Our latest blog posts
Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week
The Road to Winter by Mark Smith
Run, Pip, Run by J.C. Jones
The Boy with Two Lives by Abbas Kazerooni
The World’s Worst Children by David Walliams and Tony Ross
The BFG by (film tie-in edition) by Roald Dahl (including other editions)
The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon
The Bad Guys: Episode 1 by Aaron Blabey
Tom Gates: Super Good Skills (Almost) (Book 10) by Liz Pichon
Charlie and the War Against the Grannies by Alan Brough
What we're reading: Justin Cronin, Pearl S. Buck and Andy Weir
Each week we bring you a sample of the books we’re reading, the films we’re watching, the television shows we’re hooked on or the music we’re loving.
Leanne Hall is reading Three Daughters of Madame Liang by Pearl S. Buck
It’s been on my mind for a while that I should read Pearl S. Buck – a Nobel Prize-winning American author who wrote prolifically about China – so imagine how pleased I was to discover an out-of-print hardcover edition of…
Kibble and Dobbie Literary Awards Winners 2016
Congratulations to the winners of the Kibble and Dobbie Literary Awards for 2016: Lucy Treloar and Fiona Wright!
The Kibble and Dobbie Literary Awards are open to Australian women writers who have published a book of fiction or non-fiction classifiable as ‘life writing’.
Lucy Treloar has received the $5,000 Dobbie Literary Award (for a first-time author) for her debut novel, Salt Creek.
Set in 1855, Stanton Finch and his family have fallen on hard times and relocated to Salt…
Best new crime reads in July
CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH
Black Teeth by Zane Lovitt
If you are a local who decides to rush out and buy Black Teeth just after you read this review, you’ll find yourself with the ultimate literary luxury: reading a book in July in Melbourne set in a Melbourne July not so long ago. When you turn the pages you’ll be wearing gloves, just like Jason Ginaff does a lot of the time, since he’s the kind of guy who…
Closing down sale at Readings Bargains pop-up shop
The Readings Bargains pop-up shop is entering its final weeks, and as a last hurrah they’re hosting a final big sale!
Drop by the pop-up shop at 315 Lygon Street, right next door to our Carlton shop, before mid-August and you’ll be able to pick up any book from in-store for just $7. Though, only while stocks last.
Titles currently on offer include prize-winning fiction such as Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles, bestselling crime novels such as Joël…
Picture books for tough feelings
Depression, anxiety, grief – they’re feelings we hope the children in our lives will never have to experience, but the reality is that we can’t always shield them from these things. A thoughtful book can help kids make sense of dark times by framing their emotions in a way they can process, and can go some way in preventing children from feeling overwhelmed.
Here is a list of great picture books to help kids with tough feelings.
Cults and communes in fiction
The Girls by Emma Cline
It’s the summer of 1969 and Evie Boyd is desperate to be noticed. When she sees a group of girls in the park, her imagination is immediately captured by them – by their careless dress, their dangerous aura of abandon. As Evie becomes obsessed with Suzanne, a mesmerising older girl, she is drawn into the circle of a soon-to-be infamous cult and the man who is its charismatic leader. (This novel is inspired by the…
Our children's and YA top ten bestsellers of the week
Run, Pip, Run by J.C. Jones
The World’s Worst Children by David Walliams and Tony Ross
Charlie and the War Against the Grannies by Alan Brough
The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon
The Bad Guys: Episode 1 by Aaron Blabey
The Treehouse Fun Book by Andy Griffiths, Jill Griffiths and Terry Denton
Tom Gates: Super Good Skills (Almost) (Book 10) by Liz Pichon
The Bad Guys Episode 3: The Furball Strikes Back by Aaron Blabey
Circle by Jeannie Baker
The…
Our top ten bestsellers of the week
The Dry by Jane Harper
Vinegar Girl: The Taming of the Shrew Retold by Anne Tyler
The Girls by Emma Cline
The Course of Love by Alain de Botton
Ruins by Rajith Savanadasa
Dark Emu: Black Seeds: Agriculture or Accident? by Bruce Pascoe
The Last Painting of Sara De Vos by Dominic Smith
Music and Freedom by Zoë Morrison
A Hero in France by Alan Furst
Breaking Cover by Stella Rimington
Our bestselling books of last week include (deep breath)…
MIFF picks for book lovers
This year’s Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) program features some great films inspired by literature. Here are some of our favourite picks for book lovers in 2016.
We’ve also compiled a list of family-friendly films, shared our staff picks, and prepared a quick ‘at-a-glance’ guide for the time-poor.
Directed by Park Chan-wook | Based on Sarah Water’s Fingersmith
Sooki, a beautiful young pickpocket, has been dispatched by a master conman known as The Count to become…
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