All About Books Autumn 2020

The new All About Books for Autumn 2020 can be downloaded above. 

The new reading suggestions guide has been revamped after survey results from readers in our last Summer edition, there is more short descriptions of books, more young adult and more pages. There are so many amazing books coming out this March, April and May for adults and young adults in a diverse range of genres and subjects – there is sure to be something for everyone.

There are two books in particular that I want to mention as they were left out of the guide when our author talk program was suspended recently.

The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham (March 3) is a moving debut by a talented new storyteller.

Growing up can feel like a death sentence.
Life in a troubled neighbourhood demands too much too young. But Sonny wouldn’t really know.
Watching the world from her bedroom window, she exists only in second-hand romance novels and falls for any fast-food employee who happens to spare her a glance.
Everything changes with the return of Vince, a boy who became a legend after he was hauled away in handcuffs at fourteen.
Sonny and Vince used to be childhood friends. But with all that happened in-between, childhood seems so long ago. It will take two years of juvie, an inebriated grandmother and a porn stash for them to meet again.

Gathering Dark by Candice Fox (March 31) is her new thriller, set in Los Angeles, introducing a new – and decidedly unconventional – team of ‘detectives’.

A convicted killer. A gifted thief. A vicious crime boss. A disillusioned cop.
Together they’re a missing girl’s only hope.
Blair Harbour, once a wealthy, respected surgeon in Los Angeles, is now an ex-con down on her luck. She’s determined to keep her nose clean to win back custody of her son. But when her former cellmate begs for help to find her missing daughter, Blair is compelled to put her new-found freedom on the line.
Joined by LA’s most feared underworld figure, the crew of criminals bring outlaw tactics to the search. Detective Jessica Sanchez has always had a difficult relationship with the LAPD. 
It’s been ten years since Jessica arrested Blair for the cold-blooded murder of her neighbour. So when Jessica opens the door to the disgraced doctor and her friends early one morning she expects abuse, maybe even violence.
What comes instead is a plea for help.

Podcast – Episode 32 – From All the Lands on Earth

Episode 32: From all the lands on earth

Belonging, respect and inclusiveness are core messages of Harmony Week – a time that highlights multicultural Australia, celebrating the fact that while there are so many of us with vastly different stories, there is so much more that brings us together.

Join Katherine, Nisa and Antonia as they discuss books they have recently read:

Brave not perfect / Reshma Saujani. Harper Collins, Feb 2019

New kings of the world: dispatches from Bollywood, Dizi and K-pop / Fatima Bhutto. Columbia Global Reports, Oct 2019

Born a crime / Trevor Noah. Spiegel & Grau, Nov 2016

Arab of the future: a childhood in the Middle East: 1984-1992 / Riad Sattouf. Metropolitan Books, Nov 2019

Parra Pods Episode 31 – #eachforequal – Gender Equality

Episode 31: #Eachforequal: gender equality

Bias and inequality are concepts that generate a great deal of debate. While they may often be popularly associated with one gender having power over another or one colour of skin being afforded more privileges, there is now an emerging body of literature on some of the more complex arguments to come out of the struggle e.g. what happens when race and gender collide, who gets to decide the ‘appropriate’ way to fight bias and how to break the pattern of inequality that is generational.

To celebrate International Women’s Day Katherine, Nisa and Antonia look at some books from perspectives that haven’t always been heard. Books discussed include:

A woman is no man / Etaf Rum. Harper Collins, Mar 2019

The seven necessary sins for women and girls / Mona Eltahawy. Hardie Grant, Oct 2019

White tears, brown scars / Ruby Hamad. Melbourne University Press, Sep 2019

Happy Listening!

Book Review – Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Last Month our Cultcha Club Book Club read ‘Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine’ by Gail Honeyman.

Read what they thought of it below.

This was a highly anticipated read for our book club.. and it did not disappoint!! What a great read!!  We absolutely loved it!!  Brilliant characters and wonderfully written.  While some of our readers found it a little slow to start, as more of Eleanor’s story was revealed, they soon fell in love.  We liked the way the author took a heavy subject, and turned it into a warm, and funny story, yet never making light of Eleanor’s past.  A perfect holiday read.  Can’t compliment this one enough!!

9/10

Out of the Box – New Arrivals – February 2020

February was certainly a busy month in the library. Homework help is in full swing, our Summer Reading programs have finished and our delivery table was stacked with boxes and boxes of new material!

Below is a small snapshot of what arrived on the shelves in February. Have fun exploring!

ADULT FICTION

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

Edgar Allan Poe and the Empire of the Dead by Karen Lee Street

Perfect Crime by Helen Fields

The Devil Inside by David Hicks

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories by Ken Liu

The Red Address Book by Sofia Lundberg

Motherwhelmed by Anniki Sommerville

Charlotte Pass by Lee Christine

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

The Foundling by Stacey Halls

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