ONE ANOTHER
By Gail Jones
$34.99
One Another follows Helen, a PhD student from Tasmania, who is writing on the life of Joseph Conrad while coming to terms with a turbulent relationship with her boyfriend, Justin. A story within a story, the novel moves gracefully between Jones’ incredibly well-researched story of Conrad as he writes Heart of Darkness, and Helen’s life at Cambridge University in the 90s. What connects the two central characters is an obsession with writing the perfect story, and being away from home. Conrad’s roaming life at sea took him all over the globe, and through Helen we access intimate biographical detail of Conrad’s life – his sea voyages to Australia, his time in the Congo, his suicide attempt in France.
Written with beautiful, melodic language, Jones shifts between Helen’s story and her fixation with Conrad with a masterful hand. Ultimately it is a book about alienation and how a sense of belonging can come from afar: someone else’s past, or books. Great for fans of Richard Flanagan’s Question 7 and anyone who finds satisfaction from detailed biographies on literary figures.
GLORIOUS EXPLOITS
By Ferida Lennon
$32.99
Glorious Exploits delivers the comedy and tragedy of the finest Greek theatre, with the author’s added Irish charm. Ferdia Lennon tells the tale of two down-on-their-luck potters in 412 BC Sicily. With a failed Athenian invasion leaving plenty of slaves for the quarries, the duo hatches a scheme to have the Athenian slaves perform Medea.
The beauty of Glorious Exploits is found in its discussions and celebrations of art, war, love and the book’s reluctance to take itself too seriously.
The initial premise breeds countless absurd scenarios, thrusting the two potters into the paths of unforgettable characters who don’t stay for long, but leave their mark on the reader. However, the book isn’t afraid to get bloody. Between the war in the world of the characters, and the violence channelled in the theatre, tragedy certainly presents itself. Yet in the hands of Lennon, the most comedic phrases and moments come out of the grimness.
A rollicking adventure for lovers of theatre and history, which is just as likely to thrill as it is to shock.
WURRTOO
By Tylissa Elisara
$19.99
Ages 9+
Wurrtoo the wombat is living on Kangaroo Island and dreams of travelling to the mainland and marrying the love of his life, the sky. Teaming up with Kuula, a koala Wurrtoo saves from a bushfire, they both set out on a quest to reach the tallest tree in the Forest of Dreaming.
Taking inspiration from classic children’s literature like Blinky Bill and Winnie the Pooh as well as the author’s Indigenous heritage, Wurrtoo is a lovely, heart-warming tale of friendship and adventure.
TREE
By Claire Saxby
$24.99
Ages 5+
From favourite Claire Saxby, author of CBCA Picture Book of the Year Iceberg, comes a beautiful story about the life of a mountain ash tree.
Teaming up again with illustrator Jess Racklyeft, Tree welcomes you into the forest to smell the air and hear the water flow, immersing you into the network of life.
With gorgeous illustrations of the forest life, from small critters who burrow through the undergrowth, to owls and eagles that fly overhead, we learn about the vast community who relies on the tree. Combining research with beautiful poetic language, readers get a sense of the changes through the tree’s life, from aging, changes from day to night, and from human intervention. A very special read overflowing with heart.
