Books On The Go

Anna and Annie discuss the 2021 Stella Prize longlist. 

Our book of the week is The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham. Pham is a new, young voice in Australian literature.  Her debut novel about a Vietnamese-Australian family in Cabramatta, Sydney, is 'brazenly confident' (The Australian) and 'the future of Australian writing' (Benjamin Law). 

Coming up: Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson. 

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the longlist for the 2021 Walter Scott Prize for historical fiction.

Our book of the week is Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor translated by Sophie Hughes.  This novel set in Mexico has been described as 'brutal', 'dazzling' and 'a force to be reckoned with'.  It was longlisted for the National Book Award, shortlisted for the 2020 Booker International Prize and won the International Literature Award.  

Coming up: Coconut Children by Vivian Pham.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the decline in bookstore sales in the US. 

Our book of the week is Exciting Times, the debut novel by Naoise Dolan. The story of 22 year-old Ava's life and loves in Hong Kong, this was a Sunday Times bestseller and shortlisted for the An Irish Post Book Awards 2020. It was recommended by New York Times, Esquire, Vogue and the Washington Post and compared with Sally Rooney.  What did Anna and Annie think?

Coming up: Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor.

Both authors are coming to Adelaide Writers' Week. 

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the Novel Prize winner, Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au. 

Our book of the week is A Burning by Megha Majumdar. This debut novel set in India centres on Jivan, whose Facebook post sees her arrested, her student Lovely and her old teacher PT Sir.  This was an instant New York Times bestseller, described as 'masterly' (The New Yorker)  'explosive' (O Magazine) and 'the must-read novel of the summer' (Washington Post). It was shortlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. 

We're looking forward to hearing Megha Majumdar speak at Adelaide Writers' Week.

Coming up: Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the winner of the Costa Book of the Year Award, The Mermaid of Black Conch: A Love Story by Monique Roffey. 

Our book of the week is The Prophets , the much-hyped debut novel by Robert Jones, Jr.  It is a queer black love story set during a time of slavery, told in a lyrical voice with echoes of Toni Morrison. Described as 'virtuosic' (The Guardian) it is an instant New York Times Bestseller. A great pick for Black History Month.

Coming up: A Burning by Megha Majumdar.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the growth in book sales in Australia for 2020.

Our book of the week is Memorial by Bryan Washington, his debut novel following the prize-winning short story collection Lot.   The story of Benson and Mike, set in Houston and Osaka, was a New York Times Notable Book of 2020, a TIME book of the year and is nominated for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence to be announced on 4 February.  We loved it!

Coming up: The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr.

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LItsy: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the Costa Book Awards and new releases for 2021 by Sally Rooney, Colson Whitehead and others.

Our book of the week is Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason.  This novel about a woman struggling with her marriage failure and mental health is darkly funny and has been compared with Fleabag.  Annie likens it to Bridget Jones meets Eleanor Oliphant.  We loved it but had a lot of thoughts.  Spoiler alert for the second half of this episode as we had to discuss the ending!

Coming up: Memorial by Bryan Washington.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz 

Anna, Annie and Amanda discuss our holiday reading recommendations - beach reads, or cosy winter reads for those in the northern hemisphere.

Our picks:

Ordinary Hazards by Anna Bruno

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Luster by Raven Leilani

The Survivors by Jane Harper

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle

Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby

The Performance by Claire Thomas

Burnt Sugar by Avni Doshi

Happy holidays.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna, Annie and Zoe discuss our Best Books of 2020 (we can't believe it's that time of year already!).

Our picks:

Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami translated by Sam Bett and David Boyd

The Gifts of Reading inspired by Robert Macfarlane, curated by Jennie Orchard

D (A Tale of Two Worlds) by Michel Faber

Real Life by Brandon Taylor

Middle Grade Fiction (age 10 - 14) - Zoe's Top 3

A Waltz for Matilda by Jackie French 

Death Sets Sail by Robin Stevens

Pages & Co: Tilly and the Map of Stories by Anna James

Coming up: Our Summer Reading Recommendations

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Facebook: Books On The Go

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

Twitter: @abailliekaras and @mister_annie

Litsy: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie the Giller Prize winner for Canadian Fiction, How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa.

Our book of the week is The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters. A historical romance set in the 1920s, this has been described as a 'tour de force' (Wall Street Journal) and 'a delicious hothouse of a novel' (USA Today).  Waters is a best-selling author who has been three times shortlisted for the Booker Prize.  We've been meaning to read her for ages.  But was this the right book to start with? 

Coming up: our Best Books of 2020.

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Facebook: Books On The Go

Email: [email protected] 

Instagram: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

Twitter: @abailliekaras and @mister_annie

Litsy: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz