Parra Reads, Online Book Club

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Online we can all ‘Read Together’.

Joining a book club is a great way to socialise with like-minded people while discovering new authors and books!

But what do you do when an in-person book club doesn’t work? Maybe you have work commitments, or your friends don’t live nearby, or maybe it’s April 2020 and COVID-19 and social distancing has resulted in your monthly book club meetings being ‘put on hold’ until the world rights itself!

Given the current situation and because we have been wanting to do this for a while we thought it would be the perfect time to start up an online book club, and we called it ‘Parra Reads’ of course!

Every month, a book-crazy group of Librarians will select two books they love and share them with readers.

Join in the online discussion on the ‘Parra Reads’ forum page, or share your thoughts via Twitter using #parrareadsbookclub

The books selected will include a mixture of both fiction and non-fiction and include newer and older titles.

The two titles chosen for April are:

Continue reading →

NSW PRC eBooks

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Calling all NSW students in Kindergarten to Year 9 and taking part in PRC!

Take part in this year’s NSW PRC from home with our collection of eBooks from the official booklists. All you need is your Library Card number and your PIN/password – hint if you have forgotten it reset it online via the Library Catalogue or contact us. Visit the website or download the app to start reading one now.

Podcast Episode 33 The Stella Prize Shortlist

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Named after a giant in the Australian literary landscape, The Stella Prize celebrates both fiction and non-fiction writing by Australian female writers.

Join Nisa and Sandra as they celebrate the prize’s eighth year.

Books discussed include:

The weekend / Charlotte Wood. Allen & Unwin, Oct 2019

Here until August: stories / Josephine Rowe. Black Inc, Sep 2019

See what you made me do / Jess Hill. Black Inc, Jun 2019

There was still love / Favel Parrett

 Also mentioned:

 The yield / Tara June Winch. Penguin, July 2019

Diving into glass: a memoir / Caro Llewellyn. Penguin, Mar 2019

Book Review – The Lost Man by Jane Harper

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Jane Harper’s books continue to be popular among our City of Parramatta Libraries book clubs. With all three titles out each month. In February Cultcha Club book club read ‘The Lost Man’, and thoroughly enjoyed it! Which is great because they have waited very patiently for their turn.

Happy Reading!

A twisted tale that kept us guessing all the way through. Lots of twists and turns with a few red herrings that kept the pages turning. We absolutely loved it! Now the third book of Jane Harper’s that we have read and thoroughly enjoyed.

Harper knows how to sell the scene. A wonderful turns of phrase that makes the reader feel the environment as if they were living it. In ‘Force of Nature’, we could feel the closeness and density of the forest, and in ‘The Lost Man’, we could feel the heat and remoteness of the Queensland outback. The unrelenting heat and neighbours that are three hours way.

We loved the relationships between all the characters, and the way their secrets unfolded. How our opinions of each of them changed as they changed and grew throughout the book. In particular, we loved the story lines and relationship between Nathan and his son, Xander.

We loved this book! Highly recommended!

8.5/10

Cultcha Club

Available as eBook from our BorrowBox Library

Available as eAudiobook from our rbDigital Library

eBooks & eAudiobooks

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Library closed? Don’t worry we’ve got you covered!

City of Parramatta Libraries online library allows you to access a huge collection of eBooks and eAudiobooks from home in a way that works for you!

Accessible using smartphones & tablets, computers or eReaders.

For a full guide on how to access and download material. Check out our Online Library Guide

In the meantime take a look at some of our listening & eBook favourites!

Click on the heading for a link to our Online Library.

AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD FROM BORROW BOX

The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay, (eAudiobook)

Land of Golden Wattle by J.H. Fletcher, (eAudiobook)

The Year of the Farmer by Rosalie Ham, (eAudiobook)

The Yield by Tara June Winch, (eAudiobook)

The Pacific In the Wake of Captain Cook, with Sam Neill by Meaghan Wilson-Anastasios, (eAudiobook)

AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD FROM WHEELERS ePLATFORM

9 Classic Quilt Blocks by Lynne Edwards, (eBook)

Cruel Acts by Jane Casey, (eBook)

Red Sister by Mark Lawrence, (eBook)

The Van Apfel Girls Are Gone by Felicity McLean, (eBook)

Sea People: In Search of the Ancient Navigators of the Pacific by Christina Thompson, (eBook)

AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD FROM RBDIGITAL

The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling, (eAudiobook)

Gravity is the Thing by Jaclyn Moriarty, (eAudiobook)

Face It by Debra Harry, (eAudiobook)

The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey, (eAudiobook)

The Mothers by Genevieve Gannon, (eAudiobook)

Have fun exploring all the eBooks and eAudiobooks we have available!