We hope you enjoy and find inspiration in this list of books to read and gift this summer. The titles below are a mix of novels and non-fiction which have been enjoyed, and some reviewed, by us in 2022. There’s something for yourself or someone special in your life. Happy reading!
Poolside Page Turners
In these twelve riveting stories, two of which have been awarded the Pushcart Prize, Lisa Taddeo brings to life the fever of obsession, the blindness of love, and the mania of grief. Featuring Taddeo’s arresting prose that continues to thrill her legions of fans, Ghost Lover dares you to look away.
Growing up Cantonese in the racist outer suburbs was hard enough for Jess Ho, but add in a dysfunctional family who only made peace over food, and it was clear that a normal life was never on the menu.
Beautiful World, Where Are You – Sally Rooney
Alice, a novelist, meets Felix, who works in a distribution warehouse, and asks him if he’d like to travel to Rome with her. In Dublin, her best friend Eileen is getting over a break-up, and slips back into flirting with Simon, a man she has known since childhood.
Drawing on her own experiences in protest and alternative medicine, and travelling from Weimar Berlin to the prisons of McCarthy-era America, she grapples with some of the most significant and complicated figures of the past century, among them Nina Simone, Christopher Isherwood, Andrea Dworkin, Sigmund Freud, Susan Sontag and Malcolm X.
Thought Provoking Memoirs
My Father and Other Animals: How I Took On The Family Farm – Sam Vincent
Sam Vincent is a twenty-something writer in the inner suburbs, scrabbling to make ends meet, when he gets a call from his mother- his father has stuck his hand into a woodchipper. Sam returns to the family farm to help out, his life takes a new and unexpected direction.
The Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner – Grace Tame
From a young age, her life was defined by uncertainty – by trauma and strength, sadness and hope, terrible lows and wondrous highs.
Bohemian Negligence – Bertie Blackman
The celebrated musician’s evocative and intimate memoir of the magic and vulnerability of her bohemian childhood growing up as the daughter of iconic artist Charles Blackman.
In this remarkable memoir, Amy Thunig narrates her journey through childhood and adolescence, growing up with parents who struggled with addiction and incarceration.
Coffee Table and Lifestyle Books
Artists at Home – Karina Dias Pires
This richly layered compilation invites the reader into the creative spaces of 32 female artists, offering an intimate look behind the scenes and the chance to meet each artist on home ground.
My First Popsicle: An Anthology of Food and Feelings – Zosia Mamet
In My First Popsicle, Zosia Mamet has curated some of the most prominent voices in art and culture to tackle the topic of food in its elegance, its profundity and its incidental charm.
The Story of Art Without Men – Katy Hessel
How many women artists do you know? Who makes art history? Did women even work as artists before the twentieth century? And what is the Baroque anyway?
