Books Editor. An admirer of songs and reader of books. Simon has a PhD in English and Comparative Literature. All errant apostrophes are his own.
Norwegian author Lars Mytting and his English translator Deborah Dawkin transport readers back to the modest village of Butangen in The Reindeer Hunters, the second book in Mytting’s Sister Bells Trilogy. If you haven’t read the first book in the trilogy, The Bell in the Lake, I heartily recommend you do so before starting on…
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Earlier this month Belgian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kristin Deruytter a.k.a Kristo released his debut EP Restore. It’s an eclectic and exciting release; one which highlights the talent and promise of the young artist, with Kristo playing with genres at will. On the one hand, you have the refined and controlled emotion of “Restore”, and on…
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London singer-songwriter Xavier Collins has had a busy start to 2022 – releasing his first two singles, and prepping the release of his debut EP Coastlines, which is due in April. The first single “Elegy” was released in early January, and features a rich and emotive vocal performance from Collins, along with some truly beautiful…
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The Pit, directed by Dace Pūce, Latvia’s submission to the 2022 Oscar’s for Best International Film is something of a contradictory affair; at once a rich and nuanced coming of age story, but also an almost brutalist portrayal of life in small-town Latvia. Based on a series of stories by Latvian writer Jana Egle, the…
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We’re a week in 2022 and it’s already looking like it’s going to be a year for escapism. Case numbers and rising, people are finding themselves in iso. So why not ride it out with a good book? Once again, the AU Books Team are looking ahead and picking out some choice cuts of the…
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2021. We had high hopes. But it’s been another year of uncertainty and upheaval – albeit perhaps not as bad as last year. It has been another strong year for books and publishing, with some big names returning with new books: Colson Whitehead, Taylor Jenkins Reid and Sally Rooney to name just three. It’s also…
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Actress Drew Barrymore is joining the ranks of lifestyle authors, with her debut lifestyle guide and cookbook Rebel Homemaker. In Rebel Homemaker, Barrymore takes you inside her kitchen and her life, as she shares stories, recipes and personal photos. Alongside thirty-six recipes, she will also be sharing personal essays and stories about topics such as…
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The Magician, the new novel from Irish author Colm Tóibín, explores the live of the acclaimed German author Thomas Mann. It’s a novel that spans decades, continents and two World Wars – all in fewer pages than you would expect. It is an interesting novel. Whilst it’s clearly incredibly well researched, and it has prompted…
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Award-winning food journalist, radio presenter, TV personality and bestselling cookbook author Matt Preston is back with a new cookbook: Matt Preston’s World of Flavour. The premise of this new cookbook is very much in the title. In this colourful new release, Preston brings together our favourite, flavourful dishes from around the world. Some of the…
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Award-winning food journalist, radio presenter, TV personality and bestselling cookbook author Matt Preston is back with a new cookbook: Matt Preston’s World of Flavour. The premise of this new cookbook is very much in the title. In this colourful new release, Preston brings together our favourite, flavourful dishes from around the world. Some of the…
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2021 is coming into the final stretch, the final quarter, and with that comes more books – all vying for the Christmas market. It’s 81days to go, if you were curious. So we’re back for our final instalment of our AU’s Most Anticipated Reads feature for this year. Though we’ll be back just before Christmas…
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Gesticulations, fronted by Graham Ashton of The Shambolics and Way Cool Jnr., is seemingly in the midst of a purple patch of productivity. They have just released Threadbare, which is their second long-play album of the year, following from Sense of Purgency which dropped in April. Ashton has collaborated again with multi-instrumentalist and producer Benny…
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Toowomba alt-country band Suicide Swans released their new album, Reservations, late last week. The album, the follow-up to last year’s Through The Years, was recorded in its entirety at By The Living Grace Studio in Brisbane. According to Frontman Kyle Jenkins the album is “an extension of the previous album… that captured the band’s love…
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Singer-songwriter and ‘Gypsy Scotsman’ Colin Lillie need not worry about the curse of the second album. Shades Of Love, out today is an assured and confident record, one that is full of heart, life, and honest, compelling songwriting. In essence, it’s what we’ve come to expect from Lillie; but equally it also displays an admirable…
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Thanks to our friends at Pan Macmillan Australia we have two copies of Felicity Castagna’s forthcoming book Girls In Boys’ Cars to giveaway. Girls In Boys’ Cars tells the story of a complicated friendship; of a road trip through NSW in a stolen car; of two funny, sharp and adventurous young women who refuse to…
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Seventeen-year-old Dharawal singer-songwriter Aodhan has capped off an impressive couple of years, releasing his debut EP Flies In My Room on Friday. His early singles caught the attention of Communion Publishing in the UK, earning him a place on their roster; whilst here in Australia he’s been racking up the plays on Triple J, not…
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We’re over halfway through the year. How are your 2021 reading goals going? Have all the mini snap lockdowns around the country had you turning to a good book? We’re back to take a look at a handful of the new titles coming out across the next couple of months. With so many books published each…
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“Time Travel” is the debut single from new band on the block Partefacts, and taken from their forthcoming EP Lifestyle Blob. Partefacts is the brainchild of Canadian multi-instrumentalist Christa Belle and Australian producers Lani Bagley and Craig Schuftan. If those last two names sound familiar to you, then good. Bagley and Schuftan also make up…
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Sydney outfit Inklines are enjoying a strong start to 2021, with the release of singles “Blossom” and more recently “All Gone”. Both are from a forthcoming EP due later this year. With new music comes shows, and with the re-opening of Sydney post-COVID still ongoing, the band have put together a choice list of their…
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At long last Gang Of Youths are making their highly and hotly anticipated return with their new single “the angel of 8th ave.” Released today, the single is the first taste of new music from the band since their successful 2017 album Go Farther In Lightness. The band have undergone a few changes in those…
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, Last night saw Brooke Dunnell announced as the winner of the 2021 Fogarty Literary Award at the ECU Spiegeltent. Dunnell receives a $20,000 cash prize from the Fogarty Foundation, along with a publishing contract with Fremantle Press for her winning manuscript The Glass House. The Fogarty Literary Award is for Western Australian writers aged…
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Oslo-based collaborative pop project Wauwatosa released their latest single, “Good Life”, last week. With guest vocals from Turid Alida Røsten, the single is their first since the release of their debut album Souvenirs in 2018. By way of introduction Wauwatosa is the brain child of two songwriters and producers: Sigurd Ytre-Arne and Martin Langerod. Both…
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“One Morning” is the new single from Melbourne-based violinist, vocalist and composer Emma Kelly aka Happy Axe. On this dreamy and beautiful single the Canberra native has enlisted the help of friend and new collaborator Butternut Sweetheart. “One Morning”, is the second single to be released from Happy Axe’s second album Maybe It’ll Be Beautiful,…
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Dublin-based singer-songwriter and producer Dunluvly is all set to release his new single, “Hazey”. The single, a delightful slice of dream pop, is the culmination of three years work, and we’re pleased to bring you this exclusive first listen ahead of its official release tomorrow. The single is Dunluvly’s first since the release of his…
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Brisbane artist Kyle Jenkins is back with the first of two planned solo albums: Love, Lost Love. Released at the end of April, the album is an introspective and philosophical collection of songs that deals with disappointments, disillusionment, longing, and of course, love. The album’s fifteen tracks have been intentionally left sparse and pared back….
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Sydney singer-songwriter and producer Chris Lanzon releases a new single, his second for the year, today. “Always Forever”, is the final single to be released from Lanzon’s forthcoming EP Far From Perfect, which is out June 11th on Hunnydew Recordings. “Always Forever”, with its soft instrumentation and lyrical introspection, is a delicate and charming slice…
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US and Brazilian indie duo Kid Le Chat are all set to release their brand new EP, Luck Comes Too Late this week. Ahead of its official release on Wednesday, May 5th we bring you this exclusive first listen, and a track by track walk through from the band. Luck Comes Too Late, the group’s…
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The 2021 shortlist for the Women’s Prize for Fiction has been announced at a virtual event overnight. This year’s shortlist is one for the newcomers, with none of the six shortlisted authors having been previously shortlisted for the Prize. The six strong shortlist, which was selected by Chair of judges, Bernardine Evaristo and her judging panel…
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Since the release of Daisy Jones and the Six back in 2019, narratives about fictional bands, singers and songwriters have undergone something of a renaissance. Dawnie Walton’s debut The Final Revival of Opal & Nev builds on the oral history format of Daisy Jones, and takes the next step. Walton succeeds in telling a story…
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We’re big fans of EJ Worland here at the AU. His debut EP No One Left To Blame, which dropped earlier this month, was our Album of the Week. His single “Over The Pond” came in at 27 on our 40 Best Australian Tracks of 2020 too. His is a sound firmly rooted in the…
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