Book Recommendations Archives

Religion for Atheists: A non-believer’s guide to the uses of religion by Alain De Botton A non-believer’s guide to the uses of religion All of us, whether religious, agnostic or atheist, are searching for meaning. And in this wise and life-affirming book, non-believer Alain de Botton both rejects the supernatural claims of religion and points out just how many good ideas they someti... Read more

What is The Greatest Love Story Ever Told? That’s what we’re asking this month at Booktopia. With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, we’ve declared February our month of love, with huge discounts on some of the greatest titles ever written. This week we need your help to decide which love story is top of the tree. All this week we’ll have the poll up, closing it at ... Read more

HEAVY HITTER OF 2012 BRING UP THE BODIES  by Hilary Mantel What is there left to say? I just wanted to join the chorus of universal admiration for the second volume of Mantel’s remarkable feat of embodying Henry Vlll’s chief strategist, Thomas Cromwell. Like many, I found it easier to read than Wolf Hall, because the narrative treads more familiar ground (the waning of Anne Boleyn’s power and H... Read more

February is a huge month for all Booktopians, here’s a few hints of what it’s about…. Aristotle described it as “composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies”. Plato said when touched by it “everyone becomes a poet”. Charles Dickens described it as “the truest wisdom”. Yes, you guessed it – February at Booktopia is the month of LOVE... Read more

So the moment you’ve all been waiting for. To ring in the Australia Day Long Weekend, we have a very special surprise waiting for you at the bottom of the page. Make sure you don’t miss it. Booktopia is proud to announce that Australia’s Favourite Novelist as voted by you is… 1. Kate Morton A huge congratulations to Kate Morton on being voted Australia’s Favourite ... Read more

Booktopia’s Andrew Cattanach reveals his Five Favourite Australian Novelists ————————————————— I’ve been lucky enough to have a bit to do with our ‘Australia’s Favourite Novelist poll. At the start of the month we sat around a table, discussing it’s potential popul... Read more

Booktopia’s Caroline Baum reveals her Five Favourite Australian Novelists ————————————————— I just can’t do this favourites thing, it’s too apples with oranges for me but there are some writers who have helped shape my consciousness over the nearly thirty years since I first came here, ma... Read more

Today is the birthday of May Gibbs, the writer and illustrator of some of the most loved children’s books Australia has to offer. For nearly a century children have been inspired by her works, taken into a fantastic world where everything around them came alive. It was her extraordinary sense of delicate storytelling mixed with an intense love of Australian nature that still fascinates us... Read more

UPDATE: Now that the book is out, read our review here. FROM RANDOM HOUSE: Dan Brown’s new novel, the eagerly awaited follow-up to his No.1 international blockbuster, The Lost Symbol, will be published on the 14th of May this year. The new book features renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon and is set in the heart of Europe. There, he is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one of his... Read more

To say that I’m a fan of the works of Professor J. R. R. Tolkien is an understatement. I’ll admit I was a little late to the party tree in embracing the world of Middle-Earth but after seeing the first trailer for The Fellowship of the Ring I was hooked. I became a little obsessed. And when I say a little, I mean a lot. I purchased every book I could get my hands on and spent hours upon hours a... Read more