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 Hello again,The clock is ticking, people, and Mother's Day is only a couple of weeks away. May 10 is D-day (M-day?) and mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers across Australia have high expectations of a day off and a fitting gift from their children. And as far as a mother is concerned, a child is always a child no matter whether they have been around for five months or fifty years. It is Mother's Day Made Easy for this edition of Booktopia Buzz. Not only do we present a wonderful selection of featured titles, but we also have some great specials, bargains and a holiday to win. We have two fantastic deals for mothers who enjoy their time in the kitchen, first taste temptation Bill Granger's latest book, Feed Me Now! comes signed, and coupled with On Rue Tatin. Second, we are offering 30% off any of a selection from Margaret Fulton classic cookbooks together with her daughter, Suzanne Gibb's new release, Pressure Cooker Recipe Book - the perfect gift from any daughter who shares her mum's love of cuisine. There are also eight terrific reads, any one of which might win you and your Mum a trip to Broome. We have some stunning gardening books, gorgeous art and craft books, books that celebrate the mother in us all, books that a littlie can share with Mum (attention all Dads) as well as terrific reads to be enjoyed in a few moments of stolen quiet time. Also be sure not to miss the two very special biographies of Jonathon Welch, from the Choir of Hard Knocks, and that of David Williamson. We are endeavouring to have most of the titles in stock but things do come and go quickly. The website will indicate if the book is in stock at the time you order it. Please don't leave your ordering too late and do consider upgrading to express post. The shopping cart page on the website has more information about order turn around times, gift wrapping and delivery options. |
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| FEED ME NOW! AND ON RUE TATIN |
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 FEED ME NOW! by Bill GrangerIN STOCK *SPECIAL OFFER - LIMITED STOCKS AVAILABLE* We have a fabulous deal lined up for Mother's Day this year, with signed copies of Bill Granger's  latest release Feed Me Now! available for $44.95 (down from the retail price of $49.95) and, just to sweeten the deal, we will throw in Susan Loomis' On Rue Tatin (valued at $24.95). This little treasure is a classic collection of recipes and stories written whilst Loomis was living and teaching cooking classes in regional France. This week, Bill Granger spoke to Booktopia about what Feed Me Now! means to him and the last year of his life whilst writing it. Click here to listen to what he had to say. If anyone knows how to please a crowd its Bill Granger, the man behind Sydney's landmark Bill's restaurants. Bill's food is fresh, simple, healthy and delicious. It is food for people who love to eat but are short of time to cook - people with too much to do to fuss in the kitchen, and at the table, people with families and friends to feed - people just like you. Divided into quick reference chapters so you can find the meals which best suit you, Feed Me Now! is Bill Granger's seventh cookbook and gives you new ideas for breakfasts for which Bill is world famous, lunches and dinners, food for two, food for more, meals on a budget, snacks and nibbles, and meals you can freeze now, eat later. Recipes are accompanied by beautiful photography and handy kitchen tips. Destined to become a kitchen essential Feed Me Now! is Bill Granger at his best, bringing you real food you can enjoy every day. To see three of the sumptuous dishes Granger features in his latest book, click on the following links: Baked Chicken with Lemon, Potato and Gravy Spicy Prawn Stir Fry Gooey Chocolate Cake with Raspberries  Click here to buy this special offer. |
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| A TRIP FOR TWO TO BROOME? YES PLEASE |
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| The fabulous people at Hachette are offering the chance to win a holiday for two to Broome for anyone who purchases one of their selected mother's day books. The trip includes four nights at the new Cable Beach five-star resort and spa - sounds like a great extra gift to surprise mum with (or just to keep quiet for yourself!). When you buy any of the eight titles featured below, the book will arrive stickered with full details on how to enter. Click on the title to read more: The Best of Times Don't You Know Who I Used to Be Saving Grace Malice Secrets to Happiness Spirit Sisters A Reliable Wife The Italian Wedding |
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| THE BEST OF TIMES | DON'T YOU KNOW WHO I USED TO BE? | |
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 Penny VincenziVincenzi is back with yet another gripping and evocative novel. The Best of Times explores how one moment, one person's actions, can change the course of so many people's lives. The novel opens with the kind of event that, scarily, happens everyday: a five lane motorway accident. As a direct result of this one event, Jonathan, returning from a liaison with his mistress, is delayed from his wife. Georgia, a young actress, cannot make an audition for the part that could make her career. Toby, the bridegroom on the way to his wedding, is also trapped. Mary cannot travel to the airport to meet her first love, whom she hasn’t seen in over fifty years, and all the while the mysterious hitch-hiker, the only person who knows what really happened, has fled the scene. Vincenzi explores how each life unfolds in gripping detail. Mums who like their novels with a good deal of emotional intensity will be very pleased with this one. Click here to browse other books by Vincenzi. Click here to buy this book. |  Julia MorrisIN STOCK If there is such a thing as an Australian Joan Rivers, Julia Morris must be pretty close to it. This is the book for mothers who haven't forgotten how to have fun. Morris writes about her experiences as a forty-something first-time mother and international performer. Having made her name as one of Australia's most loved female comedians, Morris left Oz in 2000 to pursue her career in the UK. There her refreshing honesty captured the imagination of British comedy's elite and she worked with the likes of Stephen Fry, Catherine Tate, Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, Graham Norton and her own personal Dalai Llama - the great Dame Edna. After all this however, there came a time when this Gosford Catholic School Girl, had to come home. Morris will be touring Australia from late April. To visit her official website, featuring details of her shows, click here. To read more about Morris' colourful career, click here. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| SAVING GRACE | MALICE | |
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 Ciara GeraghtyIN STOCK Grace O'Brien is the kind of protagonist who reminds us of the delightful comfort that whilst no one is perfect, our common frailties can be very, very funny at times. In this, Geraghty's riotous and tender debut, Grace begins the novel centre-stage, a very old bottle of Baileys in hand. The Baileys is accompanied by a man - Bernard from IT - who just happens to be on the other side of the bed Grace wakes up in. This unfortunate dalliance has lead Grace to cheat on her spunky boyfriend of one year, nine months, three weeks and six days. Worse still, as the weeks continue, Grace finds she can't get the Geek Almighty out of her head. This is Bridget Jones falling for one of the guys from the IT Crowd - it will have you reconsidering the relationship potentials of a geek. Click here to buy this book. |  Lisa JacksonIN STOCK This romantic suspense is centred around an Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton type couple, they are angry at each other and turned on by it. Detective Rick Bentz, decides to chase his wife Jennifer when he sees her for the first time in twelve years. The creepy part is that in all that time Jennifer has been dead and Bentz identified her body himself. He trails her to Los Angeles - and walks straight into a murder trap. More people begin to die, each new case pointing to Bentz as the murderer. Whilst fighting for his life, Bentz, the ultimate nice guy who just can't help being bad, manages to get himself into some pretty steamy scenes. Lisa Jackson has hit the number one bestseller list in the USA and would be perfect for a mum who doesn't mind a bit of a thrill. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| SECRETS TO HAPPINESS | SPIRIT SISTERS | |
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 Sarah DunnIN STOCK Sarah Dunn was one of the screenwriters on Spin City, and has in recent years turned her hand to novels. In this, her second book, she turns Woody Allen's film Manhattan into Jane Austen's Emma. Dunn's protagonist, Holly Frick, is a divorcee still climbing-under-the-covers in love in with her ex. As her career heads down the toilet, Holly's happily married best friend admits that she is desperately tempted to have an affair. Meanwhile another woman comes to Holly for relationship advice - with Holly's ex! As Holly attempts (and fails) to solve her own and others love lives, we see how Dunn reinvents a modern Emma. Holly gets tangled in people's lives armed with an unwavering sense of her own moral certainty and soon learns how completely off the mark she is. Best of all, along the way, she falls in love twice: once with a good-natured, much younger lover, and once with a flawed, but endearing dog. Click here to browse other books by Sarah Dunn. Click here to buy this book. |  Karina MachadoReading this book feels like a combination of sitting up late at night with a group of friends and too much wine, and being twelve again, sitting up late at night with a group of friends with too much sugar. It seems that these are the moments when we share the sorts of stories that fill Spirit Sisters. Machado was inspired by women of all ages who prefaced their tales with 'I've hardly told anyone this, but...'. As editor of Who Magazine, Machado features only local stories, making each personal encounter with the supernatural feel so much more familiar. From a high-flying banking executive whose life changed for ever after a visit from a bizarre, winged entity, to a mother of seven who was held and soothed by her husband for five days after she'd buried him, to the woman who lost most of her family in one car accident, this book is heart-breaking, inspiring, scary and comforting. For a mum who is touched by personal stories, or has a sense of the spiritual, this is the book. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| A RELIABLE WIFE | THE ITALIAN WEDDING | |
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 Robert GoolrickIN STOCK Set in the early 1900s, A Reliable Wife successfully conveys what every historical novel should do: the details of sensation that recreate lived human experience. Robert Goolrick has created an intimate suspense between Ralph Truitt, wealthy and demanding businessman, and Catherine Land, the woman who answers his advertisement for 'a reliable wife'. When Catherine arrives in Ralph's small Wisconsin manufacturing town, secrets from her past continue to haunt her. As Ralph slowly unravels his bride's true self, he also discovers her plot to slowly poison him to death with arsenic, and steal his fortune. However, as Catherine discovers, Ralph is not so easily taken in, and not so pure himself. Click here to read an extract from A Reliable Wife. Click here to buy this book. |  Nicky PellegrinoIN STOCK This is Nicky Pellegrino's latest novel, new to paperback. Pieta is a wedding dressmaker, now with the task of making her sister Addolorata's bridal gown. This is usually the part of her job Pieta loves most, since both the bride and the dress hold so much promise. But in her sister's case, Pieta is distracted by a series of family feuds, and her mother's mysterious sadness. Like any Italian family, every moment is punctuated with delicious food and the book also includes a recipe or two. Pieta's family fight, eat and love their way to uncovering what they really are as Pieta discovers who she really wants to be. Click here to read an interview with Pellegrino. Click here to browse Pellegrino's other books. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| LIVE TO COOK |
MARGARET FULTON... AND DAUGHTER! If you or your mum are resident foodies, it might be hard to go past this deal from the ultimate mother and daughter cooking team. Margaret Fulton is a national institution, her career has spanned 50 years and she has written more than 25 cookbooks. Suzanne Gibbs is Margaret Fulton's daughter and a consummate home cook and magazine editor in her own right. As a special Mother's Day deal, Booktopia is offering 30% off double packs of Suzanne Gibb's new book Pressure Cooker Recipe Book and any of the following four books by Margaret Fulton:  Margaret Fulton's Encyclopaedia of Food and Cookery IN STOCK Margaret Fulton's Kitchen IN STOCK The Margaret Fulton Cookbook IN STOCK Margaret Fulton Christmas IN STOCK  Pressure Cooker Recipe Book by Suzanne Gibbs In Pressure Cooker Recipe Book Gibbs shows how to use a pressure cooker to create slow-cooked flavour in a fast-paced world. She uses a pressure cooker's high temperatures to cook quickly, cheaply and efficiently. The method seals in flavour and nutrition, using cheaper ingredients to great effect. Gibbs selects more than 80 of her favourite pressure-cooker recipes, and describes the process from beginning to end. Recipes include a 25 minute osso bucco, 15 minute chicken tagine and 20 minute bread and butter pudding. Pressure Cooker Recipe Book is packed with information on practicalities, such as choosing, using and cleaning your cooker, and fully illustrated with beautiful photography. It is a must-have guide for anyone balancing the constraints of time and money with a desire to create delicious healthy meals for themselves, their friends and their families. Click here to browse Australian Biography's wonderfully detailed account of Margaret Fulton's life. You can also click here to read or listen to Andrew Denton's interview with Margaret Fulton on Enough Rope. Click here to buy any of the four combinations available in this special deal. If you liked this you may also be interested in...  Margaret Fulton: A Celebration by Suzanne Gibbs, John Newton, Gay Bilson and Barbara SantichThis biography of Fulton's life features chapters on 'Growing up with Margaret Fulton' by her children, 'Margaret at Woman's Day' and 'The Fulton Legacy'. The book also collects together a number of her favourite recipes, photographs with friends and family, and select list of publications. Click here to buy this book. |
| SERENDIP |
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 Peter KuruvitaPeter Kuruvita is Executive Chef at Flying Fish restaurant, Sydney, and was featured at the Taste Festival in mid-March serving delicacies like Sri Lankan Snapper Curry with Coconut Sambal and Love cake with Cinnamon Cream. In his book Serendip, Kuruvita draws on his kitchen experiences with his grandmother and aunty, taking us on a lush journey through the traditional cuisine of Sri Lanka. The book is stunningly laid out with photographs of recipes, markets and stalls from Kuruvita's ancestral island home. Recipes are accompanied by personal, regional and cultural stories - traditional snacks, breads, sticky sweet treats, chutneys, sambals, pickles and curries all become more than just dishes on a plate. Kuruvita writes: 'One of the beautiful things about all Sri Lankans and their food is that they can rarely agree on the details of any recipe. Most are handed down through generations and each has its own very special preparation method and flavour. I hope to have captured these recipes from my family’s kitchen, and I also hope to encourage other Sri Lankans living far from their ancestral homes to get back into their kitchens and share this rich and diverse culinary tradition with their families and friends'. Click here to see a sneak preview inside this book. Click here to buy this book. |
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| MY COUSIN ROSA | THE HUMMINGBIRD BAKERY COOKBOOK | |
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 Rosa Mitchell IN STOCK This book is a wonderful concoction of connections: family history, awareness of the earth, stories within a community - and of course, intermingling flavours. Rosa Mitchell introduces her cookbook with memories of a childhood in Sicily, her Grandparents, and her family's migration to country Australia. With this, Mitchell welcomes us inside her family home and kitchen, and with each recipe she shares a new detail or memory made with the people there. For Mitchell, 'making food is not just something we do to survive; it's the coming together and sharing, chatting and arguing over the methods and superstitions'. Mitchell often uses fresh and found produce, including cardoons and fennel still growing wild on Melbourne roadsides and fresh home-laid chickens' eggs. Chapters include antipasto, soup, pasta, meat, vegetables and desserts. The photography in this book is finished with an immaculate design layout, including sketches and family snapshots. Mitchell was a founding member of Slow Food Victoria and runs a small vineyard in Central Victoria with her husband Colin. She is also chef at Journal Canteen cafe, Melbourne, and teaches cooking classes at the Centre for Adult Education. Click here to see a sneak preview inside this book. Click here to buy this book. |  Tarek MaloufIN STOCK The Hummingbird Bakery has become a popular stop for London locals and visitors alike. The cupcakes alone walkout their door at a rate of 20,000 per week. The chefs at this legendary sweet smelling bakery have written a book sharing over 60 recipes, from light-and-fluffy cupcakes with trademark butter cream swirls, to moist chocolate layer cakes and zesty lemon meringue pie. Hummingbird recipes look as spectacular as they taste and - without requiring inordinate numbers of hours fiddling with fussily detailed techniques. The chapters in this book include Cupcakes, Cakes (including loaf, layer, ring and cheesecakes), Pies, Brownies and Bars, Muffins and Cookies. This book is already selling, well, like hot cakes! In pre-orders alone it has outstripped authors like James Patterson and Wilbur Smith. Tarek Malouf opened the first Hummingbird Bakery in Portobello Road in 2004. Click here to visit The Hummingbird Bakery's website. Click here to see a recipe for Tarek Malouf's famous vanilla cupcakes. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| FOR THE ART AND CRAFTY |
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 Pass Me A Smile by Toyoko Sugiwaka IN STOCKThis quirky, vibrantly coloured craft book presents a menagerie of 16 uniquely crafted creatures using a variety of felting, embroidery, crochet, knitting and fabric painting techniques. Instructional photographs and precise directions make these projects achievable for crafters of all skill levels. Sugiwaka also weaves whimsical snippets of crafting philosophy into each creation and allows these little creatures to wriggle their way into your home and your heart. Pass Me a Smile includes baby booties, a knitted wolf in removable sheep's clothing; felted birdhouses, matching mother and puppy sausage dog draught stoppers; and a winking tortoiseshell cat tea cosy. Toyoko Sugiwaka studied graphic design in Japan, and now works as a designer, writer and craft maker in Sydney. Her particular interests are felt and other textiles. Click here to see a sneak preview inside this book. Click here to buy this book.  Meet Me at Mike's by Pip Lincolne IN STOCKPip Lincolne is hailed as Melbourne's best loved craft-store Queen, and in Meet Me at Mike's, she has gathered 25 of the best projects from Australia's most clever creatives. This book is a haven of useful tit bits - everything from baby yoga pants and clutch purses to hankies. Each project comes with easy-to-follow instructions and full-size fold out patterns. There is a great range for gifts ideas and making life just that bit more colourful! Pip Lincolne grew up in a DIY family. Her dad sewed dresses, her mum made sorbet, her brother built her dollhouses, her sister drew and her nanna knitted... Lincoln lives above the store, Meet Me at Mike's, in Fitzroy with her family. She wants to be a writer when she grows up. Click here to read a feature in The Age on Pip Lincolne and her life in crafting. Click on each of the following links to look at some sample pages: Meet Me at Mike's Back Cover Meet Me at Mike's Internal-1 Meet Me at Mike's Internal-2 Click here to buy this book. |
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| ON THE SUBJECT OF MOTHERHOOD |
| MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS |
 Joan SauersThis gift format book is bestselling author, Joan Sauers, at her best. As the mother of a teenage daughter, Sauers delivers a warm, witty and wise take on the mother-daughter bond. Her indispensable tips, gentle advice, pithy observations and poignant moments are familiar to women of all ages and stages of life. Mothers and Daughters keeps us laughing through the whole roller-coaster celebration of anger, love, tenderness, rivalry, sadness and undeniable need every mother and daughter feels for one another. Be warned: this one might bring out a few misty eyes. Joan Sauers lives in Sydney and works as a script editor and writer. Her nine books on health, parenting and relationships, include Sex Lives of Australian Teenagers, Brothers and Sisters; Teething, Tantrums and Tattoos; and the best-selling A Grown-up Girl's Guide to Life. Click here to browse other Joan Sauers books. Click here to buy this book. |
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| CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE NEW MOM'S SOUL | CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE WORKING MOM'S SOUL | |
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 Touching Stories About MiraclesPatty Aubery, et al IN STOCK This is a collection of touching personal stories, written by real mothers, and is a must-read for all approaching this new chapter in life. New mums will find comfort knowing that it is alright not to automatically have all the answers and will share in the experience of all the mummy "firsts". Topics include: what to do when baby comes home from the hospital‚ what every mother knows, embracing moments together, and finding alone time. Patty Aubery is the vice-president of the Canfield Training Group, an entity of Chicken Soup for the Soul, and Self-Esteem Seminars, Inc. She is the co-author of several Chicken Soup books including Chicken Soup for the Teenage Christian Soul, Chicken Soup for the Expectant Mother's Soul and Chicken Soup for the Working Woman's Soul. The Chicken Soup for the Soul company was founded by Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield and has now sold over 112 million books worldwide. Click here to take a sneak preview inside Chicken Soup for the New Mom's Soul. Click here to buy this book. |  Inspiring Stories From the PlayPatty Aubery, et al IN STOCK Chicken Soup for the Working Mom′s Soul is all about the trials and tribulations‚ happiness and hilarities of being a working mum. These real life stories are about overcoming obstacles‚ finding creative ways to spend quality time with the kids and helping children learn independence through a working mother′s success. Click here to buy this book. Other titles in the Chicken Soup Series include (click on the title to read more about the book): Chicken Soup for the Mother and Son Soul: Stories to Celebrate the Lifelong Bond Chicken Soup for the Mother and Daughter Soul: Stories to Warm the Heart and Honor the Relationship Chicken Soup for the Soul: A Tribute To Moms Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul: 101 Stories to Open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit - Audiobook Chicken Soup for the Soul : Power Moms: 101 Stories Celebrating the Power of Choice for Stay at Home and Work from Home Moms Chicken Soup for the Mothers of Preschooler's Soul: Stories to Refresh the Soul and Rekindle the Spirit of Moms of Little Ones Chicken Soup for the Expectant Mother's Soul: 101 Stories to Inspire and Warm the Hearts of Soon-to-Be Mothers Chicken Soup for the Soul: Recipes for Busy Moms Chicken Soup for the Soul: Cartoons for Moms Click here to browse more books in the Chicken Soup series. | |
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| FROM THE LITTLIES TO MUM |
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 I Love My Mum by Anna WalkerOllie loves Mum and Mum loves Ollie! Ollie is a gorgeous, lively zebra, and Anna Walker's adorable book perfectly captures the bond between a mother and child in simple, everyday activities, as Ollie and Mum spend a special day together. This would make an ideal gift from littlies to Mum (or someone bigger acting on their behalf). I Love My Mum comes with a free bag (while stocks last). Click here to buy this book. |
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| GLORIOUS GIFTS |
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| VELVET PEARS | A WORLD OF SKETCHES | |
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 Susan SouthamIN STOCK This part-scrapbook, part-journal and part-photo album tells the story of Susan Southam and her husband Peter's creation of a garden paradise, over many years in their family home. The lavish illustrations and delicate photographs make this book a superb visual pleasure. Velvet Pears is also full of practical ideas on gardening in harmony with an idiosyncratic Australian country garden. Southam takes a seasonal approach, including suggestions as far ranging as planting schemes to favourite recipes, celebrating and decorating, all taken from her own garden. Inspirational notes, poems and lyricisms are also dew-dropped throughout the book's pages. Southam moved to a small country town on the south-eastern coast of Australia at age 11, where she found her passion for gardening. While living at Foxglove Spires, she has also begun work as a photographer. Click here to browse inside this book. Click here to buy this book. |  Ken and Olive ThirskIN STOCK This stunning collection of watercolour sketches traces the Gullivean adventures of one married couple across six continents and four decades. Ken and Olive Thirsk obviously both have a passion for detail and the lucky talent to express it in their drawings. Turning the pages of A World of Sketches creates the intimate feeling of leafing through an artist's sketchbook, neatly chronicled as a tour of the world. The Thirsks' fascination with their surroundings is alluring, and their sense of curiosity is infectious. Their drawings of familiar places recall happy memories of our own travels, while new and unexplored locations only fuel the desire to get there. All together this collection beautifully illustrates some 250 of the best places to visit on earth. Ken and Olive Thirsk were both, in a previous life, architects. They are now more fortunate to devote their time to oils, landscapes and abstract painting. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| GARDENS OF EDEN | PLANTS FOR DRY GARDENS | |
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 Holly Kerr ForsythIN STOCK Gardens of Eden lets your fingers do the walking all the way around the globe through some of the most serene green creations our planet has to offer. This glorious book encompasses not only the history of gardens, but the estates and landscapes created by notable historical figures, who also happened to take an interest in growing things. Gardens of Eden is a voyeuristic escape for anyone who can't quite make travelling at the moment, for whatever reason. Chapters include: Lessons in Garden History, The Designer in the Garden, Politicians' Gardens, Writers' Gardens, Artists' Gardens, Private Pleasures, Water Delights, Places to Pray In and Places to Play In. Six continents, including our own, are captured in strikingly vibrant photography and accompanied with the individual garden's history and visiting information. Holly Kerr Forsyth is a writer, photographer and passionate gardener. She has written a number of other books on gardens and is the Weekend Australian garden columnist. Click here to browse Forsyth's other books. Click on the links below see some sneak previews of Gardens of Eden: Gardens of Eden Picture 1 Gardens of Eden Picture 2 Gardens of Eden Picture 3 Click here to buy this book. |  Marcelle NankervisIn Plants for Australian Dry Gardens, Marcelle Nankervis presents a plant directory of surprising depth and variety. Over 600 species are featured, both indigenous and exotic, and information on each plant's cultivation requirements, growth habits and preferred aspect are also included. Nankervis' focus is to provide all the detail required to make a water-efficient choice within the range of Australian climates and a variety of garden styles. Nankervis was Gardening Editor at Better Homes and Gardens. Her previous writing has included gardens for children and newly constructed houses. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| A GREAT READ - FICTION |
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| HANDLE WITH CARE | SCHOOL OF ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS | |
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 Jodi PicoultIN STOCK Jodi Picoult's new bestseller explores the moral dilemmas faced by the parents of a severely disabled child. Willow O'Keefe is born with osteogenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease, which means she will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows, and a lifetime of pain. As the family struggles to cover medical expenses, her mother Charlotte decides to file a wrongful birth lawsuit against her obstetrician for the compensation which might ensure a lifetime of care for Willow. However, the consequences of this are that Charlotte is forced to say in a court that she would have terminated the pregnancy if she has been informed of the condition. Picoult is at her usual best in this absorbing narrative questioning the basis of medical ethics and of personal morality. Picoult is the bestselling author of fifteen novels. Click here to browse Picoult's other books. This book would also make an excellent choice for a reading group. Click here to browse a set of suggested discussion topics and notes. Click here to buy this book. |  Erica BauermeisterThis is Erica Bauermeister's delectable novel new to paperback. I cannot decide whether I want to read or eat this book more. Lillian is the teacher of a cooking class and self-help guru to eight students in this tender story that will remind your Mum (or you!) of Chocolat or Love Actually. Food acts with magical properties in this plot (doesn't it do the same in real life?) as each of Lillian's students learn essential life lessons through the flavours and textures they create. Inside Lillian's kitchen, tiramisu opens a man to love, a white-on-white cake helps a widower to reflect on the sweet fragility of marriage, and a peppery heirloom tomato sauce sparks one romance while ending another. The combined power of food and companionship makes this a truly morish read. Click here to browse Bauermeister's website, including an excerpt from The School of Essential Ingredients, reading group guide and author Q&A. Click here to buy this book. | |
| THE PAST AND OTHER LIVES | SECRET INTENSITY OF EVERYDAY OF LIFE | |
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 Maggie JoelIN STOCK This is Maggie Joel's debut novel, cleverly planned and executed to describe the intermingling lives of three generations of women. Encompassing settings from post-WWII to the 1980s, each cast of characters centres around a group of sisters and the various men their lives encounter. The Past and Other Lives uncovers faded memories and long-hidden secrets to explore how secrets of the past carry on to the future. Joel is receiving special attention for her brimming use of detail in a London past and present. Click here to read the first chapter. Click here to buy this book. |  William NicholsonIN STOCK William Nicholson's latest novel looks deep into a Sussex village and opens the can of worms that is everyone's personal life. His protagonist, Laura, doesn't realise she could be happier until an ex-lover turns up unexpectedly and forces her to question just how much one person can expect from life. Unknown to Laura, every person in the village is living with their own unresolved inner dramas. Whilst none of them seems wholly aware of the others crises, every decision made has an impact on the other people. The Secret Intensity of Everyday Life is euphoric, tragic, serious, ridiculous, entertaining and finally, very moving. William Nicholson grew up and lives in Sussex. He has worked as a documentary and drama film maker for BBC Television. He has also written for the stage and film, and a number of novels for both children and adults. Click here to visit Nicholson's website. Click here to buy this book. | |
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| NON FICTION |
 Choir Man by Jonathon WelchIN STOCK This autobiography, from the founder and inspiration behind The Choir of Hard Knocks, is told with honesty and humility. Jonathon Welch, with the help of Meg Mundell, takes us right back to his humble beginnings as a Melbourne suburban school kid, through his personal struggles in an unhappy family and later crises that nearly led him to completely walk away from his life's direction. Through it all, Welch reveals how he found solace and salvation in music - and eventually learnt to pass that gift onto others in The Choir of Hard Knocks. The Choir - made up of the homeless and the disadvantaged - is still winning awards, and Welch was named 2008 Australian of the Year Local Hero. Welch's writing style is warm, gentle and open, and he has included eight pages of colour photographs featuring friends and loved ones along the way. Click here to buy this book.  David Williamson: Behind the Scenes by Kristin WilliamsonDavid Williamson is the national treasure who gave us plays such as Don's Party, The Removalists, The Club and Emerald City - and films such as Gallipoli. In this biography his wife of thirty-five years chronicles the events and people that inspired the plays, and tells the backstage stories. David's visibility on the political stage, as an anti-Vietnam and pro-Whitlam advocate, confidant of Paul Keating and scourge of John Howard has been equalled by the publicity of his private life. Kristin is more aware than anyone how much reality enters her husband's work and she writes frankly about their marriage, and the two divorces that ensued, the anxieties and rewards of raising a blended family, the period of their open marriage, and the challenge of being a working mother whilst playing peacemaker to Australia's most literary brawler. The result is a picture of remarkable intimacy, vividness and honesty, detailing the man, his relationships and life's work. Kristin Williamson has been an actor, teacher and journalist and is the author of eight books including two bestselling novels. Click here to read an extract from David Williamson: Behind the Scenes. On May 22nd, David and Kristin Williamson will speak about David Williamson: Behind the Scenes at the Sydney Writers' Festival. Click here to read more. David and Kristin also appeared on the 7.30 Report, speaking about this book. Click here to read the transcript of the interview or to watch the video. Click here to browse other books by Kristin Williamson, or click here to browse books and scripts by David Williamson. Click here to buy David Williamson: Behind the Scenes. | ||||
| LOVE IN THE AGE OF DROUGHT | GRANDMA MAGIC | FOXEY'S HANGOUT | ||
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 Fiona HigginsIN STOCK Fiona is a 28 year old executive in corporate philanthropy. In such a position, her radar for those who would pander for money is set to paranoid when she meets Stuart at a conference in Melbourne. What she doesn't expect, is how this honest, intelligent cotton farmer from South-East Queensland can completely disarm her. Fiona makes the decision to change her life entirely, move to Stuart's farm and join him as he battles one of the greatest droughts in Australian history. Her journey chronicles the hilarity of a city girl face-to-face with rural life and at times encountering its perils. Love in the Age of Drought is also a delightful celebration of our native land. Fiona Higgins has a background in corporate communications, non-profit management and philanthropy. She is executive director of a private philanthropic foundation, and consults to individuals and agencies on social investment opportunities in Australia and Asia. She currently lives in Sydney with her husband, Stuart, and their son, Oliver. This book would also make a great choice for book clubs. Click here to browse notes and suggested discussion points. Click here to buy this book. |  Janet HutchinsonIN STOCK In writing this gift format book Janet Hutchinson sought to meet and understand as many different types of Grandmothers as she could. Hutchinson writes: 'We become acquainted with a number of grand women who have been largely disregarded for much if not all of their lives, even more so in their declining years. And we get to meet strong, resolute women who have carved a place of their own in this country's history... All are conjured up here, on these pages, in these words.' These twenty tales are told by grandmothers, children and the grandchildren who love them. As these women speak about their experiences, Grandma Magic builds a multi-layered portrait. Sara Dowse writes, 'there's that thing about immortality, the wondrous notion that every grandchild carries a bit of us in them... [but to me] what matters is what I see before me now, and the changes I'm privileged to witness. How their stories evolve'. Janet Hutchinson is a Sydney-based freelance writer and editor. In 2006 she compiled an anthology of writing from Central Australia, The Milk in the Sky. Janet also taught creative writing at UTS. Her own creative work has been has been published in Desire and Other Domestic Problems. Click here to buy this book. |  Cathy GowdieIN STOCK When Cathy Gowdie announced she and husband Tony were moving to the country, a friend asked 'Do you own a pair of shoes without heels?'. Undeterred, the pair bought an old farmhouse on ten acres of Victoria's Mornington Peninsula and planted a vineyard. Gowdie had her life planned and plotted as a successful working mother. But life interrupted, as it has a tendency to do, and Gowdie accepted the new tack in her life wholeheartedly. Living the dream of wine making proved somewhat less deluxe than simply dreaming it. The couple soon discovered the delights and disasters of daily life on the land and just how much love and attention developing a new wine label demands. Foxey’s Hangout is illustrated with lush photography and features a seasonal recipe for each month, revealing a year in the life of a winemaker, beyond the façade of the cellar door. Cathy Gowdie has worked as a writer and editor for twenty years, mostly at The Age. She also works with her husband, Tony Lee, a winemaker and chef, to develop seasonal, produce-based recipes for their cellar door. The Foxey's Hangout cellar door was recently judged Mornington Peninsula’s best in a regional competition, and their wines have won several awards. Click here to buy this book. | ||
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LINKS
Nielsen Top Sellers
Google Books
Good Reading Magazine
FanFiction.net
April Booktopia Buzz
The Food & Drink Buzz
The Romance Buzz
The Publishers' Buzz
Nielsen Top Sellers
Google Books
Good Reading Magazine
FanFiction.net
April Booktopia Buzz
The Food & Drink Buzz
The Romance Buzz
The Publishers' Buzz
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Win A Trip to Broome
Live to Cook
For the Art & Crafty
On the Subject of Motherhood
From Littlies to Mum
Glorious Gifts
A Great Read - Fiction
Non Fiction
A Classic with Zest
A CLASSIC WITH ZEST!
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."
Grahame-Smith has coined his version of the Austen classic an 'expanded edition'. Whilst maintaining most of the original text, he has inserted the story Austen seemed to leave out, that featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. This is a buffy-esque romp through the English countryside, a comedy of manners that will keep any Mum with a sense of the ridiculous very happy. The book already has a cult following on Twitter and Facebook, as well as movie rights featuring Natalie Portman as the now-more-than-feisty Elizabeth Bennet.
Click here to read an interview with Grahame-Smith on how he wrote the book.
Click here to read more or to buy this book (not available until the end of April).
Win A Trip to Broome
Live to Cook
For the Art & Crafty
On the Subject of Motherhood
From Littlies to Mum
Glorious Gifts
A Great Read - Fiction
Non Fiction
A Classic with Zest
A CLASSIC WITH ZEST!
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."
Grahame-Smith has coined his version of the Austen classic an 'expanded edition'. Whilst maintaining most of the original text, he has inserted the story Austen seemed to leave out, that featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. This is a buffy-esque romp through the English countryside, a comedy of manners that will keep any Mum with a sense of the ridiculous very happy. The book already has a cult following on Twitter and Facebook, as well as movie rights featuring Natalie Portman as the now-more-than-feisty Elizabeth Bennet.
Click here to read an interview with Grahame-Smith on how he wrote the book.
Click here to read more or to buy this book (not available until the end of April).
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