FICTION
A Universe of Sufficient Size | Miriam Sved | $32.99 | Pan Macmillan | Sylvia’s Pick Eastern Suburbs, 2007: Illy, after burying her violent father, begins to unravel as she reads a diary her elderly Hungarian mother leaves for her to discover. This intriguing novel switches between prewar Hungary in 1938 and modern-day Australia as it tells the story of a group of Hungarian intellectuals, two being talented female mathematicians, and the effect the rise of Hitler has on them and their future.
Mouthful of Birds | Samanta Schweblin | $29.99 | Bloomsbury | Dean’s Pick An eerie collection of short stories woven from loose ends that are otherworldly, unsettling and completely brilliant. Argentinian author Schweblin embraces the darkest corners of magical realism where each character must contend with the unexpected. In the namesake story (and my personal favourite) a father must contend with his child turning into a bird.
Queenie | Candice Carty-Williams | $29.99 | Hachette | Emma C’s Pick Funny, smart, astute, electric — I loved this novel! Queenie is disguised as chick-lit but don’t discount it for a minute. It is so much more! Queenie Jenkins is a young woman whose family immigrated to London from Jamaica. When she and her white boyfriend Tom decide to “go on a break”, she packs her possessions and gives Tom “some space” — here, she enters a vulnerable and liminal place where anything could happen. Queenie is fabulous, very easy to love and feel connected to, and has made me feel compelled to do better and to stand up for all women.
The Forest of Wool and Steel | Natsu Miyashita | $24.99 | Random House | Alisha’s Pick This is an exquisite, lyrical novel by bestselling Japanese author Natsu Miyashita. Its title pays tribute to the delicate and intricate materials that are housed inside the body of a piano — wool and steel — and the way that they look and sound like a musical forest. This reads as a love song to the piano, as the protagonist finds his calling as a piano tuner. A rewarding read.
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The Parade | Dave Eggers | $35 | Penguin | Lillian’s Pick Two men, only identified by numbers, are sent to an unnamed country which is only just emerging from a decade of civil war. They are contracted to help build a highway connecting the two divided halves of the state but their radically different personalities force them to confront the consequences of their presence and role in a foreign nation’s struggle for peace. A suspenseful, absurdist and very refreshing read!
Machines Like Me | Ian McEwan | $32.99 | Random House | Kate’s Pick Set in an alternate version of 1980s London, McEwan drip-feeds us history — some true to our reality, while some events have completely changed the trajectory of modern society. When a limited number of Adams and Eves (the first humanoid AI inventions) become available to purchase, our narrator Charlie splurges his inheritance on an Adam. He’s at a loose end, and hopeful the machine will draw his attractive upstairs neighbour, Miranda, closer. A story of love, jealousy, and revenge ensues – in classic McEwan style.
The Snakes | Sadie Jones | $32.99 | Random House | Dean’s Pick A gripping and wonderfully complex family drama examining the corrupting influence of money and power. In the face of tragedy, a wealthy family’s secrets are exposed. This story is unexpected — it twists with menace and keeps you engaged with its multi-layered (and at times horrific) characters and thought-provoking depth. Tense and terrific!
The Heavens | Sandra Newman | $29.99 | Allen and Unwin | Virginia’s Pick This is an astonishing novel of unsettling beauty, warmth and fluidity. Set at once in ‘real’ Manhattan in the year 2000, though with a green political party in power, and Shakespearean England, the novel focuses on the relationship of Kate and Ben who meet at a party. That’s pretty much where anything conventional ends. Peopled with fascinating characters and asking difficult questions, this novel is the most creative illumination of unconsciousness and possibilities of individual power and lives I have read.
