The Booktopia Book Guru asks Andy Allen author of The Next Element and winner of MasterChef Australia 2012… Ten Terrifying Questions ———————— 1. To begin with why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled? I was born and raised in a town called Maitland, which is 25 minutes N/W of Newcastle a... Read more

2012 has been an incredible year for the arts. We had the sublime documentary series The Shire, the whimsical adaptation of a board game not played since the 50’s, Battleship, and the welcome introduction of dubstep into every song on every radio station across the world. I don’t know how they do it. Actually, I’m pretty sure they just turn a knob clockwise….. …genius is born in many ways. But ... Read more

Mortal souls, our time on earth is rapidly coming to a close. As most of you know, the Mayan Calendar predicts the world as we know it will come to an end on the 21st of December, 2012.  When trouble hits there’s no better place to turn than your very own port in the storm, the book. Literature has always been obsessed with the apocalypse and the anarchy that follows. Some of the great works th... Read more

Huzzah! Booktopia is delighted to hear that one of our favourite authors, Zoe Foster, has tied the knot with her longtime fiancée Hamish Blake. Zoe visited us for a second time earlier this year and was absolutely wonderful once again. She was kind enough to answer questions on Facebook from Booktopia readers and shared her tips on writing, thoughts on life and lots more. We thought we’d ... Read more

We committed the murders. We took the children from their mothers. We practiced discrimination and exclusion. It was our ignorance and our prejudice. Today marks the 10th anniversary of one of the most important speeches in modern politics in Australia, if not the world. On December 10th, 1992 the then Prime Minister of Australia Paul Keating took to the stage in Redfern, Sydney, and delivered ... Read more

The upcoming debut novel from author Ayana Mathis, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, has been given a huge boost with the announcement this week that it has been selected as the new read for Oprah’s Book Club. The talk-show juggernaut has relaunched her book club, called Oprah’s Book Club 2.0,  after some controversies with 1.0. In 2006 she laid a smackdown on the fibbing James Frey for ... Read more

This is Andrew. Andrew works at Booktopia. A generous heart is not strong in this one, a veritable Scrooge is he. Unfortunately for him it’s time to buy presents for his parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews. Solution, books. They’re cheap as chips these days and yet still have the aura of a luxury item. Andrew would like to share his selections with you, and ... Read more

The First Tuesday Bookclub on the ABC recently held a popular vote for the 10 Australian books to read before you die. We watched with bated breath as the list was released, and thought we’d share it with you it case you missed it. While there will be as much talk about the books not on the list as on it, it really is a great place to start with Australia novels. If there’s anything... Read more

DISCLAIMER: THIS POST CONTAINS GRATUITOUS MAN LOVE. Imagine two men. One capable of changing history with drift and turn from the rough, the other capable of making it riveting to those who think drift and turn from the rough was illegal in Tasmania until 1997. Imagine they meet, one as artist, the other his subject. Imagine no longer. I will say from the outset that I think Gideon Haigh is the... Read more

Do you like scary stories? I’ll try my hand at one. Brynne Edelsten has her own television show. Not scary enough? Well you’re a tough nut to crack. Here’s five spine-chilling titles sure to make the hairs on your goosebumps rise. It by Stephen King It began for the Losers on a day in June of 1958, the day school let out for the summer. That was the day Henry Bowers carved the... Read more