Nada Backovic - Designer

Social Courage

Eric Goodman

Many people walk around with a secret: they experience social anxiety! At the same time, they are bombarded by messages from books, articles, and gurus that lead them to believe that social anxiety is a disease that needs to be cured. Consequently, along with social anxiety, they carry shame — believing that there is something wrong with them that must be fixed before they can live a ‘normal’ ... read more

Many people walk around with a secret: they experience social anxiety! At the same time, they are bombarded by messages from books, articles, and gurus that lead them to believe that social anxiety is a disease that needs to be cured. Consequently, along with social anxiety, they carry shame — believing that there is something wrong with them that must be fixed before they can live a ‘normal’ ... read more

Red Can Origami

Madelaine Dickie

Ava has just landed a job as a reporter in Gubinge, a tiny tropical town in Australia's north.Gubinge has a way of getting under the skin. Ava is hooked on the thrill of going hand-to-hand with barramundi, awed by country, and stunned by pindan sunsets. But a bitter collision between a native title group and a Japanese-owned uranium mining company is ripping the community in half.From the rode... read more

Ava has just landed a job as a reporter in Gubinge, a tiny tropical town in Australia's north.Gubinge has a way of getting under the skin. Ava is hooked on the thrill of going hand-to-hand with barramundi, awed by country, and stunned by pindan sunsets. But a bitter collision between a native title group and a Japanese-owned uranium mining company is ripping the community in half.From the rode... read more

Death in the Ladies' Goddess Club

Julian Leatherdale

'Crime's not a woman's business, Joanie. It's not some bloody game.'In the murky world of Kings Cross in 1932, aspiring crime writer Joan Linderman and her friend and flatmate Bernice Becker live the wild bohemian life, a carnival of parties and fancy-dress artists' balls.One Saturday night, Joan is thrown headfirst into a real crime when she finds Ellie, her neighbour, murdered. To prove her ... read more

'Crime's not a woman's business, Joanie. It's not some bloody game.'In the murky world of Kings Cross in 1932, aspiring crime writer Joan Linderman and her friend and flatmate Bernice Becker live the wild bohemian life, a carnival of parties and fancy-dress artists' balls.One Saturday night, Joan is thrown headfirst into a real crime when she finds Ellie, her neighbour, murdered. To prove her ... read more

The Spotted Dog

Kerry Greenwood

'Corinna Chapman is an absolute delight.' Bookseller + PublisherCorinna Chapman, baker extraordinaire, talented sleuth, stalwart friend and lover, is back!When a distraught Scottish veteran from Afghanistan is knocked unconscious, waking up to find his beloved ex-service dog missing, Corinna and her lover, Daniel, find themselves inextricably drawn into the machinations of a notorious underwor... read more

'Corinna Chapman is an absolute delight.' Bookseller + PublisherCorinna Chapman, baker extraordinaire, talented sleuth, stalwart friend and lover, is back!When a distraught Scottish veteran from Afghanistan is knocked unconscious, waking up to find his beloved ex-service dog missing, Corinna and her lover, Daniel, find themselves inextricably drawn into the machinations of a notorious underwor... read more

Women of a Certain Age

Jodie Moffat, Maria Scoda, Susan Sullivan

Anne Aly, Liz Byrski, Sarah Drummond, Mehreen Faruqi, Goldie Goldbloom, Krissy Kneen, Jeanine Leane, Brigid Lowry and Pat Torres are among fifteen voices recounting what it is like to be a woman on the other side of 40. These are stories of identity and survival, and a celebration of getting older and wiser, and becoming more certain of who you are and where you want to be.

Anne Aly, Liz Byrski, Sarah Drummond, Mehreen Faruqi, Goldie Goldbloom, Krissy Kneen, Jeanine Leane, Brigid Lowry and Pat Torres are among fifteen voices recounting what it is like to be a woman on the other side of 40. These are stories of identity and survival, and a celebration of getting older and wiser, and becoming more certain of who you are and where you want to be.

Wonderful Feels Like This

Sara Lovestam

A celebration of being a little bit odd, finding your people and the power of music to connect us.For Steffi, going to school everyday is an exercise in survival. She's never fit in with any of the groups at school, and she's viciously teased by the other girls in her class. The only way she escapes is through her music--especially jazz music.When Steffi hears her favourite jazz song playing t... read more

A celebration of being a little bit odd, finding your people and the power of music to connect us.For Steffi, going to school everyday is an exercise in survival. She's never fit in with any of the groups at school, and she's viciously teased by the other girls in her class. The only way she escapes is through her music--especially jazz music.When Steffi hears her favourite jazz song playing t... read more

Driving into the Sun

Marcella Polain

For Orla, living in the suburbs in 1968 on the cusp of adolescence, her father is a great shining light, whose warm and powerful presence fills her world. But in the aftermath of his sudden death, Orla, her mother and her sister are left in a no-man’s land, a place where the rights and protections of the nuclear family suddenly and mysteriously no longer apply, and where the path between girl ... read more

For Orla, living in the suburbs in 1968 on the cusp of adolescence, her father is a great shining light, whose warm and powerful presence fills her world. But in the aftermath of his sudden death, Orla, her mother and her sister are left in a no-man’s land, a place where the rights and protections of the nuclear family suddenly and mysteriously no longer apply, and where the path between girl ... read more

Speaking Up

Gillian Triggs

As president of the Human Rights Commission, Gillian Triggs advocated for the disempowered, the disenfranchised, the marginalised. She withstood relentless political pressure and media scrutiny as she defended the defenceless for five tumultuous years. How did this aspiring ballet dancer, dignified daughter of a tank commander and eminent law academic respond when appreciative passengers on a ... read more

As president of the Human Rights Commission, Gillian Triggs advocated for the disempowered, the disenfranchised, the marginalised. She withstood relentless political pressure and media scrutiny as she defended the defenceless for five tumultuous years. How did this aspiring ballet dancer, dignified daughter of a tank commander and eminent law academic respond when appreciative passengers on a ... read more

Vandemonian War

Nick Brodie

<p>Governments and others succeeded in burying the real story of the Vandemonian War for nearly two centuries. And historians failed to see through the myths and lies – until now.</p> <p>This is the story of how the British truly occupied Van Diemen’s Land, deploying regimental soldiers and special forces, armed convicts and mercenaries. In the 1820s and 1830s the British deliberately pushed t... read more

<p>Governments and others succeeded in burying the real story of the Vandemonian War for nearly two centuries. And historians failed to see through the myths and lies – until now.</p> <p>This is the story of how the British truly occupied Van Diemen’s Land, deploying regimental soldiers and special forces, armed convicts and mercenaries. In the 1820s and 1830s the British deliberately pushed t... read more

Kosciuszko

Nick Brodie

<p style="text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-size: 18.5pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #000004;">A riveting story of one of Australia&rsquo;s forgotten mysteries.</span></p> <p style="text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-size: 12.5pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black;">Kosciuszko is more than just our highest mountain &ndash; unbidden, it forms part of our nati... read more

<p style="text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-size: 18.5pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #000004;">A riveting story of one of Australia&rsquo;s forgotten mysteries.</span></p> <p style="text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-size: 12.5pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black;">Kosciuszko is more than just our highest mountain &ndash; unbidden, it forms part of our nati... read more

1787

Nick Brodie

<p>‘If we broaden our gaze, our story will get bigger.’</p> <p>Nick Brodie’s <i>1787</i> traces the history of Australia before the First Fleet. Usually treated as a preface to the main story – a brief interlude that starts 50,000 years before the present and ends as sails are seen on an eastern horizon – the time before European settlement is so much more. In 1787 the peoples of Australia wer... read more

<p>‘If we broaden our gaze, our story will get bigger.’</p> <p>Nick Brodie’s <i>1787</i> traces the history of Australia before the First Fleet. Usually treated as a preface to the main story – a brief interlude that starts 50,000 years before the present and ends as sails are seen on an eastern horizon – the time before European settlement is so much more. In 1787 the peoples of Australia wer... read more

The Unforgiving City

Maggie Joel

'If you love Australian history combined with a gripping saga, The Unforgiving City is an excellent read.' - The Weekly TimesColonial Sydney in the final weeks of the nineteenth century: a city striving for union and nationhood but dogged by divisions so deep they threaten to derail, not just the Federation, but the colony itself. There are chasms opening too when a clandestine note reaches th... read more

'If you love Australian history combined with a gripping saga, The Unforgiving City is an excellent read.' - The Weekly TimesColonial Sydney in the final weeks of the nineteenth century: a city striving for union and nationhood but dogged by divisions so deep they threaten to derail, not just the Federation, but the colony itself. There are chasms opening too when a clandestine note reaches th... read more

The Beast's Garden

Kate Forsyth

‘Ava fell in love the night the Nazis first showed their true nature to the world ...’ A retelling of the Grimms' Beauty and The Beast, set in Nazi Germany.It’s August 1939 in Germany, and Ava’s world is in turmoil. To save her father, she must marry a young Nazi officer, Leo von Löwenstein, who works for Hitler's spy chief in Berlin. However, she hates and fears the brutal Nazi regime, and fi... read more

‘Ava fell in love the night the Nazis first showed their true nature to the world ...’ A retelling of the Grimms' Beauty and The Beast, set in Nazi Germany.It’s August 1939 in Germany, and Ava’s world is in turmoil. To save her father, she must marry a young Nazi officer, Leo von Löwenstein, who works for Hitler's spy chief in Berlin. However, she hates and fears the brutal Nazi regime, and fi... read more

The Opal Dragonfly

Julian Leatherdale

Miss Isobel Clara Macleod, youngest of the seven children of Major Sir Angus Hutton Macleod, Surveyor-General of the colony of New South Wales, had the singular misfortune to know that at seven o'clock that morning her father was going to die.September, 1851. Sydney, city of secrets and gossip. Seventeen-year-old Isobel Macleod is determined to save her father because she loves him. But when s... read more

Miss Isobel Clara Macleod, youngest of the seven children of Major Sir Angus Hutton Macleod, Surveyor-General of the colony of New South Wales, had the singular misfortune to know that at seven o'clock that morning her father was going to die.September, 1851. Sydney, city of secrets and gossip. Seventeen-year-old Isobel Macleod is determined to save her father because she loves him. But when s... read more

British India, White Australia

Kama Maclean

‘Commonwealth, curry and cricket’ has become the belaboured phrase by which Australia seeks to emphasise its shared colonial heritage with India and improve bilateral relations in the process. Yet it is misleading because the legacy of empire differs in profound ways in both countries.British India, White Australia explores connections between Australia and India through the lens of the Briti... read more

‘Commonwealth, curry and cricket’ has become the belaboured phrase by which Australia seeks to emphasise its shared colonial heritage with India and improve bilateral relations in the process. Yet it is misleading because the legacy of empire differs in profound ways in both countries.British India, White Australia explores connections between Australia and India through the lens of the Briti... read more

The Pleasures of Leisure

Robert Dessaix

In today’s crazily busy world the importance of making time for leisure is more vital than ever. Yet so many of us lack a talent for it. We are working longer hours, consuming more than ever before; technology erodes the work–life balance further; increasingly, people feel that only work gives existence meaning. In a world where time is money, what is the value of walking without purpose, soci... read more

In today’s crazily busy world the importance of making time for leisure is more vital than ever. Yet so many of us lack a talent for it. We are working longer hours, consuming more than ever before; technology erodes the work–life balance further; increasingly, people feel that only work gives existence meaning. In a world where time is money, what is the value of walking without purpose, soci... read more

Mad Meg

Sally Morrison

In the world of Mad Meg, life is consumed by art. The present is unalterably coloured by the silences, loyalties and betrayals of the past.Isobel tries to unravel the secrets of her parents: her kind but crazy mother, Stella, and her rogue but dearly loved father, Henri. Her campaigning sister, Allegra, struggles with the realities of the passing of time as she is drawn into a maelstrom of pro... read more

In the world of Mad Meg, life is consumed by art. The present is unalterably coloured by the silences, loyalties and betrayals of the past.Isobel tries to unravel the secrets of her parents: her kind but crazy mother, Stella, and her rogue but dearly loved father, Henri. Her campaigning sister, Allegra, struggles with the realities of the passing of time as she is drawn into a maelstrom of pro... read more

River of Salt

Dave Warner

In 1963, former hitman Blake Saunders flees the Philadelphia Mob for a quieter existence in a tiny coastal Australian town. Life in Coral Shoals is perfect and Blake is a new man – running a club called the Surf Shack, and playing nights there with his surf music band, The Twang.But then a young woman’s body is found at a local motel, a matchbook from the Surf Shack on her bedside table. When ... read more

In 1963, former hitman Blake Saunders flees the Philadelphia Mob for a quieter existence in a tiny coastal Australian town. Life in Coral Shoals is perfect and Blake is a new man – running a club called the Surf Shack, and playing nights there with his surf music band, The Twang.But then a young woman’s body is found at a local motel, a matchbook from the Surf Shack on her bedside table. When ... read more

The Last Hours

Minette Walters

When the Black Death enters England through the port of Melcombe in Dorseteshire in June 1348, no one knows what manner of sickness it is or how it spreads and kills so quickly. The Church proclaims it a punishment from God but Lady Anne of Develish has different ideas. With her brutal husband absent, she decides on more sensible ways to protect her people than the daily confessions of sin rec... read more

When the Black Death enters England through the port of Melcombe in Dorseteshire in June 1348, no one knows what manner of sickness it is or how it spreads and kills so quickly. The Church proclaims it a punishment from God but Lady Anne of Develish has different ideas. With her brutal husband absent, she decides on more sensible ways to protect her people than the daily confessions of sin rec... read more