Hayley Scrivenor on ‘Dirt Town’
22 March 2022
Set in the rural New South Wales town of Durton, Hayley Scrivenor's debut novel Dirt Town (Macmillan, May) centres on the disappearance of a young girl named Esther. Reviewer Kate...
Hayley Scrivenor recommends
22 March 2022
I was fortunate enough to see Larissa Behrendt speak at the 2021 BAD Sydney Crime Writers festival about her book After Story (UQP). I got the audiobook and loved it....
Books in the media this weekend, 19–20 March
18 March 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper The Party (Stuart Macintyre, A&U) Skin Deep (Phillipa McGuinness, Vintage) Loop...
Tuning into BookTube: How publishers can work with influencers
17 March 2022
In 2021 Kirsty Horton completed her master’s thesis at Curtin University on how publishers and BookTubers could get the most out of their commercial relationship. A BookTuber herself since 2017,...
Amplify Bookstore: Winter reading list
17 March 2022
Amplify Bookstore, an independent online bookseller specialising in books by Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) authors, shares the shop’s most anticipated titles from local and international authors publishing...
Kiah Thomas on ‘The Callers’
16 March 2022
The Callers (HarperCollins, May), Kiah Thomas's first novel for middle-grade readers, follows Quin, a young boy who lives in a world where some people have the ability to Call objects...
Books in the media this weekend 12–13 March
11 March 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Burning Questions (Margaret Atwood, Chatto & Windus) Continuous Creation (Les Murray,...
Australian bookshop tour: Potts Point Bookshop
9 March 2022
Potts Point Bookshop is an award-winning bookseller located in Sydney’s CBD. With staff that have over 50 years of bookselling experience between them, the shop has been widely recognised by...
George Haddad on ‘Losing Face’
8 March 2022
George Haddad's Losing Face (May, UQP) follows the lives of an intergenerational Lebanese-Australian family living in Western Sydney. Told primarily from the perspective of young protagonist Joey, Haddad's narrative reveals the complexities...
Books in the media this weekend 5–6 March
4 March 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Diagnosis Normal (Emma A Jane, Ebury) Son of Sin (Omar Sakr,...
Jennifer Pinkerton recommends
2 March 2022
One of my big loves is my place on the map: the Northern Territory. As it’s such a beautiful, but sometimes strange part of Australia, I am always keen to...
April books reviewed
2 March 2022
A round-up of local books to look out for in April, as recommended by Books+Publishing reviewers in the past month. Fiction In April, readers can anticipate Toni Jordan’s ‘timely’ new...
Jennifer Pinkerton on ‘Heartland’
2 March 2022
Jennifer Pinkerton's Heartland (A&U, May) is a wide-ranging survey of modern dating and relationships that addresses topics from love in lockdown and dating app usage to polyamory and pornography consumption. Reviewer...
Books in the media this weekend 26–27 February
25 February 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper The Ethical Investor (Nicole Haddow, Black Inc.) The Keepers (Al Campbell,...
How international book markets performed in 2021
23 February 2022
Through the PubMagNet initiative, a collaboration between book industry trade magazines from around the world, representatives from publications in Italy, Spain, the UK, Russia, Norway and the German-language markets have...
Lana Spasevski on ‘A Sprinkle of Sadie’
22 February 2022
Sadie loves to bake, but sometimes things don't go to plan. In her new junior fiction series, A Sprinkle of Sadie (Affirm, April), Lana Spasevski explores the power of food...
Lana Spasevski recommends
22 February 2022
I have just finished The Grandest Bookshop in the World by Amelia Mellor (Affirm) with my daughters. The fast, cinematic pace of the text, the magical setting of all the...
Books in the media this weekend, 19–20 February
18 February 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper The Grass Hotel (Craig Sherborne, Text) A Terrible Kindness (Jo Browning...
Booksellers’ high hopes for Christmas 2021 tempered by supply chain reality
16 February 2022
Books+Publishing received feedback from representatives of over 120 bookshops around Australia for its annual Christmas survey. After ‘the best Christmas ever’ in 2020, booksellers were expecting good things for Christmas...
Australian bookshop tour: Eltham Bookshop
16 February 2022
Founded in 1997, Eltham Bookshop is a 'fiercely independent' bookstore located in Melbourne's north-eastern suburbs. Owned and run by Meera Govil, winner of the 2012 Australian Booksellers Association Bookseller of...
Publishers report ‘good’ Christmas that could have been better
9 February 2022
Given the supply issues in the lead-up to Christmas 2021, concern about the looming Omicron variant in December and the fact that the previous Christmas in 2020 was a record...
Matthew Ricketson & Patrick Mullins on ‘Who Needs the ABC?’
8 February 2022
In Who Needs the ABC? (Scribe, April) authors Matthew Ricketson and Patrick Mullins provide a comprehensive guide to the national broadcaster, which celebrates its 90th birthday this year. The authors...
Australian bookshop tour: Dymocks Sydney
2 February 2022
Established over 140 years ago, Dymocks is one of Australia’s largest bookselling chains. With 50 stores across the country, and plans for 25 more, Dymocks has become a household name...
March books reviewed
1 February 2022
A round-up of local books to look out for in March, as recommended by Books+Publishing reviewers in the past month. Fiction Next month, fans of Kári Gíslason can anticipate his...
Dominique Wilson on ‘Orphan Rock’
25 January 2022
Dominique Wilson's third novel Orphan Rock (Transit Lounge, March) spans generations and continents, following the life of a young woman living in Sydney in the late 19th century. Reviewer Deborah Crabtree...
Dominique Wilson recommends
25 January 2022
I've only just finished reading Kate Forsyth's Bitter Greens (Vintage), which is a mix of historical fiction and fantasy, combining a retelling of the fairytale Rapunzel with the story of...
Australian bookshop tour: Readings Emporium
19 January 2022
Readings is an independent bookselling chain with eight stores operating across Melbourne. Established in 1969, Readings has become a cornerstone of the local literary scene, often hosting book launches, panels...
Sue Whiting recommends
12 January 2022
I have recently read and loved Dragon Skin by Karen Foxlee. Oh my, can that woman write. Such a magical, yet also so very real, tale, full of heart and...
Sue Whiting on ‘Pearly and Pig and the Great Hairy Beast’
11 January 2022
Expert worrier Pearly Woe and her pet Pig are a remarkable pair. Representatives of the Adventurologists Guild, they travel Antarctica searching for Pearly’s missing parents, in a new book for...
February reviews round-up
8 December 2021
A round-up of local books to look out for next year, as recommended by Books+Publishing reviewers in the past month. Fiction In February 2022, readers can anticipate the release of...
