquered the world, our
current predicament and our possible futures.
THE BOOK
Keith Houston
WW Norton. HB. $42.95
Available now
In an invitingly tactile history
of this 2,000 year-old
medium, Keith Houston
follows the development of
writing, printing, the art of
illustrations, and binding to
show how we have moved
from cuneiform tablets and papyrus scrolls to
the hardcovers and paperbacks of today. Sure
to delight book lovers of all stripes with its
lush, full-colour illustrations, The Book gives
us the momentous and surprising history
behind humanity’s most important – and
universal – information technology.
provides such access, elucidating a world
within the forest, whose social complexity,
responsiveness and skill surpasses even the
most famously enchanted woods gifted to
us in fiction.
With a reverence acquired throughout
decades of forestry experience,
Wohlleben describes how trees keenly
work toward the greater good of the
forest, understanding the value that each
member plays in maintaining an optimal
environment for a pleasant and prosperous
life. From sharing food and labour, to
alerting their kinfolk to potential danger,
The Hidden Life of Trees delivers clear,
substantiated examples of ways trees not
only adapt but teach, learn and help each
other out. Wohlleben takes pains to make
clear that the care trees demonstrate
toward one another goes beyond a survival
mechanism. He ventures that trees even
seem to prioritise specific relationships –
some of which are less than functional.
Wohlleben’s forest portrait extends
beyond his barky muse, explicating both
the cooperative and parasitic interspecific
relationships trees share with other forest
inhabitants. From the fungi that help trees
communicate (the ‘wood wide web’), to
the rogue herds of ranging mammals that
can devastate a tree nursery, wiping out an
entire generation in an event possibly akin
to a natural disaster for a tree community,
the book provides insight into the intricacy
of a forest ecosystem, and a reminder that
nature, in her relentless pursuit of balance,
can be a cruel mistress to sentiment.
By unveiling the potential magnitude
of sentience experienced by trees, the
book drags up ‘the hard problem’ –
consciousness. Does personal mawkishness
lead Wohlleben to anthropomorphise the
forest, or do the life-experiences of other
systems and communities often closely
mirror our own? The rise of post-humanism
coupled with a desperate ecological need
for us to reprioritise the symbioses of
the natural world may find an audience
increasingly willing to consider that our
own consciousness is not so exclusive. As
an added bonus for the despondent reader,
seeing your own society reflected in the
communities of trees can throw a staggering
curveball at your existential crisis. Because
let’s be honest: who doesn’t see the life of
a tree as marvellous and worthy, simply
because it is?
Leanne Hermosilla is from Readings Carlton
Sport & Recreation
PLAY ON! THE HIDDEN
HISTORY OF WOMEN’S
AUSTRALIAN RULES
FOOTBALL
Brunette Lenkic & Rob Hess
Natural History
THE HIDDEN
LIFE OF TREES
Peter Wohlleben
My favourite
childhood books
were The Faraway Tree series by Enid
Blyton. It was wondrous to imagine the
lives of trees being full of feelings, thoughts
and relationships. I would trawl my
neighbourhood in search of my own
adventure trees, certain of the mysterious
potentialities waiting in their woody
boughs if only I could access them. In The
Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben
Echo. PB. $32.95
Women have been playing
Australian Rules football
for over a century – but
their stories have largely
been sidelined, ignored or
forgotten. Play On! is the
first comprehensive
history of women’s
Australian Rules football and showcases the
athleticism, hard work and resilience that
has kept the women’s game alive. Discover
how competitive women’s football began
with shop assistants at Perth department
stores, how female footballers supported
soldiers in both world wars, and how a few
passionate women helped create leagues
across Australia.
COMEBACK: THE FALL
AND RISE OF GEELONG
James Button
MUP. PB. $29.99
Available 29 August
As a boy, James Button fell in
love with the Geelong
Football Club. But as the years
wore on and the defeats
mounted, it became clear: his
team would never win a flag.
Comeback tells the story of his
glorious mistake. James interviews hundreds
of people to tell the story of how one footy
club changed its culture, on and off the field,
and why so many of us are gripped by an
unreasonable passion for the nation’s game.
Philosophy
ETHICS IN THE REAL
WORLD
Peter Singer
Text. PB. $32.99
In this book of brief essays, Peter
Singer applies his controversial
ways of thinking to issues like
climate change, sports doping,
the sale of kidneys, and the ethics
of high-priced art. The collection
also includes some more personal reflections,
and reiterates his case against the idea that all
human life is sacred, applying his arguments to
some recent cases in the news. Provocative and
original, these essays will challenge, and
possibly change your beliefs about a wide range
of real-world ethical questions.
Science
THE MATHEMATICS BOOK:
ANYONE CAN DO IT!
Helen Prochazka
Zenolith. HB. $59.95
Available now
Finally, a mathematics book
that has been written
especially for people who
have not found mathematics
easy. The Mathematics Book is
a unique and beautiful book
that blends a how-to guide with a lavishly
illustrated coffee table book created
specifically for those who have not found
learning mathematics easy or appealing. It
guides through fractions, percentages,
algebra, geometry, metric units and statistics
helping the student (young or old) develop
confidence and master problems with more
than 2000 practice problems.
Business
WHY THE FUTURE IS
WORKLESS
Tim Dunlop
NewSouth. PB. $29.99
The landscape of work is
changing right in front of us,
from Uber and Airbnb to
advanced artificial intelligence.
The question isn’t whether
robots will take our jobs, but
what we will do when they do? In this timely
and provocative book, Tim Dunlop examines
the social and political ramifications of work
throughout history and into the future and
argues that by embracing the changes ahead
we might find ourselves better off.
Art & Design
Food & Gardening
with Margaret Snowdon
with Chris Gordon
FINE JEWELRY COUTURE
NEIGHBOURHOOD
Oliver Dupon
Hetty McKinnon
T&H. HB. $80
Plum. PB. Was $39.99
Design expert Oliver
Dupon’s latest book has
the most appealing cover
design of the year,
featuring a pink
cockatoo and matching
brooch. The book is a
luxe survey of
exquisitely crafted precious jewellery by
more than thirty-five master craftspeople
from around the globe. Included is a brief
biography highlighting their working
practices and key sources of inspiration,
hundreds of illustrations of glorious, wearable
art, a glossary and designers’ websites.
Available 30 August
BAD DADS: ART
INSPIRED BY THE FILMS
OF WES ANDERSON
Spoke Gallery
Abrams. HB. Available now. $45
This book collects the
very best artwork from
the first five years of ‘Bad
Dads’, an annual
exhibition curated by
Spoke Gallery in San
Francisco of art inspired
by the films of Wes Anderson. From
paintings to sculptures to limited edition
screen prints, the artworks vary in style but
share the imagery and beloved characters
from the mind of one of Hollywood’s most
noteworthy and imaginative filmmakers.
A HISTORY OF PICTURES
David Hockney & Martin Gayford
T&H. HB. Available 1 September. $60
Informed and energised by
a lifetime of painting,
drawing and making
images with cameras,
Hockney explores how and
why pictures have been
made across millennia.
What makes marks on a flat surface
interesting? How do you show movement in a
still picture, and how, conversely, do films and
television connect with old masters? What do
pictures show – truth or lies? Building on
Hockney’s groundbreaking book Secret
Knowledge, the authors argue that film,
photography, painting and drawing are
deeply interconnected.
THE HINTERLAND:
CABINS, LOVE SHACKS
AND OTHER HIDE-OUTS
Gestalten
Die Gestalten Verlag. HB. $95
The cabin has become our
hideaway, a place where
we can recharge and
escape from the restraints
of society and the stress of
the everyday. Located on
mountain tops, nestled in
villages or lush forests, The Hinterland
showcases homey hide-outs and charming
cabins from shelter to domicile. Thoughtfully
crafted and built, the stories behind these
structures are just as curious as the walls
themselves. Through portraits of the
inhabitants and their inventive homes, The
Hinterland explores architecture and design
approaches to creating works that refresh
and revitalise amidst the beauty of nature.
$32.99
We fell in love with
Hetty McKinnon’s first
cookbook, Community.
I’m not sure if it was
her luscious salads, or
the thought of her
delivering said salads
to customers on her
bike. Perhaps it was simply her attitude of
being part of the neighbourhood; of
listening to her customers and using local
ingredients in innovative ways. She called
her Sydney based business Arthur Street
Kitchen. Things have changed since those
colourful salads first hit our consciousness
and McKinnon has moved her tribe to
New York. To commemorate she has
created another stunning, inspiring
cookbook called Neighbourhood. This book
is a true celebration of the diversity of
New York. McKinnon says that each
‘neighbourhood’ in the Big Apple is based
around a food region, be it Italian, Jewish,
Spanish, Chinese or Mexican. Each
chapter is divided into a ‘region’ and has
salads galore, tips for using leftovers and is
packed with photos that make each day
look like a glorious tribute to living well.
The last chapter is of course filled with
sweets that seem so wholesome and so
delicious that each dish could also be
served at breakfast. Did I mention that this
is a vegetarian cook book? You won’t even
notice, trust me.
FERMENT, PICKLE, DRY
Simon Poffley
& Gaba Smolinska-Poffley
Frances Lincoln. HB. $39.99
You do not have to live
in a Green belt for this
book to resonate with
you. Ferment, Pickle,
Dry teaches you the
time-honoured
methods of preserving
your food through the
dark art of fermenting, pickling and drying.
There is also a practical guide to growing
your own bacteria, vinegar, and yoghurts. If
you dry herbs in your kitchen and grow
your own tomatoes, this beautifully
photographed guide to making the most of
your produce is essential reading.
THE BEE FRIENDLY
GARDEN
Doug Purdie
Murdoch. PB. $39.99
Bees are our most
important pollinators and
they are in decline. Bees
love an urban
environment where there
is a short flight path from
one plant to the next.
However, if you spray poison pesticides
over flowers, yourself and edible plants, you
are chasing these good, hardworking bees
away. We need those bees to keep working
to keep ourselves healthy. This book is
loaded with tips to keep your garden
happily filled with bees: think lavender,
basil and rosemary, think roses and daisies,
and let their blooms be a gift.
W
aratah or wattle?
Chrysanthemum or rose?
Planting Dreams celebrates the artistry
and imagination that have shaped
Australian gardens. Respected garden
historian Richard Aitken explores the
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that have helped produce our unique
gardening culture – from Indigenous
land management and the earliest
European garden at Farm Cove, to the potted plants
and besser block screens of mid-twentieth century
modernist design and beyond. Planting Dreams
showcases Australian garden making in all its
richness and diversity through a stunning mix of
paintings, sketches, photographs, and prints.
w w w. n e w s o u t h p u b l i s h i n g . c o m
17
18
THE ITALIAN
VEGETABLE
COOKBOOK
WHAT BIRD IS
THAT?
AUSTRALIAN
HISTORY LIVE!
BEST KITCHEN
BASICS
Neville Cayley
Ian Warden
Mark Best
Michele Scicolone
PB. Was $29.95
Now $13.95
PB. Was $39.99
Now $12.95
HB. Was $59.99
Now $29.99
HB. Was $49.95
Now $15.95
In this book, Italian cooking authority
Michele Scicolone shares recipes that she
gathered during years of travelling in Italy.
Some, like green fettuccine with spring
vegetable ragu, and easter swiss chard and
cheese pie, came from talented home cooks.
Others, such as stuffed cremini mushrooms,
were passed down through her family. Still
others have been adapted from popular
restaurants and the cookbooks she collects
– all are incredibly flavourful and simple.
ROSE ELLIOT’S
30-MINUTE
VEGETARIAN
Rose Elliot
HB. Was $39.95
Now $15.95
Perfect for the busy home cook, Rose Elliot’s
30-Minute Vegetarian offers delicious quick
meals from Britain’s reigning queen of
vegetarian cuisine. Featuring 140 vegetarian
recipes that take an hour or less to prepare,
this beautifully photographed book presents
classic meals along with an array of updated
and modern dishes. Elliot’s helpful tips,
time-tested advice, and failsafe recipes
have delighted fans for 40 years, and this
collection will, too.
A LUCKY CHILD
Thomas Buergenthal
PB. Was $24.95
Now $10
Now a judge in the
International Court of
Justice, Thomas Buergenthal
arrived at Auschwitz at age 10 after surviving
two ghettos and a labour camp. Separated
from his parents, Buergenthal used his wits
and some remarkable strokes of luck to
survive on his own. Now dedicated to helping
those subjected to tyranny throughout the
world, Buergenthal’s story highlights the
stark details of unimaginable hardship.
SIMPLE
FRENCH FOOD
Richard Olney
HB. Was $34.99
Now $16.95
Richard Olney was
considered a culinary
genius for his ability to elevate cooking
to a practical art, focusing on preparing
simple foods well. Olney’s 175 recipes are so
straightforward that cooks will be inspired
to go right into the kitchen: herb omelettes,
fish with zucchini, lamb shanks with garlic,
and many more. Olney’s emphasis on
simplicity and improvisation in cooking will
resonate with today’s cooks and food lovers.
THE GREAT
DIVIDE
Peter Watson
PB. Was $29.95
Now $15.95
In this fascinating and
erudite history, Peter Watson ponders
questions central to the human story.
Why did Asia and Europe develop far
earlier than the Americas? What were the
factors that accelerated – or impeded –
development? Exploring the development
of humankind between the Old World and
the New – from 15,000 BC to AD 1500 –
The Great Divide offers a groundbreaking
new understanding of human history.
Neville Cayley’s What Bird
is That? is Australia’s most popular birdidentification guide. This comprehensive
and authoritative field guide, now in its
second edition, has been fully revised
and updated by prominent ornithologist
Terence Lindsey, who has added more than
30 new species and included additional
information on identification and breeding.
Each bird is illustrated in full colour.
Australian History Live! is a compelling
look at Australian history using first person
accounts as reported in the press and
in journals and diaries. Included in the
collection are gripping accounts of occasions
both great and minor – from the bush to the
Eureka Stockade to Flemington Racecourse.
This book is a collection of virtual timetravellings back though Australia’s past.
CITY ON FIRE
SILVER
BUTTONS
Garth Risk Hallberg
Bob Graham
PB. Was $32.99
Now $12.95
HB. Was $27.99
Now $12.95
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, all
connected to one another,
and to the life still clinging
to that body in the park.
At 9.59 on Thursday morning, Jodie draws
a duck. Just as she is about to add
one final silver button to the
duck’s boots, her little
brother takes his first
step. At this exact same
moment, a man buys
bread, a soldier leaves
home, a baby is born.
From glorious urban
skyscapes to exquisite
small details, Bob
conveys a worldview full
of humanity, compassion
and affection.
Bargain
Table
SUNDAY’S
GARDEN
Lesley Harding &
Kendrah Morgan
PB. Was $34.99
Now $12.95
When Sunday and John Reed purchased
Heide, it was a neglected former dairy
farm. At the end of their lives, it was unique
among Melbourne’s parklands, the result
of fifty years of vision, dedication and
sheer hard work. Sunday’s Garden explores
the growing of the Reeds’ personal Eden,
fully restoring the Heide garden into the
literature surrounding this inspiring site,
its creators and the makers of its myths.
AUSTRALIA
1901–2001
Award-winning chef
and restaurateur Mark Best beats the
revolutionary drum in the domestic kitchen,
breaking down 100 original recipes built
around 30 accessible ingredients – from
eggplant to pumpkin to chocolate and eggs.
Step-by-step guides include the art of puff
pastry, the perfect consomme, and mastering
sourdough at home. Best also debunks
myths and kitchen lore surrounding
ingredients and cooking (such as searing
meat to keep the juices in: don’t do it!).
HEAD CASE
Cole Cohen
PB. Was $29.99
Now $10
For as long as 26-year-old Cole
Cohen could remember, she’d
struggled with a series of learning disabilities
that made it nearly impossible to judge
time and space. The summer before leaving
for university, Cohen received a shocking
diagnosis – a large hole in her brain was
responsible for her life-long struggles. Head
Case is ultimately a story of triumph, as this
remarkable young woman navigates her way
through the unique world she lives in.
THE CHINESE
ART BOOK
KYLIE /
FASHION
Keith Pratt, Katie
Hill, Jeffrey Moser
Kylie Minogue,
William Baker
HB. Was $69.95
Now $29.95
HB. Was $49.99
Now $13.95
From the very beginning, fashion has
been key to Kylie Minogue’s persona
and performances: her status as style
icon is unassailable. This dazzling book
celebrates her numerous and groundbreaking collaborations with the world’s
great fashion designers. Packed with
iconic images as well as the very best rare
and unseen archival photography, video
outtakes, fashion sketches, designs and
ephemera, it will be a collectors’ item for
fans and fashionistas the world over.
The Chinese Art Book is a beautifully
presented, authoritative and unprecedented
overview of Chinese art, from the
Neolithic period to the new generation of
contemporary artists enlivening the art
world. Every form of Chinese visual art is
featured, including painting, calligraphy,
sculpture, jades, bronzes, photography,
video, installation and performance art.
Concise descriptive essays place each work
in context, and cross-references lead the
reader on a fascinating journey through
Chinese art history.
ART DECO
AIRPORTS
Andrew Tink
LE CORBUSIER
LE GRAND
Terry Moyle
PB. Was $34.99
Now $12
Jean-Louis Cohen &
Tim Benton
HB. Was $45
Now $19.95
Andrew Tink’s superb
book tells the story of
Australia in the 20th century – a century
marked by war and the depression, balanced
by extraordinary achievements in sport,
science and the arts. Tink brings the decades
to life, writing with empathy, humour and
insight on the people at the centre of it
all – from prime ministers, to singers and
shopkeepers – to create a narrative that is as
entertaining as it is illuminating.
A DAY IN
MELBOURNE
Brady Michaels &
Dale Campisi
HB. Was $20 Now $10
A Day in Melbourne is a colouring book for
everyone from curious kids to culturallyminded travellers. Featuring approximately
20 line drawings of iconic Melbourne
scenes – from the city skyline to street life,
busy laneways and beautiful buildings – this
picture book provides both a stylish keepsake
of the city and the perfect art project to keep
colourists engaged while reading vignettes
that reveal a small story for each scene.
HB. Was $75
Now $39.95
Drawing on an array of archival material,
including sketches, photographs, and
correspondences, Le Corbusier Le Grand depicts not only the vast and varied output
of one of the giants of twentieth-century
architecture and design, but also the major
events, people, and forces that shaped the life
of an artist who continues to fascinate those
in and outside the architectural world. SUPERNORMAL
Andrew McConnell
HB. Was $60 Now $29.99
In Supernormal – the
cookbook based on the
eponymous Melbourne
restaurant – Andrew McConnell, owner and
head chef, takes home cooks into the kitchen
of his hugely popular pan-Asian eatery.
Across eight chapters, he shares something
of the restaurant’s magic, offering a behindthe-scenes take on the restaurant and its
characters, as well as scenes from Tokyo, a
long-time source of inspiration for McConnell
and his Flinders Lane eating house.
With the 100th anniversary of commercial
aviation approaching in 2019, Art Deco
Airports looks at the first airports of the
world, specifically airports of the 1920s and
early 1930s, heavily influenced by Art Deco
architecture – buildings which underwent
rapid change as air travel exploded in
popularity. The combination of these exotic
and iconic buildings, fashion and associated
aircrafts has never been captured in art
before and will fascinate travel lovers and
history buffs.
HAPPINESS BY
DESIGN
Paul Dolan
HB. Was $39.99 Now $16.99
Professor Paul Dolan conducts
original research into the measurement of
happiness and its causes and consequences,
including the effects of our behaviour. Here
he creates a new outlook on the pursuit of
happiness – it’s not just how you feel, it’s how
you act. Enough has been written on how to
think happy – Happiness by Design is about
how to behave happy, and how to incorporate
this new research into our everyday lives.
19
New Young Adult Fiction
A heartbreakingly honest and utterly convincing story of
a Dominican girl, the white woman who introduces her to
riding, and the horse who changes everything for her.
The Mare is a profound, important novel about how love
and family are shaped by race, class and privilege. It is a
devastating portrait of the unbridgeable gaps between
people, and the way we long for fairytale endings even
when we know they don’t exist.
YA Book of the Month
WORDS IN DEEP BLUE
Cath Crowley
PanMac. PB. Available 30 August. $18.99
A second-hand bookstore, a love story, and a letter-library: all of these
things are mentioned on the blurb of Cath Crowley’s new book,
Words In Deep Blue. Really, why wouldn’t you want to read something that
has these as offerings? I know that I was super keen and my word, it doesn’t
disappoint. In fact, I’m calling it my Young Adult book of the year.
‘I didn’t think Cath Crowley could surpass her last brilliant novel, Graffiti
Moon, but she has done it. Words In Deep Blue is a ripper.’
Rachel Sweetie and Henry Jones have been friends for years and for all those years Rachel
Sweetie has been in love with Henry Jones. Rachel decides to tell Henry her feelings via letter,
the night before she leaves to move to a seaside town. But Henry never acknowledges the letter
and as the years tick by Rachel ignores his correspondence. That is until her brother drowns
in the sea, her mother falls apart and Rachel fails year 12 – meaning no university, which had
always been her dream. Realising that life isn’t going to get better by the ocean, Rachel moves
back to her old town and starts a friendship all over again with Henry.
I didn’t think Cath Crowley could surpass her last brilliant novel, Graffiti Moon, but she
has done it. Words In Deep Blue is a ripper. The letter library is such a wonderful idea I hope
it exists somewhere so I can go to visit it (I’m not going to explain what it is, read the book
and find out) and the relationship between Rachel and Henry is beautiful, realistic and fun.
Cath Crowley is a master at writing well-developed, likeable characters that have you hoping
that everything will turn out all right for them and this is yet another perfect example of her
brilliance as a writer. I highly recommend this for males and females who enjoy writers such
as Fiona Wood and Lili Wilkinson. Go OzYA!
Katherine Dretzke is a friend of Readings
THE FENCE
MEREDITH
JAFFE
‘A keenly observed satire on the
boundaries we set. Good fences make
good neighbours. Or do they?’
WENDY HARMER
The battle lines are drawn.
A white picket fence drama that
explores changing attitudes towards
community, feminism, working mums,
stay-at-home dads and parenting. For
fans of Christos Tsiolkas’ The Slap.
SELECTION
DAY
ARAVIND
ADIGA
‘Adiga is a real writer – that is to say,
someone who forges an original voice
and vision.’
SUNDAY TIMES
A moving and beautifully observed new
novel, of adolescence, ambition and
self-realisation, of fathers and sons, set
in contemporary Bombay, by the Man
Booker Prize-winning author of
The White Tiger.
www.panmacmillan.com.au
NEIGHBOURHOOD
HETTY
MCKINNON
From the author of Community
This second delicious collection
of salads (and sweets!) from Hetty
McKinnon is sure to delight friends
and family. These show-stopping yet
simple recipes take their inspiration
from Brooklyn to the greater Americas,
the Mediterranean, Asia, France and
Australia, all delivered in Hetty’s
signature style.
EAT CLEAN
LUKE HINES
From the clean living guru, 100 fresh,
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Whether you’re looking for on-thego breakfasts, guilt-free sweets or
wholefood twists on your favourite
takeaway meals, it’s never been easier
to Eat Clean.
THE CALL
MY FIRST LESSON
Peadar O’Guillin
Alice Pung (ed.)
David Fickling. PB. Available 1 September. $19.99
Black Inc. PB. Available 25 August. $14.99
It is incredibly
exciting to get your
hands on a book that you
know within the first few
pages is going to be talked
about by the global YA
community and beyond.
The Call is just such a book.
Nessa is at a training college in an alternate
contemporary Ireland in preparation for
‘The Call’ – an event that will happen to
every single teenager with no exception.
At some unknown moment after puberty,
they will disappear, the clothes left behind
the only indicator they are gone. They
will reappear in an alternate world, the
Grey Lands, where they will be hunted for
sport by the fairy folk for 24 hours. This
time represents only three minutes in the
real world. When they return, most are
dead, but some are still living and horribly
transformed in both body and mind.
Nessa is at more of a disadvantage than
most kids – she had polio and cannot run
without a limp. But she is determined to
survive and won’t allow anyone to pity
her. She also strives to have no emotions
or attachments whatsoever, although she
clearly fancies Anto. What happens to Nessa,
Anto, their friends and enemies before and
during The Call is absolutely compelling
reading that is already bringing worthy
comparisons to The Hunger Games.
I loved the life or death narrative, the
flawed but incredibly determined Nessa, and
the play on classic Irish mythology, where
humans had signed a treaty with the fairy folk
hundreds of years ago which had banished
the fairies to another land, at a terrible cost.
I was so immersed in this battle between
fairy and human that everything else needed
to be put off until I had finished reading. I
strongly recommend you get your hands
on The Call as soon as you possibly can, put
your phone on silent and hole up in a quiet
room for a few hours to devour it. You will
not be disappointed!
Teenagers are often
written at by adults,
but My First Lesson is a rare
opportunity for twenty-five
teenagers to tell their own
stories in their own
inimitable ways. Keen young
writers were invited to
respond creatively to the themes in Alice
Pung’s award-winning YA novel Laurinda,
and the results are authentic and varied.
Anthology editor Pung explains in her
excellent foreword that her policy was to
select stories that are not only polished and
literary, but also those that are raw, genuine,
direct, and inclusive of marginalised writers.
This makes for extremely lively and
moving reading. The selected writers
have been bold and experimental in their
pieces, working with symbolism, fairytale,
confessional memoir, epistolary stories,
realism, comedy, science fiction and much
more. Some have explored difficult first days
at new schools, others have described racist
jibes, parental neglect, domestic violence
and jarring migrations.
There are common threads running
through My First Lesson, beyond the
desire to experiment: a willingness to
philosophise and tackle big issues and ideas,
an equal willingness to call out injustice
and inequality, and an earnest and heartfelt
depiction of emotion. Several of the writers
speak of knowing that they’re young, but
already feeling ‘old’, something I remember
from my own cynical and weary teen years.
Reading My First Lesson was a great
reminder for me of what it felt like being
a teenager, but also what it was like being
a teen writer searching for language to
express the many thoughts I had at that
age. Teen readers will recognise themselves
in the anthology; older readers will gain a
greater understanding of what it’s like to be
a modern adolescent. Proceeds of My First
Lesson will go to the literacy organisation
Room to Read.
Angela Crocombe is from Readings Carlton
Leanne Hall is from Readings Hawthorn
20
Book of the Month
ADA TWIST, SCIENTIST
Andrea Beaty & David Roberts (illus.)
Abrams. HB. Available 6 September. $24.99
What a delightful book! The charming author–illustrator team of Iggy Peck, Architect
and Rosie Revere, Engineer, brings us another brilliant youngster who happens to be in
the same schoolroom: Ava Twist. By not speaking until she is three, Ava echoes that famous
scientific genius, Einstein, but once she does speak she makes up for lost time by asking
question after question. She confounds both her parents and her hapless schoolteacher, Miss
Greer, but when a terrible stench finds her investigating smells, Ada discovers the importance
of the scientific method and soon gets her family involved in finding solutions.
The illustrations by David Roberts, like the other two books in the series, are absolutely
stunning and filled with mid-century modern design. Ada’s befuddled older brother and
harried cat are fun to search for in many spreads, and the chaos Ada creates around her is
a joy to the wandering eye. The rhyming text is just perfect and shows a strong-willed
child following her passion for a scientific career. This is another wonderful musthave addition to the series on the young geniuses in Miss Greer’s classroom and a
beautiful stand-alone book that will be enjoyed by adults as much as children.
Angela Crocombe is from Readings Carlton
Picture Books
A CHILD OF BOOKS
Oliver Jeffers & Sam Winston
Walker. HB. Available 1 September. Was $27.99
$24.99
Oliver Jeffers and Sam
Winston mellifluously and
joyously invite us to celebrate The
Book. The outcome of their
collaboration is a gorgeous and
sensitive exploration of how magical
books are and how we should be
inspiring children to not only
encounter the classics but also to find their own narratives.
A young girl entices a young boy to sail ‘across a sea of
words’ with her because she is a ‘child of books and comes
from a world of stories’. As they roam in and around gems
of children’s literature and the eloquence of the written
word merges with the dreamlike mastery of the images,
the reader is borne away into a world of enchantment.
This is a book for book-lovers and for anyone who wants to
encourage a child to love books. So be inspired, bewitched
and seduced by one of the masters of picture books in
Jeffers and a newcomer to children’s illustration, Winston,
who is surely on his way to a stellar career.
Alexa Dretzke is from Readings Hawthorn
MR CHICKEN ARRIVA A ROMA
Leigh Hobbs
A&U. HB. Available 1 September. $24.99
Stupendo, Mr Chicken (or
should that be ‘Señor Pollo’?)
you big, bold and magnificent chook,
we have been waiting for you to take
us on another trip. Rome, here we
come! Arriving incognito, he
positions his grande personage on
his guide’s Vespa and we wonder if
Italy is ready for the intimidating Mr Chicken. Whether it’s
bathing in the Trevi Fountain, imagining himself as an
emperor or experiencing the joys of Italian cuisine, it is all
magnifico. Grazie, Mr Chicken, for showing us how to
experience a Roman holiday. For ages 3 and up. AD
Junior Fiction
DOG MAN
Dav Pilkey
Scholastic. HB. Available 1 September. $15.99
Dog Man is a new and typically
unhinged comic by Dav Pilkey, the
author responsible for the infamous
Captain Underpants series. This is not for
boring people. It is for people who really
love laughing and want to laugh heaps and
heaps. Dog Man chronicles the bizzare
adventures of a bungling canine law
New
Kids’
Books
enforcement officer. It’s a full-colour production packed
with action, hilarious hijinks, toilet humour and plenty of
Pilkey’s much-loved Flip-O-Ramas. There are even
instructions on how to draw all your new favourite
characters and I especially loved the part where an army of
walking talking hot-dogs try to take over the town. A truly
riotous read for ages 7 and up.
innocent man is unfairly persecuted.
Lauren Wolk’s debut novel is a profound work that
demonstrates a heightened social conscience. But it
is Annabelle’s character that gives this work moral
backbone and her defiance against community prejudice
demonstrates a humanity and wisdom beyond her years.
Natalie Platten is from Readings Malvern
THE TWINS OF TINTARFELL
James O’Loghlin
Macmillan. PB. Available 30 August. $16.99
Dani and Bart are orphan twins who
serve the bedridden King Corolius
the Fifth and his son, the spoiled Prince
Edward. When Edward’s father buys him
a magnificent but huge and angry-looking
horse, Prince Edward must prove himself
by riding it. The prince, who barely feels
comfortable enough on his current pony
(‘It’s not a pony!’ he would say
indignantly. ‘It’s a small horse!’) bullies Bart into riding
Midnight for him. When Bart, disguised as the prince on
the horse, is kidnapped, Dani makes it her mission – with
the reluctant help of the sullen prince – to escape the castle
grounds and find her brother.
As with all of James O’Loghlin’s books, The Twins of
Tintarfell features a sarcastic, talking animal and as one
of the characters can talk to animals we get more than
the usual single dog or bear and it’s great! It’s also full of
little asides to the reader and cartoonishly stupid bad guys,
which make it a really fun book to read aloud. I love all of
James O’Loghlin’s books, they’re perfect for young children
who are ready to read or to be read full chapter books but
who might find Roald Dahl and the like a little too scary. I
had high expectations for The Twins of Tintarfell and I have
not been let down!
Dani Solomon is from Readings Carlton
ELIZABETH AND ZENOBIA
Jessica Miller
Text. PB. Available 29 August. $16.99
Elizabeth and her father are moving to
his childhood home after her mother
leaves them for a more ‘adventure-filled’ life.
Zenobia, Elizabeth’s not-an-imaginary best
friend, obviously goes with them. The two
girls are practically polar opposites and while
Elizabeth is desperately creeped out by the
macabre house and the dead garden, Zenobia is entranced by
it and convinced that she can sense spirits. This is such a
great adventure. It’s funny and interesting but also thrillingly
frightening at times. The house is quirky and scary, and
although this is a perfect standalone, I’m hoping that an
adventure series might be on the cards.
Isobel Moore is from Readings St Kilda
Kim Gruschow is from Readings Hawthorn
Middle Fiction
WOLF HOLLOW
Lauren Wolk
Corgi. PB. Available now. $19.99
Growing up on a Pennsylvanian farm
in 1940s America is a wholesome life
for eleven-year-old Annabelle. Elder sister
to two younger brothers, Annabelle does
not begrudge having to keep a watchful,
protective eye over them. Nor does she
mind the many chores she is responsible for
on the family farm. Annabelle’s family have
managed the farm for generations and are quiet, hardworking folk . But when outsider Betty Glengarry moves into
the area no one could anticipate the havoc and destruction
one girl will bring to this community.
In predatory and wolf-like ways Betty seeks out
vulnerable targets and finds her perfect victim in Toby, a
reclusive WWI veteran living rough on the land. Annabelle’s
family treat Toby with kindness and are curious to know the
backstory that broke the man they have come to respect. But
the local community are less trusting and regard Toby with
wary tolerance. When a local girl is brutally attacked and
another goes missing, the community’s fear and prejudice
is easily manipulated. As in The Crucible, hysteria and
false testimony play a destructive part in this story and an
Classic of the Month
JOURNEY TO THE RIVER SEA
Eva Ibbotson
Macmillan. PB. Available 13 September. $14.99
I loved Journey to the River Sea when I
read it on publication in 2001 and I
have recommended it ever since, so I re-read
it recently with some trepidation – would it
be as wonderful as I remembered? Well, no.
I love it even more now!
This wonderful story, set around 1910, is about
Maia, a young orphan living with relatives on the Amazon in
Brazil. It’s a young girl’s epic voyage of discovery, and the story
of her search for friendship, family and a place to call home.
Maia is an admirable and lovable protagonist, brave and
determined in spite of the many obstacles she encounters,
and incredibly curious about the exotic world of the Amazon.
She’s surrounded by intriguing people, some humorous and
mysterious, others villainous and downright mean! But what
makes this marvellous adventure so enduring is masterful
storytelling – a multilayered, moving yet humorous story,
fascinating characters and a highly gratifying ending.
Highly recommended for ages 9 and up and a
wonderful read aloud for families; parents will enjoy it as
much as their children.
Athina Clarke is from Readings Malvern
New Film & TV
with Lou Fulco
DVD of the Month
BARRACUDA
$34.95
A few years ago, I was given a proof copy of what was then
Christos Tsiolkas’s latest novel, Barracuda. I found myself so
engrossed in the story that I couldn’t put it down and I ended up
spending a whole day in front of the fire reading! When I discovered
the ABC had turned the novel into a miniseries, I was naturally super
keen to watch it and I must say I wasn’t disappointed.
Brought to us by the same creative team that adapted Tsiolkas’s award-winning
novel The Slap, Barracuda is the story of Dan Kelly (Elias Anton). Kelly comes from a
working class background, but wins a sporting scholarship to a prestigious private school.
Initially, he is taunted by his peers, but soon wins their respect (and earns the nickname
‘Barracuda’), by proving himself in the pool.
‘When I discovered the ABC had turned [Barracuda] into a miniseries,
I was naturally super keen to watch it and I must say I wasn’t
disappointed … The miniseries manages to capture the essence of
Tsiolkas’s novel and it certainly brings to life the suburban setting.’
Kelly dreams of winning gold at the 2000 Olympics, encouraged by his coach (Matt Nable)
and swimming team mates, especially his friend (and love interest), Taylor (Ben Kindon).
Kelly has all the arrogance of youth and fails to appreciate the sacrifices his family
make in order to support his dreams. Moving in the circles of his privileged friends, Kelly
starts to judge the working class life of his parents. It is only when his dreams turn sour
that Kelly learns some kind of humility.
While we don’t get the same insight into the main character in the screen adaptation
as we do in the written work, I do think the miniseries manages to capture the essence of
Tsiolkas’s novel and it certainly brings to life the suburban setting. It was great to see the
trams, the streets and the swimming pools I know so well on the TV screen. If you enjoy
gritty Australian drama, then I can highly recommend this DVD.
Sharon Peterson is the assistant manager at Readings Carlton
[Julie Walters] shines brightly.’ – Los
Angeles Times
TV
INDIAN
SUMMERS:
SEASON 2
$46.95
‘Downton Abbey meets
The Jewel in the Crown in another lush
and lovely artisanal soap, this one with
top notes of jasmine and waning British
colonialism… set in India 1932. Even amid
a constellation of strong performances,
TRAPPED:
SEASON 1
$39.95
‘It’s Agatha Christie
meets Nordic noir ...
claustrophobic, horrifically intense and set
in a landscape that humans cannot possibly
take on and win. The Icelandic thriller
that’s the unexpected TV hit of the year so
far.’ – The Guardian
NARCOS:
SEASON 1
can talk his way out of anything.’ – Sydney
Morning Herald
$49.95
Available now
‘Virtually every performance
is equal to the quality of the
script, but [Wagner] Moura is especially
compelling as he manipulates the seeming
incongruities of Escobar’s character to
heighten his aura of unpredictable menace.’
– San Francisco Chronicle
CLEVERMAN:
SEASON 1
$39.95
Available now
‘With its 80 per cent
Indigenous cast and a
premise drawn from Dreaming stories, the
story of a vilified superhuman race and
[an] Aboriginal anti-hero was a massively
overdue new chapter in the history of
Australian genre storytelling. Between the
charismatic leads and the deft interweaving
of ancient stories and a horribly familiar
contemporary political climate, it’s unlike
anything else on Australian TV.’ – Junkee
THE AFFAIR:
SEASON 2
$44.95
Available now
‘An ambitious psychological
drama about the damage
caused by an extra-marital relationship …
which tackles adult themes in a proudly
demanding way. Dominic West and Ruth
Wilson give pitch-perfect performances.’ –
The Telegraph (UK)
Documentary
WEINER
$24.95
‘Directors Josh Kriegman
and Elyse Steinberg have
delivered something much
richer than the profile of a compulsive
sleaze. They’ve put together an exemplary
study in self-delusion. [Anthony] Weiner is
afflicted with the misapprehension that he
21
WHERE TO
INVADE NEXT
$29.95
Available now
‘Where to Invade Next is
really a fairytale with a moral. As [Michael]
Moore visits European schools, workplaces,
hospitals and prisons, the movie builds into
a cri de coeur about America’s weakening
social contract.’ – The New York Times
Film
MY MOTHER
(MIA MADRE)
$29.95
‘The film is a warm
depiction of familial bonds
and the strength of relationships across
generations … There’s a rich vein of
expressive anxiety in [Margherita Buy’s]
performance; she’s forceful and vulnerable
in the same instant.’ – The Age
ONLY YESTERDAY
$34.95
‘Daisy Ridley and Dev Patel
contribute voice work to this
re-release of Studio Ghibli’s
1991 animation about an office worker lost
in childhood memories … This is an utterly
beguiling classic: delicate, charming and
tender, an animation that draws on the
‘family movie’ tradition of Japan’s classic
live-action cinema.’ – The Guardian
I SAW THE LIGHT
$34.95
Available now
‘Mark Abraham relates the
checkered life of [Hank]
Williams in … brief scenes,
images, and edits that relate years or months
of misery and triumph. Tom Hiddleston
puts in a performance as Williams that ranks
with that of Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny
Cash in Walk the Line.’ – The Boston Globe
22
SCHMILCO
New M us ic
Wilco
Album of the Month
Available 9 September.
$21.95
GOLDEN SINGS
THAT HAVE BEEN SUNG
Ryley Walker
Available now. $19.95
Ryley Walker’s Golden Sings That Have Been Sung is the
follow-up album to 2015’s Primrose Green, and his third
studio album, released at the age of 27, suggests the early
years of a prolific artist that you want to be on board with
from the start.
Walker’s youth belies his talent and intuition for a sound that could only be cultivated
in Chicago. He moves between rich folk ballads and a psychedelic affect that borders, at
times, on progressive or that may be the result of his mixing of the familiar with complex
jazz instrumentation. He walks, unsettled, between genres; a collage artist whose sound
pays many tributes, and yet rises to meet the Chicago rockers who informed his style.
Walker’s music is strong, certain, and wood-rich – and so the duelling cellos and his
strange lyrics, which reminded me of Arlo Guthrie, are welcome departures.
‘As a whole, the album has an expansive quality. Conjuring waves
breaking, it’s a careful, considered experiment.‘
As a whole, the album has an expansive quality. Conjuring waves breaking, it’s a careful,
considered experiment. The jewel is the opener, ‘The Half Wit in Me’, which you will listen
to the most not only because it is the first track, but also because it is the most innovative
combination of his bluesy-folk-psychedelic-late-sixties-meets-mid-nineties influences. Yet
my favourite might be ‘The Roundabout’, and whether that is because it has cloaked itself
so well as a track that it already feels a part of my musical identity, or because it feels like
an arrival, a proof of Walker’s musical hypothesis, after all of his tinkering and musing, it
doesn’t really matter, I love it.
It will be a great album to bring in the spring, and a good conversation piece for the
jazz-inclined who demand a nerdier folk, or for the soulful, romantic type – those who will
be grateful to pledge themselves to a handsome musician.
Mostly an acoustic
collection, Wilco’s tenth
studio album, Schmilco, bears neither the
vicious, fuzz-glam guitars nor dazzling,
baroque arrangements that Wilco fans
have come to expect. But in their place is
a spaciousness and chaos, an intentionally
loose affair which finds band leader Jeff
Tweedy and his band embracing a state of
alienation.
TAASHA COATES &
HER MELANCHOLY
SWEETHEARTS
Taasha Coates & Her
Melancholy Sweethearts
Available now.
$21.95
Written in early 2016, the
first solo album from The Audreys’ Taasha
Coates, Taasha Coates & Her Melancholy
Sweethearts, is a deeply personal offering
which showcases the songwriter’s
incredible vocals. Working with Shane
Nicholson, the album has cheeky songs,
sexy songs and sad songs, more personal
than her work with The Audreys.
MANGY LOVE
Cass McCombs
Available now.
$19.95
Jemima Bucknell is the online fulfilment manager
Pop
brings something new and special to Riebl’s
own performance.
MY WOMAN
SKELETON TREE
Angel Olsen
$21.95
Indie-folk star Angel
Olsen’s My Woman swaps
the crunchier, blown-out production of
her previous work for songs that place her
disarming, timeless voice is front-and-center.
Yet, the strange, raw power and slowly
unspooling incantations of her previous
efforts remain. An intuitively smart, warmly
communicative and fearlessly generous
record, My Woman speaks to everyone.
Nick Cave
$19.95
Nick Cave & the Bad
Seeds have returned with
their sixteenth studio album, Skeleton
Tree, the follow-up to 2013’s critically and
commercially acclaimed Push the Sky Away.
Released in accompaniment with feature
film One More Time with Feeling, the
project is stark, fragile and raw, and a true
testament to an artist trying to find his way
through the darkness.
WE MOVE
ENCORE
Barbra Streisand
James Vincent
McMorrow
$21.95
The greatest star to ever
come out of Broadway,
Streisand returns to her roots
with Encore: Movie Partners Sing Broadway.
The album features 10 new Streisand duets
of Broadway classics with some of the biggest
stars in Hollywood, including Alec Baldwin,
Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, Seth
MacFarlane, Melissa McCarthy, Chris Pine,
Daisy Ridley and a spectacular virtual duet
with Anthony Newley.
Dublin-born singer and
songwriter James Vincent McMorrow’s
remarkable journey continues with We
Move. Led by the single ‘Rising Water’, We
Move is remarkably assured collection,
informed by the idea that that as you grow
up, you lose things along the way, and that
it’s possible to keep what you want to keep,
and lose what you want to lose.
PAPER DOORS
LIVE AT THE
HOLLYWOOD BOWL
Felix Riebl
$19.95
Charismatic Melbourne
singer–songwriter (and
The Cat Empire frontman) Felix Riebl’s
second solo album, Paper Doors, is a
collection of ten elegant and inspiring
songs that make the rare quiet spaces and
simple still places add up to something
rare and special. Featuring three duets
with Katy Steele, Martha Wainwright and
Tinpan Orange’s Emily Lubitz, each track
Cass McCombs’ Mangy
Love sees the singersongwriter at his most blunt: tackling
sociopolitical issues through his uniquely
cracked lens of lyrical wit and singular
insight. The severity of his lyrics is
contrasted by the music, which ventures
into groovy realms of Philly soul, NorCal
psychedelia and New York paranoia punk,
articulating the spontaneity and joy of his
live show better than ever before.
ACOUSTIC RECORDINGS
1998–2016
Jack White
$26.95
Acoustic Recordings
1998–2016 collects 26
acoustic songs from throughout White’s
wide-ranging musical career, spanning
album tracks, B-sides, remixes, alternative
versions, and previously unreleased tracks.
The album includes songs made famous
by The White Stripes and features ‘City
Lights’ which was written for Get Behind
Me Satan but then forgotten until White
revisited the album in 2015. The track is the
first new White Stripes song since 2008.
MUSIC OF WEATHER
REPORT
Miroslav Vitous
The great Czech bassist
returns once more to the
music of Weather Report,
the group he co-founded with Joe Zawinul
and Wayne Shorter in 1970. Well-known
Report repertoire re-explored includes
‘Birdland’, ‘Seventh Arrow’, ‘Scarlet
Woman’, ‘Pinocchio’ and ‘Morning Lake’
alongside new blues tunes. Revisiting the
improvisational freedom of the early Weather
Report, Vitous abides by their old rallying call
‘everyone solos and no-one solos’.
NEARNESS
Josh Redman
& Brad Mehldau
$24.95
Longtime friends
saxophonist Joshua Redman and pianist
Brad Mehldau’s first duo album, Nearness,
showcases a selection of duets recorded
live during their recent European tour.
Among the most potent and influential
jazz instrumentalists of their generation,
what the pair refer to as ‘picking up where
they left off’ has resulted in world-class
improvising before rapt audiences.
HEATHEN SONGBOOK
Backsliders
Backsliders have been
playing, touring the festival
circuit and recording for 30
years. Their 14th album, Heathen Songbook
is a varied and eclectic mix of 21st century
original blues, as well as a number of versions
of songs by artists as diverse as blues legend
Robert Johnson, hillbilly banjoist Dock Boggs
and swamp-rock icon John Fogerty.
Soul & Funk
MISS SHARON JONES
SOUNDTRACK
Sharon Jones and the
Dap-Kings
The soundtrack to Barbara
Kopple’s film Miss Sharon
Jones!, which follows the Dap-Kings’ dynamic
frontwoman through her 2013 battle with
cancer and her triumphant return to the stage,
features the exclusive ‘I’m Still Here’ alongside
a selection of tracks ranging from her early
singles on Daptone, to tracks from the band’s
2014 release Give the People What They Want.
World
CRADLE OF HUMANITY
The Beatles
Mulatu Astatke &
Black Jesus
Experience
$24.95
Available now.
$19.95
Live At The Hollywood
Bowl captures the joyous
exuberance of the Fab Four’s sold-out
Los Angeles concerts in 1964 and 1965.
A companion to Ron Howard’s new
documentary Eight Days A Week – The
Touring Years, that charts the band’s early
career, the original three-track tapes of the
concerts have been expertly remixed and
mastered at Abbey Road Studios.
Jazz & Blues
Cradle of Humanity features Mulatu
Astatke, the father Of Ethiojazz, in
collaboration with Australian musical
collective Black Jesus Experience. The
product of seven years of performances
around the world, this album combines
traditional Ethiopian tonalities with deep
grooves and the freedom principle. Cradle
of Humanity is an expression of love, joy
and artistic dedication.
Kids
SNUGGLEPOT &
CUDDLEPIE: THE MUSICAL
Peter Combe
With words and music by
Peter Combe, this musical
based on May Gibbs’ famous
Australian children’s book was recorded
live in a 1993 concert with the Adelaide
Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Chorus and
the Adelaide Girls’ Choir. In addition to Peter
Combe himself, the cast features some very
special guests including Ruth Cracknell, Eric
Bogle and Jeannie Lewis.
New C la ss i c a l M u s i c
Classical Album of the Month
FAURE/JC BACH/MOZART/BRITTEN/
GOUNOD CHAMBER MUSIC
Inventi Ensemble
IE001. $21.95
On Sunday 6 August, 1933, Benjamin Britten, along with his
family and friends, gathered to listen to a broadcast of his
Phantasy Quartet for oboe and strings. He was none too impressed, noting in his diary that
the string players ‘aren’t really first-class musicians’. Listening to Melbourne’s Inventi
Ensemble’s recording of the work, I can’t help but think Britten would be both impressed
and moved. Led by oboist Ben Opie, the ensemble gives a vibrant reading of Britten’s
deliciously youthful score. And this seems to be the theme for the whole disc: fresh and
lively arrangements of well-known works such as Fauré’s Pavane and Gounod’s Ave Maria,
alongside the lesser-known pieces such as JC Bach’s Quintet in D Major.
‘ ... it’s brilliant, full of classical grace, and elegant
without being stuffy.’
The final movement of the Bach, described in the liner notes as a ‘raucous, fun folk
dance’, is a highlight of the album. Here, the cellist wrests with his strings to produce an
extremely rustic timbre that would not be out of place in a drinking song. More than that,
each musician brings individual finesse to create a finely uniform recording complete with
light, shade, and many colours in between.
The Inventi Ensemble describes Mozart’s Flute Quartet in D as a delight, and I would
go further to say that it incorporates all that is loved about Mozart’s music: it’s brilliant,
full of classical grace, and elegant without being stuffy. Flautist Melissa Doecke is the star
here: she plays with a superbly clear tone and excellent intonation. Her agile runs and trills
skip effortlessly above the accompanying ensemble – the members of whom occasionally
fumble over their own notes. But that is merely a minor quibble about what is an otherwise
enjoyable performance.
I really enjoyed Inventi Ensemble’s debut recording, particularly for its inventive
approach to classical music.
Alexandra Mathew is from Readings Carlton
FABULOUS CLASSICAL
BOX-SET SALE
THE CLASSICAL CELLO
COLLECTION
Yo-Yo Ma
Sony. 88875130742. 15CDs.
Was $79.95
$49.95
This Box-set was released
in honour of American Cellist Yo-Yo Ma’s
60th birthday on 7th October 2015. The
set features great works from the classical
cello repertoire with compositions by 23
classical composers and features the great
cello concertos by Boccherini, Dvorák,
Elgar, Walton, Saint-Saens and more.
JOHN WILLIAMS:
THE GUITARIST
The Complete Columbia
Album Collection
Sony. 88843092942.
Was $249.95
$169.95
Goldberg Variations and his revised 1981
interpretation. This collection is testament
to Gould’s unrivalled genius and pianistic
skill, and is must-have for fans.
111 THE PIANO:
LEGENDARY
RECORDINGS
Various
DG. 4794351. Was $181.95
$92.95
‘An amazing treasure
trove … Deutsche
Grammophon has always attracted the
finest pianists and many of them are
represented with samples of their finest
recordings … I can’t cite a single disc in this
box that doesn’t include some of the most
important piano recordings from the past
65 years.’ – Marius Dawn, pianist, London
WAGNER:
THE GREAT OPERAS
Various
Decca. 4780279. 33CDs.
Was $119.95
$76.95
significant in three aspects: repertoire,
performance and sound … This set is a
well-considered collection of close to 100
works of symphonic music, concertos,
chamber music, instrumental solos and
vocal music of interest to music lovers
and audiophiles alike.’ – Bruce Surtees,
Wholenote Magazine
THE CLASSIC ALBUMS
Kiri Te Kanawa
Decca. 4786419. 6CDs.
Was $63.95
$29.95
‘Whilst she would record
for other labels (crossover for EMI for
example), this set represents the finest
work in a long career and showcases
those composers with which the Dame is
most closely identified and celebrated …
If you’re seeking a set to celebrate this
gorgeous voiced soprano, there is no finer
place to start than here’. – Brett AllenBayes, Limelight
SCRIABIN:
COMPLETE WORKS
Various
Decca. 4788168. 18 CDs.
Was $99.95
$54.95
‘An amazing collection of
his complete works … The piano works,
which make up the first nine discs, are
impressive, and Lisitsa especially is an
especially fine pianist who captures
the special Scriabin feeling in her
performances … Scriabin is a totally
fascinating Russian composer and this is
probably the definitive collection of his
works. Highly recommended!’ – John
Sunier, Audiophile Audition
BEETHOVEN
MASTERWORKS
Various
DG. 4791042. 51CDs.
Was $149.95
$47.95
Beethoven Masterworks
covers the complete range of Beethoven’s
works on 51 CDs. The collection ranges
from symphonies to folksong settings,
and in between features performances
by classical music’s greatest performers
including Abbado, Gardiner, Kleiber,
Bernstein, Karajan, Argerich, Zimerman
and Pollini to name but a few. Highly
recommended.
WESTMINSTER
LEGACY BOX
Various
DG. 4792343. 40CDs.
Was $179.95
$92.95
The long wait is over for guitar-music
aficionados. This is the first-ever
complete collection of recordings by the
incomparable John Williams from the CBS/
Sony Classical label. This original jacket
collection comprises 57 original albums
made over four decades, including his
style-crossing collaborations and a DVD.
All of Wagner’s operas from
Der fliegende Hollander (1841) to his final
masterpiece Parsifal (1882) in performances
from the theatre that was created
specifically for the production of Wagner’s
operas, the Bayreuth Festival Theatre. This
33CD set is a must for all Wagnerians.
Westminster Records was
an American classical music record label,
founded in 1949. Its trademark was Big Ben
and its slogan ‘natural balance’, referring
to its single microphone technique in
recording music. Its catalogue, recorded
between 1949 and 1970, is still of the utmost
significance, technically and artistically.
GLENN GOULD:
REMASTERED
THE ORIGINALS BOX:
LEGENDARY
RECORDINGS
TCHAIKOVSKY:
THE MASTERWORKS
The Complete Columbia
Album Collection
Sony 88875032222. 81CDs.
Was $359.95
$239.95
A comprehensive showcase of Gould’s
finest recordings, this set includes both
his groundbreaking 1955 version of Bach’s
Various
DG. 4793449. 50CDs.
Was $169.95
$94.95
‘An exceptional collection
of outstanding performances from the
second half of the 20th century that are
Various
DG. 4794646. 27CDs.
Was $104.95
$59.95
‘A very enticing 27-CD box
set. All the key works are here … it makes a
near-ideal introduction to the composer …
this set will give a huge amount of pleasure
23
and confirm Tchaikovsky’s place as one of
music’s melodists and craftsmen.’ – James
Jolly, Gramophone
THE COMPLETE DECCA
RECORDINGS
Renata Tebaldi
Decca. 4781535. 66CDs.
Was $189.95
$109.95
The Complete Decca
Recordings is a special edition package
issued to mark the 10th anniversary of
the passing of one of the most beloved
singers of all time – the incomparable
Renata Tebaldi. This set marks the first
ever comprehensive overview of Tebaldi’s
important recorded legacy.
JS BACH: GREAT
CHORAL MASTERPIECES
Peter Schreier
Decca. 4785564. 12CDs.
Was $86.95
$46.95
This superb collection
showcases Bach’s Passions and other great
choral works in performances with the
Staatskapelle Dresden under the masterly
direction of Peter Schreier. Schreier’s aim
in Bach interpretation is to bring new
lightness without following the full dictates
of authentic performance, and in this he
succeeds superbly.
SCHUMANN:
THE MASTERWORKS
Various
DG. 4778816. 35 CDs.
Was $169.95
$76.95
Released to commemorate
the 200th anniversary of his birth,
this mammoth 35 disc box-set offers
a comprehensive picture of Robert
Schumann, covering all aspects of the great
Romantic’s output.
RICHARD STRAUSS: THE
COMPLETE ANALOGUE
RECORDINGS
Herbert Von Karajan
DG. 4792686. 11CDs plus 1
Bluray Audio.
Was $162.95
$76.95
To mark the 25th Anniversary of Karajan’s
death and the 150th anniversary of
Richard Strauss, DG combined the great
conductor and the great composer in an
LP-sized deluxe set that will set future
standards. The set includes Karajan’s
complete Strauss analogue recordings
(DG/Decca) and his first Strauss digital
recording (Eine Alpensinfonie).
MOZART: THE PIANO
SONATAS & PIANO
MUSIC FOR FOUR HANDS
Christoph Eschenbach
DG. 4793622. 8CDs.
Was $64.95
$34.95
The emotional truths
found in Mozart’s sonatas are expressed
with such subtlety that it takes a truly
studied hand to voice them effectively.
Eschenbach’s interpretations are based on
a career-long love of Mozart, a youthful
enthusiasm and a mature appreciation.
His performances are not the indulgent
interpretations of a proud soloist; they are
homages by a true devotee.
T HIS FATHER ’S D AY,
M AKE IT A B O O K HE’L L R E TURN TO
THE HIGHS, LOWS,
CONTROVERSIES,
FAMOUS VICTORIES
AND NARROW
LOSSES, GRAND
FINALS AND
HARD-FOUGHT
GAMES ON
FORGOTTEN,
MUDDY OVALS,
TOLD BY
THE GAME’S
GREATEST
Athleticism, hard
work and resilience
has kept the women’s
game alive since
the 1850s. With
a national league
imminent, the
women’s game has
never been stronger.
THE FIRST
COMPREHENSIVE
HISTORY OF
WOMEN’S
AUSTRALIAN
RULES FOOTBALL
A PLACE WHERE
THE PRESSURE OF TIME IS ERASED
WHERE THE CONVERSATION IS EASY
AND THE STORIES SHARED
ARE LIFE-AFFIRMING
www.echopublishing.com.au

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