Book Recommendations Archives

What Katie Read… One of Australia’s favourite novelists Kate Forsyth, author of The Impossible Quest, Bitter Greens, The Wild Girl and now The Beast’s Garden, continues her monthly blog with us, giving her verdict on the books she’s been reading.   The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton This is one of the most beautiful and haunting psychological thrillers I have ever read. It bre... Read more

When I first heard about Illuminae, it was described to me as “Battlestar Galatica meets 10 Things I Hate About You”. This obviously sounded like the best idea ever to me. I figured I was probably going to adore the hell out of it. And I was right! With a story that has been carefully constructed using a collection of emails, IM chats, descriptions of video footage, classified documents, diary ... Read more

Andrew Cattanach has a brand new bag… It all started when listening to The Grantland Podcast. Grantland is a US sports/culture website usually frequented by lots of people like me. Young(ish) hipster(ish) sporty(ish) culturally aware(ish) folks who enjoy quality long-form journalism. They also do podcasts (Fun Fact: we do as well) which, along with audiobooks, keep me company on my long d... Read more

The Booktopia Book Guru asks Mary Jo Putney author of Not Always A Saint and many more… Nine Naughty Questions ____________   1. Headless washboard abs, a torrid embrace, the sprawling homestead, an elegantly dressed décolletage, or the vaguely kinky object against a dark background – what’s your favourite type of romance cover and why? I like having people on the cover, preferably a coupl... Read more

If you love flowers, nature, beauty or art start dropping hints now for Christmas if you want to get your hands on this magnificent book by Sydney-based A-list florist, Saskia Havekes, and her team at Grandiflora.  Dipping flowers in wax or encasing them in blocks of ice, Havekes is always experimenting and pushing the limits, whether working on a small bouquet or on a grand scale for a special... Read more

The Booktopia Book Guru asks Julie Anne Long author of The Legend of Lyon Redmond and many more… Nine Naughty Questions ____________   1. Headless washboard abs, a torrid embrace, the sprawling homestead, an elegantly dressed décolletage, or the vaguely kinky object against a dark background – what’s your favourite type of romance cover and why? Some of those covers are pretty artful and s... Read more

Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan and Deborah Biancotti are all big names in the book world in their own right. But when we heard about them joining forces to write a book together, we kind of freaked out. This is a big deal, and we were lucky enough to have all of them visit Booktopia HQ to sign copies of their new book Zeroes and record a podcast with our Queen of YA Sarah. The Podcast will be ... Read more

Charlotte Wood’s latest novel, The Natural Way of Things, seethes with an anger the source of which doesn’t seem to be the text itself. Speaking with her, she does admit on reading an early draft to being surprised at discovering this underlying anger in her novel. Charlotte’s last novel, Animal People, sought out the smoothed over hypocrisy of modern life. The sound of muffle... Read more

Pretend you have never heard the name Magda Szubanski. I know it’s difficult. You’re probably already picturing her as Sharon Strzelecki in Kath and Kim, or as Esme Hoggett in Babe, or as Pixie-Anne Wheatley or Chenille from Fast Forward. But do try. Reckoning isn’t a celebrity memoir. Magda’s story is rich, beautifully told and moving. The daughter of Polish and Scottis... Read more

Booktopia’s Editorial Director, Caroline Baum reviews Shirley Barrett’s Rush Oh! which features in The Buzz as Caroline’s Book of the Month. It’s unusual to move from writing films to writing novels. Most people try to go in the other direction. Shirley Barrett made her reputation with the film Lovesong Serenade, demonstrating her comic sensibility and ability to write charact... Read more