Now to Love

ARTHUR’S WARBY ARTHUR BANCROFT WITH JOHN HARMAN, VIKING, $39.95. An exceptional memoir by 19-year-old sailor Arthur Bancroft, whose secret diary tells a courageous story of mateship, survival and enduring love. Arthur was not only a gifted writer, but also a cartoonist who illustrated letters to his sweetheart, Mirla, now his wife of 65 years. Her […]

THE GOOD DAUGHTER BY HONEY BROWN, VIKING, $32.95.VIKING, $39.95. This novel is as Aussie as an old ute covered in orange dust and as menacing as a blue heeler gone rogue. Rebecca Toyer is a good girl with a bad reputation. When her truckie stepfather leaves her alone for two weeks and a local woman […]

THE WHISPERER BY DONATO CARRISI, ABACUS, $32.99. The Whisperer, written by a newly discovered Italian writer, spent a year on Italy’s best-seller lists. Dishevelled criminologist Goran Gavila and young policewoman Mila Vasquez are on the hunt for a child abductor. When six small severed arms are found buried in a forest, the search becomes frantic. […]

THE MEMORY OF LOVE BY AMINATTA FORNA, BLOOMSBURY, $32.99. Set in Sierra Leone, the book interweaves the story of two generations. Professor Elias Cole tells of life on campus in Freetown in the late 1960s, his passion for the beautiful Saffia and his relationship with her charismatic but dangerously politically active husband. Listening to this […]

TIGERLILY’S ORCHIDS BY RUTH RENDELL, HUTCHINSON, $32.95. Ruth Rendell is such a master of mystery that not only is it impossible to guess the identity of the killer, for a long while it’s hard to figure out who is going to die. Luckily, not one of the characters that live in the apartments of London’s […]

THE CHANGI BROWNLOWBY ROLAND PERRY, HACHETTE AUSTRALIA, $35. The Changi Brownlowis the moving and powerful story of Peter Chitty – a farm hand with unfathomable physical and mental fortitude from Snowy River country – who was one of seven in his family who volunteered to serve in World War II. Set in the worst conditions […]

IN OFFICE HOURSBY LUCY KELLAWAY, FIG TREE, $29.95. Sharp, witty, poignant, observant,In Office Hours, by British Financial Times columnist Lucy Kellaway, ticks all the boxes – especially the in-box – for a Bridget Jones-style romantic comedy for the email, text and iPod generation. High-flying executive and mother of two, 46-year-old Stella Bradberry, is inches away […]

IT TASTES BETTER BY KYLIE KWONG, LANTERN, $69.95. Restaurateur and TV chef Kylie Kwong is passionate about sustainable food and ethical eating, and this book is a tribute to that ethos. Kylie heads off on an inspiring journey around Australia to meet the farmers and producers who are dedicated not only to organic produce, but […]

Controversy surrounded her before she even set sail, but teen solo sailor Jessica Watson proved the critics wrong, writes Michael Sheather – and her mum was right there, all the way. Jessica Watson, the 16-year-old, who has become the youngest person to sail non-stop and unassisted around the world, has a simple dedication to her […]

On the nightly news, she is cool and composed. Yet as Bryce Corbett discovers, you only have to put our new PM in stilettos and delve a little into her personal life to find the woman behind the politician. Julia Gillard is running late. The Royal Australian Air Force jet that will be flying her […]