Happy’s Best New Books (22nd November – 28th November)
Updated weekly by the fine folk at Happy Mag, these are the best new books that this week has to offer from Australia and around the world!
Claire Oshetsky – Chouette
There are many stories that address the myriad themes of motherhood, but it would be hard to find one that did it in such an utterly original way as Chouette. Drawing on her own experiences of mothering non-conforming children, Oshetsky weaves a contemporary fable so affecting, yet brimming with humour and life, that you’ll probably tear through it in one sitting.
9.7
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CLAIRE OSHETSKY
CHOUETTE
Zadie Smith – The Wife of Willesden
There are not too many authors who would be able to update Chaucer for the 21st century, let alone inject it with such contemporary verve and humour. But Zadie Smith makes it look easy. She fell into this commission by accident, sort of (read the introduction), but this stage-writing debut from the acclaimed author — which works strictly in the Chaucerian form of couplets derived from 10-syllable lines — reads like a work that she was always meant to write.
9.5
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ZADIE SMITH
THE WIFE OF WILLESDEN
Marcia Langton – Welcome to Country 2nd Edition
This new edition of Welcome to Country is a comprehensive update to the essential travel guide. From Marcia Langton — one of Australia’s most respected academics — it details the full range of Indigenous-owned or operated tourism experiences that span the entire continent (with accompanying illustrated maps and photography from Wayne Quilliam). For anyone who wishes to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the longest continuing culture on Earth, it’s an essential read.
9.5
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MARCIA LANGTON
WELCOME TO COUNTRY 2ND EDITION
Louise Erdrich – The Sentence
From the pen of Pulitzer Prize-winner Louise Erdrich, The Sentence is essentially a ghost story. But it’s not just people that haunt the pages of this book (and the book store at the heart of the story), it’s also the combined weight of history and misdeeds of the past. It’s a thought-provoking tale that’s very much of the present, but its larger themes mean that The Sentence can be appreciated for its timelessness.
9.4
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LOUISE ERDRICH
THE SENTENCE
Sean Kelly – The Game: A Portrait of Scott Morrison
It’s the book that’s on everybody’s lips at the moment. Ramping up toward another Federal election campaign, the political direction of the nation is first and foremost in many minds. Scott Morrison obviously attracts a lot of media attention, but The Game sidesteps the spin and illuminates the motivations, tactics, and failings of Morrison in this comprehensive and incisive portrait.
9.3
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SEAN KELLY
THE GAME
Michael McGirr – Ideas to Save Your Life
Need a tonic for the chronic overwhelm of life? In Ideas to Save Your Life, Michael McGirr leans on the teachings of a range of philosophers across the centuries, each in their own way addressing the pivotal issues of life’s purpose, as well as its quality. A book to unscramble your brain and help refresh your perspective.
9.1
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