Our Favourite Books for 2021
It’s that time of the year; we’ve asked all our staff to nominate their favourite read of 2021, and the results are here!
Intimacies by Katie Kitamura for me! A masterful existential thriller from an author at the top of her game – menacing and moving in equal measure. Zak
Hands down Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro was my favourite this year. I was flabbergasted that the story of the selflessness of an ‘artificial intelligence’ designed to take care of a vulnerable teen would be so utterly affecting. I also have to cite A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam. I think it is a flawed book but its long final chapter is profoundly moving and utterly perfect. Andrew
The Brilliant Boy: Doc Evatt and the great Australian Dissent by Gideon Haigh. This fascinating, clever and enlightening view of the most remarkable judicial figure in our history has stayed with me. Neither biography nor critique as such, but rather a rich and penetrating insight into the detail and lasting impact of Evatt’s High Court judgements. An original and valuable contribution to the understanding of our history. David
For fiction – Maggie Shipstead’s Great Circle. Pioneering aviatrix Marian Graves attempts to become the first person to fly a great circle intersecting both North and South Poles in 1950. Her plane disappears in the Antarctic. Decades later, her journal is discovered, wrapped in a life-preserver. This epic, scenic novel covers Marian’s unfettered life story, early-20th-century aviation, the Great Depression and the Second World War. A cyclical, parallel contemporary narrative, is told by Hollywood starlet Hadley Baxter, who is trying to revive her career by playing Marian in a biopic. For non-fiction, Miriam Margolyes – This Much is True A simply wonderful, conversational memoir. This was perfect lockdown reading. The famed Ms. Margolyes recounts her upbringing, acting career (highs and lows) and personal life (ditto) in (often) extremely candid, irrepressible and hilarious matter-of-fact-fashion. She’s still going strong at eighty: “If my work has entertained people, that makes me happy.” Stephen
I loved Intimacies by Katie Kitamura, a short, intense novel about an interpreter in the Hague, translating for an African dictator being tried for crimes against humanity. At the same time she is negotiating a new relationship, so the novel delves into several levels of intimacy. Quite brilliant. I also admired Animal by Lisa Taddeo for being totally out there and was confronted and excited by Jennifer Mills’ Bodies of Light. Morgan
Press Reset by Jason Schreier. Whether you’re a gamer or not, Jason Schreier offers a compelling insight into the challenges of the video game industry. After exposing crunch culture in Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, Schreier turns his pen to the human cost when games companies shut down, the conflict between creativity and commerce, and asks how studios can better protect their creatives. A thoroughly enjoyable deep dive. James
The Well Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith. Gardening is really good for dealing with some of those bigger things that are happening around us, as explained by the author, psychiatrist and avid gardener Stuart-Smith. We are encouraged to reflect upon the importance of nature and the act of just simply ‘being” rather than always ‘doing’ which was certainly the case throughout lockdown this year. Tam
Klara & the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro A profound and insightful exploration of what it is to be human, the nature of the heart and of the soul. It is a highly original work that will stay with you long after you turn the last page. Tiffany
It was a hard choice, but I have decided my favourite book this year is Still Life by Sarah Winman. A beautiful story set in both Florence and London after WWII, about love, history and hope. I loved all the characters and didn’t want the book to end. Victoria
Still Life A fantastic family epic through postwar Italy that I became totally immersed in. Kay
The Sweetest Fruits by Monique Truong. Victorian-era horror author Lafcadio Hearn’s globe-trotting life is revealed in exquisite detail by the women who knew him best. Monique Truong, in this multi-voiced novel, allows us to hear the stories of these women whose lives would otherwise be lost to history. Nick
The Airways by Jennifer Mills is a shimmering exploration of violence, dislocation, the nature of memory, reality, life and death, interrogating the complicated relationship between the self and the body, a novel that will haunt you long after you finish reading it. Jody
The Magician, Colm Toibin’s fictionalised ‘biography’ of Thomas Mann brilliantly conjures the complex personality and turbulent times of Germany’s greatest novelist of the last century. At once a sweeping family drama and a wonderful meditation on the art of writing. Scott
My pick of the year is The Believer by Sarah Krasnostein — a lyrical and deeply moving book about faith, belief, and the many ways in which humans try to connect with each other and make sense of the world, written with Krasnostein’s trademark empathy and compassion. Drew
The Hummingbird by Sandro Veronesi, newly translated from the Italian by Elena Pala. It has a very Italian sensibility & sophistication for me. The family saga moves about a lot, but is held together by a master storyteller. The central character, Marco, is revealed by his deeds, more than by his words. There is a lovely sense of getting to know this man as he moves towards true humility. He became someone I would love to have met. I enjoyed the novel as it unfolded, & gained even more in later contemplation. Judith
The Employees by Olga Ravn. This philosophical novel makes the reader piece its strange story together from a series of anonymous interview statements given by the titular employees—sometimes giving more and sometimes less information, but always evoking some yearning that is subtly destabilising them. Ravn presents the familiar juxtaposition of androids and humans, but adds organic objects that sit in a third position—somehow both inanimate and sentient, like a rock that is a slimy animal—to talk about the fluidity of bodies, a certain transhuman horizon, and the ways bodies merge emotion, memory, sense and place. Nominated for the International Booker Prize 2021. Jonathon
Luckily, in April, when I read Louis MacNiece’s lively, wonderful, Autumn Journal, I also discovered an audio recording by English actor, Samuel West. Both have been essential companions in a year when I often doubted the following lines would ever find their place again: Now we are back to normal, now the mind is back to the even tenor of the usual day, skidding no longer across the uneasy camber of the nightmare way. We are safe… Jack
Milk Fed by Melissa Broder. A lesbian love affair with potentially mythic origins, Broder delivers a sharp, sardonic, and tasty tale of overcoming trauma. Ange
The Hummingbird by Sandro Veronesi. Sophisticated European fiction always pulls me in. What a pleasure when insight into the human condition is matched with the ability to articulate it well. I am of course not alone in delighting in this assured, profound, and ultimately uplifting novel. David M
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak. A story set between London and Cyprus. For me it is a story of roots, loss, displacement and belonging. A magic tree, secrets and journeys that stayed with me way after reading. And a spotlight on political events shaping people’s lives. Loved it. Anna
Robby Muller: Polaroids – Flora Robby Muller was a dutch cinematographer. A longtime collaborator of Wim Wenders and Jim Jarmush, his work was renowned for its evocative use of low light and distinct composition and this aesthetic translates to the many Polaroids he took since 1973. There are several recurring motifs, of which nature forms a significant amount. In this book we see a painterly quality to the pictures of flowers and translucent petals, trees and impossibly captured close-ups of butterflies. But always the light – making each photo feel like you’re looking at a jewel. Tatjana
Alice Pung’s One Hundred Days. A beautifully written exploration of motherhood and the warped way that love manifests itself. Suitable for older teens as well. This was a powerful read, sometimes claustrophobic but a complete standout for what was a year of amazing releases. Rachel
I was going to write about two post-covid thrillers: The Last Woman in the World by Inga Simpson & The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny, as both will keep you turning the pages late through the night. However, my book of the year is Cezanne: Drawing, published by MOMA for their exhibition earlier in the year. The sheer joy of seeing these drawings and watercolours is not to be missed. Ingrid
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe. I was not actually sure I wanted to read this when I first picked it up, another book sure to fuel my deep antipathy towards…well a lot of things really but Keefe (a staff writer for the New Yorker) manages to make the history of the opioid crisis in America incredibly gripping & highly readable. Maija
I ‘discovered’ Allan Gurganus this year. His latest, The Uncollected Stories, was a reminder to me of why I love reading. His southern lilt infused sentences are a joy to read. I carried the book around the shop insisting people read this paragraph or that, and have since gone back to his previous work, other short story collections and his magnificent door stopper, Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All. Favourites all. Viki
RACHEL’S CHILDREN’S PICKS
Favourite picture book
I am The Subway by Kim Hyo-eun. A cinematic journey across Seoul told from the perspective of the subway. The illustrations are divine (it also won the World Illustration award for 2021) and the story swaps between gorgeous prose and poetry making it a lovely celebration of Seoul and it’s people. Suitable for absolutely everyone!
Favourite middle grade
Right Way To Rock by Nat Amoore.
Never have I experienced a more satisfying end to a series, there were fist pumps galore as all the wonderful characters from the last 2 books come together to celebrate an awesome community of cool kids. This can be read as a stand alone, but there are so many rewards for those who have read all 3 books. Nat is a brilliant writer for kids, she manages to squeeze all the good stuff in there: diversity, ethics, environment, the arts, social inequality but not in a cheesy way. She writes beautifully, is absolutely hilarious and has the mind of a child which makes it the perfect series for all ages and all abilities. Read it aloud, read it by yourself, just read it!…because it really is magnificent.
Favourite YA
Waking Romeo by Kathryn Barker
This was my surprise favourite of 2021 because a time travelling mash up of Romeo and Juliet and Wuthering Heights was so far removed from my usual reading habits..but this was just fabulous. Pacy and so well plotted that even though it was a complete mind boggle, I was hooked the entire time. A favourite amongst our year 9/10 bookclubbers, it has been an amazing year for wonderful Australian YA releases so to be at the top of this list is really quite something. Adult readers will love it too.
Elissa’s Children’s Picks
What a year for books! So many amazing kids’ titles have arrived in store this year it’s almost impossible to pick a favourite… so I didn’t! I picked 2! Let’s Eat Weeds by Annie Raser-Rowland & Adam Grubb is an amazing (Aussie!) title about safe foraging for kids. An exciting way to liven up those lockdown walks & encourage a love of nature with a dash of cooking and science as well! Filled with excellent illustrations by Evie Barrow. Great for parents too! The Boy From the Mish by Gary Lonesborough. A story, a book, a voice we’ve been waiting for. Gosh, just go read it. Honourable mentions go to: Poison for Breakfast by Lemony Snicket & The Curiosities by Zana Fraillon & Phil Lesnie. Elissa