There are few things as startling as encountering an unearthly glow in the wild. Confession one: this book was a chore to read. Confession two: for the past week I have been trying to read three books that were a chore to read. Why, I hear you ask? Confession three: I made myself finish one, … Continue reading Phosphorescence | Julia Baird #AWWessays
'Tis the season for book award longlists and shortlists! I've decided to use this season to pull together which books I've read from the various lists and which ones I hope to read. However, the main reason for embarking on this list-making is to 'force' me to tidy up the relevant books posts from last … Continue reading Longlists and Shortlists
It's a long weekend in Australia, and for the first time in over a year, we've enjoyed a lazy, nothing-to-do-but-flop-around-the-house kind of weekend. It has been blissful. Even with the ghastly high temps and even higher humidity, or maybe because of, it has been the perfect time for reading, snoozing and listening to music as … Continue reading Flames by Robbie Arnott
I suspect I'm going to be the lone dissenting voice when it comes to Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton.This is a debut Australian novel garnering a HUGE amount of attention and rave reviews. In the lead up to our Christmas rush at work last year, this is the book many, many locals were asking … Continue reading Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
Native: Art and Design With Australian Plants by Kate Herd and Jela Ivankovic-Waters is one of those gorgeous coffee table books that deserves to be thumbed over and referenced on a regular basis.Actually it's much more than a mere coffee table book. It's full of delicious, inspiring Australian landscapes and gardens that left me drooling … Continue reading Native: Art & Design With Australian Plants
I've been a bit slack about reading kid's books for work this year. I'm really enjoying all the classics I've been getting into instead. But this weekend I was feeling a bit angsty and in need of something light and easy. I also spotted during the week that Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend had won the … Continue reading Nevermoor #1 The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
Circle is one of those amazing, gorgeous picture books that I love and adore...right up until the very last page.But that last page does my head in every single time I read it. Before I go into the final page, let me tell you all the reasons why I love and adore the rest of … Continue reading Circle by Jeannie Baker
One of my good friends has been raving about Salt Creek for nearly a year now. I knew I would love it - it has all the things I usually look for in a good book.Strong, interesting female protagonist, fascinating setting (Younghusband Peninsula in South Australia), a lovely cover design and historical fiction based loosely … Continue reading Salt Creek by Lucy Treloar
It's that time of year again when the book world goes crazy with longlists, shortlists and highly commended's! No matter what you think about the various awards, their merits & selection criteria's, it's very difficult not to get caught up in the buzz.In Australia, the Indie Book Award has come and gone... and the Stella longlist has … Continue reading And the Winner Is….
It's that time of year again when our favourite books are categorised, judged and pitted against each other for first place.In Australia we have...The Stella Longlist• Letter to George Clooney - Debra Adelaide • Moving Among Strangers - Gabrielle Carey• Burial Rites - Hannah Kent *• Night Games - Anna Krien *• Mullumbimby - Melissa … Continue reading Longlists and Shortlists.
November is AusReading Month.A month long love-in for all things Aussie, true-blue and fair dinkum!In the lead up to November I am posting oodles of info about local literary prizes, top 50 Australian reading lists and random Australiana facts.You can join in the by linking to the master post above or on twitter & instagram using … Continue reading More Australian Book Awards
Anh Do's funny/sad autobiography won this years Indie Award for non-fiction. The Happiest Refugee was very easy to read, full of self-deprecating humour and honesty. I grew up with tales of Vietnamese boat people on the news. During the 70's there was a lot of media backlash against the boat people. Racism and fear about Asian … Continue reading The Happiest Refugee | Anh Do
This blog is mostly reviews for books for young children and teens, but I've been reading a lot of adult fiction this year, so I thought I'd do a quick catch-up. At the moment, I'm half way through Bereft by Chris Womersley. It's a gripping, haunting tale of murder, grief and family. It's setting is … Continue reading A Swag of Stories
bronasbooks.com 