Kids
Our favourite new Christmas picture books
The festive season is well and truly here, so get in the Christmas spirit with one of these beautiful new picture books. From heartwarming stories of love in all forms, to light-hearted adventures with unruly animals, these books are a delightful way to share the festive spirit with little ones and get them excited about the magic of Christmas.
Bluey: Christmas Holiday Treasury by Bluey
Celebrate Christmas and the holidays with the Heeler family! Join Bluey and Bingo in six…
Our October 2024 children's and young adult bestsellers
Coming in at number one this month is the lastest adventure with everyone's favourite Demigod, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Wrath of the Triple Goddess.
Also making the list is the winner of The 2024 Readings Children's Prize, a beautiful picture book about baking with grandma and the finale of the Bad Guys.
Finally, all three of the Wild Robot books have made the list after the success of the movie adaptation.
The November kids review
Discover the new kids books our booksellers are excited about this month! From picture books to nonfiction, early chapter books to middle grade novels.
Kids Nonfiction
Australia’s Baby Animals by Jess Racklyeft
Reviewed by Kim Gruschow, co-manager of Readings St Kilda
Melbourne illustrator Jess Racklyeft has created a beautiful book that showcases an array of Australia’s animals which is not only magnificent but also extraordinarily cute. The spreads in this book display the various habitats of Australia in gorgeous…
Books to help explain sustainability to kids
In this day and age, it's hard to teach kids about the natural world without coming up against the tricky topic of climate change and the importance of sustainability. Fortunately, these incredible picture books are designed to make explaining the state of our world a little easier, and to help inspire little ones to do what they can to care for the planet. 🌱
Now for the Good News by Planet Ark
Showcasing fantastically positive environmental advances, initiatives and inventions…
ARA Historical Novel Prize 2024 winners announced
The winners of the 2024 ARA Historical Novel Prize have been announced! The annual prize recognise the outstanding literary talents of Australian novelists who explore stories of the past, to illuminate our present and future.
The prize is one of the richest literary prizes in Australia, with a prize pool of $150,000 split between the winners and shortlisted authors in the two categories. Read more about the winning books and the judges' comments below.
Adult category winner
Edenglassie by Melissa…
Q&A with Tylissa Elisara winner of The Readings Children's Prize 2024
We are proud and excited to announce author Tylissa Elisara as this year's winner of The Readings Children's Prize for Wurrtoo, a unique middle-grade novel about friendship, adventure and facing your fears, illustrated by Dylan Finney.
We've asked Tylissa about the inspiration for her work, her pathway to publication, the creative process, her favourite writing advice, and more.
What was the initial inspiration for this story?
I was inspired to write this story after witnessing an act of overt…
Spooky Halloween books for young readers
For anyone with a creepy kid in their lives, or for anyone young and ghoulish at heart, here are my favourite titles, from the slightly spooky to the hair-raisingly horrifying, for you to pick up this Halloween season.
Packed with menacing middle grades, ghoulish graphic novels, and knee-nobbling non-fiction, you’ll be able to find the perfect read for any Halloween loving child. These titles are recommended for ages eight to eight-hundred and eighty!
A Girl Called Corpse by Reese Carter
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The Readings Prize 2024 winners
Nearly 100 submissions, 18 shortlisted books and now we celebrate four winners!
It’s a fantastic achievement just being shortlisted for this prize for emerging Australian talent, and we have one final shout-out to our highly recommended shortlisted books and authors at the end of this post.
Our winners represent a diverse snapshot of quality writing in Australia today. A contemporary Muddleheaded Wombat, an action-packed tale of the repercussions of one bad decision, a heartfelt journey in search of identity and…
Spooky picture books for Halloween
Get in the Halloween spirit with these spooky reads!🦇
With stories about magic, bravery and friendship, as well as things that go bump in the night, these books are captivating reads for little ones with an interest in the eerie.
Grandma Murphy's Pussycat by Maura Finn, illustrated by Lucinda Gifford
At midnight's strike as all lay sleeping, comes a figure, crawling, creeping . . .
It's Grandma Murphy's pussycat!
Where is this mysterious black cat going in the deep, dark…
Our September 2024 children's and young adult bestsellers
In first place on our bestseller list for the second month in a row is the first book in Andy Griffiths brand new adventure series!
Other titles making the list include a heartwarming story of nature and technology colliding, the movie tie-in for Craig Silvey's Runt, Percy Jackson's latest adventure, and a story of the unsung heroes of war.
The Land of Lost Things by Andy Griffiths & Bill Hope (illus.)
The Wild Robot by Peter Brown
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