In this episode, another instalment of the Readings Kids Podcast, and an interview with Fiona Wood, author of The Boy and the Dog Tree, an exceptional middle-grade novel about the special bond between a boy and his dog; a heart-lifting tale of friendship, courage and belonging.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9780702269226/the-boy-and-the-dog-tree--fiona-wood--2026--9780702269226

In this episode, a conversation with award-winning playwright George Kemp, about his debut novel, Soft Serve.

Stuck in a regional McDonald’s, as bushfires close in, three twenty-somethings and their dead friend’s mum all face a reckoning. Fern longs for Ethan, Ethan longs for Jacob, and Jacob struggles to long for anything. Meanwhile, Pat just wants her grief to ease up. Soft Serve proves that small-town lives are huge, and that anyone can get stuck in limbo between their past and their hoped-for future. The book is described as ‘drive-thru Chekhov’, full of wit and heart.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9780702269134/soft-serve--george-kemp--2026--9780702269134

In this episode, another instalment of the Comics Question, where Bernard Caleo is in conversation with acclaimed graphic novelist and comic artist, Lee Lai.

In Cannon, Lee Lai’s follow-up to the critically acclaimed and award-winning Stone Fruit, the full palette of a nervous breakdown is just a part of what is on offer. Lai’s sharp sense of humour and sensitive eye produce a story that explores the intimacy of queer friendship and the weight of family responsibility, and breaks open the question of what we owe both to each other and to ourselves.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781923106406/cannon--lee-lai--2025--9781923106406

In today’s episode, a conversation with Francesca Wade, author of Gertrude Stein: An Afterlife, a biography as unconventional and surprising as the life it tells.

'Think of the Bible and Homer, think of Shakespeare and think of me,' wrote Gertrude Stein in 1936. Admirers called her a genius, sceptics a charlatan: she remains one of the most confounding - and contested - writers of the twentieth century. In this literary detective story, Francesca Wade delves into the creation of the Stein myth. We see her posing for Picasso's portrait; at the centre of Bohemian Parisian life hosting the likes of Matisse and Hemingway; racing through the French countryside with her enigmatic companion Alice B. Toklas; dazzling American crowds on her sell-out tour for her sensational Autobiography - a veritable celebrity. Yet Stein hoped to be remembered not for her personality but for her work. From her deathbed, she charged her partner with securing her place in literary history. How would her legend shift once it was Toklas's turn to tell the stories - especially when uncomfortable aspects of their past emerged from the archive?

Using astonishing never-before-seen material, Wade uncovers the origins of Stein's radical writing and reveals new depths to the storied relationship which made it possible. This book truly shows Gertrude Stein as she was when nobody was watching: captivating, complex and human, and of particular note, it grants pertinent insight into her life with, and the life of, her companion Alice B. Toklas. 

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9780571369317/gertrude-stein--francesca-wade--2025--9780571369317

In this episode, a conversation with Fiona Hardy, author of Old Games, a pacey, off-beat Aussie crime story about two best female friends and investigators unravelling the private lives of Melbourne's celebrity sportspeople.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781761638275/old-games--fiona-hardy--2026--9781761638275

Morally flexible best mates and private investigators Alice and Teddy pride themselves on fixing every kind of mess imaginable, no questions asked. So, when they're tasked with locating the recently-stolen ashes of long-dead celebrity tennis player Ashley “Perry” Perrineau, it should be a routine job. But it quickly becomes clear that everyone who knew Perry is keeping secrets: his accountant despises Perry's widower; the sculptor of his statue is hiding something in her studio; his ex-doubles partner is a compulsive liar; and his mother is obsessed with preserving his legacy and her image at all costs.

Alice and Teddy will need to travel up and down Melbourne’s Mornington Peninsula – all while avoiding more than one person on their tail – to uncover the truth and keep the body count from rising. But will they and the people they love survive what they find?

In this episode, a conversation with Alister Newstead, a music journalist, reporter and music editor with Triple J and Double J, and author of a new book in the 33 1/3 series on Tame Impala’s landmark album, Currents. The album is emblematic of a cultural shift in music production and consumption in the early days of streaming and a project that cemented its creator, Kevin Parker, as one of Australian music's most unlikely success stories and influential exports.

This book dives deep into Currents, examining its context, creation, content and lasting impact on the history of Australian popular music. The album's theme of metamorphosis and genre-blurring sound embodied (and possibly encouraged) a wider shift in the 2010s of popular music trends, consumption and listening habits.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9798765137017/tame-impalas-currents--alister-newstead--2026--9798765137017

In this episode, another instalment of The Comics Question, where Bernard Caleo discusses comics, graphic novels, and the place they inhabit within the broader books and publishing world.

Today’s conversation is with cartoonist Georgina Chadderton, who, in her new book Oh Brother, examines the fun and difficult parts of growing up alongside her autistic brother, Rob. Although Georgina has been published all over the globe, Oh Brother is her first full-length graphic novel.

When they're not making comics, Georgina co-directs Papercuts Comics Festival, runs comics-making workshops and reads comics by their favourite comics makers (basically, it’s all comics, all the time).

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781761046346/oh-brother--georgina-chadderton--2026--9781761046346

In this episode, a conversation with poet and writer, Hasib Hourani, author of rock flight. This is a book-length poem that, over seven chapters, follows a personal and historical narrative to compose an understated yet powerful allegory of Palestine’s occupation. Formally claustrophobic, the poem morphs into irony, declaring everything a box while refusing to exist within one.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781923106116/rock-flight--hasib-hourani--2024--9781923106116

In this episode, another instalment of the Readings Kids podcast, and an interview with the author Ruby Jean Cottle, writer of Black River, a mystical new YA series that blends fantasy, sci-fi and romance. Ruby Jean Cottle was interviewed by members of the Readings Teen Advisory Board, who posed questions throughout the conversation.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781761631603/black-river-volume-1--ruby-jean-cottle--2025--9781761631603

In this episode, we’re delighted to begin 2026 with an interview with one of Readings’ favourite writers, a key member of Australia’s literary community and a frequent guest (in the interviewer seat) on the Readings Podcast itself, Kate Mildenhall.

Her acclaimed books include Skylarking, The Mother Fault and The Hummingbird Effect, and joining these with publication late last year is The Hiding Place. It’s The White Lotus meets The Slap, in a razor-sharp literary thriller about deception and self-deception, and how far people will go to protect what they feel they ought to have.

Enjoyed what you heard? Click here to purchase the book: https://www.readings.com.au/product/9781761429057/the-hiding-place--kate-mildenhall--2025--9781761429057