Finding love across the back fence or apartment corridor is a high-risk, high-reward proposition. Convenient? Yes. But also, potentially, mortifying. Lifestyle editor Alyx Gorman recommends this story about neighbourhood matches and disasters

To fall just short? To never know how it feels to get close? To land between, avoiding either pole? Emma Kemp, deputy sport editor, recommends Geoff Lemon’s treatise on the losing team

Low Covid vaccination rates reflect practical barriers – but Māori have good reason to distrust the government. International news editor Bonnie Malkin introduces Morgan Godfery’s personal investigation of this fraught history

It might be difficult to choose literature for a sheep. Lifestyle editor, Alyx Gorman, recommends this hopeful story about the rehabilitative effects of a reading program at an animal shelter

Dozens of West Papuans were tortured and thrown into the sea 23 years ago. Days later, Australia knew details of the attack, yet remained silent. Evening news editor Julian Drape introduces this story about survivors and campaigners still fighting for accountability

Ranging in age from eight to 87, Scrabblers hit the boards in western Sydney earlier this year vying for national supremacy. Sport editor Mike Hytner recommends this match report on a competitive board game with mind-bending wordplay

Australia’s plant-based meat market is booming, with increasingly sophisticated production techniques aiming to earn a place on carnivores’ plates. Assistant news editor Shelley Hepworth recommends this story about meat alternatives

Two decades ago Richard Stiles escaped an avalanche in New Zealand, but friend Steve Robinson wasn’t so lucky. Now the mountain has given up some of its secrets. Features editor Lucy Clark introduces this unexpected tale about a moment that was captured on film and buried for more than 20 years before resurfacing

When Gadia Zrihan’s family were forced to leave their dog behind, they left a part of themselves too – a part they feared they could never get back. Lifestyle editor Alyx Gorman recommends this story about a heartwarming family reunion during uncertain times

‘Only when you become one of those numbers, when you’re in it, do you realise how serious it is.’ Live news editor Patrick Keneally recommends this story about personal loss and grief behind the Covid headlines