Best of
Australia

2017

Fortune's Son


Jennifer Scoullar - 2017
    Tails you die ... Can one man's revenge become his redemption?Young Luke Tyler has everything going for him: brains, looks and a larrikin charm that turns heads. The future appears bright, until he defends his sister from the powerful Sir Henry Abbott. His reward is fifteen years hard labour on a prison farm in Tasmania's remote highlands.Luke escapes, finding sanctuary with a local philanthropist, Daniel Campbell, and starting a forbidden love affair with Daniel's daughter, Belle. But when Luke is betrayed, he must flee or be hanged.With all seeming lost, Luke sails to South Africa to start afresh. Yet he remains haunted by the past, and by Belle, the woman he can't forget. When he returns to seek revenge and reclaim his life, his actions will have shattering consequences - for the innocent as well as the guilty.Set against a backdrop of wild Tasmania, Australian Gold and African diamonds, Fortune's Son is an epic story of betrayal, undying love and one man's struggle to triumph over adversity and find his way home. - Praise for Jennifer Scoullar -'Scoullar, it turns out, is a writer of documentary calibre ... lovely, lyrical prose.' The Australian. 'Jennifer is a writer of great imagination.' Author Andrea Goldsmith'The people, the animals and the places ... such vivid and vibrant story-telling which wholly swept me away' Beauty and LaceFortune's Son is the first book in the Tasmanian Tales trilogy. Buy it now to discover why Jennifer Scoullar is one of Australia's favourite story-tellers!

The Choke


Sofie Laguna - 2017
    Justine finds sanctuary in Pop's chooks and The Choke, where the banks of the Murray River are so narrow they can almost touch—a place of staggering natural beauty that is both a source of peace and danger. Although Justine doesn't know it, her father is a menacing criminal and the world she is exposed to is one of great peril to her. She has to make sense of it on her own—and when she eventually does, she knows what she has to do. A brilliant, haunting novel about a child navigating an often dark and uncaring world of male power, guns and violence, in which grown-ups can't be trusted and comfort can only be found in nature, The Choke is a compassionate and claustrophobic vision of a child in danger and a society in deep trouble. It once again showcases the Miles Franklin Award-winning author as a writer of rare empathy, originality and blazing talent.

Cardinal: The Rise and Fall of George Pell


Louise Milligan - 2017
    He was the Ballarat boy with the film-star looks who studied at Oxford and rose through the ranks to become the Vatican's indispensable 'Treasurer'. As an outspoken defender of church orthodoxy, 'Big George's' ascendancy within the clergy was remarkable and seemingly unstoppable.The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Abuse has brought to light horrific stories about sexual abuse of the most vulnerable and provoked public anger at the extent of the cover-up. George Pell has always portrayed himself as the first man in the Church to tackle the problem. But questions about what the Cardinal knew, and when, have persisted.The nation's most prominent Catholic is now the subject of a police investigation into allegations spanning decades that he too abused children. Louise Milligan is the only Australian journalist who has been privy to the most intimate stories of complainants.She pieces together a series of disturbing pictures of the Cardinal's knowledge and his actions, many of which are being told here for the first time.Conspiracy or cover-up? Cardinal uncovers uncomfortable truths about a culture of sexual entitlement, abuse of trust and how ambition can silence evil.

Unmasked


Turia Pitt - 2017
    We know how she died four times on the operating table and her tortuous road to recovery. We've had a glimpse of the love of her boyfriend, Michael, that sustained her, and seen hints of the inner-strength that has made her one of the most admired women in the country. But until now, the true essence of this most remarkable Australian, plus the toll her accident has all taken on her and those around her, have remained a mystery.How and why does she push herself to ever greater physical and mental limits? What does she see when she looks in the mirror? How does her sudden celebrity (for the most unorthodox of reasons) sit with her? What lessons has she learned in the past five years? And, crucially, how can each and every one of us take those lessons and apply them to our own lives?More than a simple chronology of events - and against the backdrop of a never-ending series of impressive physical feats, including climbing the Great Wall of China, walking the Kokoda Track and competing in not one but two Ironman competitions - this book unmasks the real Turia: funny, fierce, intelligent, flawed.With the benefit of hindsight and five years' worth of getting of wisdom, Turia is only now able to account for how she prevailed where others might have faltered. And for the first time, in this book we get to know the people who - by Turia's own admission - made her recovery possible.Unmasked will reveal the woman behind the headlines, and in so doing, uncover the grace, humour and inner-steel that gets Turia Pitt through every day - and which leaves the rest of us watching on in amazement.

On the Java Ridge


Jock Serong - 2017
    On the Java Ridge, skipper Isi Natoli and a group of Australian surf tourists are anchored beside an idyllic reef off the Indonesian island of Dana. In the Canberra office of Cassius Calvert, Minister for Border Integrity, a Federal election looms and (not coincidentally) a hardline new policy is being announced regarding maritime assistance to asylum-seeker vessels in distress.A few kilometres away from Dana, the Takalar is having engine trouble. Among the passengers fleeing from persecution are Roya and her mother, and Roya’s unborn sister.The storm now closing in on the Takalar and the Java Ridge will mean catastrophe for them all.With On the Java Ridge Jock Serong, bestselling author of The Rules of Backyard Cricket, brings us a literary novel with the pace and tension of a political thriller—and some of the most compelling, heartstopping writing about the sea since Patrick O’Brian.

You Be Mother


Meg Mason - 2017
    The only thing Abi ever wanted was a proper family. So when she falls pregnant by an Australian exchange student in London, she cannot pack up her old life in Croydon fast enough, to start all over in Sydney and make her own family. It is not until she arrives, with three-week-old Jude in tow, that Abi realises Stu is not quite ready to be a father after all. And he is the only person she knows in this hot, dazzling, confusing city, where the job of making friends is turning out to be harder than she thought. That is, until she meets Phyllida, her wealthy, charming, imperious older neighbour, and they become almost like mother and daughter. If only Abi had not told Phil that teeny tiny small lie, the very first day they met… Imagine the warmth of Monica McInerney, the excruciating awkwardness of Offspring and the wit of Liane Moriarty, all rolled into one delightful, warm, funny and totally endearing novel about families – the ones we have, and the ones we want – and the stories we tell ourselves about them.

Burke and Wills: The triumph and tragedy of Australia's most famous explorers


Peter FitzSimons - 2017
    When King puts his hand down above the ashes of the fire, it is to find it still hot. There is even a tiny flame flickering from the end of one log. They must have left just hours ago.MELBOURNE, 20 AUGUST 1860. In an ambitious quest to be the first Europeans to cross the harsh Australian continent, the Victorian Exploring Expedition sets off, farewelled by 15,000 cheering well-wishers. Led by Robert O'Hara Burke, a brave man totally lacking in the bush skills necessary for his task; surveyor and meteorologist William Wills; and 17 others, the expedition took 20 tons of equipment carried on six wagons, 23 horses and 26 camels.Almost immediately plagued by disputes and sackings, the expeditioners battled the extremes of the Australian landscape and weather: its deserts, the boggy mangrove swamps of the Gulf, the searing heat and flooding rains. Food ran short and, unable to live off the land, the men nevertheless mostly spurned the offers of help from the local Indigenous people.In desperation, leaving the rest of the party at the expedition's depot on Coopers Creek, Burke, Wills and John King made a dash for the Gulf in December 1860. Bad luck and bad management would see them miss by just hours a rendezvous back at Coopers Creek, leaving them stranded in the wilderness with practically no supplies. Only King survived to tell the tale.Yet, despite their tragic fates, the names of Burke and Wills have become synonymous with perseverance and bravery in the face of overwhelming odds. They live on in our nation's history - and their story remains immediate and compelling.

The Gulf


Anna Spargo-Ryan - 2017
    Trouble is, Jason’s bad news. Really bad. Now Mum’s quit her job and they’re all moving north to Port Flinders, population nobody."That's a Southern Right Whale. They have the largest balls of any animal in the world."She’d do anything to keep her ten-year-old brother safe. Things she can’t even say out loud. And when Jason gets violent, Skye knows she has to take control. She’s got to get Ben out and their mum’s useless as. The train home to Adelaide leaves first thing each morning and they both need to be on it. Everything else can wait."Ladybirds bleed from their knees when they're stressed."The Gulf is an acute, moving and uplifting story from the inimitable, alchemical imagination of Anna Spargo-Ryan."Anna Spargo-Ryan returns with another impressive novel that will have readers feeling every emotion experienced by the beautifully written characters." - Books + Publishing 4 STARSPRAISE FOR ANNA SPARGO-RYAN‘There is something magical about Anna Spargo-Ryan’s debut ...In its wildly imaginative way, The Paper House tears at the fabric of reality, rendering an incomprehensible loss palpably real.’Gretchen Shirm, Sydney Morning Herald‘Equally heartbreaking, uplifting and insightful.’Sunday Herald Sun

Call of the Reed Warbler: A New Agriculture – A New Earth


Charles Massy - 2017
    Author and radical farmer Charles Massy explores transformative and regenerative agriculture and the vital connection between our soil and our health. It is a story of how a grassroots revolution – a true underground insurgency – can save the planet, help turn climate change around, and build healthy people and healthy communities, pivoting significantly on our relationship with growing and consuming food.   Using his personal experience as a touchstone – from an unknowing, chemical-using farmer with dead soils to a radical ecologist farmer carefully regenerating a 2000-hectare property to a state of natural health – Massy tells the real story behind industrial agriculture and the global profit-obsessed corporations driving it. He shows – through evocative stories – how innovative farmers are finding a new way and interweaves his own local landscape, its seasons and biological richness.  At stake is not only a revolution in human health and our communities but the very survival of the planet. For farmer, backyard gardener, food buyer, health worker, policy maker and public leader alike, Call of the Reed Warbler offers a tangible path forward for the future of our food supply, our Australian landscape and our earth. It comprises a powerful and moving paean of hope.

Miss Lily's Lovely Ladies


Jackie French - 2017
    Her girls are taught how to captivate a man - and find a potential husband - at a dinner, in a salon, or at a grouse shoot, and in ways that would surprise outsiders. For in 1914, persuading and charming men is the only true power a woman has.Sophie Higgs is the daughter of Australia's king of corned beef and the only 'colonial' brought to Shillings Hall. Of all Miss Lily's lovely ladies, however, she is also the only one who suspects Miss Lily's true purpose.As the chaos of war spreads, women across Europe shrug off etiquette. The lovely ladies and their less privileged sisters become the unacknowledged backbone of the war, creating hospitals, canteens and transport systems where bungling officials fail to cope. And when tens of thousands can die in a single day's battle, Sophie must use the skills Miss Lily taught her to prevent war's most devastating weapon yet.But is Miss Lily heroine or traitor? And who, exactly, is she?

Not Your Average Nurse: From 1970s London to Outback Australia, the True Story of an Unlikely Girl and an Extraordinary Career


Maggie Groff - 2017
    So when Maggie Groff embarks as a student nurse at London's King's College Hospital she must quickly get to grips with the demands of her chosen career. It's sink or swim.We follow Maggie's highs and lows as she becomes a highly skilled nurse and sets sail for a new life in Australia.From the watchful gaze of stern ward sisters and the ordeals of nursing at a poor housing estate to becoming an industrial nurse at the iconic Sydney Opera House, Maggie shares her stories of mistakes and mayhem, tea and sympathy, and the life-affirming moments that make it all worthwhile.

Because of You


Pip Harry - 2017
    Nola has everything she could ask for. They meet when Nola is forced into volunteer work for the writers’ group at the homeless shelter where Tiny is staying, and at first it seems impossible that two people who are so different could ever be friends. But despite her initial prejudice, Nola quickly learns that there isn’t much separating her from the people who live on the streets. And Tiny begins to see that falling down doesn’t mean you never get back up. Because of You is a story about homelessness, prejudice and the power of words to provide a little hope. At its heart is the friendship between Tiny and Nola, and how this relationship changes both girls at the core. Pip Harry doesn’t shy away from some heavy topics—Tiny’s story is heartbreaking and the details about life on the streets of Sydney is horrifying—but Because of You is ultimately a hopeful story about human resilience and the life-changing power of discovering your best friend. YA readers aged 14 and up who loved John Larkin’s The Shadow Girl and Cath Crowley’s Words in Deep Blue should be diving for this powerful coming-of-age story.

Daughter of Mine


Fiona Lowe - 2017
    But is her life in Melbourne happy?Despite all three sisters having a different and sometimes strained bond with their mother, Edwina, they come together to organise a party for her milestone birthday — the first since their father’s death. But when Edwina arrives at her party on the arm of another man, the tumult is like a dam finally breaking. Suddenly the lives of the Chirnwell sisters are flooded by scandal. Criminal accusations, a daughter in crisis, and a secret over fifty years in the making start to crack the perfect façade of the prominent pastoral family.A thought provoking novel about family expectations, secrets and lies.

True Stories: The Collected Short Non-Fiction


Helen Garner - 2017
    She sees women giving birth, and gets the sack for teaching her students about sex. She attends a school dance and a gun show. She writes about dreaming, about turning fifty, and the storm caused by The First Stone. Her story on the murder of the two-year-old Daniel Valerio wins her a Walkley Award.Garner looks at the world with a shrewd and sympathetic eye. Her non-fiction is always passionate and compelling. True Stories is an extraordinary book, spanning fifty years of work, by one of Australia’s great writers.

The Baby Doctor


Fiona McArthur - 2017
    The last thing she wants is a posting to a remote outback town to investigate a medical mystery.But on arrival in Spinifex, Sienna is brought to life in new and exciting ways. In a community riddled with secrets, she meets troubled young barmaid Maddy, and tough publican Alma, both with their troubles to hide.As they draw strength from each other, new friendships, new loves and new babies are born, proving that when strong women join forces, they can overcome even the greatest odds.Praise for Fiona McArthur:'I never miss one of Fiona McArthur's books.' Sam Still Reading'An uplifting story of friendship and romance.' Book'd Out'Whenever I feel like journeying to the ochre and brown glory of the outback with its special brand of people, I know Fiona McArthur will take me there ...' Book Muster Down Under

The House of Lies


Renee McBryde - 2017
    But waiting for her was a secret so awful that it would rock her to the core.Renee's mother was a teenage runaway who found herself pregnant and alone when Renee's father was jailed for killing two men. When Renee discovered the truth, she knew her life would never be the same again. She was a murderer's daughter - but that made her determined to escape the past.This is her sometimes shocking, often moving, inspirational true story of terrible secrets and tragic lies, and a life of abuse, suffering and survival.

Stars Across the Ocean


Kimberley Freeman - 2017
    On her departure, she discovers that she was abandoned with a small token of her mother: a unicorn button. Agnes had always believed her mother to be too poor to keep her, but Agnes has been working as a laundress at the foundling home and recognises the button as belonging to the imperious and beautiful Genevieve Breckby, daughter of a local noble family. Agnes had only seen her once, but has never forgotten her. She investigates and discovers Genevieve is now in London. Agnes follows, living hard in the poor end of London until she finds out Genevieve has moved to France.This sets Agnes off on her own adventure: to Paris, Agnes follows her mother's trail, and starts to see it is also a trail of destruction. Finally, in Melbourne she tracks Genevieve down. But is Genevieve capable of being the mother Agnes hopes she will be?A powerful story about women with indomitable spirits, about love and motherhood, and about learning whom you belong to in the world.

The Naturalist's Daughter


Tea Cooper - 2017
    Not only does she love him with all her heart, but the discoveries they have made could turn the scientific world on its head. When Charles is unable to make the long sea journey to present his findings to the prestigious Royal Society in England, Rosie must venture forth in his stead. What she discovers there will change the lives of future generations. 1908 Sydney, NSWTamsin Alleyn has been given a mission: travel to the Hunter Valley and retrieve an old sketchbook of debatable value, gifted to the Public Library by a recluse. But when she gets there, she finds there is more to the book than meets the eye, and more than one interested party. Shaw Everdene, a young antiquarian bookseller and lawyer seems to have his own agenda when it comes to the book – and Tamsin. In an attempt to discover the book's true provenance Tamsin decides to work with him.The deeper they delve, the more intricate the mystery becomes. As the lives of two women a century apart converge, discoveries rise up from the past and reach into the future, with irrevocable consequences...

Pulse Points


Jennifer Down - 2017
    In the award-winning ‘Aokigahara’, a young woman travels to the sea of trees in Japan to say goodbye. In ‘Coarsegold’, a woman conducts an illicit affair while her recovering girlfriend works the overnight motel shift in the middle of nowhere. In ‘Dogs’, Foggo runs an unruly gang of bored, cruel boys with a scent for fresh meat. In ‘Pressure Okay’ a middle-aged man goes to the theatre, gets a massage, remembers his departed wife, navigates the long game of grief with his adult daughter.

Mrs Kelly: The Astonishing Life of Ned Kelly's Mother


Grantlee Kieza - 2017
    When she arrived in Melbourne in 1841 aged nine, British convict ships were still dumping their unhappy cargo in what was then known as the colony of New South Wales. When she died at the age of 91 in 1923, having outlived seven of her 12 children, motor cars plied the highway near her bush home north of Melbourne, and Australia was a modern sovereign nation.The wife of a convict, Ellen, like so many Australian pioneering women, led a life of great hardship. She was a mother of seven when her husband died after months in a police lock-up, lived through famine and Australian drought, saw her babies die, listened through the prison wall while her eldest son was hanged and saw the charred remains of another of her children who'd died in a shoot-out with police. One son became Australia's most infamous (and ultimately popular) outlaw. Another became a highly decorated policeman, an honorary member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a worldwide star on the rodeo circuit.By bestselling biographer Grantlee Kieza, MRS KELLY is the story of one of Australia's most notorious women, but it is also the story of so many of Australia's pioneering women, who knew only too well the hardships of pioneering life. More than that, it's the story of the making of Australia, from struggling colony and backwater to modern nation.

Crimson Lake


Candice Fox - 2017
    How do you move on when the world won’t let you?12:46: Claire Bingley stands alone at a bus stop12:47: Ted Conkaffey parks his car beside her12:52: The girl is missing . . .Six minutes in the wrong place at the wrong time—that’s all it took to ruin Sydney detective Ted Conkaffey’s life. Accused but not convicted of a brutal abduction,Ted is now a free man—and public enemy number one. Maintaining his innocence, he flees north to keep a low profile amidst the steamy, croc-infested wetlands of Crimson Lake.There, Ted’s lawyer introduces him to eccentric private investigator Amanda Pharrell, herself a convicted murderer. Not entirely convinced Amanda is a cold-blooded killer, Ted agrees to help with her investigation, a case full of deception and obsession, while secretly digging into her troubled past. The residents of Crimson Lake are watching the pair's every move... and the town offers no place to hide.

Under the Cold Bright Lights


Garry Disher - 2017
    He does things his own way—and gets results.He still lives with his ex-wife, off and on, in a big house full of random boarders and hard-luck stories. And he’s still a cop, even though he retired from Homicide some years ago.He works cold cases now. Like the death of John Elphick—his daughters still convinced he was murdered, the coroner not so sure. Or the skeleton that’s just been found under a concrete slab. Or the doctor who killed two wives and a girlfriend, and left no evidence at all.Auhl will stick with these cases until justice is done. One way or another.

The Passage of Love


Alex Miller - 2017
    Sitting in a New York park, an old man holds a book and tries to accept that his contribution to the future is over. Instead, he remembers a youthful yearning for open horizons, for Australia, a yearning he now knows inspired his life as a writer. Instinctively he picks up his pen and starts at the beginning...At twenty-one years, Robert Crofts leaves his broken dreams in Far North Queensland, finally stopping in Melbourne almost destitute. It's there he begins to understand how books and writing might be the saving of him. They will be how he leaves his mark on the world. He also begins to understand how many obstacles there will be to thwart his ambition.When Robert is introduced to Lena Soren, beautiful, rich and educated, his life takes a very different path. But in the intimacy of their connection lies an unknowability that both torments and tantalises as Robert and Lena long for something that neither can provide for the other.In a rich blend of thoughtful and beautifully observed writing, the lives of a husband and wife are laid bare in their passionate struggle to engage with their individual creativity.Alex Miller is magnificent in this most personal of all novels filled with rare wisdom and incisive observation.

Venom: The heroic search for Australia's deadliest snake


Brendan James Murray - 2017
    To the Indigenous people of the Guugu Yimithirr nation, it was 'nguman'; to the whites it was the taipan, an eight foot, lightning fast venomous snake whose bite meant certain death.Venom is an examination of European settlers’ troubled and often antagonistic relationship with the land, seen through the lens of the desperate scramble for an antivenom, and highlighted by the story of George Rosendale, a taipan bite victim of the Guugu Yimithirr nation.By one of Australia’s best and brightest young authors, this is a gripping tale of heroism and tragedy, offering the glimmering possibility of reconciliation

Along Country Roads


Mandy Magro - 2017
    But her plans go awry when the vehicle breaks down and she's stranded at the side of a deserted country road.Ryan Hunter, after working himself into the ground at his interstate truck-driving job since his sister's death, is making his last run before a well-earned month off. On the last stretch home, he happens across a beautiful woman and scraggy dog hitchhiking. It's not long before he connects Matilda's bruises to her past and what she's on the run from. He instinctively wants to protect Matilda and offers her a place to stay at Heartsong Hills.Although both battling their own demons, they start to discover how much they have in common – and soon they're also battling the strong desire to fall hard for one another. But when Ryan tries to help by organising for the four-wheel drive to be fixed, he unwittingly gives away Matilda's location and her life may be on the line. Can Ryan find her before it's too late?

Sanctuary


Judy Nunn - 2017
    Aboard are nine people who have no idea where they are. Strangers before the violent storm that tore their vessel apart, the instinct to survive has seen them bond during their days adrift on a vast and merciless ocean.Fate has cast them ashore with only one thing in common . . . fear. Rassen the doctor, Massoud the student, the child Hamid and the others all fear for their lives. But in their midst is Jalila, who appears to fear nothing. The beautiful young Yazidi woman is a mystery to them all.While they remain undiscovered on the deserted island, they dare to dream of a new life . . .But forty kilometres away on the mainland lies the tiny fishing port of Shoalhaven. Here everyone knows everyone, and everyone has their place. In Shoalhaven things never change.Until now . . .

An Asian Harvest: An Autobiography


Paul Hattaway - 2017
    But once he encountered the love of God and read the Bible, Paul never looked back. The rest of his life has centered on making sure all the people of Asia have Bibles of their own.Through Asian Harvest, Paul has traveled to Laos, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Thailand, and many other Asian countries bringing the gospel with him. His ministry has provided over ten million Bibles to China alone, and has sponsored more than fifteen hundred Asian missionaries.The story of Paul's conversion, the fascinating places he's faithfully followed God to, the struggles with the realities of the mission field and other missionaries, and the incredible miracles God has performed along the way make An Asian Harvest a remarkable, inspiring read.

The Restorer


Michael Sala - 2017
    The family move from Sydney to Newcastle, where Roy has bought a derelict house on the coast.As Roy painstakingly patches the holes in the floorboards and plasters over cracks in the walls, Maryanne believes, for a while, that they can rebuild a life together.But Freya doesn’t want a fresh start—she just wants out—and Daniel drifts around the sprawling, run-down house in a dream, infuriating his father, who soon forgets the promises he has made.Some cracks can never be smoothed over, and tension grows between Roy and Maryanne until their uneasy peace is ruptured—with devastating consequences.

Mirror Sydney: An Atlas of Reflections


Vanessa Berry - 2017
    My thoughts stuck to them. They had auras: each gave me a strong feeling that there was, embedded amid the everyday, an order of unpredictable things.’In her delicately wrought essays and hand-drawn maps, Vanessa Berry describes her encounters with unusual, forgotten or abandoned places in the city in which she was born and raised, using their details to open up repositories of significance, and to create an alternative city, a Mirror Sydney, illuminated by memory and imagination. She writes at a time when Sydney is being disassembled and rebuilt at an alarming rate. Her determined observation of the over-looked and the odd, the hidden and the enigmatic – precisely those details whose existence is most threatened by development – is an act of preservation in its own right, a testament to what she calls ‘the radical potential of taking notice’.Berry’s work combines a low-fi DIY approach with an awareness of the tradition of philosophical urban investigation. Her unique style of map illustration was developed through the making of zines and artworks, collaging detailed line drawings with text from typewriters and Letraset.

Angel's Share


Kayte Nunn - 2017
    But after a freak skiing accident leaves her with serious injuries, a broken heart and a job she can no longer do, moving back to Australia to recuperate at her brother Mark’s winery in the Shingle Valley seems like the only option.Meanwhile, Mark is preoccupied with a catastrophic threat to the future of the valley and his partner, Rose, is juggling the demands of her burgeoning restaurant and being a stepmother, all the while secretly longing for a child of her own.As Mattie’s injuries heal, she begins to wonder where her future might lie, especially when she finds herself struggling with her growing feelings for winemaker Charlie Drummond – who happens to be engaged to someone.Featuring the cherished cast of characters from Rose’s Vintage, this new tale of life and love in the spectacular Shingle Valley is set to charm and delight.

Voyage of the Southern Sun: An Amazing Solo Journey Around the World


Michael Smith - 2017
    Next he took an even bigger risk: to become the first person to fly solo around the world in an amphibious plane, retracing the 1938 Qantas, Imperial and Pan Am routes between Sydney, Southampton and New York.With limited flying experience, no support team and only basic instruments in his tiny flying boat, the Southern Sun, Smith risked his life to make modern aviation history. His adventures include an unexpected greeting by Special Branch on his arrival in the UK, a near-death experience while leaving Greenland, and a wondrous journey up the Mississippi. He made eighty stops around the globe, exploring cities and communities, and visiting some seventy cinemas. All along the way Smith updated his online journal, cheered on by 50,000 followers.Smith’s seven-month flight took him from Australia to East Timor, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Crete, Croatia, Italy, France, England, Ireland, Scotland, Iceland, Greenland, Canada, the USA, Japan and the Philippines.This is the incredible story of his journey.

Game of Mates: How Favours Bleed the Nation


Cameron Murray - 2017
    His victim is Bruce, our typical Aussie, who bleeds from the hip pocket because of James' actions. Game of Mates tells a tale of economic theft across major sectors of Australia's economy, showing how James and his group of well-connected Mates siphon off billions from the economy to line their own pockets. In property, mining, transport, banking, superannuation, and many more sectors, James and his Mates cooperate to steal huge chunks of the economic pie for themselves. If you want to know how much this costs the nation, how it is done, and what we can do about it, Game of Mates is the book for you.

Champagne for Breakfast


Maggie Christensen - 2017
    By the river. On her own.After finishing her six-year long affair with her boss, Rosa is desperate to avoid him in the workplace and determined to forge a new life for herself.Harry Kennedy has sailed away from a messy Sydney divorce and is resolute in kick-starting a new life on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.Thrown together at work, Rosa and Harry discover a secret. One that their employer is desperate to keep hidden. To reveal it they must work together, but first they must learn to trust not only each other but their own rising attraction.Are these two damaged people willing to risk their hard won independence for the promise of love again?

Emergencies Only: An Australian nurse's journey through natural disasters, extreme poverty, civil wars and general chaos


Amanda McClelland - 2017
    As a nurse and a humanitarian aid worker she has battled against extreme poverty, disease epidemics and natural disasters, helping to rebuild broken lives and strengthen communities across the globe.From nursing in remote Indigenous communities in Australia's Top End to re-building villages after the devastating Boxing Day Tsunami in Aceh, from fighting famine in Sub Saharan Africa to facing kidnapping on the war-torn streets of Mogadishu, from battling cyclone damage in PNG to heading up the Red Cross's West African Ebola response, Amanda has faced huge challenges and collected incredible stories along the way. Emergencies Only is not a compendium of tragedy, but an eye-opening life-lesson in practicality, compassion and good humour, written with empathy and an eye for detail, and filled with the human stories that lie behind the headlines.

The Death and Life of Australian Soccer


Joe Gorman - 2017
    In The Death and Life of Australian Soccer, Joe Gorman chronicles the rise and fall of Australia's first national football competition. Drawing on archival research and numerous interviews, he reveals the sport's vibrant multicultural history, while also taking an unflinching look at the issues that plague the game. Timely and fascinating, The Death and Life of Australian Soccer is no ordinary sports book. It is the riveting story of Australia's national identity, and offers new ways of understanding the great changes that have shaped our country.

The Kitchen Witch: Box Set: Books 4-6


Morgana Best - 2017
    Spelling Mistake 5. ExSpelled 6. The Halloween Spell Spelling Mistake (Book FOUR) Amelia Spelled discovers an old spellbook, which to her delight contains a spell to improve one’s baking. When a spelling mistake is thrown into the mix, she accidentally summons an entity. Amelia does her best to reverse the spell, but finds it’s no piece of cake. When a murderer strikes, can Amelia rise to the occasion, solve the murder, and find her abilities as a witch? EXSpelled (Book FIVE) Egged on by Amelia’s recent success in the kitchen, her friends send her to a cooking school on a remote tropical island resort. Her teachers’ tempers reach boiling point when they sample her cooking, and worse still, her classmates begin to die one by one. As a tropical storm brews and the body count rises, can Amelia find the killer before she is expelled, or becomes the next victim? The Halloween Spell (Book SIX) A mysterious woman arrives on Amelia’s doorstep claiming Amelia’s departed Aunt Angelica did a spell for her every Halloween. She insists that Amelia do the spell for her, and that’s when the trouble starts.

Forgotten Places


Johanna Craven - 2017
    1833English settler Grace Ashwell flees an abusive lover in Hobart Town, with six-year-old Violet in tow. In her head, escape is easy: find work in the northern settlements and earn enough for passage home to London. But the terrain beyond the settled districts is wilder than Grace could ever have imagined. She and Violet find themselves lost in a beautiful but deadly land where rain thunders down the sides of mountains, the earth drops away without warning and night brings impenetrable darkness. Deep in the wilderness, they find a crude hut inhabited by Alexander Dalton, an escaped convict long presumed dead. Hiding from civilisation in an attempt to forget his horrifying past, Alexander struggles to let Grace into his world. When Violet disappears, Grace's fragile trust in Alexander is put to the test. And while she searches for answers, he will do anything to keep his secrets inside. Inspired by the true story of the Macquarie Harbour bolters; one of the most horrifying events from Colonial Australia's bloody history.

They Cannot Take the Sky


Michael Green - 2017
    In They Cannot Take the Sky those people tell their stories, in their own words. Speaking from inside immigration detention on Manus Island and Nauru, or from within the Australian community after their release, the narrators reveal not only their extraordinary journeys and their daily struggles but also their meditations on love, death, hope and injustice. Their candid testimonies are at times shocking and hilarious, surprising and devastating. They are witnesses from the edge of human experience. The first-person narratives in They Cannot Take the Sky range from epic life stories to heartbreaking vignettes. The narrators who have shared their stories have done so despite the culture of silence surrounding immigration detention, and the real risks faced by those who speak out. Once you have heard their voices, you will never forget them.'This book is extraordinary and humbling and necessary.' Anna Funder'These are the stories you will read and never forget. All Australians must read this book.' Alexis Wright'We have waited too long for an anthology like this. Deftly drawn, wide-ranging, and painstakingly edited and collected, these engaging stories from immigration detention are desperate and passionate; harrowing and inspirational; beautiful and forlorn.' Maxine Beneba Clarke'This is a book whose human, frank, illuminating voices the government does not want to hear from.' Tom Keneally

Her


Garry Disher - 2017
    . .Her name is scarcely known or remembered. All in all, she is worth less than the nine shillings and sixpence counted into her father’s hand. She bides her time. She does her work.Way back in the corner of her mind is a thought she is almost too frightened to shine a light on: one day she will run away.A dark and unsettling tale from the turn of the twentieth century by a master of Australian literature.

Understory: a life with trees


Inga Simpson - 2017
    Each chapter of this nature writing-memoir explores a particular species of tree, layering description, anecdote, and natural history to tell the story of a scrap of forest in the Sunshine Coast hinterland - how the author came to be there and the ways it has shaped her life. In many ways, it's the story of a treechange, of escaping suburban Brisbane for a cottage on ten acres in search of a quiet life. Of establishing a writers retreat shortly before the Global Financial Crisis, and losing just about everything. It is also the story of what the author found: the literature of nature. "I see the world through trees. Every window and doorway frames trunks, limbs, and leaves. My light is their light, filtered green. My air is their exhalation."

The Fish Girl


Mirandi Riwoe - 2017
    Somerset Maugham’s story, ‘The Four Dutchmen’, Mirandi Riwoe’s novella, The Fish Girl, tells of an Indonesian girl whose life is changed irrevocably when she moves from a small fishing village to work in the house of a Dutch merchant. There she finds both hardship and tenderness as her traditional past and colonial present collide. Told with an exquisitely restrained voice and coloured with lush description, this moving book will stay with you long after the last page.

No Way But This: in search of Paul Robeson


Jeff Sparrow - 2017
    Hailed as the most famous African American of his time, he sang with a voice that left audiences weeping, and, for a period, had the entire world at his feet – and then lost everything for the sake of his principles.Robeson’s storied life took him from North Carolina plantations to Hollywood; from the glittering stages of London to the coal-mining towns of Wales; from the violent frontiers of the Spanish Civil War to bleak prison cells in the Soviet Union; from Harlem’s jazz-infused neighbourhoods to the courtroom of the McCarthy hearings. Yet privately Robeson was a troubled figure, burdened by his role as a symbol for the African American people and an international advocate for the working class. His tragedy was to battle ambition and uncertainty, ultimately clinging to his beliefs even as the world changed around him. As optimistic ideals of communism turned to repression under the Cold War, his public decline mirrored that of the world around him.Today Robeson is largely unknown, a figure lost to footnotes and grainy archival footage. But his life, which followed the currents of the twentieth century, reveals how the traumas of the past still shape the present.Jeff Sparrow follows the ghosts and echoes of Robeson’s career, tracing his path through countries and decades, to explore the contemporary resonances of his politics and passions. From Black Lives Matter to Putin’s United Russia, Sparrow explores questions of race and representation in America, political freedom in Moscow, and the legacy of fascism and communism in Europe. Weaving travelogue with biography, In Search of Paul Robeson is a story of political ardour, heritage, and trauma — a luminous portrait of a man and an urgent reflection on the politics that define us today.

Witches and Wine Box Set Books 1-3: Witches Brew / Witches Secrets / Witches Charms


Morgana Best - 2017
     Pepper moves from Sydney to the cozy town of Lighthouse Bay, answering a desperate plea from her aunts to help with their failing Bed and Breakfast business. She discovers her aunts are more eccentric than she remembered, the Bed and Breakfast does not serve breakfast, and the cottages for lease have strange themes. And what’s more, within minutes of her arrival, she stumbles across a dead body. Pepper soon has her hands full, contending with a murder mystery, irritating guests including the enigmatic Lucas O’Callaghan who is convinced every woman wants to fall into his arms, and her aunts, who are hiding more than one dark secret. Who or what lurks in the forbidden room at the end of the dark corridor? Why do the aunts insist she drink copious quantities of special label wine? Find out what awaits Pepper Jasper at Mugwort Manor. Book 2: Witches' Secrets Pepper Jasper thinks she’s had more shocks than anyone should have in one lifetime, yet more secrets lie in wait for her. And when one of the guests is murdered, Pepper discovers a Shifter is closer than she thought. Can Pepper remain hidden from those who wish her harm? In the cozy Australian town of Lighthouse Bay, the weather heats up, but will the romance? Lucas O’Callaghan is hiding something, and Pepper is determined to find out what it is. As trouble brews, Pepper races to shift through the clues, and does her best to stay alive. Book 3: Witches' Charms When Pepper finds the local internet provider representative washed up on the beach and sporting suspicious injures, another Cleaner arrives in town. Is Pepper in his sights? As Lucas does his best to keep Pepper out of harm’s way, she and the aunts sift though the suspects. The trouble is, there are too many—in a town full of poor internet connectivity, no one had a good word for the victim. Pepper is in for a wild ride as Lighthouse Bay exposes its long-held secrets. This is a romantic cozy mystery. There is no bad language and the romance is clean.

Outback Creed


Jonathan Macpherson - 2017
    His skills are put to the test when he and his colleagues head to the outback, hoping to persuade Aboriginal Elders to give up their land to a powerful mining company. The land is worth billions, but the Elders won’t budge, and Tom faces the rare prospect of failure. Yet there are hidden forces at play that will stop at nothing to make sure a deal is done, even if that means taking the life of an Aboriginal boy. When Tom and his colleagues discover the shocking plot, they also become targets, and the result is murder. In his frantic hunt for answers, Tom realizes his most dangerous enemy may be closer than he feared. With relentless killers closing in fast, Tom must uncover the truth…before it’s too late!Award-winning narrator Steve Shanahan (Jane Harper's Bestsellers The Dry, Force of Nature, The Lost Man and more) delivers a riveting performance, bringing the Australian outback and its characters to life in a heart-stopping thriller loaded with action and shocking twists.

Paradise in Chains: The Bounty Mutiny and the Founding of Australia


Diana Preston - 2017
    But few realize that Bligh's escape across the seas was not the only open-boat journey in that era of British exploration and colonization. Indeed, 9 convicts from the Australian penal colony, led by Mary Bryant, also traveled 3,250 miles across the open ocean and some uncharted seas to land at the same port Bligh had reached only months before.In this meticulously researched dual narrative of survival, acclaimed historian Diana Preston provides the background and context to explain the thrilling open-boat voyages each party survived and the Pacific Island nations each encountered on their journey to safety. Through this deep-dive, readers come to understand the Pacific Islands as they were and as they were perceived, and how these seemingly utopian lands became a place where mutineers, convicts, and eventually the natives themselves, were chained.

The Silent Kookaburra


Liza Perrat - 2017
    But Mum does nothing besides housework, Dad’s always down the pub and Nanna Purvis moans at everyone except her dog. Then Shelley arrives –– the miracle baby who fuses the Randall family in love for their little gumnut blossom. Tanya’s life gets even better when she meets an uncle she didn’t know she had. He tells her she’s beautiful and could be a model. Her family refuses to talk about him. But that’s okay, it’s their little secret. Then one blistering summer day tragedy strikes, and the surrounding mystery and suspicion tear apart this fragile family web. Embracing the social changes of 1970s Australia, against a backdrop of native fauna and flora, The Silent Kookaburra is a haunting exploration of the blessings, curses and tyranny of memory. Unsettling psychological suspense blending the intensity of Wally Lamb with the atmosphere of Peter James, this story will get under your skin.

In Search of Good Government: Great Expectations & Political Amnesia


Laura Tingle - 2017
    What has happened to good government? Can Malcolm Turnbull apply the lessons of the past to put things right? When leaders surf the wave of discontentment all the way to power, how do they deal with our great expectations?In her crisp, profound and witty essays, Laura Tingle seeks answers to these questions. In Political Amnesia, she ranges from ancient Rome to the demoralised state of the once-great Australian public service, from the jingoism of the past to the tabloid scandals of the internet age. In Great Expectations, Tingle shows how since the deregulation era of the 1980s, governments can do less, but we wish they could do more, leading to anger, frustration and disengagement.In Search of Good Government also contains a major new essay that analyses recent events under Turnbull’s leadership and brings the story up to date.

The Enigmatic Mr Deakin


Judith Brett - 2017
    It brings out from behind the image of a worthy, bearded father of federation the gifted, passionate and intriguing man whose contributions continue to shape the contours of Australian politics.The acclaimed political scientist Judith Brett scrutinises both Deakin’s public life and his inner life. Deakin’s private papers reveal a solitary, religious character who found distasteful much of the business of politics, with its unabashed self-interest, double-dealing, and mediocre intellectual levels. And yet politics is where Deakin chose to do his life’s work.Destined to become a classic of biography, The Enigmatic Mr Deakin is a masterly portrait of a complex man who was instrumental in creating modern Australia.

From Moulin Rouge to Gaudi's City (Someday Travels Book 1)


E.J. Bauer - 2017
    Having always suppressed her travel longings, she opens her neglected 'someday' ledger and takes a much closer look at the contents. After an opportune invitation from a friend to meet in Paris, and her sister’s enthusiastic agreement to be part of the adventure, a plan begins to take shape. Join the Australian trio as they savour the sights of France and Spain, where no trip is complete without a morsel of local cuisine and a sip of something sparkling.

First Dog on the Moon's Guide to Living Through the Impending Apocalypse and How to Stay Nice Doing It


First Dog on the Moon - 2017
    Never have so many worked so hard to bring about the end of life as we know it, but what to wear? When Armageddon arrives, will it still be okay to walk around in your underpants? Full of handy tips on what to pack, where to go and how to wave a cricket bat menacingly when interlopers try to steal the family pets that you were saving for dinner, this gentle book is fun for all the family. If you don't buy it, you will probably be eaten by an enormous mutant Nazi tapeworm the size of a school bus. So when the 'SHTF', don't say we didn't warn you, and don't come to the First Dog On the Moon Institute bunker, because there isn't one, it is a secret.

The Mighty West: The Bulldogs' Journey from Daydream Believers to Premiership Heroes


Kerrie Soraghan - 2017
    It was an unprecedented rise to success, capped by a stunning Grand Final victory that left players and fans alike shedding tears of joy. Kerrie Soraghan – blogging as the Bulldog Tragician – captured all the passion and drama of the remarkable win.At the end of the 2014 season the club had been in chaos: the captain had walked out, and the board had given the coach his marching orders. Led by a new captain and coach, Robert Murphy and Luke Beveridge, and boasting a team of talented youngsters, the club came together in spectacular fashion, overcoming serious injuries and storming to the Premiership from seventh on the ladder.The Bulldogs’ best asset has always been their diehard supporters, and none is more passionate than the Bulldog Tragician. The Mighty West chronicles the experience of the team and of the fans – a tale of family and belonging, western suburbs tribalism, and the romance of sport.

Dr Boogaloo and The Girl Who Lost Her Laughter


Lisa Nicol - 2017
    Not at all like the one you might visit if you had a sore tummy. No, Dr Boogaloo was a very different type of doctor. He treated folks who suffered from rather unusual complaints. And how did he treat them? Why, with the most powerful medicine known to mankind . . . Music!Blue was no ordinary girl. For starters, her name was Blue. But what was truly extraordinary about Blue was the fact that she hadn’t laughed for 712 days. Not a hee hee, a ho ho or even a tiny tee hee.According to Dr Boogaloo, music can cure anything. (Of course, you need the right dose of the right music. No point listening to a jive if you’re in need of some boogie-woogie, and you can’t just substitute a toot for a blow!) But no laughter was definitely a case for alarm.Can Dr Boogaloo compose a cure before Blue loses her laughter forever?

Fear of Abandonment: Australia in the World Since 1942


Allan Gyngell - 2017
    He shows how the Australian attitude to the world has been shaped by the fear of abandonment – originally from Britain, and later from our most powerful ally, the United States.Written by an expert and insider, this is a gripping and authoritative book about the way Australians and their governments have helped to create the world we now inhabit. Covering events, eras and conflicts as diverse as the Malayan Emergency, the White Australia Policy, the Vietnam War, Whitlam in China, apartheid in South Africa, East Timor and the current South China Sea dispute, Fear of Abandonment ultimately reveals the ways in which we’ve evolved as a nation on the world stage.

Unbreakable: Women Share Stories of Resilience and Hope


Jane Caro - 2017
    Every woman has a story of survival. In this revealingly honest collection, successful Australian women talk about the challenges they have overcome, from sexual assault and domestic violence to racism, miscarriage, depression and loss, and how they let the past go to move forward with their lives. Courageously, the contributors delve deep into how these experiences made them feel, what the personal cost was and why they may have chosen to remain quiet until now.

The Power of Good People, Surviving Sri Lanka's Civil War


Para Paheer - 2017
    Nearly three decades later it ended in appalling horror and bloodshed. Tens of thousands of innocent civilians died. Survival required courage, ingenuity – and the kindness of strangers.This is Para’s story of survival against all odds.

The Currency Lass


Tea Cooper - 2017
    What she doesn't understand is why her father is trying to push her into a marriage to the pompous and repulsive Sydney businessman Henry W. Bartholomew.When the will is read it becomes clear money, or the lack of it, lay behind her father's plans. Catherine is mortified — as a married woman all her possessions will pass to her husband, the overbearing Bartholomew. Her only alternative is to wait until her twenty-first birthday and inherit the property in her own right, but can she elude such a determined man until then?A chance encounter with a travelling circus and its fiery lead performer, Sergey Petrov, offers the perfect solution and Catherine escapes to the goldfields. But there is more to the circus than spangles and sawdust and Catherine finds herself drawn into a far-reaching web of fraud and forgery...A stunning new novel from the bestselling author of The Horse Thief and The Cedar Cutter

Come Home, You Little Bastards


Carl Beauchamp - 2017
    That care turned out to be a nightmare, with the boys placed in separate boys’ homes, and in Carl’s case in the hands of sexual predators. The boys survived, but Carl kept the horrors he had endured secret, even from his brother, for decades. When Carl found the strength to speak out, he discovered the tragic aftermath of life in the Church of England Charlton Boys’ Home for many of his fellow inmates. Despite the adversity and the pain, Carl’s story is overwhelmingly optimistic and heartwarming. It contains recollections of 1940s and ’50s Sydney that will intrigue anyone who loves Newtown, Glebe and the surrounding suburbs, and is told in his own authentic voice.

Angels Landing: A memoir


Christina Sadler - 2017
    Sales have so far proved to be astonishing. People have said that they have laughed and cried their way through the book and have finished feeling inspired to 'conquer the world'.

Daughter Of The Murray


Darry Fraser - 2017
    Unlike the rest of the family, she isn’t looking forward to the return of prodigal son Dane. With good reason. Dane MacHenry is furious when on his return he finds his homestead in grave decline. Unaware that his father has been drinking his way through his inheritance, he blames Georgina and Georgina decides she has no option but to leave. Unfortunately she chooses Dane’s horse to flee on, and when Dane learns she has stolen his prized stallion, he gives chase. From this point their fates become intertwined with that of a businessman with a dark secret, Conor Foley, who offers Georgina apparent security: a marriage with status in the emerging nouveau-riche echelons of Melbourne.  But none of them could imagine the toll the changing political and social landscape would have on homes, hearts and families. Will Georgina’s path lead her into grave danger and unhappiness, or will she survive and fulfil her destiny? Praise for DAUGHTER OF THE MURRAY:'I enjoyed the intertwining of historical fact with fiction, and the exploration of women’s rights in Australia through the eyes of an impetuous young woman who, one can imagine by the end of the story, will contribute in no small way to the fight for women’s suffrage.' — Susanne Bellamy (Netgalley)'It’s a great read whose current flows strongly like the Mighty Murray after some much needed rain.' — Catherine Murphy (Netgalley)

The Mckinnels of Jewell Rock


Rachael Johns - 2017
    

Not for the Faint-hearted: A Personal Reflection on Life, Politics and Purpose 1957-2007


Kevin Rudd - 2017
    In doing so he also defeated, and unseated, John Howard, the longest-serving conservative prime minister since Menzies.So who was the man behind the phenomenal success of the Kevin07 campaign? This Mandarin-speaking professional diplomat, committed Christian and self-described policy wonk, who grew up as the son of a dairy farmer in rural Queensland to become the 26th prime minister of Australia?While journalists, the professional commentariat and Rudd's political foes have together felled forests writing about the 'real' Kevin Rudd, until now he has refused to provide any written response to his many critics. That changes with this volume, which takes us to his election as prime minister in 2007. This is the first time we hear from the man himself, in his own words, about what makes him tick.With a level of self-reflection, and a capacity for sending himself up that is rarely seen in political autobiography, Rudd chronicles a childhood shaped by the love of his mother and tragically disrupted by the death of his father when he was eleven - an event that left the family without a home or an income, and which would foster in him a visceral passion for social justice, and the foundations of his own political vision.He tells of his years as a budding China scholar, his many misadventures as a young diplomat in Stockholm and Beijing, his marriage to the remarkable Thérèse Rein and the centrality of his tight-knit family to both his private and public lives. He takes us through his years as Queensland's most powerful public servant during the days of the Goss government, and the soul-destroying moment of losing his first election to Federal Parliament in 1996, before finally prevailing through the maze of Labor factional politics to win his seat in 1998.Rudd's account of the next nine long years in Opposition lays bare the inner workings of our national politics, including the absurdities of the factional system, the essential nature of Australian conservatism, and the arrogance of the Howard government, culminating in Howard's two greatest follies: the decision to take Australia to war in Iraq, and the introduction of WorkChoices. He also describes the monumental task of wresting office from a conservative prime minister who tried every trick in the book to hold on to power.Rudd also carefully chronicles the evolution of his own deepest beliefs, values and political convictions over many decades, long before his entry to Parliament. He describes his book as 'an essay in encouragement' for those considering a public life who are committed to changing the world for the many, not the few, but are uncertain if they have the stomach for it.This is an optimistic book, written with passion, conviction and insight. It is the first in a two-volume autobiography. It covers the unlikely rise of the 'boy from Eumundi' to the most powerful office in the land.

For a Girl: A true story of secrets, motherhood and hope


Mary-Rose MacColl - 2017
    Secrets are different from privacy. They are things you are forced to keep to yourself, by family, friends, by your own shame. Secrets like these come to the surface one day and demand an airing.Emerging from an unconventional, boisterously happy childhood, Mary-Rose MacColl was a rebellious teenager. And when, at the age of fifteen, her high-school teacher and her husband started inviting Mary-Rose to spend time with them, her parents were pleased that she now had the guidance she needed to take her safely into young adulthood.It wasn't too long, though, before the teacher and her husband changed the nature of the relationship with overwhelming consequences for Mary-Rose. Consequences that kept her silent and ashamed through much of her adult life. Many years later, safe within a loving relationship, all of the long-hidden secrets and betrayals crashed down upon her and she came close to losing everything.In this poignant and brave true story, Mary-Rose brings these secrets to the surface and, in doing so, is finally able to watch them float away.

Little Fish Are Sweet


Matthew Condon - 2017
    I recall conversation getting around to payments of money with Murphy and Lewis. Lewis thanked me on several occasions and said ‘Little fish are sweet." —Jack ‘The Bagman’ Herbert in evidence to the Fitzgerald Inquiry 1988. Little Fish Are Sweet is Matthew Condon’s extraordinary personal account of writing the Three Crooked Kings trilogy. When Condon first interviewed disgraced former police commissioner Terry Lewis, he had no idea that it would be the start of a turbulent six-year journey. As hundreds of people came forward to share their powerful and sometimes shocking stories, decades of crime and corruption were revealed in a new light.  Risking threats and intimidation, Condon tirelessly pursued his investigations into a web of cold murder cases and past conspiracies. What he discovered is much more sinister than anyone could have imagined.

A Bold Life


Kerri-Anne Kennerley - 2017
    But behind the glamour of a public life is a private woman. And a survivor. A Bold Life is the tale of a Sandgate girl who chased her dream of being a cabaret star to New York, only to find herself stranded in a violent marriage to a dangerous drug addict. It's the journey of a unique and driven woman who built a remarkable 50-year career in one of the most fickle and male-dominated industries of all, and instigated some of the most iconic moments in Australian TV history along the way.Yet away from the spotlight Kerri-Anne has stared down a series of personal crises with grace and dignity, the latest in 2016 when a freak fall left John, her devoted husband of 33 years, a quadriplegic. On their long road to recovery Kerri-Anne found herself reflecting on a lifetime's memories, good and bad.Honest, fabulous, powerful and poignant, this is Kerri-Anne Kennerley's own extraordinary and inspiring story of A Bold Life.

1917


Kelly Gardiner - 2017
    They flew fast fighting craft streaking across the sky in tight formation. The greatest of them was the Red Baron, the deadliest ace on the Front. He'd shot down twenty-one of our planes in a single month. And now were were in his firing line. 'The war in France rages in the skies, and support for the war in Australia turns cold. Alex flies high above the trenches of the Western Front, while a world away his sister Maggie finds herself in the midst of political upheaval. Somehow, both must find the courage to fight on.For readers 9 and over.'A moving, evocative story of what it takes to be a hero, on the battle field and on the home front: courage, compassion and the will to make a difference. A fitting tribute to the Australian women and men who put their lives on the line for what they believed to be right and true, whether that be war or peace. Kelly Gardiner skillfully traverses the no man’s land between freedom and captivity; instinct and intellect; dumb luck and blind faith; devotion and duty.'– Dr Clare Wright, Winner of the 2014 Stella Prize for The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka

The Woolgrower’s Companion


Joy Rhoades - 2017
    All the local, able-bodied young men, including the husband Kate barely knows, have enlisted and Kate’s father is struggling with his debts and his wounds from the Great War. He borrows recklessly from the bank and enlists two Italian prisoners of war to live and work on the station.With their own scars and their defiance, the POWs Luca and Vittorio offer an apparent threat to Kate and Daisy, the family’s young Aboriginal maid. But danger comes from surprising corners and Kate finds herself more drawn to Luca than afraid of him.Scorned bank managers, snobbish neighbours and distant husbands expect Kate to fail and give up her home but over the course of a dry, desperate year she finds within herself reserves of strength and rebellion that she could never have expected.The Woolgrower’s Companion is the gripping story of one woman’s fight to save her home and a passionate tribute to Australia’s landscape and its people.

The Harbour: A city's heart, a country's soul


Scott Bevan - 2017
    And essential for anyone who loves Sydney Harbour ... And who doesn’t?’Ken DoneIn the bestselling tradition of Peter Ackroyd's The Thames, a celebration of one of the world’s great waterways. Everyone knows Sydney Harbour. At least, we think we do. Everyone can see the harbour, whether we have ever been to Sydney or not. By as little as a word or two, the harbour floats into our mind’s eye. The Bridge. The Opera House. Fireworks on New Year’s Eve. When we see those images, we feel a sense of belonging. No matter who we are or where we’re from, we see the harbour and we feel good. In this beautiful, authoritative and meditative journey, Scott Bevan takes us from cove to cove, by kayak, yacht and barge to gather the harbour’s stories, past and present, from boat builders, ship captains and fishermen to artists, divers, historians and environmentalists, from signs of ancient life to the submarine invasion by the Japanese and the natural beauty that inspires people every day. This is the ultimate story of Sydney Harbour – a city’s heart and a country's soul.

Us Women, Our Ways, Our World


Pat Dudgeon - 2017
    The collection engages with questions such as: What makes Aboriginal women strong? Why are grandmothers so important (even ones never met)? How is the connection to country different for Aboriginal people compared to non-Aboriginal people’s love of nature or sense of belonging to an area? What is Aboriginal spirituality? These writings are generous, inclusive and considerate of the non-Aboriginal reader’s feelings. They are hopeful for the future, with an emphasis on acknowledging, joining, collaborating and caring. From the Introduction: “The value that Aboriginal women place on relationships emanates throughout the book.

The Islamic Republic of Australia


Sami Shah - 2017
    The answers are both multitudinous and surprising, resulting in a fascinating multi-faceted and entertaining portrait of Islam in Australia today.

The Pacifist


Mehreen Ahmed - 2017
    Unsure of what to do next, Peter finds himself on a farm run by Mr. Brown. An aging man, Brown needs help and is happy to give Peter a place to live in exchange for his labor. Unbeknownst to Peter, Brown’s past is riddled with dark secrets tied to the same orphanage, which he has documented in a red folder.During a chance encounter, Peter meets Rose. Peter cannot help but fall in love with her beauty, grace, and wit but fears that his affection will go unrequited as a result of his crippling poverty. But fate changes when Peter joins the search for gold in Hill End, New South Wales. Striking it rich, he returns to Rose a wealthy man. Peter is changed by his newfound affluence, heading towards the mire of greed. Will Rose regret her relationship with Peter? Meanwhile, Rose has her own troubled history. One that is deeply entwined with Brown’s past and Peter’s future.

The Scientist in the Early Roman Empire


Richard C. Carrier - 2017
    Richard Carrier explores the social history of scientists in the Roman era. Was science in decline or experiencing a revival under the Romans? What was an ancient scientist thought to be and do? Who were they, and who funded their research? And how did pagans differ from their Christian peers in their views toward science and scientists? Some have claimed Christianity valued them more than their pagan forebears. In fact the reverse is the case. And this difference in values had a catastrophic effect on the future of humanity. The Romans may have been just a century or two away from experiencing a scientific revolution. But once in power, Christianity kept that progress on hold for a thousand years—while forgetting most of what the pagans had achieved and discovered, from an empirical anatomy, physiology, and brain science to an experimental physics of water, gravity, and air. Thoroughly referenced and painstakingly researched, this volume is a must for anyone who wants to learn how far we once got, and why we took so long to get to where we are today.

Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters


Margo Neale - 2017
    Through artworks, stories and in-depth analysis, this book provides an important resource for those interested in knowing more about these complex pathways of spiritual, ecological, economic, cultural and ontological knowledge - the stories ‘written in the land’

Joseph Banks' Florilegium: Botanical Treasures from Cook's First Voyage


Mel Gooding - 2017
    A gifted and wealthy young naturalist, Banks collected exotic flora from Madeira, Brazil, Tierra del Fuego, the Society Islands, New Zealand, Australia, and Java, bringing back over 1,300 species that had never been seen or studied by Europeans.Upon his return, Banks commissioned more than 700 engravings between 1772 and 1784. Known collectively as Banks’ Florilegium, they are some of the most precise and exquisite examples of botanical illustration ever created. The Florilegium was never published in Banks’ lifetime, and it was not until 1990 that a complete set in color was issued in a boxed edition (limited to 100 copies) under the direction of the British Museum. The present selection is from these prints, directed by botanist David Mabberley, who has provided expert commentaries, with additional texts by art historian Mel Gooding, setting the works in context as a perfect conjunction of nature, science, and art. An afterword by Joe Studholme describes the history of the modern printing.

The Best Australian Essays 2017


Anna GoldsworthyHarriet Riley - 2017
    In her debut as editor of the anthology, award-winning author Anna Goldsworthy chooses brilliant pieces that provoke, unveil, engage and enlighten. From the election of Donald Trump to digital disruption, from the passing of rock gods to the wonders of Australian slang, these essays get to the heart of what’s happening in Australia and the world.Contributors include Shannon Burns, Barry Humphries, Stan Grant, Keane Shum, Richard Cooke, Nick Feik, Michael Adams, Micheline Lee, Mandy Sayer, Tim Flannery, Sonya Hartnett, Harriet Riley, John Clarke, Jennifer Rutherford, Amanda Niehaus, Sam Vincent, Lech Blaine, Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Moreno Giovannoni, Janine Mikosza, Melissa Howard, Helen Garner, James Wood, J.M. Coetzee, Robert Skinner, Sebastian Smee and Anwen Crawford.

Rubik


Elizabeth Tan - 2017
    She persists: as a set of corneas, as a newsletter subscriber, as a member of fanfiction forums. Her best friend Jules Valentine meanwhile is unwittingly inveigled into an indie-film turned corporate branding stunt. When Jules leaks information about the true story behind the video – by then an overworked viral meme – wannabe investigative reporter April Kuan is assigned the case. But as April trails Jules all over Perth she too becomes ensnared in the machinations of shady corporate interests as the very laws of physics and time begin to bend. Rubik is a wide-ranging, brilliantly intertwined novel-in-stories that slips outside the borders of realism. Spotted with disappearances, mysteries and told with a sharp-edged wit and cutting social commentary, it is an original and ingenious reflection of technological anxiety, loneliness and connectivity in the internet age.

Ridgeview Station


Michael Trant - 2017
    An unforgettable season. A family's fight to save their livelihood. A sweeping tale of love and loss, and the highs and lows of life on the land, from an utterly authentic new voice in rural fiction.The debut novel by Michael Trant. Many of Peter and Kelsie Dalton's friends thought they were crazy when they bought Ridgeview Station. But five years on, their hard work, help from Kelsie's parents, and record rainfall have them in high spirits as the summer muster approaches.Realising they're going to need more help this season, Peter rings around the neighbouring stations to try and find a good worker. After a glowing recommendation, Alexi arrives to give them a hand - and is not at all what they'd expected ...Everything is going smoothly with the muster before disaster strikes and the Dalton's find themselves battling to save their livestock, their property and their lives.An entertaining yarn set on a vast outback property peopled with colourful and authentic characters, Ridgeview Station is about love, loss and the spirit of the bush.

Bella and Chaim: The Story of Beauty and Life


Sara Rena Vidal - 2017
    I haven’t read anything quite like it before.” Lisa Hill ANZLitLovers. “Wonderful book; deeply researched, scholarly, heartfelt and well written.” Emeritus Professor Roger Fay, University of Tasmania‘This memoir ... refuses to defer to hate and yearns to inspire a more humane future.” Emeritus Professor Richard Freadman, LaTrobe University. “… a beautiful way to end, so full of a sense of our common humanity and our connection to everything on this planet if we are open to it.” India Bell, SydneyIn which my longing for that which is lostas well as for that which might yet be as told from memory fragments, journal jottings, and delving into history past and present, intertwining with my parents’ stories of more than survival, traverses despair to find transformation, home, and gratitude. So the generations will know, and choose life – after all it is a commandment.For Bella and Chaim. And for those to come.Encompassing the inspirational true story of Bella and Chaim, the author’s parents, with the intergenerational trauma of being a child of survivors, this memoir of love, loss and gratitude, is a testament to the human spirit as well as a call to rise above: ashes, victimhood, and generalizations.Bella and Chaim met and fell in love in the Warsaw Ghetto where they witnessed the destruction of a way of life; sole survivors of both their families, they endured entombment for eighteen months before rescue, liberation, and immigration to begin anew in Australia.A flowing collage embracing and mingling survivor-memory, recorded and analyzed historical context, and memory-fragments of Melbourne in the 1950s, with real-time musings on the light, dark, and potential of being alive. Honoring the murdered and the righteous, reminding us that our choices matter, ever present are the dilemma’s and challenges facing us today. Augmented with photos, maps, a chapter on sources, bibliography, endnotes and an index, this book can be read as an inspirational story and/or utilized as a well-researched resource for in-depth study.

The Making of Christina


Meredith Jaffe - 2017
    Jackson Plummer quickly becomes the cure to Christina's loneliness and a surrogate father to her young daughter Bianca.When Jackson suggests moving to a run-down farm in the mountains, Christina is uncertain about uprooting their lives in the city. She soon forgets her hesitation, absorbing herself in restoring the rambling century-old house, Bartholomews Run, and becoming obsessed with solving its mysterious history.But while living on the isolated farm, her once effervescent child transforms into a quiet sullen teenager and Christina increasingly struggles to connect with her.Because Bianca has a secret. And the monstrous truth threatens to destroy them all.Poignant and thought-provoking, The Making of Christina will have you questioning how well you know the people you love, the price of truth, and how easily it could happen to you.

Framed! A Young Boy's Fight to Survive in the Wild Australian Bush


M.E. Skeel - 2017
    He lives rough on the streets of Sydney until his father is pardoned. Together, they begin a new life and open a butcher shop. Richard’s job is to bring in beasts for slaughter. At 15 he is framed for stealing cattle and sentenced to hang. He escapes into the vast and dangerous Australian wilderness and has to survive or die with only his indomitable will to help him. How he eventually triumphs and succeeds in life is a “ripping good yarn”.

My Angel the Devil


Dan Agbeje - 2017
    All things fall apart as ungodly fanatical violence sweeps through the region making Fatima tap into a strong sense of defiance that almost sends her mad. As the world burns, follow a town’s desperate struggle for survival. My Angel the Devil is a tale of love and hatred, survival and brutality, and the strength of the human spirit.

John Curtin's War The coming of war in the Pacific, and reinventing Australia


John Edwards - 2017
    As Japan sank much of the Allied navy, advanced on the great British naval base at Singapore, and seized Australian territories in New Guinea, Curtin remade Australia.Using much new material John Edwards’ vivid, landmark biography places Curtin as a man of his times, puzzling through he immense changes in Australia and its region released by the mighty shock of the Pacific War.It shows Curtin not as a hero and certainly not as a villain but as the pivotal figure making his uncertain way between what Australia was, and what it would become. It locates the turning point in Australian history not at Gallipoli or the Western Front or even Federation but in the Pacific War and in Curtin’s Prime Ministership.This two volume work is a major contribution to Australian biography, and to how we understand our history. In this first part, Edwards takes Curtin’s story from the late nineteenth century socialist ferment in Melbourne through to his appointment as prime minister and a Japanese onslaught so complete and successful that within a few months of launching it military leaders in Tokyo debated between the options of invading Australia, or sealing it off from Allied help.

A Thoroughly Unhelpful History of Australian Sport


Titus O'Reily - 2017
    Completely, irrationally insane. It’s the closest thing we have to a culture. From Don Bradman’s singular focus to Steven Bradbury’s heroic not falling over, sport has shaped our sense of self.But how did we get here? Part history, part social commentary and a lot of nonsense, Titus O’Reily, Australia’s least insightful sports writer, explains.Covering Australian Rules, League, Union, soccer, cricket, the Olympics and much more, Titus tackles the big topics, like:· How not to cheat the salary cap· The importance of kicking people in the shins· The many shortcomings of the EnglishTitus takes you through the characters, the pub meetings, the endless acronyms, the corruption and the alarming number of footballers caught urinating in public. Sport is important – gloriously stupid, but important. To understand Australia you must understand its sporting history. With this guide you sort of, kind of, will.

The Journey: My Story, from Backyard Cricket to Australian Captain


Steve Smith - 2017
    From childhood backyard cricket with mates and family, and net sessions with his dad that laid the foundations for his later success, Steve traces the influences and events that started him on his cricket journey.He takes us inside his quest to play cricket at the highest level, from formative club and grade games, to his first overseas experiences, and finally to state cricket and the Australian squad. It's a journey with both ups and downs, where valuable and lasting lessons were learned from the successes and, more importantly, the failures.And Steve compellingly describes the key moments that shaped him into the cricketer and leader he is today, from his definitive hundred at Centurion in South Africa, to the soul-searching and resolve that accompanied the Australian team's lowest point in the 2016 Hobart Test, to the epic 2017 series in India.The Journey is a revealing and fascinating insight into Steve Smith-the cricketer and the man.

On John Marsden


Alice Pung - 2017
    What makes him so fascinating to me is that as a young adult writer, he comes at it with a whole philosophy of what it means to be a teenager – it is embedded in his two schools, but also his early experiences with mental illness and hospitalisation. It brings interesting questions for an author of YA fiction – how much darkness is allowed, before you are considered a ‘bad influence’?”Offering a personal take, Alice Pung entertains and enlightens. This is a book to cherish about writers and writing.In the Writers on Writers series, leading writers reflect on another Australian writer who has inspired and fascinated them. Provocative, crisp and written from a practitioner’s perspective, the series starts a fresh conversation between past and present, and writer and reader. It sheds light on the craft of writing, and introduces some intriguing and talented authors and their work.

Breaking the Mould


Angela Pippos - 2017
    Where recently horses received more media coverage than female athletes, women are now commanding attention with undeniable performances and fierce determination. Through personal tales from a lifetime in sport, as well as interviews with pioneering athletes and administrators, journalist Angela Pippos provides a fascinating insight into the seismic shift occurring in the games we play. Breaking the Mould is a timely, entertaining and compelling reminder of why we must level the playing field permanently, so that every woman has the opportunity to become her sporting best.

Wanderers No More


Michelle Saftich - 2017
    The shores of Australia are calling to them and they head off, packing dreams of jobs, a home and … soccer.But from the moment they get off the boat, adapting to the Australian way of life is harder than it seems. Their family doesn’t speak right, eat right or even look right. As they struggle to build a simple life against the backdrop of 1950s racism, they start to wonder if they will be outsiders forever.A true family affair, Wanderers No More will make you laugh, remind you of your family, and warm your heart.

Australia's Impressionists


Christopher Riopelle - 2017
    All were key players in a distinctively Australian art movement that drew on influences ranging from Whistler’s subtle Nocturnes to the European tradition of plein air painting, and revealed Russell (who spent his working life in France, embedded in the avant garde) as one of the outstanding colorists of his time. This beautiful book challenges our preconceptions of what is meant by Impressionism, enriches our understanding of Australian art, and reveals the international nature of art-historical movements and exchanges in the 19th century. The story is framed by unmistakably Australian subjects and locations, by a preoccupation with light and color, and in the context of Australian identity and sense of nationhood.

Big Bad Blood


Dave Warner - 2017
    Ned Kelly Award Winner (2016) Dave Warner's complex, enthralling (1997) novel twenty years ahead of its time with issues of Church cover ups, transgender, drugs and police corruption in the steamy world of 1965 Sydney: The Beatles on every radio, Tommy Smith and George Moore dominating the racetrack and a psychotic serial killer on the loose. As a teenager Detective Ray Shearer lost his parents in an arson attack on a holiday cottage. Twenty-years on he's still searching for the killer and his life's a mess with a broken marriage and a sullied reputation as a standover man for Sydney's best known criminal George Shaloub. Fate gives Shearer a break: if he can solve the recent murders he can finally get in the Arson squad with a real chance to find his parents' killers. The only person he is close to is his brother Patrick, on a soaring trajectory within the Catholic church and about to be tapped for a prestigious job at the Vatican. Inexorably, Ray's investigations will bring him into conflict with his brother. John Gordon is an idealistic new recruit on the police force with a normal life in the suburbs. All that changes quickly while on the beat in the sex and gambling mecca Kings Cross. First he comes to the aid of a beautiful young woman, Sue Foley, the transgender girlfriend of Shaloub, next he is one of the first on the scene at the brutal murder of one of Shaloub's prostitutes, the first of a series of murders that hark back to an earlier case of a child-killer long dead. Gordon finds himself under Shearer's wing attempting to conduct their private investigation of the serial killings while his private life swirls around sex, drugs and political treachery. Shearer and Gordon are both trapped in a whirlpool of shame, guilt and hate. Only by confronting their own darkest secrets can they find the means to escape. Only by allowing themselves to be baptised in the river of Big Bad Blood can they save or be saved. And Big Bad Blood is a river that twists and plunges and surges when you least expect. For the reader this is the literary equivalent of white-water rafting, relentlessly, powerful, dangerous and unseen currents that will give you the ride of your life.

Hey, Baby!: A Collection of Pictures, Poems, and Stories from Nature's Nursery


Stephanie Drimmer - 2017
    Get up close to adorable baby animals – from the teensiest turtle hatchling to the biggest baby whales; from black bear cubs frolicking free in the Rocky Mountains to a kangaroo joey lounging safely in its mother's pouch. Readers will ooh and aah over the cute baby pictures, sweet stories, folktales, and poems in this lovely keepsake book. Ideal for reading to sleepy little ones!

'Me Write Myself’: The Free Aboriginal Inhabitants of Van Diemen’s Land at Wybalenna, 1832–47


Leonie Stevens - 2017
    The fate of the First Nations peoples of Van Diemen’s Land is one of the most infamous chapters in Australian, and world, history. The men, women and children exiled to Flinders Island in the 1830s and 40s have often been written about, but never allowed to speak for themselves. This book aims to change that. Penned by the exiles during their fifteen years at the settlement called Wybalenna, items in the Flinders Island Chronicle, sermons, letters and petitions offer a compelling corrective to traditional portrayals of a hopeless, dispossessed, illiterate people’s final days. The exiles did not see themselves as prisoners, but as a Free People. Seen through their own writing, the community at Wybalenna was vibrant, complex and evolving. Rather than a depressed people simply waiting for death, their own words reveal a politically astute community engaged in a fifteen year campaign for their own freedom: one which was ultimately successful.‘Me Write Myself’ is a compelling story that will profoundly affect understandings of Tasmanian and Australian history.

Cooking with Kindness


Pam Ahern - 2017
    Here, 50 generous chefs from around Australia share their secret recipes for cruelty-free cooking, from breakfast bowls and pancakes to vegan ‘comfort food’, mains and decadent desserts.Featuring Matcha Mylkbar, Vegie Bar, Smith & Daughters, Transformer, Soul Burger, Elixiba, Pana Chocolate, The Raw Kitchen and many more.All royalties from the sale of Cooking with Kindness go to Edgar’s Mission, a not-for-profit sanctuary that provides a safe haven for over 450 rescued farmed animals.

An Uncommon Woman


Nicole Alexander - 2017
    . .It’s 1929, and the world is changing. Cars are no longer the privilege of the rich. Hemlines are rising. Movies are talking. And more and more women are entering the workforce.For Edwina Baker, however, life on her family’s farm in Western Queensland offers little opportunity to be anything other than daughter, sister and, perhaps soon, wife.But Edwina wants more. She wants to see the world, meet new people, achieve things. For while she has more business sense than her younger brother, it will be Aiden who one day inherits the farm.Then the circus comes to town. Banned from attending by her father, Hamilton, Edwina defiantly rides to the showground dressed as a boy. There she encounters two men who will both inadvertently alter the course of her life: pastoralist Mason with his modern city friends; and Will, a labourer who also dreams of escape.And when the night ends in near-disaster, this one act of rebellion strikes at the heart of the Baker family. Yet it also offers Edwina the rare chance to prove herself in a man’s world. The question is, how far is she prepared to go, and how much is she prepared to risk?

The Long and Winding Way to the Top: Fifty (or so) Songs That Made Australia


Andrew P. Street - 2017
    He does it with intelligence and humour, not to mention an acid wit.' - Jimmy BarnesWhich band is Australia's premier act for drunk men to hug to? Which dance floor smash owes its existence to an elderly Canadian stand-up team? How does housing affordability threaten Australian rock? Which surprising artist is technically Australia's arguably-more-successful Beatles? Which of our alternative national anthems were written by Americans? What ultra-Australian song cut 'Vegemite' from its lyrics for being too on the nose? And most importantly, what's with all the bagpipes?Andrew P Street-writer, critic and obsessive Australian music weirdo-tries to answer these and many, many, many other questions you never thought to waste time asking in this history of Australia in 50 songs (or so). Deeply cheeky, unashamedly nostalgic and endlessly enthusiastic, this is a dive into our national playlist from the birth of rock'n'roll to the reign of Australian hip hop and just about everything in between. 'Andrew P Street book is a pithy, funny and accurate look at 50 famous Australian songs and quite frankly any lover of Aussie music would be sorely amiss if he did not take a good squiz at this book with Street's interesting and often irreverent stories of how each of these songs came to be.' - Steve Kilbey, The Church'Andrew P Street is a ridiculously infectious writer. His tone can be sharp and impertinent and he can be quirky but in the end he is authentic, original and writes his astute observations with beautiful clarity.' - Lindy Morrison, the Go-Betweens'Humour, candour and big heartedness in music writing? Blow me down. You've always been a good 'un Street. Walk on.' - Tim Rogers, You Am I

Pip and Houdini


J.C. Jones - 2017
    She’s been settled with the Brownings, who are planning to adopt her-at least, that’s until Pip gets into trouble once again! Now, Pip is sure she won’t find a home with the Brownings. There’s only one place she might belong, and that’s with her mother. With her faithful hound Houdini by her side, Pip sets off north, to find out once and for all what became of Cass.It’s a journey filled with interesting people, including a mysteriously musical young woman and a friendly, sun-bitten surfer. But as Pip draws ever-closer to Byron Bay, is she prepared for what she will find when she gets there?Once again this girl as skinny as a piece of string proves that adventure is where you choose to find it and a little bit of kindness can go a long way!Pip and Houdini is a warm-hearted adventure story about a feisty girl and her escape-artist dog exploring the world.

Say yes : a story of friendship, fairness and a vote for hope


Jennifer Castles - 2017
    They did everything together. As they got older they weren't allowed to do the same things anymore. Because they looked different. Because of the law...This is a story about the landmark 1967 Referendum, the two women who came together to change the law ... and how the Australian people said YES.A story about how the events surrounding the historic 1967 Referendum played out in the everyday lives of two young girls

The Anzac Tree


Chrsitina Booth - 2017
    Inspired by the story of two soldiers who planted two trees on their farm before they headed to the Great War, the story of the Anzac Tree is one that looks at the lives of those left behind in times of war

The Honest History Book


Alison Broinowski - 2017
    We must separate myth from reality – and to do that we need to reassess the historical evidence surrounding military myths.

Lunar Inheritance


Lachlan Brown - 2017
    Meanwhile, her Asian-Australian grandson travels to China for the first time, wary of the revelations that the trip might offer, as he tries to make sense of his own Chinese and Anglo-Australian background. In Guangzhou, Kaiping, Shanghai, and Beijing, amidst the incessant construction and consumption of twenty-first-century China, a shadowy heritage reveals and withholds itself, while the suburbs he knows from back home are threaded into the cities he visits, forming an intricately braided Chinese-Australian inheritance. Lachlan Brown grew up in Macquarie Fields in South West Sydney. His first collection, Limited Cities (Giramondo, 2012), was commended for the Mary Gilmore Award. His poems have been shortlisted and highly commended for the Gwen Harwood Poetry Prize, the Canberra Poetry Prize, the Newcastle Poetry Prize, the Judith Wright Poetry Prize, and the Blake Poetry Prize. He teaches literature at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga.

You're Not Rob Snarski: Crumbs from the cake


Rob Snarski - 2017
    From Perth to Europe and all points in between, he shares his observations and insights from the music world he has performed in, the people he has worked with, the domesticated animals he has loved, and the things he's had to do to pay the rent. Snarski has played in legendary Australian bands since the 1970s: Chad's Tree, The Blackeyed Susans, and, replacing his friend David McComb, The Triffids. This collection of fragments and photographs uncover a delicate humour in the man who remains a dedicated follower of music and the musicians he's been influenced by. Rob Snarski is best known as the front man for The Blackeyed Susans. Since 1989 he has been a distinctive vocalist on a string of albums of finely crafted songs with the band. The Blackeyed Susans has included players from The Triffids, Dirty Three, and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. In recent years Rob recorded solo albums, including Wounded Bird. [Subject: Non-Fiction, Music Memoir, Autobiography]

Beautiful Balts: From Displaced Persons to New Australians


Jayne Persian - 2017
    Australia's first immigration minister, Arthur Calwell, scoured post-war Europe for refugees, Displaced Persons he characterised as `Beautiful Balts'. Amid the hierarchies of the White Australia Policy, the tensions of the Cold War and the national need for labour, these people would transform not only Australia's immigration policy, but the country itself. Beautiful Balts tells the extraordinary story of these Displaced Persons. It traces their journey from the chaotic camps of Europe after World War II to a new life in a land of opportunity where prejudice, parochialism, and strident anti-communism were rife. Drawing from archives, oral history interviews and literature generated by the Displaced Persons themselves, Persian investigates who they really were, why Australia wanted them and what they experienced.