May News from Jeffreys Books
April News from Jeffreys Books
March e-News from Jeffreys Books
Jeffreys Books will be closed on Monday 13 March for Labour Day. Be sure to drop in
and pick up your long weekend reading before then! There are some wonderful new reads hitting our shelves this month.
Planning travel? We're running a promotion with all Travel Guides and Phrasebooks at 20% off. Perfect timing to pick up the newest guide for your next holiday.
Happy reading,
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: The Road Taken - Henry Petroski
Adam's quote: "This is a fascinating look at public infrastructure, that opens your eyes to the 
everyday world around you. A new appreciation for traffic lights and guardrails and a crash course in the formation of potholes that may see you happier to pay - and more interested in the spending of - your council rates"
Physical infrastructure in the United States is crumbling. The American Society of Civil Engineers has, in its latest report, given American roads and bridges a grade of D and C+, respectively, and has described roughly sixty-five thousand bridges in the United States as "structurally deficient." Henry Petroski explores our core infrastructure from historical and contemporary perspectives and explains how essential their maintenance is to America's economic health.
Judas - Amos Oz
Shmuel, a young, idealistic student, is drawn to a mysterious handwritten note on a campus noticeboard. This takes him to a strange house, where an elderly invalid man requires a paid companion, to argue with and read to him. But there is someone else in the house, too... A woman, who is trailed by ghosts from her past. Shmuel is captivated by her, a sexual obsession which evolves into gentle love and devotion; and he is pulled to the old man, an intellectual obsession which also evolves into gentle love and devotion. Set in the still-divided Jerusalem of 1959-60, Judas is an exquisite love story and coming-of-age tale, and a radical rethinking of the concept of treason. Treading a fine line between history and fiction, it is a novel steeped in desire and curiosity from one of Israel's greatest living writers.Please note change of date: Tuesday 21 March at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
French Connection Book Club (Fiction/Non-Fiction)
When in French: Love in a Second Language - Lauren Collins
'We spoke to each other in endearments. My darling, my love, mon amour, ma cherie, poussin, mouton, bebe ...People we knew, I think, made fun of us. What they didn't know was that we couldn't say each other's names.' After a lifetime spent living firmly in English, Lauren Collins finds herself adrift in French-speaking Geneva. Having fallen in love with Olivier, a Frenchman, Lauren wakes up one day to the realisation that she is living in a community where she cannot speak the language, and that she is married to a man whose name she doesn't dare speak in public, for fear of mispronunciation. A funny, thoughtful memoir, When in French looks at how our mother tongues shape our lives, from how we think, to how we fall in love, and what happens when two languages, and two very different cultures, collide.Tuesday 28 March at 10.30am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
SPELD - Jeffreys Books is supporting SPELD throughout March
SPELD Victoria is a membership based, not for profit organisation and registered charity. They are also the Peak body for Specific Learning Difficulties in Victoria, meeting with government and the community to advocate for change.
Throughout March you can support SPELD by donating your
rewards points. Simply mention SPELD when you make your purchase. If you are purchasing online, please quote SPELD in the notes field.Events: Book Launch Thursday 30 March at 6.30pm
Miriam - Kerry Klineberg
Local author, Kerry Klineberg, will be launching his novel Miriam.
Miriam is a story that explores the impact of bequeathed memories and experiences on identity, behaviour and
Dear Uncle Jeffrey,
I'm having internet issues. I can barely log on to check my emails, let alone have a stable connection to pay my bills. Yes, it's down to the Post Office queues for me. How do these people who post to Facebook 10 times a day or create YouTube stardom do it? They're certainly not using my internet dis-connection. I want what they have.
Yours in anguish,
Amy
Dear Anguished Amy,
Don't start me on internet issues. OK, it's too late, you've already started me. [editor note - part of Uncle Jeffrey's response has been removed as it may cause offence] ... We've all been there and we share your pain. Let's just say while you're having the problem, I'm not! And we all have to take turns. Be grateful you're not submitting a final assignment or have just finished the final draft of a novel.
In the words of the late Carrie Fisher, “Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” Time to don your princess tiara and enjoy the internet quiet.
Happy computing,
Uncle Jeffrey
Featured Fiction
Exit West - Mohsin Hamid
An extraordinary story of love and hope from the bestselling, Man Booker-shortlisted author of The Reluctant Fundamentalist In a city swollen by refugees but still mostly at peace, or at least not yet openly at war, Saeed and Nadia share a cup of coffee, and their story begins. It will be a love story but also a story about war and a world in crisis, about how we live now and how we might live tomorrow. Before too long, the time will come for Nadia and Saeed to leave their homeland. When the streets are no longer useable and all options are exhausted, this young couple will join the great outpouring of those fleeing a collapsing city, hoping against hope, looking for their place in the world ...
Cyril Avery is not a real Avery or at least that's what his adoptive parents tell him. And he never will be. But if he isn't a real Avery, then who is he? Born out of wedlock to a teenage girl cast out from her rural Irish community and adopted by a well-to-do if eccentric Dublin couple via the intervention of a hunchbacked Redemptorist nun, Cyril is adrift in the world, anchored only tenuously by his heartfelt friendship with the infinitely more glamorous and dangerous Julian Woodbead. At the mercy of fortune and coincidence, he will spend a lifetime coming to know himself and where he came from - and over his three score years and ten, will struggle to discover an identity, a home, a country and much more. The Heart's Invisible Furies is a novel to make you laugh and cry while reminding us all of the redemptive power of the human spirit.
After years of travelling, Saul is trying to settle down. But one night he receives the devastating news of the death of his oldest friend, Jed, recently returned from working in a remote Aboriginal community. Saul's discovery in Jed's belongings of a photo of a woman convinces him that she may hold the answers to Jed's fate. So he heads out on a journey into the heart of the Australian desert to find the truth, setting in motion a powerful story about the landscapes that shape us and the ghosts that lay their claim... The Crying Place is a haunting, luminous novel about love, country, and the varied ways in which we grieve.
'It's hard to find the right words to praise this novel. I think we need a whole new critical vocabulary to be invented. Rawson recreates a vanished historical world with utterly convincing characters... The book is a sort of miracle.' Lian HearnFrom the Wreck tells the remarkable story of George Hills, who survived the sinking of the steamship Admella off the South Australian coast in 1859. Haunted by his memories and the disappearance of a fellow survivor, George's fractured life is intertwined with that of a woman from another dimension, seeking refuge on Earth. This is a novel imbued with beauty and feeling, filled both with existential loneliness and a deep awareness that all life is interdependent.
Seventeen-year-old Noa has been cast out in disgrace after becoming pregnant by a Nazi soldier during the occupation of her native Holland. Heartbroken over the loss of the baby she was forced to give up for adoption, she lives above a small German rail station, which she cleans in order to earn her keep. When Noa discovers a boxcar containing dozens of Jewish infants, unknown children ripped from their parents and headed for a concentration camp, she is reminded of the baby that was taken from her. In a moment that will change the course of her life, she steals one of the babies and flees into the snowy night, where she is rescued by a German circus. The circus owner offers to teach Noa the flying trapeze act so she can blend in undetected, spurning the resentment of the lead aerialist, Astrid. At first rivals, Noa and Astrid soon forge a powerful bond. But as the facade that protects them proves increasingly tenuous, Noa and Astrid must decide whether their unlikely friendship is enough to save one another.The French Perfumer - Amanda Hampson
'Shorthand typist required by English speaker in the South of France. Live-in, full board plus salary commensurate with experience.' Iris Turner, an unworldly young Englishwoman, arrives in the French Riviera to take up a secretarial role for the mysterious Hammond Brooke. Living in a small, exclusive hotel among eccentric and unpredictable aristocrats and struggling to gain her employer's trust, she soon realises that nothing is as it seems. Initiated into the mysterious world of perfume, she finds herself entangled in a web of intrigue and deception. Gradually discovering the truth, she gains a new understanding of the meaning of love, loyalty and betrayal. By the bestselling author of The Olive Sisters, this is a captivating and evocative novel full of surprising twists and turns.
Featured Non-Fiction
Momo Freaks Out - Samone Bos
One day, bored at work, Momo, a typical twenty-something, discovered the curious underworld of blogs. Soon she's living her life online, baring her soul and relationships, equal parts funny and pitiful. Momo Freaks Out represents a time, a subculture and a whole lot of silly hijinks in a decade that seems both very recent and distant.
Australian Style - Lisa Teh and Thom Whilton
From models and designers to magazine editors and social media starlets, Australian Style offers insight into the worlds of influencers of Australian fashion - those whose lifestyle, personal style and general aura have shaped the industry. Showcasing an exceptional (and often overlooked) pool of talent, this book profiles those who make the clothes, those who market the clothes and those who wear the clothes. From established names to emerging talent, Australian Style is a refreshing take on the world of fashion. This is the ultimate guide to the who's who in Australian fashion, including interviews with Megan Gale, Toni Maticevski, Zanita Whittington and Jenny Kee.
Peak: Reinventing Middle Age - Patricia Edgar
Society is changing faster than policies and attitudes are keeping up with. People are living longer, retiring from work later, and remaining active and valuable contributors to the community well into and beyond their 50s and 60s. Peak: Reinventing Middle Age focusses on Australians in the 50-75 age bracket- their contributions to society and their needs and expectations for their own lives. It is an insightful look at employment, relationships, education, housing, finances, lifestyles, health and aged care, and the need for reinvention both on a personal level and in terms of social policy. It includes ten short biographies of Australians who have embraced their middle age in a variety of interesting and inspirational ways.
The CSIRO Low-Carb Diet - Grant Brinkworth
Based on emerging research from around the world, as well as original CSIRO research recently conducted in Australia, the low-carb diet has proved successful in managing lifestyle-induced metabolic diseases, including unhealthy weight gain and type 2 diabetes. The diet lowers the proportion of carbohydrate relative to protein and unsaturated 'healthy' fat, and encourages participants to follow a regular exercise routine. This easy-to-follow, comprehensive lifestyle plan integrates these principles and can help you not only to reach your weight-loss goals, but also to maximise its benefits for improved metabolic health, blood glucose control and diabetes management.
Bitten by an Elephant: Memoir of a Maverick Lawyer - Gordon Lewis
At the age of 65 Gordon Lewis was described by an enraged senior judge as a 'bloody maverick!' He took comfort from this assessment as he felt it confirmed that he was on the right track... Gordon Lewis loves the humanity of the Law. That affection has led him to a legal career of great diversity. Whether as Director of the Victorian Law Institute, sitting as a County Court Judge, regularly presenting on radio, guest speaker at both overseas and Australian conferences, or his role as Cricket Australia's Senior Code of Conduct Commissioner, his name has become almost as well known to the general public as it is to the legal profession. Known for his warmth, compassion and quick wit, he has devoted many years to assisting and advising young lawyers. Whether it is the law stripped of its pomposity, cricket, film reviewing, greyhounds or just coping with life's exigencies, the self-deprecatory humour in these pages gives a rare insight into the author's kindness and sense of fun.
Insomniac City: New York, Oliver, and Me - Bill Hayes
Bill Hayes came to New York City in 2009 with a one-way ticket and only the vaguest idea of how he would get by. But, at forty-eight years old, having spent decades in San Francisco, he craved change. Grieving over the death of his partner, he quickly discovered the profound consolations of the city's incessant rhythms, the sight of the Empire State Building against the night sky, and New Yorkers themselves, kindred souls that Hayes, a lifelong insomniac, encountered on late-night strolls with his camera. And he unexpectedly fell in love again, with his friend and neighbor, the writer and neurologist Oliver Sacks, whose exuberance is captured in funny and touching vignettes throughout. What emerges is a portrait of Sacks at his most personal and endearing, from falling in love for the first time at age seventy-five to facing illness and death
Stop Doing List - Matt Malouf
Learn what not to do to grow your business The Stop Doing List gets you off the treadmill of unproductive, frenetic activity, and sets you on the path toward growth. Running a business has never been easy, but today's nonstop 24-7-365 world makes moving forward more difficult than ever before. Plenty of resources can show you how to make lists, create schedules and manage your time, but they all seem to expect your time to be 100 per cent devoted to work - not only is that no way to live, it's no way to grow. Instead, try doing less. This book shows you how to stop wasting energy on tasks that don't move you closer to your goals, so you can focus on the things that do. 
Featured Young Adult
This Adventure Ends - Emma Mills
Sloane isn't expecting to fall in with a group of friends when she moves from New York to Florida, especially not a group of friends so intense, so in love, so all-consuming. Yet that's exactly what happens. Sloane becomes closest to Vera, a social-media star who lights up any room, and Gabe, Vera's twin brother and the most serious person Sloane's ever met. When a beloved painting by the twins' late mother goes missing, Sloane takes on the responsibility of tracking it down, a journey that takes her across state lines and ever deeper into the twins' lives. Filled with intense and important friendships, a wonderful warts-and-all family, shiveringly good romantic developments, and sharp, witty dialogue, this story is about finding the people you never knew you needed.
Frogkisser - Garth Nix
Talking dogs. Mischievous wizards. An evil stepstepfather. Loads and loads of toads. Such is the life of a Frogkisser... Princess Anya needs to see a wizard about a frog. It's not her frog, it's her sister's. And it's not a frog, it's actually a prince. A prince who was once in love with Anya's sister, but has now been turned into a frog by their evil stepstepfather. And Anya has made a 'sister promise' that she will find a way to return Prince Denholm to human form... So begins an exciting, hilarious, irreverent quest through the Kingdom of Trallonia and out the other side, in a fantastical tale for all ages, full of laughs and danger, surprises and delights, and an immense population of frogs.
The Hate u Give - Angie Thomas
A powerful and brave YA novel about what prejudice looks like in the 21st century. Sixteen-year-old Starr lives in two worlds: the poor neighbourhood where she was born and raised and her posh high school in the suburbs. The uneasy balance between them is shattered when Starr is the only witness to the fatal shooting of her unarmed best friend, Khalil, by a police officer. Now what Starr says could destroy her community. It could also get her killed. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, this is a powerful and gripping YA novel about one girl's struggle for justice. Movie rights have been sold to Fox, with Amandla Stenberg (The Hunger Games) to star. Age range 14+
Featured Middle and Junior Readers
Harry Kruize, Born to Lose - Paul Collins
A tale of the acceptance of change and loss; the importance of friends and family, and the uplifting strength that comes from hope. Harry's mum runs a boarding house for transient old men who are down on their luck. To counter his frustration and anger, Harry longs for the companionship of a dog. The Annual Gala at school features a dog hurdle race and more than anything in the world, Harry would love to enter a dog into that race and win it. Such a win would give him a sense of worth and belonging. A new lodger, Jack Ellis, befriends Harry and shares a wealth of outback adventure stories featuring dogs with him. Age range 11+
The Turnkey - Allison Rushby
Flossie Birdwhistle is the Turnkey at London's Highgate Cemetery. As Turnkey, Flossie must ensure all the souls in the cemetery stay at rest. This is a difficult job at the best of times for a twelve-year-old ghost, but it is World War II and each night enemy bombers hammer London. Even the dead are unsettled. When Flossie encounters the ghost of a German soldier carrying a mysterious object, she becomes suspicious. What is he up to? Before long, Flossie uncovers a sinister plot that could result in the destruction of not only her cemetery, but also her beloved country. Can Flossie stop him before it is too late? Age range 9+
Radio Boy #1 - Christian O'Connell
Meet Spike, aka Radio Boy: a new Adrian Mole on the radio for the internet generation. Spike's your average awkward 11 year old, funny and cheeky and with a mum to reckon with. When he becomes the first presenter ever to be sacked from hospital radio, he decides to carry on from a makeshift studio in the garden shed, with the help of his best friends Artie and Holly, disguising his voice and going by the moniker Radio Boy. Week by week, word gets around and soon Spike is a star...if only people knew it was actually him. When Spike begins to believe his own hype, and goes too far with his mocking of the school headmaster, a hunt is launched for the mysterious Radio Boy. Age range 10+
Henrietta and the Perfect Night - Martine Murray
'Hello everybody, it's me. Henrietta the Great Go-Getter, and I'm having a big think. Right now I'm thinking I'd like a baby sister, so I can dress her up in different sorts of hats. But Mum says we'll have to wait and see. I'm terrible at waiting... Meanwhile, I'm an explorer of life, and that includes trees, bugs, animals and all mysteries. I'm going to school for the very first time, which means I might have to go as a spy so that I can have a secret peep inside...' When Henrietta sees Olive Higgie crying in the classroom, she goes on a rescue mission and finds that you only need one friend in a room full of strangers to feel perfectly happy... Henrietta's stories are full of funny thoughts and discoveries, and maybe the best are the ones that take a long time to come. Age range 6+
Diva and Flea: A Parisian Tale - Mo Willems
Diva, a small yet brave dog, and Flea, a curious streetwise cat, develop an unexpected friendship in this unforgettable tale of discovery from an award-winning author/illustrator pairing. For as long as she could remember, Diva lived at 11 Avenue Le Play in Paris, France. For as long as he could remember, Flea also lived in Paris, France - but at no fixed address. When Flea flaneurs past Diva's courtyard one day, their lives are forever changed. Together, Diva and Flea explore and share their very different worlds, as only true friends can do. Age range 5+
Featured Children's
The Fox and the Wild - Clive McFarland
Fred is a city fox. The city is a scary place for a fox like Fred. It's noisy, it's smoky and it's often dangerous. One day Fred sees a flock of birds flying away over the city roofs. "Where do they go?" he wonders. And so he sets off to find the wild. All the other city animals say that there is no such place, but Fred knows better. Or does he?
Florette - Anna Walker
When Mae has to move house from the country to the city, she feels lonely and sad - until she discovers a beautiful place full of green in the centre of Paris. What she finds there sparks something special and beautiful that will make her feel much more at home.
Dance - Matthew Van Fleet
From the #1 New York Times bestselling children's book creator Matthew Van Fleet comes a laugh-out-loud, jazzy story of a little baby chick who learns how to dance from a friendly band of animals who know all the right moves! Shake, shake, shake, shimmy, shimmy, shake! You can dance! Young readers will delight in the charming art, jazzy text, and in pulling the five sturdy pull tabs to make t
he different animals bounce, shake and bop as they dance to the Hippoppta Hula, Gator Mashed Patater, and more! Listen and dance to the song at VanFleetBooks.com. Get your dancing feet ready!
Busting - Aaron Blabey
Lou is BUSTING for the loo. But the loo has quite a queue. So what on earth is Lou to do? This is another winner from Aaron Blabey.
140 Glenferrie Road Malvern 3144 JEFFREYS BOOKS +61 3 9509 5133
February e-News from Jeffreys Books
January e-News from Jeffreys Books
August e-News from Jeffreys Books
now. Call us to reserve your copy - 9509 5133.National Bookshop Day - Saturday 13 August
Visit us to celebrate your local bookshop this coming Saturday. We'll have authors visiting and events throughout the day. Our program is growing so we'll be updating details on Facebook and Instagram. Follow us to have all the latest news.
10.30 Children's reading and activity
11.00 Treats from one of our latest cookbooks
11-12 noon - Guest author Eliza Henry Jones
1.00 Guest author Neridah McMullin
2.30 Children's reading and activity
Melbourne Writers Festival runs from 26 August to 4 September. Another great line up of authors. The winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award will be announced on
Opening Night. You still have some time to read the shortlist and decide who you think should win. Most of the shortlisted authors are appearing throughout the festival program.Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: The Idiot - Fyodor Dostoevsky:
"In this novel The Idiot is characterised by a super active empathy for the human condition. The Idiot is part Jesus, part Don Quixote and part Dostoevsky. A beautiful woman falls in love with this idiot and he, understanding her needs, proposes to marry her. She is grateful but immediately runs off with another guy. Another beautiful young girl is attracted to the idiot and there is a serious courtship. Things get complicated, the idiot’s attention is divided to the bitter dismay of his fiancée. The Idiot is cast into situations with actors whose colliding agendas require decision and action, but judgement not so much. He does his best in a world where there are all kinds of rules, many of them still being written or rewritten. This rollercoaster will give you something to think on forever." Andrew H - Jeffreys customer
Leah Kaminsky: Light and DarknessHow do we approach dark subjects like illness and death, war and terror in our writing?
How can writers negotiate rough terrain and bring balance to their work, by weaving in humour and light?
Leah Kaminsky will discuss the how and why of writing her acclaimed debut novel The Waiting Room, and her recent non-fiction book We’re All Going To Die, which has been called a joyful book about death.
Leah Kaminsky is a physician and author, and is Poetry & Fiction Editor at the Medical Journal of Australia. The Waiting Room was shortlisted in the Faulkner-Wisdom Novel Writing Competition and several Best of 2015 reading lists.
Contact Stonnington Library Malvern to book 8290 1366
Last Tuesday Book Club (Fiction)
The Last Will and Testament of Henry Hoffman - John Tesarsch
When Henry Hoffman kills himself, he upends the lives of his three brilliant and unconventional children. Afterwards, his daughter Eleanor discovers his will, in which he has left his entire estate to a woman she has never heard of before. Hiding it from her siblings, she sets out to solve this mystery, and to unearth the confronting truth about her reclusive father's past. But Henry isn't the only Hoffman with secrets. In the months that follow, his children learn things about each other they could never previously have imagined.Tuesday 30 August at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
French Connection Book Club (Fiction/Non-Fiction)
A French Wedding - Hannah Tunnicliffe
A French Wedding is a novel filled with love, lies, fights, friendship and feasts, which reads like a love triangle between The Big Chill, Chocolat and Les Petits Mouchoirs ("Little White Lies"). Max is turning forty. All he wants for his birthday is for his six oldest friends to come to France to eat, dance, drink and laugh for one weekend. And to finally declare his secret, undying love for his best friend, Helen. Juliette gave up her dream of owning an acclaimed Parisian restaurant to return to her tiny coastal village and nurse her aging parents. Now, as she tries to find her way to a new future, Max's birthday weekend may just provide the new beginning Juliette is wishing for... but at whose cost?Tuesday 30 August at 10.30am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
Dear Uncle Jeffrey,
I'm constantly second-guessing myself - will this offend or is it funny? Has everyone lost their sense of humour or is it just me? I'm seriously in need of a comedy recalibration - can you suggest some books that will make me laugh. If they don't work, I'll know it's me.
Yours sincerely,
Michaela
Dear Michaela,
Has this long cold, wet, windy miserable Winter frozen your funny bone? (Sure that's more corny than funny, but I'm trying here!) OK, I'll just get straight to the laughs:
Our Tiny Useless Hearts - Toni Jordan: This is on the farcical end of the spectrum of funny. Think two sisters, cheating husband, helpful neighbour. Sounds tragic, reads funny.
Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons: Orphan moves in with relatives and reorganises their love-torn lives. With send-ups of romantic cliches, this is uplifting and cheery.
Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion: Single man (Don Tillman) searches for wife with a sixteen-page questionnaire. You'll fall in love with Don even if you couldn't live with him!
Absolutely, A Memoir - Joanna Lumley: This is not the biography of Patsy Stone from Absolutely Fabulous. It is a memoir of Joanna Lumley - human rights activist, model, Bond girl and documentary host. Read it and weep.
Spectacles, A Memoir - Sue Perkins: Hilarious co-host of Great British Bake Off, entertaining writer. Laugh out Loud!
Good luck - may you find your joie de vivre!
Uncle Jeffrey
Featured Fiction
The Windy Season - Sam Carmody
A young fisherman is missing from the crayfish boats in the harsh West Australian coastal town of Stark. There's no trace at all of Elliot, there hasn't been for some weeks and Paul, his younger brother, is the only one who seems to be active in the search. Taking Elliot's place on the boat skippered by their troubled cousin, Paul soon learns how many opportunities there are to get lost in those many thousands of kilometres of lonely coastline... Fierce, evocative and memorable, this is an Australian story set within an often wild and unforgiving sea, where mysterious influences are brought to bear on the inhospitable town and its residents.Blue Dog - Louis de Bernieres
A charming story of a young boy and his dog adventuring through the outback. Prequel to the bestselling Red Dog. When a family tragedy means Mick is sent to the outback to live with his Granpa, it looks as if he has a lonely life ahead of him. The cattle station is a tough place for a child, where nature is brutal and the men must work hard in the heat and dust. However, after a cyclone hits, things change for Mick. Exploring the flood waters, he finds a lost puppy covered in mud and half-drowned. Mick and his dog immediately become inseparable as they take on the adventures offered by their unusual home, and the business of growing up, together.Three Sisters, Three Queens - Philippa Gregory
"There is only one bond that I trust: between a woman and her sisters. We never take our eyes off each other. In love and in rivalry, we always think of each other." When Katherine of Aragon is brought to the Tudor court as a young bride, the oldest princess, Margaret, takes her measure. With one look, each knows the other for a rival, an ally, a pawn, destined - with Margaret's younger sister Mary - to a sisterhood unique in all the world. The three sisters will become the queens of England, Scotland and France. United by family loyalties and affections, the three queens find themselves set against each other.
Featured Non-Fiction
The Hate Race - Maxine Beneba Clarke
'Against anything I had ever been told was possible, I was turning white. On the surface of my skin, a miracle was quietly brewing...' Suburban Australia. Sweltering heat. Three bedroom blonde-brick. Family of five. Beat-up Ford Falcon. Vegemite on toast. Maxine Beneba Clarke's life is just like all the other Aussie kids on her street. Except for this one, glaring, inescapably obvious thing. From one of Australia's most exciting writers, and the author of the multi-award-winning Foreign Soil, comes The Hate Race: a powerful, funny, and at times devastating memoir about growing up black in white middle-class Australia.
Brett Whiteley: Art, Life and the Other Thing - Ashleigh Wilson
When he died in 1992 Brett Whiteley left behind decades of ceaseless activity: some works bound to a particular place or time, others that are masterpieces of light and line. Whiteley had arrived in Europe in 1960 determined to make an impression. Before long he was the youngest artist to have work acquired by the Tate. With his wife, Wendy, and daughter, Arkie, Whiteley then immersed himself in bohemian New York. But within two years he fled, having failed to break through. Back in Sydney, he soon became Australia's most celebrated artist. He won the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prizes in the same year: his prices soared, as did his fame. Yet addiction was taking its toll: Whiteley struggled in vain to separate his talent from his disease, and an inglorious end approached. Written with unprecedented behind-the-scenes access, and handsomely illustrated with classic Whiteley artworks, rare notebook sketches and candid family photos, this dazzling biography reveals for the first time the full portrait of a mercurial artist.
Ghost Empire - Richard Fidler
Ghost Empire is a rare treasure - an utterly captivating blend of the historical and the contemporary, realised by a master storyteller. In 2014, Richard Fidler and his son Joe made a journey to Istanbul. Fired by Richard's passion for the rich history of the dazzling Byzantine Empire - centered around the legendary Constantinople - we are swept into some of the most extraordinary tales in history: the clash of civilizations, the fall of empires, the rise of Christianity, revenge, lust, murder. Turbulent stories from the past are brought vividly to life at the same time as a father navigates the unfolding changes in his relationship with his son.
Advanced Style: Older and Wiser - Ari Seth Cohen
This follow up to bestselling Advanced Style features more senior street style and inspiration from all over the globe. In this new edition Ari Seth Cohen shares his work from the past few years, which now includes photographs of some of the world's best-dressed older gentlemen as well as ladies. Advanced Style: Older And Wiser is similar in format to the original with dozens of images from cities all over the world including Los Angeles, London, Cape Town, Rome, Tokyo, Melbourne, New York, Amsterdam, Edinburgh and Stockholm.
Featured Young Adult
Memory Book - Lara Avery
"Dear Future Sam, If you're reading this, you're probably wondering who you are..." Samantha McCoy has it all mapped out. First she's going to win the national debating championship, then she's going to move to New York and become a human rights lawyer. But when Sam discovers that a rare disease is going to take away her memory, the future she'd planned so perfectly is derailed before its started. Realising that her life won't wait to be lived, Sam sets out on a summer of firsts. The first party. The first rebellion. The first friendship. The last love. Fans of All the Bright Places and The Fault In Our Stars will fall head-over-heels for this wonderfully original portrait of love and loss.
Orangeboy - Patrice Lawrence
Not cool enough, not clever enough, not street enough for anyone to notice me. I was the kid people looked straight through. NOT ANY MORE. NOT SINCE MR ORANGE. Sixteen-year-old Marlon has made his mum a promise - he'll never follow his big brother, Andre, down the wrong path. So far, it's been easy but when a date ends in tragedy, Marlon finds himself hunted. They're after the mysterious Mr Orange, and they're going to use Marlon to get to him. Marlon's out of choices - can he become the person he never wanted to be, to protect everyone he loves?
Breathing Under Water - Sophie Hardcastle
If you love stories by John Green, Rainbow Rowell or Melina Marchetta, you will love this story. "Nineteen minutes and eleven seconds separated us at birth. On the official documentation, he is older... Although it really has nothing to do with age. What it really means is that I am, and have always been, second." Ben and Grace Walker are twins. Growing up in a sleepy coastal town it was inevitable they'd surf. Always close, they hung out more than most brothers and sisters, surfing together for hours as the sun melted into the sea. At seventeen, Ben is a rising surf star, the golden son and the boy all the girls fall in love with. Beside him, Grace feels like she is a mere reflection of his light. In their last year of school, the world beckons, full of possibility. For Grace, finishing exams and kissing Harley Matthews is just the beginning. Then, one day, the unthinkable. The sun sets at noon and suddenly everything that was safe and predictable is lost. And everything unravels.
Shark Caller - Dianne Wolfer
Isabel is on a plane heading back to her island birthplace in Papua New Guinea. Izzy is looking forward to seeing her family again, but there's another tragic reason for the trip. Izzy's twin brother, Ray, died in a freak diving accident, and Izzy and her mum are taking his ashes home for traditional death ceremonies. After they arrive, Izzy realises things have changed since their last visit. Logging threatens the community's way of life and sharks no longer answer the song of the shark callers. Izzy's cousin Noah explains that the clan needs someone to undertake a traditional diving ritual. The person must be a twin from the shark calling lineage. The dive will be perilous. And Izzy is the last twin. Will she have the courage to attempt the dive? And what deep, dark secrets will the ocean reveal if she does?
Featured Middle and Junior Readers
Voyage to Magical North (The Accidental Pirates #1) - Claire Fayers
Twelve-year-old Brine Seaborne is a girl with a past... if only she could remember what it is. Found alone in a rowboat as a child, clutching a shard of the rare starshell needed for spell-casting, she's spent every day since housekeeping for an irritable magician and his obnoxious apprentice, Peter. Everything changes when Brine and Peter accidentally break the magician's starshell and need to flee the island. Lost at sea, they blunder into the path of the legendary pirate ship The Onion. Before you can say 'pieces of eight,' they're up to their necks in the pirates' quest to find Magical North, a place so shrouded in secrets and myth that most people don't even think it exists.
The Plot Thickens (Friday Barnes #5) - R. A. Spratt
Friday Barnes is being attacked on all fronts! When Friday Barnes gets involved in her frenemy Ian Wainscott's family dispute, it appears her knack for uncovering the truth may ruin their friendship once and for all. Highcrest Academy is no longer a fun place to be. Ian has declared war on Friday and she is seriously considering leaving. Meanwhile, there's also two new teachers to contend with - a celebrity artist who doesn't really want to teach and an over-enthusiastic PE teacher on a fitness crusade. Between these two and Ian, it's going to be one dangerous term. Can Friday repair her friendship with Ian, restore her perfect school-life balance and work out who is committing the blatant acts of vandalism? No one said high school would be easy!
Yong, The Journey of an Unworthy Son - Janeen Brian
Yong doesn't want to leave Guangdong to travel to the goldfields of Ballarat. But as the firstborn son, he has no choice. On the long and treacherous journey, Yong strives to be an honourable son, while he and his father face many hardships and dangers. But in his heart he knows the shameful truth - that his honour is a lie. Can a journey change lives? Has Yong the courage to face what lies ahead?
Tru and Nelle - Greg Neri
Long before they became famous writers, Truman Capote (In Cold Blood) and Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird) were childhood friends in Monroeville, Alabama. This fictionalized account of their time together opens at the beginning of the Great Depression, when Tru is seven and Nelle is six. They love playing pirates but they like playing Sherlock and Watson-style detectives even more. It's their pursuit of a case of drugstore theft that lands the daring duo in real trouble. Humour and heartache intermingle in this lively look at two budding writers in the 1930s South.
Marge in Charge - Isla Fisher
Jemima and Jake's new babysitter doesn't look too promising. In fact she looks very sensible, very old and VERY small (she only comes up to daddy's armpit!). But the moment their parents leave the house, Marge gives a mischievous wink, takes off her hat and reveals a marvellous mane of rainbow-coloured hair! Marge really is a babysitter like no other and the children spend a wild evening with her - racing snails, slurping chocolate soup and mixing potions in the bath! But if Jake and Jemima want her to babysit again it's time for them to take charge of Marge, tidy up and settle her down for a little sleep. Three hilarious, anarchic and charming MARGE stories from A-list actress, mother, writer and comedian Isla Fisher.
The Stupendously Spectacular Spellng Bee - Deborah Abela
India Wimple can spell. Brilliantly. Every Friday night, she and her family huddle in front of the TV in their small house and watch the Stupendously Spectacular Spelling Bee. When her family suggest she should enter the next Bee, she shrugs it off, saying being on TV is only for rich and pretty people. Her family won't hear it and encourage India to sign up, but there are plenty of obstacles to reaching the finals: something in her past has made India terribly, horribly shy, the Wimples aren't very well off, and moving on to each round involves finding the money to make it happen. Then there's her little brother, who's been sick since he was a baby. Finally, there's Summer Millicent Ernestine Beauregard-Champion, a spoilt rich girl who is also a champion speller - and Summer isn't afraid to step on anyone who gets in her way.
Bicycling to the Moon - Timo Parvela
Purdy the cat and Barker the dog live together in a sky-blue house on top of a hill. But while the two friends share a house, they are as different as cat and dog can be. Purdy has big dreams, while Barker likes to potter in the garden. Purdy likes to eat fish, but it is Barker who must scoop them from the lake for dinner. Their days together bring quarrels and contradictions, as they work out how friendship can win out in the end.
Funny Stories for 7 Year Olds - Helen Paiba
Funny Stories For 7-Year-Olds is a bright and varied selection of wonderfully entertaining stories by some of the very best writers for children. Perfect for reading alone or aloud - and for dipping into time and time again. With stories from Dick King-Smith, Michael Bond, Philippa Gregory, Jacqueline Wilson and many more, this book will provide hours of fantastic fun.
Featured Children's
All My Treasures - Jo Witek
When a girl receives a beautiful porcelain box from her grandmother, she immediately wants something special to put inside it. But what could it be? What does she love best? She loves jumping in puddles on rainy days, blowing bubbles in the park and watching her little sister's first steps. As it turns out, life's most precious treasures cannot be contained in a box! With a gentle message about the immateriality of happiness, this story reminds us to take pleasure in everyday moments. The book is beautifully packaged with a sparkly die-cut star on the cover, and flaps throughout reveal hidden surprises.
Fabish: The Horse That Braved a Bushfire - Neridah McMullin
This is the true story of a brave horse called Fabish. In his racing days, he always tried his hardest. And when he retired, Fabish took care of the flighty young horses... One hot summer day, a wild wind blew up and the yearlings were restless. Then Fabish smelled smoke. Fire was coming, fast. The trainer threw open the gate and said, 'Go now!' Fabish neighed to the young ones and they galloped away. All through the night, the fire raged and the trainer battled to save the racehorses in the stables... but what would become of Fabish and the yearlings? Could he save them from the firestorm?
Welcome to Country - Joy Murphy
This is an expansive and generous Welcome to Country from a most respected Elder, Aunty Joy Murphy, beautifully given form by Indigenous artist Lisa Kennedy. Welcome to the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri People. We are part of this land and the land is part of us. This is where we come from. Wominjeka Wurundjeri balluk yearmenn koondee bik. Welcome to Country.
Don't Call Me Bear - Aaron Blabey
"G'day my name is Warren, and I've got something to share... Just because I'm furry doesn't mean that I'm a bear." Warren the Koala is many things - a marsupial, cute and furry, a bit of a grump - but the one thing he's not is a bear!
July e-News from Jeffreys Books
releases:A new Harry Potter is being released at 9.01am on Sunday 31 July. We'll be here bright and early that Sunday morning so that you can have 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' as soon as it's released. It's a screen play for the play that is officially opening in London on 30 July 2016 and is set 19 years after the last book.
The program and tickets to this year's Melbourne Writers festival was released on 20 July. There will be a plethora of great authors to listen to - some you will have heard of and read their books, others you won't. I encourage you
to keep an eye on the festival updates and listen out for radio interviews while these authors are in Melbourne. I discovered Elliot Perlman by randomly attending a Mildura Writers Festival event. This year at MWF, I am very keen to hear Elspeth Muir discuss 'Wasted'.Alain de Botton is in Australia at the moment and we know many of you have heard his interviews which has generated lots of interest in his book - 'The Course of Love' is due back instore any day now. Please call if you'd like us to
reserve a copy 95095133.Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: The Leopard - Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa:
Over the years, many customers have purchased a copy of 'The Leopard' at Jeffreys Books and generally there will be another customer at the counter or a staff member who will drawn to comment about how much they love this book. Uncle Jeffrey is longstanding fan (see below). Have you read it yet? 
Lampedusa's masterpiece, one of the finest works of twentieth century fiction, is set amongst an aristocratic family, facing social and political changes in the wake of Garibaldi's invasion of Sicily in 1860. At the head of the family is the prince, Don Fabrizio. Proud and stubborn, he is accustomed to knowing his own place in the world and expects his household to run accordingly. He is aware of the changes which are rapidly making men historically obsolete but he remains attached to the old ways.
The Noise of Time - Julian Barnes
In May 1937 a man in his early thirties waits by the lift of a Leningrad apartment block. He waits all through the night, expecting to be taken away to the Big House. Any celebrity he has known in the previous decade is no use to him now. And few who are taken to the Big House ever return. A story about the collision of Art and Power, about human compromise, human cowardice and human courage, it is the work of a true master.Tuesday 26 July at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
French Connection Book Club (Fiction/Non-Fiction)
A Country Road, A Tree - Jo Baker
Paris, 1939: the pavement rumbles with the footfall of marching Nazi soldiers along the Champs-Elysees. A young writer, recently arrived from Ireland to make his mark, smokes a last cigarette with his lover before the city they know is torn apart. As war takes hold, he will put his own life and that of his loved ones in mortal danger by joining the Resistance...With a tale of spies and artists, deprivation, danger and passion, this is a story of life at the edges of human experience, and how one man came to translate it all into art.Tuesday 26 July at 10.30am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
Dear Uncle Jeffrey,
It's become apparent to me that life should be lived with 'passion'. All the reality shows talk of it - 'I'm passionate about cooking, my passion is to sing, I have a passion for locally produced food' - passion, passion, passion. I'm trying not to be cynical in fact this latest 'Pokemon Go'* craze has made me question whether my life is devoid of passion.
Yours, without passion
Rebecca
Dear Rebecca,
I hear you. Years ago, in fact in my student days, so, many, many years ago, I lived in a shared household and others in that household were avid VFL fans. That year, their team was in the Grand Final and so they set up a roster to camp out for tickets. I would have breakfast with their parents who had just returned from the night shift and I'd go to bed at night while another was filling the thermos for their shift. That's when I questioned my passion.
It was then that I drew my nose out of the book I was reading at the time - 'The Leopard' by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa - and realised that I had quieter passions. There were certain things that I pursued with fervor but I considered myself a generalist in my passions rather than a specialist. And, maybe that's ok.
Yours sincerely,
Uncle Jeffrey
* Pokemon Go is a free-to-play location based augmented reality mobile game (Wikipedia)
Featured Fiction
Barkskins - Annie Proulx
In the late seventeenth century two penniless young Frenchmen, Rene Sel and Charles Duquet, arrive in New France. Bound to a feudal lord, a "seigneur," for three years in exchange for land, they become wood-cutters - barkskins. Rene suffers extraordinary hardship, oppressed by the forest he is charged with clearing. He is forced to marry a Mi'kmaw woman and their descendants live trapped between two inimical cultures. But Duquet, crafty and ruthless, runs away from the seigneur, becomes a fur trader, then sets up a timber business. Proulx tells the stories of the descendants of Sel and Duquet over three hundred years. Proulx's inimitable genius is her creation of characters who are so vivid - in their greed, lust, vengefulness, or their simple compassion and hope - that we follow them with fierce attention.The Muse - Jessie Burton
On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn't know she had, she remains a mystery - no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery. The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. ...Seductive, exhilarating and suspenseful, The Muse is an unforgettable novel about aspiration and identity, love and obsession, authenticity and deception.Secret City - Steve Lewis
When seasoned newshound Harry Dunkley is slipped a compromising photograph one frosty Canberra dawn, he knows he's onto something big. In pursuit of the scoop, Dunkley must negotiate the deadly corridors of power where the minority Toohey Government hangs by a thread - its stricken Foreign Minister on life support, her heart maintained by a single drive: revenge. And all about rabid Opposition senators, union thugs and simpering TV anchors ready to pounce. From the teahouses of Beijing to the beaches of Bali, from the marbled halls of Washington to the basements of the bureaucracy. (Tie-in to the six-part political thriller coming soon to Foxtel based on THE MARMALADE FILES and THE MANDARIN CODE)Ruins - Rajith Savanadasa
In the restless streets, crowded waiting rooms and glittering nightclubs of Colombo, five family members find their bonds stretched to breaking point in the aftermath of the Sri Lankan civil war. Latha wants a home. Anoushka wants an iPod. Mano hopes to win his wife back. Lakshmi dreams of rescuing a lost boy. And Niranjan needs big money so he can leave them all behind. As the five leave Colombo to travel to an ancient city, the generations collide and long-held prejudices surface.Belgravia: A Tale of Secrets and Scandal Set in 1840s London - Julian Fellowes
Julian Fellowes's Belgravia is the story of a secret. A secret that unravels behind the porticoed doors of London's grandest postcode. Set in the 1840s when the upper echelons of society began to rub shoulders with the emerging industrial nouveau riche, Belgravia is peopled by a rich cast of characters. But the story begins on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. At the Duchess of Richmond's now legendary ball, one family's life will change for ever...
Featured Non-Fiction
Dying: A Memoir - Cory Taylor
"Cory Taylor is one of Australia's celebrated novelists, the author of the brilliant Me and Mr Booker (winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize, Pacific region), and My Beautiful Enemy (shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award). At the age of sixty, she is dying of melanoma-related brain cancer. Her illness is no longer treatable. As she tells us in her remarkable last book, Dying: A Memoir, she now weighs less than her neighbour's retriever. Written in the space of a few weeks, in a tremendous creative surge, this powerful and beautifully written book is a clear-eyed account of what dying has taught Cory. Dying: A Memoir is a breathtaking book about vulnerability and strength, courage and humility, anger and acceptance. It is a deeply affecting meditation on dying, but it is also a funny and wise tribute to life.
Van Gogh's Ear: The True Story - Bernadette Murphy
On a dark night in Provence in December 1888 Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear. In Van Gogh's Ear Bernadette Murphy sets out to discover exactly what happened that night in Arles. Why would an artist at the height of his powers commit such a brutal act? Who was the mysterious 'Rachel' to whom he presented his macabre gift? Her investigation takes us from major museums to the dusty contents of forgotten archives, vividly reconstructing the world in which Van Gogh moved. With exclusive revelations and new research about the ear and about 'Rachel', Bernadette Murphy proposes a bold new hypothesis about what was occurring in Van Gogh's heart and mind as he made a mysterious delivery to her doorstep that fateful night. Van Gogh's Ear is a compelling detective story and a journey of discovery.
Delicieux: The Recipes of France - Gabriel Gate
Delicieux has more than 200 recipes representing the myriad regions of France. From the simplest tarts and gratins to fish stews and savoie sponge cakes, this book shows the diversity and originality of France's rich culinary heritage. This comprehensive view into regional cuisines, replete with recipes used over generations, will enchant the armchair traveller or inspire a visit to the many different regions of France. This is real food: delicious recipes that celebrate the beauty of cooking produce that is ripe and in season, and capturing the essence of life in France. While the appeal of this collection rests firmly on its recipes, the photographs of France transport the reader to an idyllic world where Gabriel Gate is the perfect host.
Fromelles: Our Darkest Day - Patrick Lindsay
One hundred years ago, on 19 July 1916, in the French village of Fromelles, Australia suffered its worst ever military defeat when a British officer ordered 15,000 of Australia's best and bravest to go 'over the top' and attack the German lines. Eight hours later more than 5500 Diggers lay dead or wounded - the equivalent of all Australian casualties from the Boer, Korean and Vietnam wars combined. Many of those who died disappeared from the official record, their fate remaining unknown for close to a century. In this evocative and enthralling retelling, Patrick Lindsay takes us back to the killing fields of northern France. Fromelles is also the story of the quest to find the missing Diggers from the WWI battle. Covering the archaeological dig at Pheasant Wood which confirmed, at last, the final resting place of up to 400 missing Diggers and Tommies buried by the Germans after the battle.
Featured Young Adult
Moonlight Dreamers - Siobhan Curham
A inspirational, heart-warming book about four girls trying to find their place in the world. Siobhan Curham celebrates very different but like-minded friends in this captivating novel. Amber craves excitement and adventure. Instead, she's being bullied at school for having two dads, and life at home isn't much better. Inspired by Oscar Wilde, Amber realizes that among the millions of people in London, there must be others who feel the same as she does; other dreamers - moonlight dreamers. After chance encounters with Maali, Sky and Rose, Amber soon recruits the three girls to the Moonlight Dreamers. It's high time they started pursuing their dreams, and how better than with the support of friends?
A boy. A girl. Two families. One great divide. When Michael meets Mina, they are at a rally for refugees - standing on opposite sides. Mina fled Afghanistan with her mother via a refugee camp, a leaky boat and a detention centre. Michael's parents have founded a new political party called Aussie Values. They want to stop the boats. Mina wants to stop the hate. When Mina wins a scholarship to Michael's private school, their lives crash together blindingly. A novel for anyone who wants to fight for love, and against injustice.The Hounded - Simon Butters
Eliza wasn't at the bus stop that morning. The bus drove right on past and all Eliza's friends peered out to see where she'd gone. It was a mystery. A scandal. Eliza's disappearance was the hottest trending topic online. People knew something was up, but what? Nobody knew she was with me, Montgomery Ferguson, the lowest of the low. So it was that I first got to hang out with Eliza Robertson, the hottest girl in school with a heart of sheer contempt. I couldn't have been happier. On his fifteenth birthday, Monty is at rock bottom. Ignored by his parents, bullied at school, and with a brain that's prone to going walkabout, he's all by himself. Until he meets the black dog for the first time. It's just like any other dog, except that only Monty can see it. And it talks. And Monty's not sure whether it's a friend - or a foe. The Hounded is a book about depression and working out who you really are, from one of Australia's most prolific children's television writers.Featured Middle and Junior Readers
Paladero - Steven Lochran
Welcome to Thunder Realm, where cowboy-knights known as paladeros herd dinosaurs during peacetime, and take up arms during war. Joss, a young orphan, has always wanted to be a paladero - but first he must prove himself by going on The Way, a treacherous journey through the kingdom to retrieve a rare Questing Egg. With his trusty raptor Azof by his side, Joss will face off against witches, bloodthirsty monsters and even his own brethren to learn what it truly means to be a paladero - all while uncovering a dark conspiracy at the heart of the kingdom.Charlie and the War Against Grannies - Alan Brough
My name is Charlie Ian Duncan. I will be 12 on 2 February. I have written this history of my war with the grannies because I need everyone to know that I didn't mean for Mrs Cyclopolos to blow up. I just wanted a paper round. When I say 'my war with the grannies', I really mean the war I waged alongside my best friend Hils, my second-best-friend Rashid, Peter the Iraqi who isn't afraid of anything (well apart from one thing), Warren and his magical bike TwelveSpeed and those crazy people we met underground. It's all true. Especially the bit about me not wanting anyone to blow up.Poppy's Place - The Home-Made Cat Cafe - Katrina Charman
Isla Palmer is CRAZY about cats — SUPER-IN-LOVE crazy — but her vet-nurse mum has never let her have one. Then Isla meets Poppy, a gorgeous cat in need of a loving home, and comes up with the perfect way to convince Mum. It’s not long before Poppy has transformed life at the Palmers’ – everyone is happier, especially Gran, and even Isla’s older sister Tilda admits she likes having Poppy around. But Poppy isn’t the only one in need of a home and soon their house is full of cats. With Mum at her wits’ end, Isla needs to come up with a plan and fast!Cody and the Mysteries of the Universe - Tricia Springstubb
Not everything turns out to be as it first appears when Cody and her best friend, Spencer, navigate a neighborhood mystery and the start of a new school year. Cody's best friend, Spencer, and his parents are moving in with his grandmother right around the corner, and Cody can't wait. For one thing, Cody needs Spencer to help solve the mystery of the never-seen Mr. Meen, who lives on the other side of the porch with a skull-and-crossbones sign in the window and an extermination truck out front. How's Cody to know that a yellow jacket would sting her, making her scream "Ow! Ow!" just as they start spying? Or that the ominous window sign would change overnight to "Welcome home," only deepening the mystery?Thorfinn and the Awful Invasion - David MacPhail
Prepare yourself for the wrath of the Norsemen! That is, if you don't mind and it's not too inconvenient...Everyone knows Vikings are ruthless barbarians whose idea of a good time involves pillaging, plundering and feasting. But Thorfinn is no ordinary Viking! He is always polite and happily offers to wash the dirty dishes. Too bad his dad is Harald the Skull-Splitter, Village Chief and the roughest and toughest Viking of them all. Tired of Thorfinn and his too-nice ways getting them into trouble, his dad decides it's time for Thorfinn to earn his gruesome Viking name. Stuck on a longboat with a ragtag bunch of adventurers who'd like to throw him overboard, how will the Nicest Viking cope with a dangerous voyage to Scotland? Thorfinn the Nicest Viking is a funny, illustrated, action-packed new series for young readers who love Horrid Henry and Diary of a Wimpy Kid, set in a world where manners mean nothing and politeness is pointless!There's a Dragon in My Dinner - Tom Nicoll
Small dragon ...big trouble! When Eric finds a tiny dragon nestled among the beansprouts in his Friday night takeaway, he thinks it's a free toy. But Pan the Mini-Dragon is very real indeed - and he's about to get Eric into a whole heap of trouble...How is Eric going to explain the trail of devastation caused by one creature not much bigger than a spring roll? A hilarious new series.Featured Children's
The Cat Wants Custard - P Crumble
Meet Kevin, the opinionated feline who is full of cat-titude. Kevin has a craving. He wants custard, and he wants it NOW! Follow the hilarious antics of a cat trying to get its human companion to give him what he wants, including the extreme length of using his own body to spell the word CUSTARD! Will he succeed?Before I Wake Up... - Britta Teckentrup
Created by the world-renowned children's author and illustrator Britta Teckentrup, this dreamy, colourful nighttime journey will captivate and soothe young children everywhere. A young girl falls asleep and travels in her dreams through the sky, down to the ocean's depths, and into a jungle. She is accompanied by a lion friend, who eases her fears, gives her confidence, and helps her explore the world around her. Then it is time for the moon balloon to take the girl home to her bed, where she awakes, snuggled safely next to the lion, who returns to being a stuffed toy. The gently told story reassures children that they are never alone, even in their dreams. Detective Dog - Julia Donaldson
There once was a dog with a keen sense of smell. She was known far and wide as Detective Dog Nell. Peter's dog Nell has an amazing sense of smell. Whether it's finding a lost shoe or discovering who did a poo on the new gravel path, her ever-sniffing nose is always hard at work. But Nell has other talents too. Every Monday she goes to school with Peter and listens to children read. So who better to have on hand when they arrive one morning to discover that the school's books have all disappeared! Who could have taken them? And why? There's only one dog for the job ... and Detective Dog Nell is ready to sniff out the culprit!On The River - Roland Harvey
Roland Harvey and his new pelican friend are off on an adventure to walk, fish, canoe, raft, windsurf, sail, paddle-steam, houseboat and even fly their way along the Murray River, from its smallest beginnings in the high country to where it meets the sea...Together they discover the story of the river: its secrets, history, ecology, people and animals. And you're invited, too!..A delight for all ages.The Curiositree: A Visual Compendium of Wonders from Nature - A J Wood
A first introduction to the natural world that looks at the myriad ways in which plants and animals have adapted to give themselves the best chance of survival. Natural World explores and explains why living things look and behave the way they do in a series of visually compelling information charts.
July News from Jeffreys Books
releases:A new Harry Potter is being released at 9.01am on Sunday 31 July. We'll be here bright and early that Sunday morning so that you can have 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' as soon as it's released. It's a screen play for the play that is officially opening in London on 30 July 2016 and is set 19 years after the last book.
Muir discuss 'Wasted'.
Alain de Botton is in Australia at the moment and we know many of you have heard his interviews which has generated lots of interest in his book - 'The Course of Love' is due back instore any day now. Please call if you'd like us to reserve a copy 95095133.
Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: The Leopard - Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa:Over the years, many customers have purchased a copy of 'The Leopard' at Jeffreys Books and generally there will be another customer at the counter or a staff member who will drawn to comment about how much they love this book. Uncle Jeffrey is longstanding fan (see below). Have you read it yet?
Lampedusa's masterpiece, one of the finest works of twentieth century fiction, is set amongst an aristocratic family, facing social and political changes in the wake of Garibaldi's invasion of Sicily in 1860. At the head of the family is the prince, Don Fabrizio. Proud and stubborn, he is accustomed to knowing his own place in the world and expects his household to run accordingly. He is aware of the changes which are rapidly making men historically obsolete but he remains attached to the old ways.
The Noise of Time - Julian Barnes
In May 1937 a man in his early thirties waits by the lift of a Leningrad apartment block. He waits all through the night, expecting to be taken away to the Big House. Any celebrity he has known in the previous decade is no use to him now. And few who are taken to the Big House ever return. A story about the collision of Art and Power, about human compromise, human cowardice and human courage, it is the work of a true master.Tuesday 26 July at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
A Country Road, A Tree - Jo Baker
Paris, 1939: the pavement rumbles with the footfall of marching Nazi soldiers along the Champs-Elysees. A young writer, recently arrived from Ireland to make his mark, smokes a last cigarette with his lover before the city they know is torn apart. As war takes hold, he will put his own life and that of his loved ones in mortal danger by joining the Resistance...With a tale of spies and artists, deprivation, danger and passion, this is a story of life at the edges of human experience, and how one man came to translate it all into art.Tuesday 26 July at 10.30am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
It's become apparent to me that life should be lived with 'passion'. All the reality
Rebecca
Dear Rebecca,
I hear you. Years ago, in fact in my student days, so, many, many years ago, I lived in a shared household and others in that household were avid VFL fans. That year, their team was in the Grand Final and so they set up a roster to camp out for tickets. I would have breakfast with their parents who had just returned from the night shift and I'd go to bed at night while another was filling the thermos for
It was then that I drew my nose out of the book I was reading at the time - 'The Leopard' by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa - and realised that I had quieter passions. There were certain things that I pursued with fervor but I considered myself a generalist in my passions rather than a specialist. And, maybe that's ok.
Yours sincerely,
Uncle Jeffrey
* Pokemon Go is a free-to-play location based augmented reality mobile game (Wikipedia)
Featured Fiction
Barkskins - Annie Proulx
In the late seventeenth century two penniless young Frenchmen, Rene Sel and Charles Duquet, arrive in New France. Bound to a feudal lord, a "seigneur," for three years in exchange for land, they become wood-cutters - barkskins. Rene suffers extraordinary hardship, oppressed by the forest he is charged with clearing. He is forced to marry a Mi'kmaw woman and their descendants live trapped between two inimical cultures. But Duquet, crafty and ruthless, runs away from the seigneur, becomes a fur trader, then sets up a timber business. Proulx tells the stories of the descendants of Sel and Duquet over three hundred years. Proulx's inimitable genius is her creation of characters who are so vivid - in their greed, lust, vengefulness, or their simple compassion and hope - that we follow them with fierce attention.On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn't know she had, she remains a mystery - no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery. The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. ...Seductive, exhilarating and suspenseful, The Muse is an unforgettable novel about aspiration and identity, love and obsession, authenticity and deception.When seasoned newshound Harry Dunkley is slipped a compromising photograph one frosty Canberra dawn, he knows he's onto something big. In pursuit of the scoop, Dunkley must negotiate the deadly corridors of power where the minority Toohey Government hangs by a thread - its stricken Foreign Minister on life support, her heart maintained by a single drive: revenge. And all about rabid Opposition senators, union thugs and simpering TV anchors ready to pounce. From the teahouses of Beijing to the beaches of Bali, from the marbled halls of Washington to the basements of the bureaucracy. (Tie-in to the six-part political thriller coming soon to Foxtel based on THE MARMALADE FILES and THE MANDARIN CODE)In the restless streets, crowded waiting rooms and glittering nightclubs of Colombo, five family members find their bonds stretched to breaking point in the aftermath of the Sri Lankan civil war. Latha wants a home. Anoushka wants an iPod. Mano hopes to win his wife back. Lakshmi dreams of rescuing a lost boy. And Niranjan needs big money so he can leave them all behind. As the five leave Colombo to travel to an ancient city, the generations collide and long-held prejudices surface.Julian Fellowes's Belgravia is the story of a secret. A secret that unravels behind the porticoed doors of London's grandest postcode. Set in the 1840s when the upper echelons of society began to rub shoulders with the emerging industrial nouveau riche, Belgravia is peopled by a rich cast of characters. But the story begins on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. At the Duchess of Richmond's now legendary ball, one family's life will change for ever...
Featured Non-Fiction
Dying: A Memoir - Cory Taylor"Cory Taylor is one of Australia's celebrated novelists, the author of the brilliant Me and Mr Booker (winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize, Pacific region), and My Beautiful Enemy (shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award). At the age of sixty, she is dying of melanoma-related brain cancer. Her illness is no longer treatable. As she tells us in her remarkable last book, Dying: A Memoir, she now weighs less than her neighbour's retriever. Written in the space of a few weeks, in a tremendous creative surge, this powerful and beautifully written book is a clear-eyed account of what dying has taught Cory. Dying: A Memoir is a breathtaking book about vulnerability and strength, courage and humility, anger and acceptance. It is a deeply affecting meditation on dying, but it is also a funny and wise tribute to life.
Van Gogh's Ear: The True Story - Bernadette MurphyOn a dark night in Provence in December 1888 Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear. In Van Gogh's Ear Bernadette Murphy sets out to discover exactly what happened that night in Arles. Why would an artist at the height of his powers commit such a brutal act? Who was the mysterious 'Rachel' to whom he presented his macabre gift? Her investigation takes us from major museums to the dusty contents of forgotten archives, vividly reconstructing the world in which Van Gogh moved. With exclusive revelations and new research about the ear and about 'Rachel', Bernadette Murphy proposes a bold new hypothesis about what was occurring in Van Gogh's heart and mind as he made a mysterious delivery to her doorstep that fateful night. Van Gogh's Ear is a compelling detective story and a journey of discovery.
Delicieux: The Recipes of France - Gabriel Gate
Delicieux has more than 200 recipes representing the myriad regions of France. From the simplest tarts and gratins to fish stews and savoie sponge cakes, this book shows the diversity and originality of France's rich culinary heritage. This comprehensive view into regional cuisines, replete with recipes used over generations, will enchant the armchair traveller or inspire a visit to the many different regions of France. This is real food: delicious recipes that celebrate the beauty of cooking produce that is ripe and in season, and capturing the essence of life in France. While the appeal of this collection rests firmly on its recipes, the photographs of France transport the reader to an idyllic world where Gabriel Gate is the perfect host.
Fromelles: Our Darkest Day - Patrick LindsayOne hundred years ago, on 19 July 1916, in the French village of Fromelles, Australia suffered its worst ever military defeat when a British officer ordered 15,000 of Australia's best and bravest to go 'over the top' and attack the German lines. Eight hours later more than 5500 Diggers lay dead or wounded - the equivalent of all Australian casualties from the Boer, Korean and Vietnam wars combined. Many of those who died disappeared from the official record, their fate remaining unknown for close to a century. In this evocative and enthralling retelling, Patrick Lindsay takes us back to the killing fields of northern France. Fromelles is also the story of the quest to find the missing Diggers from the WWI battle. Covering the archaeological dig at Pheasant Wood which confirmed, at last, the final resting place of up to 400 missing Diggers and Tommies buried by the Germans after the battle.
Featured Young Adult
Moonlight Dreamers - Siobhan CurhamA inspirational, heart-warming book about four girls trying to find their place in the world. Siobhan Curham celebrates very different but like-minded friends in this captivating novel. Amber craves excitement and adventure. Instead, she's being bullied at school for having two dads, and life at home isn't much better. Inspired by Oscar Wilde, Amber realizes that among the millions of people in London, there must be others who feel the same as she does; other dreamers - moonlight dreamers. After chance encounters with Maali, Sky and Rose, Amber soon recruits the three girls to the Moonlight Dreamers. It's high time they started pursuing their dreams, and how better than with the support of friends?
A boy. A girl. Two families. One great divide. When Michael meets Mina, they are at a rally for refugees - standing on opposite sides. Mina fled Afghanistan with her mother via a refugee camp, a leaky boat and a detention centre. Michael's parents have founded a new political party called Aussie Values. They want to stop the boats. Mina wants to stop the hate. When Mina wins a scholarship to Michael's private school, their lives crash together blindingly. A novel for anyone who wants to fight for love, and against injustice.Eliza wasn't at the bus stop that morning. The bus drove right on past and all Eliza's friends peered out to see where she'd gone. It was a mystery. A scandal. Eliza's disappearance was the hottest trending topic online. People knew something was up, but what? Nobody knew she was with me, Montgomery Ferguson, the lowest of the low. So it was that I first got to hang out with Eliza Robertson, the hottest girl in school with a heart of sheer contempt. I couldn't have been happier. On his fifteenth birthday, Monty is at rock bottom. Ignored by his parents, bullied at school, and with a brain that's prone to going walkabout, he's all by himself. Until he meets the black dog for the first time. It's just like any other dog, except that only Monty can see it. And it talks. And Monty's not sure whether it's a friend - or a foe. The Hounded is a book about depression and working out who you really are, from one of Australia's most prolific children's television writers.Featured Middle and Junior Readers
Paladero - Steven Lochran
Welcome to Thunder Realm, where cowboy-knights known as paladeros herd dinosaurs during peacetime, and take up arms during war. Joss, a young orphan, has always wanted to be a paladero - but first he must prove himself by going on The Way, a treacherous journey through the kingdom to retrieve a rare Questing Egg. With his trusty raptor Azof by his side, Joss will face off against witches, bloodthirsty monsters and even his own brethren to learn what it truly means to be a paladero - all while uncovering a dark conspiracy at the heart of the kingdom.My name is Charlie Ian Duncan. I will be 12 on 2 February. I have written this history of my war with the grannies because I need everyone to know that I didn't mean for Mrs Cyclopolos to blow up. I just wanted a paper round. When I say 'my war with the grannies', I really mean the war I waged alongside my best friend Hils, my second-best-friend Rashid, Peter the Iraqi who isn't afraid of anything (well apart from one thing), Warren and his magical bike TwelveSpeed and those crazy people we met underground. It's all true. Especially the bit about me not wanting anyone to blow up.Isla Palmer is CRAZY about cats — SUPER-IN-LOVE crazy — but her vet-nurse mum has never let her have one. Then Isla meets Poppy, a gorgeous cat in need of a loving home, and comes up with the perfect way to convince Mum. It’s not long before Poppy has transformed life at the Palmers’ – everyone is happier, especially Gran, and even Isla’s older sister Tilda admits she likes having Poppy around. But Poppy isn’t the only one in need of a home and soon their house is full of cats. With Mum at her wits’ end, Isla needs to come up with a plan and fast!Not everything turns out to be as it first appears when Cody and her best friend, Spencer, navigate a neighborhood mystery and the start of a new school year. Cody's best friend, Spencer, and his parents are moving in with his grandmother right around the corner, and Cody can't wait. For one thing, Cody needs Spencer to help solve the mystery of the never-seen Mr. Meen, who lives on the other side of the porch with a skull-and-crossbones sign in the window and an extermination truck out front. How's Cody to know that a yellow jacket would sting her, making her scream "Ow! Ow!" just as they start spying? Or that the ominous window sign would change overnight to "Welcome home," only deepening the mystery?Prepare yourself for the wrath of the Norsemen! That is, if you don't mind and it's not too inconvenient...Everyone knows Vikings are ruthless barbarians whose idea of a good time involves pillaging, plundering and feasting. But Thorfinn is no ordinary Viking! He is always polite and happily offers to wash the dirty dishes. Too bad his dad is Harald the Skull-Splitter, Village Chief and the roughest and toughest Viking of them all. Tired of Thorfinn and his too-nice ways getting them into trouble, his dad decides it's time for Thorfinn to earn his gruesome Viking name. Stuck on a longboat with a ragtag bunch of adventurers who'd like to throw him overboard, how will the Nicest Viking cope with a dangerous voyage to Scotland? Thorfinn the Nicest Viking is a funny, illustrated, action-packed new series for young readers who love Horrid Henry and Diary of a Wimpy Kid, set in a world where manners mean nothing and politeness is pointless!There's a Dragon in My Dinner - Tom Nicoll
Small dragon ...big trouble! When Eric finds a tiny dragon nestled among the beansprouts in his Friday night takeaway, he thinks it's a free toy. But Pan the Mini-Dragon is very real indeed - and he's about to get Eric into a whole heap of trouble...How is Eric going to explain the trail of devastation caused by one creature not much bigger than a spring roll? A hilarious new series.The Cat Wants Custard - P Crumble
Meet Kevin, the opinionated feline who is full of cat-titude. Kevin has a craving. He wants custard, and he wants it NOW! Follow the hilarious antics of a cat trying to get its human companion to give him what he wants, including the extreme length of using his own body to spell the word CUSTARD! Will he succeed?Created by the world-renowned children's author and illustrator Britta Teckentrup, this dreamy, colourful nighttime journey will captivate and soothe young children everywhere. A young girl falls asleep and travels in her dreams through the sky, down to the ocean's depths, and into a jungle. She is accompanied by a lion friend, who eases her fears, gives her confidence, and helps her explore the world around her. Then it is time for the moon balloon to take the girl home to her bed, where she awakes, snuggled safely next to the lion, who returns to being a stuffed toy. The gently told story reassures children that they are never alone, even in their dreams. There once was a dog with a keen sense of smell. She was known far and wide as Detective Dog Nell. Peter's dog Nell has an amazing sense of smell. Whether it's finding a lost shoe or discovering who did a poo on the new gravel path, her ever-sniffing nose is always hard at work. But Nell has other talents too. Every Monday she goes to school with Peter and listens to children read. So who better to have on hand when they arrive one morning to discover that the school's books have all disappeared! Who could have taken them? And why? There's only one dog for the job ... and Detective Dog Nell is ready to sniff out the culprit!Roland Harvey and his new pelican friend are off on an adventure to walk, fish, canoe, raft, windsurf, sail, paddle-steam, houseboat and even fly their way along the Murray River, from its smallest beginnings in the high country to where it meets the sea...Together they discover the story of the river: its secrets, history, ecology, people and animals. And you're invited, too!..A delight for all ages.A first introduction to the natural world that looks at the myriad ways in which plants and animals have adapted to give themselves the best chance of survival. Natural World explores and explains why living things look and behave the way they do in a series of visually compelling information charts.140 Glenferrie Road Malvern 3144 JEFFREYS BOOKS +61 3 9509 5133
May e-News from Jeffreys Books
May brings a ground swell of great books for mums... We're happy to help with selecting a title to suit or if you're a mum, we'd love you to come in with a wishlist that we can pass on to your kids. We can even have it pre-wrapped!
For those of us who aren't mums, there are many other tempting titles. Read on...
Between books, you may want to soak up some other arts and culture:
The Melbourne Jewish Writers Festival has an amazing list of events lined up for 21-23 May with some wonderful authors including Gail Jones, Mireille Juchau, Joan London and Arnold Zable.
Get a taste of jazz at the Stonnington Jazz Festival - 12-22 May. and if you'd like to use your jazz as an excuse for a trip to the country, head to the Castlemaine Jazz Festival.
Happy reading (and listening!)
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Book Launch - Women of Australia - Bruce Postle
Bruce Postle, multi-award-winning photojournalist, is producing a series of books on aspects of Australian life. His latest, Women of Australia, presents 150 images spanning more than 50 years, and portrays women from all walks of life, including the famous and infamous, the quiet achievers and the Aussie battlers.
Thursday 5 May - 6.30-7.30
140 Glenferrie Road, Malvern
RSVP - orders@jeffreysbooks.com.au or call us on 95095133
Backlist Book of the Month: Kim - our children's specialist tells us about one of her childhood favourites.
Pippi Longstocking - Astrid Lindgren
Kim's quote: Pippi rides a horse up and down the stairs inside. Who wouldn't love the adventures that Pippi gets up to?!
Pippi Longstocking is nine years old and lives all by herself with a horse, a monkey, a suitcase full of gold, and no grown-ups to tell her what to do. She's wild and funny and her crazy ideas are always getting her into trouble! In this single-volume edition of three favourite books, Pippi performs at the circus, is reunited with her long-lost father, and takes her friends Tommy and Annika on a trip to the Canny Canny Islands. She also finds a squeazle, gives a shark a good telling-off, and turns 43 somersaults in the air before breakfast! Everything's fun with Pippi around! Come in a see our range of Pippi Longstocking books.
The Other Side of the World - Stephanie Bishop
Cambridge, 1963. Charlotte is struggling. With motherhood, with the changes marriage and parenthood bring, with losing the time and the energy to paint. Her husband, Henry, wants things to be as they were and can't face the thought of another English winter.A brochure slipped through the letterbox slot brings him the answer: 'Australia brings out the best in you'.
Despite wanting to stay in the place that she knows, Charlotte is too worn out to fight. Before she has a chance to realise what it will mean, she is travelling to the other side of the world. Arriving in Perth, the southern sun shines a harsh light on both Henry and Charlotte and slowly reveals that their new life is not the answer either was hoping for. Charlotte is left wondering if there is anywhere she belongs and how far she'll go to find her way home . . .
Tuesday 31 May at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris - Jenny Colgan
Mouth-watering recipes inside! As dawn breaks over the Pont Neuf, and the cobbled alleyways of Paris come to life, Anna Trent is already awake and at work; mixing and stirring the finest, smoothest, richest chocolate; made entirely by hand, it is sold to the grandes dames of Paris. It's a huge shift from the chocolate factory she worked in at home in the north of England. But when an accident changed everything, Anna was thrown back in touch with her French teacher, Claire, who offered her the chance of a lifetime - to work in Paris with her former sweetheart, Thierry, a master chocolatier. With old wounds about to be uncovered and healed, Anna is set to discover more about real chocolate - and herself - than she ever dreamed. Tuesday 31 May at 11am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
I'm an avid reader but generally steer towards non-fiction. While I haven't gone through your newsletters and produced bar charts for the occurrence of non-fiction categories, I'm always pleased to see that it isn't just fiction.
Yours statistically,
Edwina
Dear Edwina,
Right you are. I'm not sure when the perception developed that reading a book meant escapist fiction. Indeed, many of the Children's books that I love are non-fiction - for example Hello World mentioned below. And at a stretch, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is one of our first Natural Science books. What a great tribute to us all that we devour such books! (And you didn't think there was a link between the three books I've pictured here!
Yours sin-sciencely,
Uncle Jeffrey
Featured Fiction
Everyone Brave is Forgiven - Chris Cleave
When war is declared, Mary North leaves finishing school unfinished, goes straight to the War Office, and signs up. Tom Shaw decides to give it a miss - until his flatmate Alistair unexpectedly enlists, and the conflict can no longer be avoided. Young, bright and brave, Mary is certain she'd be a marvelous spy. When she is - bewilderingly - made a teacher, she instead finds herself defying prejudice to protect the children her country would rather forget. Tom, meanwhile, finds that he will do anything for Mary. And when Mary and Alistair meet, it is love, as well as war, that will test them in ways they could not have imagined, entangling three lives in violence and passion, friendship and deception, inexorably shaping their hopes and dreams. In a powerful combination of both humour and heartbreak, this dazzling novel weaves little-known history, and a perfect love story, through the vast sweep of the Second World War.Our Tiny, Useless Hearts - Toni Jordan
"Henry has ended his marriage to Caroline and headed off to Noosa with Mercedes' grade three teacher, Martha. Caroline, having shredded a wardrobe-full of Henry's suits, has gone after them. Craig and Lesley have dropped over briefly from next door to catch up on the fallout from Henry and Caroline's all-night row. And Janice, Caroline's sister, is staying for the weekend to look after the girls because Janice is the sensible one. A microbiologist with a job she loves, a fervent belief in the beauty of the scientific method and a determination to make a solo life after her divorce from Alec. Then Craig returns through the bedroom window expecting a tryst with Caroline and finds Janice in her bed, Lesley storms in with a jealous heart and a mouthful of threats, Henry, Caroline and Martha arrive back from the airport in separate taxis: and let's not even get started on Brayden the pizza guy. Janice can cope with all that. But when Alec knocks on the door things suddenly get complicated. The Last Painting of Sara De Vos - Dominic Smith
In this extraordinary novel, Australian writer Dominic Smith brilliantly bridges the historical and the contemporary, tracking a collision course between a rare landscape by a female Dutch painter of the Golden Age, an inheritor of the work in 1950s Manhattan, and a celebrated Australian art historian who painted a forgery of it in her youth...In 1631, Sara de Vos is admitted to the Guild of St. Luke in Holland as a master painter, the first woman to be so honoured. Three hundred years later, only one work attributed to de Vos is known to remain, which hangs over the Manhattan bed of a wealthy descendant of the original owner. An Australian grad student, Ellie Shipley, struggling to stay afloat in New York, agrees to paint a forgery of the landscape, a decision that will haunt her. Because now, half a century later, she's curating an exhibition of female Dutch painters, and both versions threaten to arrive...As the three threads intersect with increasing and exquisite suspense, The Last Painting of Sara de Vos mesmerises while it grapples with the demands of the artistic life, showing how the deceits of the past can forge the present.Zero K - Don Delillo
Jeffrey Lockhart's father, Ross, is a billionaire in his sixties, with a younger wife, Artis Martineau, whose health is failing. Ross is the primary investor in a remote and secret compound where death is exquisitely controlled and bodies are preserved until a future time when biomedical advances and new technologies can return them to a life of transcendent promise. Jeff joins Ross and Artis at the compound to say "an uncertain farewell" to her as she surrenders her body. "We are born without choosing to be. Should we have to die in the same manner? Isn't it a human glory to refuse to accept a certain fate?" Jeff, the book's narrator, is committed to living, to experiencing "the mingled astonishment's of our time, here, on earth." 
It's always awkward when five thousand kronor goes missing. When it happens at a certain grotty hotel in south Stockholm, it's particularly awkward because the money belongs to the hitman currently staying in room seven. Per Persson, the hotel receptionist, just wants to mind his own business, and preferably not get murdered. Johanna Kjellander, temporarily resident in room eight, is a priest without a vocation, and, as of last week, without a parish. But right now she has two things at her disposal: an envelope containing five thousand kronor, and an excellent idea ...Featuring one violent killer, two shrewd business brains and many crates of Moldovan red wine, Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All is an outrageously zany story with as many laughs as Jonasson's multimillion-copy bestseller The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared.
Featured Non-Fiction
Country Style Gardens - Country Style
A gorgeous book featuring very best Australian country gardens, drawn from the pages of Australia's favourite magazine, Country Style. Join us as we visit some of Australia's most thoughtful and inspiring gardens - and meet the passionate people behind them - in this beautifully curated collection from the pages of Country Style. From a peony farm in Victoria's famed spa region to rambling homesteads with cascades of wisteria and a subalpine garden that glows gold each autumn, these gardens will have you dreaming of your own little plot of paradise. Featuring stunning photography, detailed stories and expert planting guides for every climate and season, this book is a true collector's edition. A delightful companion volume to Country Style Homes.
Savour - Salads for All Seasons - Peter Gordon
In this beautiful book, internationally acclaimed chef and 'godfather' of fusion cooking, Peter Gordon, encourages you to throw away any preconceived ideas about what makes a salad and to instead create inventive, mouth-watering dishes that you'll want to make time and again.
Created to be enjoyed all year round as a main meal, part of a sharing plate or as a side dish, every recipe combines ingredients that work harmoniously together. Smooth textures complement crunch, a sharp citrus note setting off the sweetness of a roasted grape, a fiery chili enlivening a sweet mango. Chapters are identified by a core ingredient, be it meat, fish, grain, cheese or vegetable, but no single ingredient is king - it is the perfect combination that makes the dish.
Chronicles - on our Troubled Times - Thomas Piketty
The return of the best-selling, award-winning economist extraordinaire. With the same powerful evidence, and range of reference, as his global bestseller Capital in the Twenty-First Century - and in columns of 700 words, rather than 700 pages - Chronicles sets out Thomas Piketty's analysis of the financial crisis, what has happened since and where we should go from here. Tackling a wider range of subjects than in Capital, from productivity in Britain to Barack Obama, it comprises the very best of his writing for Liberation from the past ten years. Now, translated into English for the first time, it will further cement Piketty's reputation as the world's leading thinker today.
Only in Naples - Katherine Wilson
Arriving in Naples as a naive young intern at the American Consulate, Katherine is set up on a blind date - at least that's what she's expecting. Instead, Salvatore brings her home to eat pizza with his family. But this is no ordinary pizza, and the woman who makes it is no ordinary woman. Katherine and Salve do end up dating - and marrying - but it's Salvatore's mother who truly initiates Katherine into Italian society, offering her a culinary and cultural education that marks the beginning of her womanhood. Along the way, Katherine dabbles in dubbing porn, learns to cook an octopus, and fends off frisky Italian suitors.
I hate the label Selective Mutism - as if I choose not to speak, like a kid who refuses to eat broccoli. I've used up every dandelion wish since I was ten wishing for the power to speak whenever I want to. I'm starting to wonder if there are enough dandelions.' After losing her best friend that night, Piper Rhodes changes schools, determined that her final year will be different. She will be different. Then she meets West: school captain, star soccer player, the boy everyone talks about. Despite her fear of losing everything all over again, they fall in love without Piper ever speaking one word to West. But can a love mapped by silence last?
Jeth Seagrave and his crew of mercenaries are pulled into one last high-stakes mission in this breathtaking sequel to Mindee Arnett's Avalon. Jeth Seagrave and his crew are on the run. The ITA, still holding Jeth's mother in a remote research lab, is now intent on acquiring the metatech secrets Jeth's sister Cora carries inside her DNA, and Jeth is desperate to find the resources he needs to rescue his mother and start a new life outside the Confederation. But the ITA is just as desperate, and Jeth soon finds himself pursued by a mysterious figure hell-bent on capturing him and his crew-dead or alive. With nowhere to run and only one play left, Jeth enters into a bargain with the last person he ever thought he'd see again: Daxton Price, the galaxy's newest and most fearsome crime lord. Dax promises to help Jeth, but his help will only come at a price-a price that could mean sacrificing everything Jeth has fought for until now.The Pain, My Mother, Sir Tiffy Cyber Boy & Me - Michael Gerard Bauer
It really all started with The Pain. He officially came into my life exactly nine weeks and one day before our Year Ten Graduation Dance. And despite my very best efforts to wipe the day from my mind, I can still remember it clearly. It was a Friday. The thirteenth day of the month. Notice anything there? Maggie Butt is facing not only a stranger taking over her mothers life but her own as well, and she is not going to let that happen. But then there's the one-eyed snaggle-toothed cat, senior subject choices, the dream date and Cyber Boy, the geek in the library to contend with as well. It's going to be an interesting year.
Amsterdam, 1943 Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black-market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the front line when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion. But one day Hanneke gets a very unusual request. One of her regular customers asks her to find a girl. A girl who has disappeared from the secret room in her house. A Jewish girl . . .As she searches for clues Hanneke is drawn into a dangerous web of lies, secrets and mysteries. Can she find the runaway before the Nazis do?These Dark Wings - John Owen Theobald
After her mother is killed in the Blitz and her father in the North Sea, 12-year-old Anna Cooper is sent to live with an uncle she has never met - the Ravenmaster at the Tower of London. Amid the Tower's old secrets and hidden ghosts, the ravens begin to disappear and Anna must brave the war-torn city to find them. With Nazi forces massing on the other side of the Channel, the fate of Britain might be at stake, for an ancient legend foretells that Britain will fall if the ravens ever leave the Tower.
11-year-old Rose is autistic and struggles to understand her classmates. But when her father gives her a stray dog, which she names Rain, the dog becomes her best friend, her anchor in a confusing world. So when Rain goes missing during a storm, Rose refuses to stop looking for him...
The Bad Guys are about to have a VERY BAD DAY! Mr Wolf and his bad, bad buddies have messed with the wrong guinea pig. And this nasty little furball wants revenge! Will they survive? Will they be heroes? And will they just stop trying to eat each other? It's time to put on your baddest pair of chuckle-pants and find out!The Great Slurp of Time (Olive of Groves #2) - Katrina Nannestad
Olive is gobsmacked. Basil Heffenhuffenheimer has just hiked out of the Black Forest in 1857 and into Mrs Groves' Boarding School for Naughty Boys, Talking Animals and Circus Performers. When he offers to take Olive into the past, she cannot resist a time-travelling adventure. After all, what could possibly go wrong? Plenty, dear reader. Plenty!
When Olive and her friends return to the present with a hungry dinosaur, an Elizabethan pirate and a scissor-happy servant boy, strange and disturbing things start to happen at Groves. Furthermore, 'new' student, Pigg McKenzie, is taking an uncomfortable interest in the dangers and disasters of time travel. Can Basil and Olive keep control of their adventures, or will the Time Slurp and a certain villainous pig have their wicked way?
Buildings, Bridges and Landmarks: A Complete History - Tony Chapman
Travel through time and across the world visiting iconic buildings, bridges and monuments, from the ancient Greek Parthenon to the modern London Shard.The collector's guide details each landmark's place in architectural history and the detachable model compendium contains press-out pieces to make 25 ultra-stylish 3D models. Perfect for lovers of architecture big and small.
Dianne Bates has complied a fabulous collection of poetry written by over thirty different Australian poets for Australian children. Topics include school, family, special events like birthdays and Christmas, animals and sports.
- A great anthology to get kids interested in poetry. Could be read from cover-to-cover or dipped into at random!
- Dianne Bates is a passionate advocate for Australian poetry.
Elsie Piddock is a born skipper. By the age of seven, news of her skipping talents has reached the fairies and they invite her to Mount Caburn for lessons. The High Skip, the Slow Skip, the Skip Double-Double, the Long Skip, the Strong Skip, the Skip Against Trouble...Elsie Piddock learns them all, and soon there's not a mortal or fairy to touch her. Many, many years later, a greedy Lord buys Mount Caburn and threatens to build factories on its land. Can Elsie Piddock save the skipping ground for the next generation? Sparkling with charm and a liberal sprinkling of fairy dust, Elsie Piddock's story is one to be cherished.The Stairs of Doom & The Lost Ghost of Rom (Ghostworks #4) - James Less
The fourth book in a spine-tingling new series for children aged 8 to 12! From the phenomenally successful author of the 'Mr Midnight' and 'Mr Mystery' books, which have sold over 3 million copies around the world, comes a fantastically creepy and thoroughly absorbing new series of middle-fiction novels. Each Ghostworks book contains two chilling tales which will entrance young readers. Book 4 features: Story 1: THE STAIRS OF DOOM George has a weird dream. Then he begins finding mysterious messages. But before he can save himself and his friends, he must deal with Luther of the Otherworld! Story 2: THE LOST GHOST OF ROME On Casey's family holiday in Rome, she visits many exciting landmarks. Until she reaches the ancient Coliseum - where a grisly ghostly gladiator is waiting!
The Newest Pet: Chook's friend Joe doesn't have a pet to bring to Pet Day. To cheer him up, Chook decides they should try to find him a pet for just a day. But Joe is so sad he can't even come up with a plan. (And that's his best thing.) Can Chook think of a plan to help his friend? And will he be brave enough to carry it out?Rules are Rules: Walking to school is too scary for Chook - until Dad tells him the special rule for walking to school safely: no talking to anyone until you are inside the school gates. Too easy! But not talking means that he must ignore Mrs Pho from the bakery, Eddie Two-Hats the busker and Mrs Holston the lollipop lady. Chook knows he has hurt their feelings. But what can he do? RULES ARE RULES!
Featured Children's
Gary - Leila Rudge
Gary the pigeon can't fly. When his racing pigeon friends head off in their travel basket, Gary 
A child has small hands, small feet and small ears, but that does not mean they have small ideas. From the best-selling author of A Lion in Paris comes this beautifully illustrated celebration of what makes every child unique. Through bold and sensitively observed portraits and a thought-provoking text, Beatrice Alemagna inspires children, and adults reading with them, to consider their own identity. Destined to become a classic, What is a Child? is a must-have for every school, library, and bedside table.
Learn to greet people around the globe in this interactive atlas of hellos. With over 150 languages, flaps to reveal pronunciation and fact-files explaining how to write 'hi' in hieroglyphs and how to sign 'hao' in Native American hand talk. Hello World opens up a world of exploration and greetings at your fingertips.Boomerang and Bat: The Story of the Real First Eleven - Mark Greenwood
In 1868 a determined team of Aboriginal cricketers set off on a journey across the world to take on England's best...Led by star all-rounder Johnny Mullagh, and wearing caps embroidered with a boomerang and a bat, they delighted crowds with their exceptional skill...From the creators of Jandamarra, this is the remarkable story of the real first eleven.Mirror - Jeannie Baker
This innovative picture book comprises of tLog Outwo stories designed to be read simultaneously - one from the left, the other from the right. Page by page, we experience the lives of two little boys - one from an urban family in Sydney, Australia, the other from Morocco.Jeannie Baker's work is wonderful and you're in for a treat with her new release Circle coming in June. In the meantime, let's revisit her backlist.
April e-News from Jeffreys Books
Cynthia Bond: Ruby
Anne Enright: The Green Road
Lisa McInerney: The Glorious Heresies
Elizabeth McKenzie: The Portable Veblen
Hannah Rothschild: The Improbability of Love
Hanya Yanagihara: A Little Life
We will be closed on Monday 25 April for ANZAC day.
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month:
Adam's quote: True stories that turn perfect strangers into people closer than your next-door neighbour.
Before television and radio, before penny paperbacks and mass literacy, people would gather on porches, on the steps outside their homes, and tell stories. The storytellers knew their craft and bewitched listeners would sit and listen long into the night as moths flitted around overhead. The Moth is a non-profit group that is trying to recapture this lost art, helping storytellers - old hands and novices alike - hone their stories before playing to packed crowds at sold-out live events. The very best of these stories are collected here: whether it's Bill Clinton's hell-raising press secretary or a leading geneticist with a family secret; a doctor whisked away by nuns to Mother Teresa's bedside or a film director saving her father's Chinatown store from money-grabbing developers; the Sultan of Brunei's concubine or a friend of Hemingway's who accidentally talks himself into a role as a substitute bullfighter, these eccentric, pitch-perfect stories - all, amazingly, true - range from the poignant to the downright hilarious. Perfect when you don't know what to buy someone or you don't have time for a longer book.Snow Kimono - Mark Henshaw
There are times in your life when something happens after which you’re never the same... And inevitably, when it happens, it happens suddenly, without warning.Paris: 1989. Recently retired Inspector of Police Auguste Jovert receives a letter from a woman who claims to be his daughter. Two days later, a stranger comes knocking on his door. Set in Paris and Japan, The Snow Kimono tells the stories of Inspector Jovert, former Professor of Law Tadashi Omura, and his one-time friend the writer Katsuo Ikeda. All three men have lied to themselves, and to each other. And these lies are about to catch up with them. This is an intricate psychological thriller that is also an unforgettable meditation on love and loss, on memory and its deceptions, and the ties that bind us to others.
Tuesday 26 April at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
Moonlight Over Paris - Jennifer Robson
An aristocratic young woman leaves the sheltered world of London to find adventure, passion, and independence in 1920s Paris. Spring, 1924 Recovering from a broken wartime engagement and a serious illness that left her near death, Lady Helena Montagu-Douglas-Parr vows that for once she will live life on her own terms. Breaking free from the stifling social constraints of the aristocratic society in which she was raised, she travels to France to stay with her free spirited aunt. For one year, she will simply be Miss Parr...and pursue her dream of becoming an artist. A few years after the Great War's end, the City of Light is a bohemian paradise teeming with actors, painters, writers, and a lively coterie of American expatriates who welcome Helena into their romantic and exciting circle. Among them is Sam Howard, an irascible and infuriatingly honest correspondent for the Chicago Tribune.Artfully capturing the Lost Generation and their enchanting city, Moonlight Over Paris is the spellbinding story of one young woman's journey to find herself, and claim the life she truly wants. Tuesday 26 April at 11am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
Dear Uncle Jeffrey,
Allan
Dear Wallflower,
Gosh, your perks of the job sound much perkier than mine. You see, I am in the literary world so my perks are usually in the form of the written word. The challenges are two-fold. Firstly the volume of volumes that catch my eye and secondly the journey these books take me on. But this is about you.
Let's start with the old adage - the more you put in, the more you get out - that sort of thing. Perhaps find As for the photo shoots: two comments - I once read that wearing navy is better than black as black can blend into the background! And the other 'love the camera and it will love you'. Pretend that someone has just offered you a calorie-free double choc chip muffin! Click!
Yours unreservedly,
Featured Fiction
The One-in-a-Million Boy - Monica Wood
A one-in-a-million story for anyone who loves to laugh, cry, and think about how extraordinary ordinary life can be. Miss Ona Vitkus has - aside from three months in the summer of 1914 - lived unobtrusively, her secrets fiercely protected. The boy, with his passion for world records, changes all that. He is eleven. She is one hundred and four years, one hundred and thirty three days old (they are counting). And he makes her feel like she might be really special after all. Better late than never...Only it's been two weeks now since he last visited, and she's starting to think he's not so different from all the rest. Then the boy's father comes, for some reason determined to finish his son's good deed. And Ona must show this new stranger that not only are there odd jobs to be done, but a life's ambition to complete ...
'All in?' Kieran pulled me up, and the others followed. We gathered around the bigger tree. No one asked Matty - he just reached up and put his right hand on the trunk with ours. Kieran cleared his throat. 'We swear, on these trees, to always be friends. To protect each other - and this place.' Finding those carved trees forged a bond between Jay and her four childhood friends and opened their eyes to a wider world. But their attempt to protect the grove ends in disaster, and that one day on the river changes their lives forever. Seventeen years later, Jay finally has her chance to make amends. But at what cost? Not every wrong can be put right, but sometimes looking the other way is no longer an option.
On an unseasonably warm autumn day, an American teacher walks down a staircase beneath Sofia's National Palace of Culture, looking for sex. Among the stalls of a public bathroom he encounters Mitko, a charismatic young hustler. He returns to Mitko again and again over the next few months, and their trysts grow increasingly intimate and unnerving as the enigma of this young man becomes inseparable from that of his homeland, Bulgaria, a country with a difficult past and an uncertain future. Garth Greenwell's What Belongs to You is a stunning debut about an American expat struggling with his own complicated inheritance while navigating a foreign culture. Lyrical and intense, it tells the story of a man caught between longing and resentment, unable to separate desire from danger, and faced with the impossibility of understanding those he most longs to know.
Newly retired Philip returns home to Cologne and is thrown into emotional turmoil upon bumping into his long-lost sweetheart. In the midst of a domestic crisis, Ricarda confides in Philip that she is looking for somewhere to live. And there and then, Philip suggests that she move in with him - he is setting up a flatshare. Will she join him with his mischievous dachshund named Ralf? To his surprise, Ricarda agrees, leaving Philip to scramble together a crew of retirees in time for spring, for the most unlikely of social experiments. There's grumpy cigarette-smoking grandfather Harry; quiet and discreet Eckart, curiously carting around his late wife's headstone; Uschi, brimming with life, harbouring a passion for leotards and aerobics, along with sausages and outrageous knitting patterns; and then, ever-practical and warm-hearted Ricarda, towards whom Phillip is developing real feelings. Despite their differences, the flatmates thrive and embark on a series of new adventures. But when Uschi falls unwell, familiar cracks begin to show and this uniquely spirited club of friends must work together in order to survive - and truly blossom.The Trap - Melanie Raabe
I know who killed my sister. I wrote this book for him. Twelve years ago, Linda's sister Anna was murdered. Her killer was never caught, but Linda saw him. Now, all these years later, she's just seen him again on TV. He's become a well-known journalist, and Linda - a famous novelist and infamous recluse - knows no one will believe her if she accuses him. She does the only thing she can think of: she sets a trap, writing a thriller called Blood Sisters about the unsolved murder of a young woman. When Blood Sisters is published, Linda agrees to give just one media interview. At home. To the one person who knows more about the case than she does...
The French Riviera, 1956. A world-weary Bernie Gunther is working under a false name as a hotel concierge. His attempts to keep his nose clean go horribly awry when a wartime acquaintance sucks him into a blackmail plot involving one of the most famous British writers of the 20th century and the Cambridge Spies. Bernie is missing his old detective life when his past walks through the door in the shape of Harold Hennig, a former captain in the Nazi security service - the man who, in 1945, was responsible for the deaths of thousands, among them a woman Bernie loved. Hennig now enjoys a lucrative career as a blackmailer. Hennig's target on the Cote d'Azur is a famous resident with a dark past and plenty to hide - the writer, Somerset Maugham. A shared love of bridge draws Bernie to Maugham's magnificent villa, where Maugham tells him of the existence of a very compromising photograph. Taken in 1937, it shows Maugham among a group of naked men beside a swimming pool - one of whom is the infamous spy and homosexual, Guy Burgess, who, with Donald Maclean, has recently defected to Moscow. Hennig has the photograph and is demanding $50,000 for its release.Bernie is reluctant to become Maugham's agent but his former life has made him as vulnerable to blackmail as Maugham himself. Not only that - he has a massive score to settle with Hennig.
Featured Non-Fiction
Everywhere I Look - Helen Garner
Helen Garner is one of Australia’s greatest writers. Her short non-fiction has enormous range. Spanning fifteen years of work,Everywhere I Look is a book full of unexpected moments, sudden shafts of light, piercing intuition, flashes of anger and incidental humour. It takes us from backstage at the ballet to the trial of a woman for the murder of her newborn baby. It moves effortlessly from the significance of moving house to the pleasure of re-reading Pride and Prejudice.
Everywhere I Look includes Garner’s famous and controversial essay on the insults of age, her deeply moving tribute to her mother and extracts from her diaries, which have been part of her working life for as long as she has been a writer. Everywhere I Look glows with insight. It is filled with the wisdom of life.
The Age of Genius - A. C. Grayling
What happened to the European mind between 1605, when an audience watching Macbeth at the Globe might believe that regicide was such an aberration of the natural order that ghosts could burst from the ground, and 1649, when a large crowd, perhaps including some who had seen Macbeth forty-four years earlier, could stand and watch the execution of a king? Or consider the difference between a magus casting a star chart and the day in 1639, when Jonathan Horrock and William Crabtree watched the transit of Venus across the face of the sun from their attic, successfully testing its course against Kepler's Tables of Planetary Motion, in a classic case of confirming a scientific theory by empirical testing. In this turbulent period, science moved from the alchemy and astrology of John Dee to the painstaking observation and astronomy of Galileo, from the classicism of Aristotle, still favoured by the Church, to the evidence-based, collegiate investigation of Francis Bacon. And if the old ways still lingered and affected the new mind set - Descartes's dualism an attempt to square the new philosophy with religious belief; Newton, the man who understood gravity and the laws of motion, still fascinated to the end of his life by alchemy - by the end of that tumultuous century 'the greatest ever change in the mental outlook of humanity' had irrevocably taken place.
ANZAC Battlefield: A Gallipoli Landscapre of War and Memory - Antonio Sagona
Anzac Battlefield: A Gallipoli Landscape of War and Memory explores the transformation of Gallipoli's landscape in antiquity, during the famed battles of the First World War and in the present day. Drawing on archival, archaeological and cartographic material, this book unearths the deep history of the Gallipoli peninsula, setting the Gallipoli campaign in a broader cultural and historical context. The book presents the results of an original archaeological survey, the research for which was supported by the Australian, New Zealand and Turkish Governments. The survey examines materials from both sides of the battlefield, and sheds new light on the environment in which Anzac and Turkish soldiers endured the conflict. Richly illustrated with both Ottoman and Anzac archival images and maps, as well as original maps and photographs of the landscape and archaeological findings, Anzac Battlefield is an important contribution to our understanding of Gallipoli and its landscape of war and memory.
First Day of the Somme - Andrew Macdonald
A groundbreaking history of the first, horrific day of one of the most notorious, bloody offensives of all time, from its inept planning to its disastrous execution. It took several million bullets and roughly half an hour to destroy General Sir Douglas Haig's grand plans for the first day of the Somme, 1 July 1916. By day's end 19,240 British soldiers were dead, crumpled khaki bundles scattered across pasture studded with the scarlet of poppies and smouldering shell holes. A further 35,493 were wounded. This single sunny day remains Britain's worst-ever military disaster, both numerically and statistically more deadly than the infamous charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava in 1854. Responsible were hundreds of German machineguns and artillery batteries waiting silently to deal death to the long-anticipated attack. Someone had blundered. Working back from the "butcher's bill" of mass casualties on the battlefield, to the inept planning in London's Whitehall, the author penetrates the "fog of war" to explain how and why this was a human disaster waiting to happen.
Cadvan of Lirigon, one of the most brilliant Bards of his generation, has been exiled for a terrible crime that unleashed the power of the Bone Queen and wrought destruction across Annar. Meanwhile, in Lirigon, several unnerving events suggest that the Dark is growing in strength once again, and that the Bone Queen may yet lurk in the world. If he is to save both the living and the dead, Cadvan must once again face the evil that almost destroyed him. Critically acclaimed fantasy author Alison Croggon introduces readers to the world of Pellinor in this compelling story of Cadvan's struggle for redemption. 
From YouTube sensation Marzia “CutiePieMarzia” Bisognin comes a debut young adult paranormal thriller about a girl whose dream house quickly becomes a nightmare. When Amethyst stumbles upon the house of her dreams, she can’t help but be enchanted by it, even if there’s something a little…off about the place. It’s everything she’s ever wanted in a home, so when the Blooms invite her to stay the night to avoid an impending storm, she instantly accepts. Yet when she awakes the next morning, alone and unable to bring herself to leave, Amethyst comes face-to-face with unexpected twists and turns—like Alfred, the creepy gardener; Avery, the handsome but secretive neighbor, and a little girl who keeps appearing and vanishing within the house.
Book two in the mind-blowing new supernatural thriller from bestselling author Derek Landy, creator of international sensation Skulduggery Pleasant. Reeling from their bloody encounter in New York City at the end of Demon Road, Amber and Milo flee north. On their trail are the Hounds of Hell - five demonic bikers who will stop at nothing to drag their quarries back to their unholy master. Amber and Milo's only hope lies within Desolation Hill - a small town with a big secret; a town with a darkness to it, where evil seeps through the very floorboards. Until, on one night every year, it spills over onto the streets and all hell breaks loose. And that night is coming...Raymie Nightingale - Kate DiCamillo
Raymie Clarke has come to realize that everything, absolutely everything, depends on her. And she has a plan. If Raymie can win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition, then her father - who has run away with a dental hygienist - will see Raymie's picture in the paper and (maybe) come home. To win, not only does Raymie have to do good deeds and learn how to twirl a baton, but she has to compete with the wispy, frequently fainting Louisiana Elefante with her show-business background and the fiery, stubborn Beverly Tapinski, who's determined to sabotage the contest. But as the competition approaches, loneliness, loss and unanswerable questions draw the three girls into an unlikely friendship - and challenge them to come to each other's rescue in unexpected ways.
From 'Dancing with the Stars' winner Emma Freedman, a coming-of-age story that draws on Emma's childhood dance experience. April Franklin is 13 years of age and has just started high school. April has also been dancing half her life and while she loves ballet, she's not sure if classical is right for her, particularly since she doesn't have the perfect ballet body - and of course all of the mean girls at her ballet school do ...There are, however, many ways to dance, and when April has the opportunity to explore them she leaps at the chance, even though she is very aware that her mother has high hopes for her as a classical dancer. New school, mean girls, stage mothers, big dreams ...sometimes finding your feet can be hard.
First published by Macmillan in 1894, The Jungle Book is the classic collection of animal tales that shows Rudyard Kipling's writing for children at its best. The short stories and poems include the tale of Mowgli, a boy raised by a pack of wolves in the Indian jungle. We meet the tiger Shere Khan, Bagheera, the black panther, Baloo, the 'sleepy brown bear', and the python, Kaa. Other famous stories include the tale of the fearless mongoose Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, and that of elephant-handler Toomai of the Elephants. With a beautiful foiled cover, this edition from the original publisher of Rudyard Kipling's much-loved classic is a book to treasure.
The Blythes are a big, warm, rambunctious family who live on a small farm and sometimes foster children. Now Prez has come to live with them. But, though he seems cheerful and helpful, he never says a word. Then one day Prez answers the door to someone claiming to be his relative. This small, loud stranger carries a backpack, walks with a swagger and goes by the name of Sputnik. As Prez dithers on the doorstep, Sputnik strolls right past him and introduces himself to everyone in the household. Prez is amazed at the response. The family pat Sputnik on the head, call him a good boy and drop food into his mouth. It seems they all think Sputnik is a dog.
Alex is shocked to realise he's now the owner of Puzzle, a filthy, thin and abused pony. He thought he'd solve all his problems by buying a pony at a local auction. Puzzle is in such a state, she may have to be put down... This story of loyalty and friendship from the Usborne Young Reading Programme is ideal for newly independent readers.
Pig and his friends are safely back on their farm, spending their days playing games and having fun until a game of hide-and-seek goes wrong. Pig's attempt to make it better only makes things worse when his friend Cow gets kidnapped. Pig and Duck are the only ones who can save her. Join them on their mission, which takes them across land and sea. It's more fun, farts, slops and unbelievable adventure from this much-loved set of characters. Complete with illustrations throughout and printed in a unique diary format.
When Claude and Sir Bobblysock discover a Very Exciting Sports Competition at their local sports centre, they are very excited. They are even more excited when they are asked to take part. But Claude's doggy paddle isn't fast enough, and he's not quite as good at gymnastics as he thought he might be. Then some robbers steal the Gold Cup and Claude chases them - can he run fast enough to catch them? I Just Couldn't Wait to Meet You - Kate Ritchie
Much-loved actor and radio host Kate Ritchie's first book is a beautiful tribute to the joy and anticipation of expecting a child. "When you were still a treasured bump, tucked safe away inside, I thought about you night and day and in my sleep - it's true. My heart was full of hope and love. I just couldn't wait to meet you. A heartwarming story to share with the children in your family."
A boldly illustrated picture book read-aloud about how everyone gets sad ...even daddies have emotions! Did you know wrestlers have feelings? And knights. Even superheroes and ninjas feel sad sometimes. In fact everyone has feelings--especially dads who love their children! Children will love recognizing their feelings in Keith Negley's bold illustrations which accompany a fun-to-read-aloud narrative. Parents can joyfully engage with children in a light-hearted discussion about emotions and how they affect us all! Keith Negley is an award-winning editorial illustrator with a penchant for emotionally driven illustration. He's been published in a wide range of major newspapers and national magazines, and is a frequent contributor to the "New York Times "and "New Yorker."
Join Douglas on a honey hunt in the seventh Hugless Douglas adventure. This bestselling series has sold over 1.4 million copies to date in 26 languages! The sheep are baking honey cakes and Douglas can't wait to try them. He's sure that food without honey just isn't yummy. Can he ever be tempted to try something new? David Melling is one of the UK's best-loved author-illustrators and his seventh book about Douglas the brown bear is as funny and compelling as the first.
March e-News from Jeffreys Books
Also, the Stella Prize shortlist has now been announced and these titles promise to give you something to think about. Great suggestions for bookclubs too!
We will be closed on Monday 14 March for the public holiday.
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: Dog Boy - Eva Hornung (now released as a Text Classic)
Linda's quote: I realised how totally convincing the book was when I said 'and he looked in the mirror and thought he was a boy'. Clearly, he was a boy but both he and I were convinced that he'd been transformed into a dog.
Abandoned in a big city at the onset of winter, a hungry four-year-old boy follows a stray dog to her lair. There in the rich smelly darkness, in the rub of hair, claws and teeth, he joins four puppies suckling at their mother's teats. And so begins Romochka's life as a dog. Weak and hairless, with his useless nose and blunt little teeth, Romochka is ashamed of what a poor dog he makes. But learning how to be something else...that's a skill a human can master. Fortunately-because one day Romochka will have to learn how to be a boy. The story of the child raised by beasts is timeless. But in Dog Boy Eva Hornung has created such a vivid and original telling, so viscerally convincing, that it becomes not just new but definitive: Yes, this is how it would be.The Whites - Richard Price
Every cop has a personal 'White': a criminal who got away with murder. Back in the 1990s, Billy Graves was one of the Wild Geese: a tight-knit crew of young mavericks, fresh to police work and hungry for justice, looking out for each other and their 'family' of neighbourhood locals. But then Billy made some bad headlines by accidentally shooting a ten-year-old boy while bringing down an angel-dusted berserker in the street. Now he has settled into his role as sergeant in the Night Watch, content simply to do his job and go home to his family. But when he is called to the 4 a.m. stabbing of a man in Penn Station, Billy discovers the victim is the 'White' of one of his oldest friends, a former member of the Wild Geese, who is now retired. As the past comes crashing into the present, the Wild Geese seemingly rise from the dead, and the bad old run-and-gun days of the 90s are back with a vengeance.Tuesday 29 March at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
French Connection Book Club (Fiction/Non-Fiction)
Mademoiselle Chanel: A Novel - C. W. Gortner
For readers of The Paris Wife and Z comes this vivid novel full of drama, passion, tragedy, and beauty that stunningly imagines the life of iconic fashion designer Coco Chanel-the ambitious, gifted laundrywoman's daughter who revolutionized fashion, built an international empire, and become one of the most influential and controversial figures of the twentieth century. Born into rural poverty, Gabrielle Chanel and her siblings are sent to orphanage after their mother's death. The sisters nurture Gabrielle's exceptional sewing skills, a talent that will propel the willful young woman into a life far removed from the drudgery of her childhood. Transforming herself into Coco - a seamstress and sometime torch singer - the petite brunette burns with ambition, an incandescence that draws a wealthy gentleman who will become the love of her life. Tuesday 29 March at 11am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
Yours actively,
Rhonda
Dear Rhonda,
Let me say that I'm also up for a challenge which is the only reason I feel qualified to even attempt this question. Let's just say, you and I probably shouldn't go on holidays together. That said, here's my opinion.
In my experience, people are truly resilient. Therefore, with the correct food and clothing you can pretty much survive most adventures.
And while many say it's not about the destination, it's about the
journey; I often find with active holidays that it's not so much about the journey as the stories you can tell afterwards. The bigger the hardship the greater the story. Here are some of my tips for background reading for your next walk: Wild by Nature: From Siberia to Australia, Three Years Alone in the Wilderness on Foot - Sarah Marquis, Seven Walks - Tom Carment and 1001 Walks You Must Experience Before You Die - Barry Stone.Happy travels,
PS If you'd like to know about international standards on walks, perhaps visit Adventure-Link or Aussie Disposals - you'll find both on Glenferrie Road.
Featured Fiction
Green Island - Shawna Yang Ryan
"February 28, 1947. Trapped inside their home due to an uprising that has rocked Taipei, Dr. Tsai delivers his youngest daughter, the unnamed narrator of Green Island. A few days later, he is one of the many thousands of people dragged away from their families. Missing for a decade, he eventually returns a haunted man. Feeling a stranger in the midst of his family, who have carried on with their lives, he connects with his youngest daughter and unwittingly brings her into an uneasy political scene where neighbors are set against neighbors to survive. Eventually, she makes her way to Berkeley, California, a married woman and a student, but her past and history follow her. She is ultimately forced to decide between right and what might save her family a choice she witnessed her father make many years before. As the novel sweeps across six decades and two continents, the life of the narrator shadows the course of Taiwan's history, from the end of the period Japanese colonial rule to its decades under martial law administered by the Chinese nationalists, and finally to its transformation into a democracy.Freya - Anthony Quinn
London, May 1945. Freya Wyley, twenty, meets Nancy Holdaway, eighteen, amid the wild celebrations of VE-Day, the prelude to a devoted and competitive friendship that will endure on and off for the next two decades. Freya, wilful, ambitious, outspoken, pursues a career in newspapers which the chauvinism of Fleet Street and her own impatience conspire to thwart, while Nancy, gentler, less self-confident, struggles to get her first novel published. Both friends become entangled at university with Robert Cosway, a charismatic young man whose own ambition will have a momentous bearing on their lives. Flitting from war-haunted Oxford to the bright new shallows of the 1960s, Freya plots the unpredictable course of a woman's life and loves against a backdrop of Soho pornographers, theatrical peacocks, willowy models, priapic painters, homophobic blackmailers, political careerists. Beneath the relentless thrum of changing times and a city being reshaped, we glimpse the eternal: the battles fought by women in pursuit of independence, the intimate mysteries of the human heart, and the search for love. Orphan X - Gregg Hurwitz
'Do you need my help? It was always the first question he asked. They called him when they had nowhere else to turn. As a boy he was chosen, then taken from the orphanage he called home. Raised and trained as part of a top secret programme he was sent to the worst places in the world to do the things his government denied any knowledge of. Then he broke with the programme, using everything he'd learned to disappear. He wanted to help the desperate and deserving. But now someone's on his tail. Someone who has issues with his past. Someone who knows he was once known simply as Orphan X.
I cannot go on like this. I feel such a burden to you. You are young and can start again. You deserve that chance. By the time you read this I will be dead. Do not grieve for me, for I am now without pain. Yours truly for ever, Monica. Monica suffers from chronic neuropathic pain. Every second of her life is spent in agony, and she is coping with it the best she can. However, there are whole years of her life which are a blur to her. But when she finds what appears to be her own suicide note, Monica begins to question everything. She has no memory of writing it - so who did? And if someone tried to kill her once, what's to say they won't try again ... perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train, I Let You Go and Before I Go To Sleep.
From the bestselling author of Girl With a Pearl Earring comes a powerful new novel of family struggle, personal determination and the might of nature. What happens when you can't run any further from your past? Ohio, 1838. James and Sadie Goodenough have settled in the Black Swamp, planting apple trees to claim the land as their own. Life is harsh in the swamp, and as fever picks off their children, husband and wife take solace in separate comforts. James patiently grows his sweet-tasting ‘eaters' while Sadie gets drunk on applejack made fresh from ‘spitters'. Their fighting takes its toll on all of the Goodenoughs – a battle that will resonate over the years and across America. Fifteen years later their youngest son, Robert, is drifting through Goldrush California. Haunted by the broken family he fled years earlier, memories stick to him where mud once did. When he finds steady work for a plant collector, peace seems finally to be within reach. But the past is never really past, and one day Robert is forced to confront the brutal reason he left behind everything he loved. In this rich, powerful story, Tracy Chevalier is at her imaginative best, bringing to life the urge to wrestle with our roots, however deep and tangled they may be.Under the Influence - Joyce Maynard
When Helen meets Swift and Ava Havilland at an art gallery opening, her life is at an all-time low. A DUI conviction caused her to lose her driver’s license and custody of her eight-year-old son, Oliver. Now she sees Ollie on Saturdays for bowling and laser tag and meals in fast-food restaurants, where his eyes stay glued to the screen of his portable gaming device. She’s got a dead-end job and goes on occasional dates, but spends most evenings at AA meetings. The Havillands change all that. Ava and Swift are wealthy, charismatic philanthropists—passionate animal lovers and passionate lovers of each other, it seems. The Havillands quickly become the center of Helen’s world, as she takes on jobs for them and joins their glamorous inner circle. Then Helen meets Elliot—a quiet, uncool accountant the Havillands dismiss as boring. Helen might be falling in love with him, but her new best friends disapprove—and cause Helen to distrust her own heart.
Featured Non-Fiction
Yassmin's Story - Ya Abdel-Magied
Frank, fearless, funny, articulate and inspiring, Yassmin Abdel-Magied is a dynamo, a young Muslim dynamo offering a bracing breath of fresh air - and hope. At 21, Yassmin found herself working on a remote Australian oil and gas rig; she was the only woman and certainly the only Sudanese-Egyptian-Australian background Muslim woman. With her hijab quickly christened a 'tea cosy' there could not be a more unlikely place on earth for a young Muslim woman to want to be. This is the story of how she got there, where she is going, and how she wants the world to change. Born in the Sudan, Yassmin and her parents moved to Brisbane when she was two, and she has been tackling barriers ever since. At 16 she founded Youth Without Borders, an organisation focused on helping young people to work for positive change in their communities.
The Lady and the Generals - Peter Popham
She was a heroine of our time, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, a symbol of supreme courage in the face of tyranny. Then, in 2010, Burma's generals opened the door a chink: Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest, and her country began to change. Suu Kyi's acclaimed biographer, Peter Popham, describes what happened next. Travelling across the country, meeting aristocrats, monks and politicians, freedom fighters, punks and rebels, he shows how hope has slowly returned to the lives of ordinary Burmese. He also examines the fate of the hill tribes, and how the world's politicians and businessmen are striving for influence. But with greater openness, long-suppressed prejudices have burst into the open: intolerant Buddhist preachers have whipped up the latent hostility of the Burmese against people of other races and beliefs, especially the Muslim Rohingya. When Aung San Suu Kyi was elected to parliament, she began to negotiate with the military. Yet she has declined to take a firm stand on minority rights - to the dismay of many in the West.
Betrayal: The Crisis in the Catholic Church - The Investigative Staff of the Boston Globe
This is the true story of how a small group of courageous journalists uncovered child abuse on a vast scale - and held the Catholic Church to account. Betrayal is a ground-breaking work of investigative journalism, now brought brilliantly to life on the screen in the major new movie Spotlight. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. On 31 January 2002, the Boston Globe published a report that sent shockwaves around the world. Their findings, based on a six-month campaign by the 'Spotlight' investigative team, showed that hundreds of children in Boston had been abused by Catholic priests, and that this horrific pattern of behaviour had been known - and ignored - by the Catholic Church. Instead of protecting the community it was meant to serve, the Church exploited its powerful influence to protect itself from scandal - and innocent children paid the price.
Hachette Military Collection - various
Hachette have brought out five titles in their Hachette Military Collection. At $16.99 they provide a great incite into Australian Military History.
Ghost Platoon - Frank Walker
SAS Insider - Robert Macklin
The Australian Lighthorse - Roland Perry
Tank Men - Robert J. Kershaw
SAS Operation Storm - Roger Cole
The Shadowhunters of Los Angeles star in the first novel in Cassandra Clare's newest series, The Dark Artifices, a sequel to the internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series. It's been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Fire that brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses. Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn't lead her in treacherous directions...
Will went to private school, and Julian went to juvie. Will is running from a family secret, and Julian is running from the goat next door. The boys meet pushing trolleys, and they find a common enemy in the Westie hoons who terrorise the carpark...After a few close calls, Will has to nut up and confront his past. But on the way, he learns a few things about what it means to be a friend - and what it means to be family...The Way We Roll a rattling urban bromance made of plastic and stainless steel. Brace yourself...
Moth Girls - Anne Cassidy
Five years have passed since Petra and Tina were determined to explore the dilapidated house on Princess Street. But what started off as a dare ended with the two girls vanishing. As Mandy's memories of the disappearance of her two friends are ignited once again, disturbing details will resurface in her mind.
No Rules (Friday Barnes #4) - R.A. Spratt
What if every clue points in the wrong direction? Friday Barnes has been deported to Switzerland! With their in-school detective gone, Highcrest Academy has descended into chaos. Someone's fired all the teachers! The Headmaster claims it wasn't him, and suspicion soon turns to Ian Wainscott, but Friday won't stand by and let her favourite nemesis take the blame. Apart from being innocent (probably), he's seriously good-looking. There's also the problem of the new vice principal and his questionable teaching methods. It's hard to take someone seriously when they wear tie-dyed t-shirts. Can Friday save Ian's scholarship? Can she find the prankster before they bring down the school? Can she run the cross country? She's certainly going to try ...to do the first two, anyway.
A new series for new readers has just landed on the shelves. Meet this brave new character: feisty, brave and curious 11 year old Squishy Taylor. An apartment full of questions on a street full of mysteries...Why does Squishy have to share everything with her new step-sisters? Why is her next-door neighbor the crankiest man in the world? Why are green jelly snakes the yummiest? Who's that hiding in the basement?
Mango and Bambang's adventures continue in the second book of this charming illustrated series about a little girl and a tapir, written by Polly Faber and illustrated by Clara Vulliamy. Mango Allsorts is a girl good at all sorts of things, especially helping a tapir feel at home in a busy city. Bambang is that tapir and he's getting braver every day. Join then for their daring escapades, involving dogs, dancing, diamond rings and a dangerous old enemy. Tapir All at Sea is Book Two in this brilliant series for younger readers.
Rafe's been to the beach and now he's headed to the bush - watch out Australia! It's fair to say that Rafe's recent trip Down Under could not easily be called a success: in Australia he and his Mom were forced to flee a pack of bloodthirsty zombies after the performance piece by Rafe and The Outsiders traumatised Shark Bay (aka Australia's Bravest Town). Yet, when Rafe receives an offer to attend an all-expenses paid Cultural Campout in the Northern Territory, Australia, he takes precisely six seconds to say yes'. What happens next is full-throttle outback adventure in which Rafe will have to draw on every bit of his new-found Man of Experience persona to make it out alive.
Tiny Timmys hard work has paid off. He's starring for his school team and now the rep coach is keen to recruit him! But its a big step up...the kids are faster and stronger and the standard is better than what hes used to. Tim will have to keep training hard and if he gets a chance, he'll need to take it! Every moment counts in Book 2 of the fun new series from Socceroos legend Tim Cahill!
Experience the magic of Dr. Seuss with this brand new collection of newly-discovered stories featuring old friends and new faces! Everyone loves Dr. Seuss, and this collection of four wonderful new stories will delight his fans of all ages. The collection contains four stories, originally published in magazines in the 1950s, and up till now, largely forgotten. Now collected together and with freshly-coloured artwork, and with characters from Horton the elephant to a Grinch, this really is a book to read again and again and to treasure forever.Chip - Kylie Howarth
Chip, like most other gulls, is wild about chips. He likes fat chips, skinny chips, sandy or crunchy or soggy chips. But, most of all, he loves Joe's chips from Joe's Chip Van beside the sea. Chip, like most other gulls, can be a little intrusive on his search for chips. So, one day, Joe erects a sign near his van warning people not to feed the seagulls. Chip is devastated, so he plans a way to get back into Joe's good books, thus gaining access once more to his favourite food. Playful repetition of text will engage the reader. Subtle message of 'do not feed wildlife human food' is reinforced in the text. Gatefold adds an extra surprise element inside the story.Pig the Winner - Aaron Blabey
Pig was a pug and I'm sorry to say if he didn't come first it would ruin his day. Won't he ever learn?! Pig, the world's greediest Pug, won't play fair. He'll do anything to win! Another laugh-out-loud book from the best-selling creator of Pig the Pug and Pig the Fibber.
Bear Make Den - Jane Godwin & Michael Wagner (Illus. Andrew Joyner)
Bear loves to get things done. He can make just about anything! He even builds a wonderful den. But something is missing. What could it be?...
February e-News from Jeffreys Books
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Stella Prize Longlist 2016
The Stella Prize celebrates Australian women's contribution to literature. The Longlist for 2016 has just been announced. Last year's winner of the Stella Prize was The Strays by Emily Bitto.
- The Women’s Pages by Debra Adelaide (Pan Macmillan)
- The Other Side of the World by Stephanie Bishop (Hachette)
- Panthers and the Museum of Fire by Jen Craig (Spineless Wonders)
- Six Bedrooms by Tegan Bennett Daylight (Random House)
- Hope Farm by Peggy Frew (Scribe)Stella
- A Few Days in the Country: And Other Stories by Elizabeth Harrower (Text)
- A Guide to Berlin by Gail Jones (Random House)
- The World Without Us by Mireille Juchau (Bloomsbury)
- A Short History of Richard Kline by Amanda Lohrey (Black Inc.)
- Anchor Point by Alice Robinson (Affirm Press)
- The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood (Allen & Unwin)
- Small Acts of Disappearance: Essays on Hunger by Fiona Wright (Giramondo)
James' quote: "Each time I flick to a new page a discovery is made. Simple but elegant ...
Transform your home into a permanently clear and clutter-free space with the incredible KonMari Method. Japan's expert declutterer and professional cleaner Marie Kondo will help you tidy your rooms once and for all with her inspirational step-by-step method. The key to successful tidying is to tackle your home in the correct order, to keep only the things you really love and to do it all at once and quickly. After that for the rest of your life you only need to choose what to keep and what to discard. Once you have your house in order you will find that your whole life will change. You can feel more confident, you can become more successful, and you can have the energy and motivation to create the life you want. And then there's her latest title Spark Joy. You may scoff, but we have many customers who are converts!
Last Tuesday Book Club (Fiction)The Secret Chord - Geraldine Brooks
This is a retelling of the story of King David's extraordinary rise to power and fall from grace. 1000 BC. The Second Iron Age. Anointed as the chosen one when just a young shepherd boy, David will rise to be king, grasping the throne and establishing his empire. But his journey is a tumultuous one and the consequences of his choices will resound for generations. In a life that arcs from obscurity to fame, he is by turns hero and traitor, glamorous young tyrant and beloved king, murderous despot and remorseful, diminished patriarch. His wives love and fear him, his sons will betray him. It falls to Natan, the courtier and prophet who both counsels and castigates David, to tell the truth about the path he must take.Tuesday 23 February at 7pm. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133.
French Connection Book Club (Fiction/Non-Fiction)
Take This Man - Alice Zeniter
Alice is about to marry Mad. Alice is white. Mad is black. Alice is French; Mad, though he has studied and lived in France for years, is not. They have been friends since childhood and never been romantically involved. But now Mad is being threatened with deportation and marrying Alice strikes both friends as the best solution to their problems. On the eve of her wedding, Alice reflects on their years of friendship together. Recounting stories of rebellion and friendship, Take This Man charters the passage from indignant adolescent to consciously engaged adult. Tuesday 23 February at 11am. Contact us to reserve your place on 9509 5133
Dear Uncle Jeffrey,
Yours in singleton,
Barry
Dear Barry,
Valentine's Day. It's all love, sweet love, hugs and kisses. Yep and what about the rest of the
You know what I love? I love clutter and stacks of books and reams of newspapers. I love having this take up my time and my mind. When I want company, I seek it out. You know what I don't miss - dinner with the in-laws, meeting up with my partner's friends and their partners. Agh! I don't want to share the remote control and I don't want someone tidying up my mess (thanks, but no thanks, Marie Kondo!)
Barry - We love you as you are. Give me the flowers and chocolates,
Uncle Jeffrey
Featured Fiction
Be Frank with Me - Julia Claiborne Johnson
Reclusive literary legend M. M. 'Mimi' Banning has been holed up in her Bel Air mansion for years. Now she's flat broke an must write a new book for the first time in decades, and to ensure the timely delivery of her manuscript, her New York publisher sends an assistant to monitor her progress. The prickly Mimi reluctantly complies-with a few stipulations. When Alice Whitley arrives at the Banning mansion, she's put to work right away-as a full-time companion to Frank, the writer's eccentric nine-year-old, a boy with the wit of Noel Coward, the wardrobe of a 1930's movie star, and very little in common with his fellow fourth-graders. As she slowly gets to know Frank, Alice becomes consumed with finding out who Frank's father is, how his gorgeous 'piano teacher and itinerant male role model' Xander fits into the Banning family equation - and whether Mimi will ever finish that book. 'While these side stories are interesting, it's the story and character of Frank that I fell in love with. He's totally adorable.' Linda, Jeffreys BooksNoise of Time - Julian Barnes
In May 1937 a man in his early thirties waits by the lift of a Leningrad apartment block. He waits all through the night, expecting to be taken away to the Big House. Any celebrity he has known in the previous decade is no use to him now. And few who are taken to the Big House ever return. So begins Julian Barnes first novel since his Booker-winning The Sense of an Ending. A story about the collision of Art and Power, about human compromise, human cowardice and human courage, it is the work of a true master.
High Mountains of Portugal - Yann Martel
With this highly anticipated new novel, the author of the bestselling Life of Pi returns to the storytelling power and luminous wisdom of his master novel. The High Mountains of Portugal is a suspenseful, mesmerising story of a great quest for meaning, told in three intersecting narratives that touch the lives of three different people and their families, and taking us on an extraordinary journey through the last century. We begin in the early 1900s, when Tomás discovers an ancient journal and sets out from Lisbon in one of the very first motor cars in Portugal in search of the strange treasure the journal describes. Thirty-five years later, a pathologist devoted to the novels of Agatha Christie, whose wife has possibly been murdered, finds himself drawn into Tomás’s quest. Fifty years later, Senator Peter Tovy of Ottawa, grieving the death of his own beloved wife, rescues a chimpanzee from an Oklahoma research facility and takes it to live with him in his ancestral village in northern Portugal, where the strands of all three stories miraculously mesh together.
High Places - Fiona McFarlane
The dazzling stories in this collection find those moments when people confront the strangeness and mystery of their lives. The revelations of intimidating old friends on holiday. An accident on a dark country road. A marine biologist in conversation with the ghost of Charles Darwin. The sudden arrival of American parachutists in a Queensland country town. A lottery win. A farmer troubled by miracles in the middle of a drought . . . The people in The High Places are jolted into seeing themselves from a fresh and often disconcerting perspective. Ranging around the world from a remote Pacific island to outback Australia to the tourist haunts of Greece, these stories are written with extraordinary invention, great emotional insight and wry humour. Each one of them is as rich and rewarding as literature can be.The North Water - Ian McGuire
A 19th-century whaling ship sets sail for the Arctic with a killer aboard in this dark, sharp and highly original tale that grips like a thriller. Behold the man: stinking, drunk, brutal and bloodthirsty, Henry Drax is a harpooner on the Volunteer, a Yorkshire whaling ship bound for the hunting waters of the Arctic Circle. Also aboard for the first time is Patrick Sumner, an ex-army surgeon with a shattered reputation, no money and no better option than to embark as ship's medic on this violent, filthy, ill-fated voyage.In India during the Siege of Delhi, Sumner thought he had experienced the depths to which a man can stoop and imagined he'd find respite on the Volunteer, but now, trapped in the wooden belly of the ship with Drax, he encounters pure evil and is forced to act. As the true purposes of the expedition become clear, the confrontation between the two men plays out in the freezing darkness of an Arctic winter.
Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist - Sunil Yapa
Victor, homeless after a family tragedy, finds himself pounding the streets of Seattle with little meaning or purpose. He is the estranged son of the police chief of the city, and today his father is in charge of one of the largest protests in the history of Western democracy. But in a matter of hours reality will become a nightmare. Hordes of protesters - from all sections of society - will test the patience of the city's police force, and lives will be altered forever: two armed police officers will struggle to keep calm amid the threat of violence; a protester with a murderous past will make an unforgivable mistake; and a delegate from Sri Lanka will do whatever it takes to make it through the crowd to a meeting - a meeting that could dramatically change the fate of his country. In amongst the fray, Victor and his father are heading for a collision too. Set during the World Trade Organization protests, this is a deeply charged novel showcasing a distinct and exciting new literary voice.I'll See You in Paris - Michelle Gable
I'll See You in Paris winds together the lives of three women born generations apart, but who face similar struggles of love and heartbreak. After losing her fiancé in the Vietnam War, nineteen-year-old Laurel Haley takes a job in England, hoping the distance will mend her shattered heart. Laurel expects the pain might lessen but does not foresee the beguiling man she meets or that they'll go to Paris, where the city's magic will take over and alter everything Laurel believes about love.Thirty years later, Laurel's daughter Annie is newly engaged and an old question resurfaces: who is Annie's father and what happened to him? Why won't Laurel tell her the truth? The key to unlocking Laurel's secrets starts with a mysterious book about an infamous woman known as the Duchess of Marlborough.
An inspiring story of one woman's journey through heartbreaking loss to renewal and new purpose. In 2008, inspirational surgeon and Lifehouse Cancer Centre founder Chris O'Brien published his bestselling memoir of his battle with brain cancer,Never Say Die. But he wasn't the only person in the O'Brien household with a powerful story to tell. Since Chris passed away in 2009, his wife Gail has gone on a journey of her own: from a busy surgeon's wife and mother of a picture-perfect family to a widow in her mid-50s, grieving not only her husband but also her son Adam, who died as a result of epilepsy a short time after Chris's death. Yet in the midst of her grief, Gail discovered resolve and strength deep within herself. She reinvented herself and found that she could survive and even thrive in a world without her soul mate. A moving, inspiring, deeply poignant and often joyous story of family, love and loss - and ultimately, about finding your purpose in the world.The Romanovs: 1613-1918 - Simon Sebag Monefiore
The Romanovs were the most successful dynasty of modern times, ruling a sixth of the world's surface. How did one family turn a war-ruined principality into the world's greatest empire? And how did they lose it all?
This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Montefiore's gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, and peopled by a cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy, from Queen Victoria to Lenin. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution - and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.
Following the publication of A Thinking Reed, Barry Jones was staggered by the response to his lists of the literature that has had the most profound affect on his life and thinking. In this book, he expands on these lists, to write about the music and the literature that has inspired him to take us on a deeply considered and richly rewarding journey of the mind. The Noonday Demon - Andrew Solomon
Like Primo Levi's The Periodic Table, this digs deep into personal history, as Andrew Solomon narrates, brilliantly and terrifyingly, his own agonising experience of depression. Solomon also portrays the pain of others, in different cultures and societies whose lives have been shattered by depression and uncovers the historical, social, biological, chemical and medical implications of this crippling disease. He takes us through the halls of mental hospitals where some of his subjects have been imprisoned for decades; into the research labs; to the burdened and afflicted poor, rural and urban. He talks to faith healers and voyages around the world in a quest for folk wisdom. He analyses the medications of today as well as reviewing the politics of diagnosis and treatment and, perhaps most significantly, he looks at the vital role of will and love in the process of recovery.
Etta Spencer is a violin prodigy. When tragedy strikes and a mysterious power tied closely to her musical abilities manifests, Etta is pulled back through time to 1776 in the midst of a fierce sea battle. Her capture was orchestrated by the Ironwoods, the most powerful family in the Colonies. Nicholas Carter, handsome, young, prize master of a privateering ship, has been charged with retrieving and delivering her to the family - unharmed. Etta learns her fate is entwined with an object of untold value from her past. Ironwood is desperate to secure his future, but Etta must find it first in order to return home.
The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson - Paige Toon
Meet Jessie, small-town girl turned wild child ...Jessie has never known her real dad, and when her mum dies she thinks any hope of finding him is gone. As she goes goes off the rails, her stepdad announces that her father is Johnny Jefferson - legendary rockstar and former hell-raiser. Still dealing with her loss, and now the daughter of a superstar, Jessie is sucked into the LA lifestyle - paparazzi, parties and hot guitar-wielding boys included. But is Johnny up to the job? And, more importantly, is Jessie? My Sister Rosa - Justine Larbalestier
'I promise,' said Rosa. 'I won't kill and I won't make anyone else kill.'..I can't see the loophole. Since the guinea pig there's been nothing. Months now without Rosa killing as much as a mosquito...As far as I know...Che Taylor has four items on his list: 1. He wants to spar, not just train in the boxing gym. 2. He wants a girlfriend. 3. He wants to go home. 4. He wants to keep Rosa under control...Che's little sister Rosa is smart, talented, pretty, and so good at deception that Che's convinced she must be a psychopath. She hasn't hurt anyone yet, but he's certain it's just a matter of time. And when their parents move them to New York City, Che longs to return to Sydney and his three best friends. But his first duty is to his sister Rosa, who is playing increasingly complex and disturbing games. Unbecoming - Jenny Downham
Three women - three secrets - one heart-stopping story. Katie, seventeen, in love with someone whose identity she can't reveal. Her mother Caroline, uptight, worn out and about to find the past catching up with her. Katie's grandmother, Mary, back with the family after years of mysterious absence and 'capable of anything', despite suffering from Alzheimer's. As Katie cares for an elderly woman who brings daily chaos to her life, she finds herself drawn to her. Rules get broken as allegiances shift. Is Mary contagious? Is 'badness' genetic? In confronting the past, Katie is forced to seize the present. The Finest Hours: The True Story of a Heroic Sea Rescue - Michael Touglas
This adaptation for young readers of The Finest Hours: The True Story of the US Coast Guard's Most Daring Sea Rescue tells the story of the shipwreck of two oil tankers and the harrowing Coast Guard rescue when four men in a tiny lifeboat overcame insurmountable odds and saved more than 30 stranded sailors. On the night of February 18, 1952, during one of the worst winter storms that New England has ever seen, two oil tankers just off the shore of Cape Cod were torn in half. With the storm in full force and waves up to 70 feet high, four coast guardsmen headed out to sea in a tiny lifeboat to come to the rescue. They were the only hope for the stranded sailors. This is a fast-paced, uplifting story that puts young readers in the middle of the action. It's a gripping true tale of heroism and survival in the face of the elements.Featured Middle and Junior Readers
Wilds of the Wolf - Steve Backshall
Gripping adventure fiction from Deadly TV presenter Steve Backshall, perfect for fans of Anthony Horowitz and Charlie Higson. This is the third adventure in the Falcon Chronicles, filled with intrigue, adventure, exotic wildlife and dramatic locations. Saker and Sinter escape by the skin of their teeth when their plan to sabotage a billionaire businessman plundering 'black gold' (natural oil and gas) and hunting wolves in the remote Yamal peninsula in North West Siberia goes disastrously wrong. But they escape one kind of peril only to find themselves in an even more terrifying situation. Separated by blizzards and avalanches, lost in a breathtakingly beautiful but deadly frozen Arctic wilderness, suffering from frostbite and hunger, listening to the wolves howl and the packs draw closer, it seems that this time they cannot possibly live to tell their tale...The Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants (Captain Underpants #4) - Dav Pilkey
The fourth book in Dav Pilkey's mega-bestselling Captain Underpants series. George and Harold aren't bad kids. They just like to "liven things up" for everybody. Unfortunately, their thoughtful jokes sometimes get them into a LOT of trouble. And when Professor Pippy P. Poopypants becomes their new science teacher...well, George and Harold almost cause the entire planet to be taken over by a maniacal, mad-scientist guy in a giant robot suit! Who will stop the perilous plot of Poopypants?!!? This looks like a job for Captain Underpants!The Princess in Black & the Hungry Bunny Horde #3 - Shannon Hale
Princess Magnolia and her unicorn, Frimplepants, are on their way to have brunch with Princess Sneezewort, an occasion Frimplepants enjoys more than anything in the world. But just when he can smell the freshly baked bread and the heaping platters of sugar-dusted doughnuts, Princess Magnolia’s glitter-stone ring rings. The monster alarm! After a quick change in the secret cave, Princess Magnolia and Frimplepants are transformed into the Princess in Black and her faithful pony, Blacky. But when they get to the goat pasture, all they can see is a field full of darling little bunnies nibbling on grass, twitching their velvet noses, and wiggling their fluffy tails. Where are the monsters? Are these bunnies as innocent as they appear?Alice-Miranda to the Rescue (#13) - Jacqueline Harvey
It's the start of term at Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale, and Alice-Miranda and her friends are over the moon to learn about one of the school's new charity projects--they are going to become the proud carers of a dog rescued from a nearby pound! To add to the excitement, there are whispers of a wedding between their two favorite teachers. Meanwhile, the local village is about to host the country's largest dog show - however, at the last moment the grounds are deemed unfit for competition. The school is called upon as a replacement venue, and preparations head into overdrive. Along with the dog show come a number of bizarre characters. While walking the school's new dog, Alice-Miranda and Millie stumble upon something very worrying and will have to act fast in order to save the day!Featured Children's
Starting School - Jane Godwin (illus. Anna Walker)
Tim, Hannah, Sunita, Joe and Polly are all off to school for the first time. Would you like to meet them and see how they go? There are new friends to make, fun ways to learn, and lots of different things to discover. From Jane Godwin and Anna Walker comes this beautiful book focusing on the experiences and feelings of five very different children as they begin at school for the first time. Jane's simple words and ideas combine with Anna's gentle and detailed illustrations to help children feel comfortable about taking this big step.Solomon and Mortimer - Catherine Rayner
Solomon Crocodile and his friend Mortimer are bored. They want to find some fun, but what can they do? Tree-climbing is tricky, chasing lizards doesn't end well and flying turns out to be a lot harder than it looks. But then they spot the biggest hippo in the river. Just imagine the splash he'd make if two naughty crocodiles were to surprise him! But Solomon and Mortimer are about to get a whole lot more than they bargained for...Sure to delight fans of the original Solomon Crocodile, which has sold over 100,000 copies worldwide, this warm, funny and charming tale from the Kate Greenaway Medal winning Catherine Rayner is one that young children will ask for again and again.Hannah and Sugar - Kate Berube
Every day after school, Hannah's school bus is greeted by her classmate's dog, Sugar. All of the other kids love Sugar, but Hannah just can't conquer her fear of dogs. Then, one day, Sugar goes missing, so Hannah joins the search with her classmates. Will Hannah find a way to be brave, and make a new friend in the process? 
Once upon a time a little old man, a little old woman,
a small boy and a small girl went to spend the day by the river.
The little old man wanted to catch a big fish
and soon there was a tug-tug-tug on his line . . .
Find out what happens next? From much-loved picture-book creator comes another delightfully playful story for all to share.
Bright and colourful journey through town. Perfect for point, read and play. Board Book.January e-News from Jeffreys Books
Now $12.95 Now $49.95 Now $19.99 Now $14.99 Now $14.95 Now $29.95
We'll be here throughout January for your holiday reading and back to work and school needs. Please note we'll will be closed on Australia Day.
Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
Beth's quote: "I'm excited about Bel Canto. So far Ann Patchett hasn't missed a beat."
Bel Canto is poignant and at times very funny. Latin terrorists storm an international gathering hosted by an underprivileged country to promote foreign interest and trade, only to find that their intended target, the President, has stayed home to watch his favourite soap opera on TV. Among the hostages are a world class opera singer and her biggest fan, a Japanese tycoon who has been persuaded to attend the party on the understanding that she will perform half a dozen arias after dinner. The tycoon's engaging and sympathetic translator plays a vital role in the subsequent relationships between so many different nationalities closeted together, interpreting not only the terrorists' negotiations but also the language of love between lovers who cannot understand what the other is saying. Ultimately, it is the terrorist strike that does more to promote foreign relations than anyone could have hoped to achieve with the party.Book Club Competition
If you're in a book club, we'd love to hear which were your favourite books of 2015. Which books sparked fabulous conversation, which divided the group, what did everyone love? Tell us in 30 words or less why you'd recommend it to other book clubs and go into the draw to win a $50 Jeffreys Books voucher. Entries can be made on Facebook or left in-store. Entries close 31 January.
Last Tuesday Book Club (Fiction)
The Waiting Room - Leah Kaminsky
Compelling, moving and memorable. Graeme Simsion. The Waiting Room captures the sights, sounds, accents and animosities of a country overflowing with stories. Dina is a family doctor living in the melting-pot city of Haifa, Israel. Born in Australia in a Jewish enclave of Melbourne to Holocaust survivors, Dina left behind a childhood marred by misery and the tragedies of the past to build a new life for herself in the Promised Land. After starting a family of her own, she finds her life falling apart beneath the demands of her eccentric patients, a marriage starting to fray, the ever-present threat of terrorist attack and the ghost of her mother, haunting her with memories that Dina would prefer to leave on the other side of the world. Leah Kaminsky plumbs the depths of her characters' memories, both the sweet and the heart-wrenching, reaching back in a single climactic day through six decades and across three continents to uncover a truth that could save Dina's sanity - and her life.Please note - Book Club will be held on Wednesday 27 January at 7pm as we are closed for Australia Day.
January e-News from Jeffreys Books
Now $12.95 Now $49.95 Now $19.99 Now $14.99 Now $14.95 Now $29.95
We'll be here throughout January for your holiday reading and back to work and school needs. Please note we'll will be closed on Australia Day.
Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
Beth's quote: "I'm excited about Bel Canto. So far Ann Patchett hasn't missed a beat."
Bel Canto is poignant and at times very funny. Latin terrorists storm an international gathering hosted by an underprivileged country to promote foreign interest and trade, only to find that their intended target, the President, has stayed home to watch his favourite soap opera on TV. Among the hostages are a world class opera singer and her biggest fan, a Japanese tycoon who has been persuaded to attend the party on the understanding that she will perform half a dozen arias after dinner. The tycoon's engaging and sympathetic translator plays a vital role in the subsequent relationships between so many different nationalities closeted together, interpreting not only the terrorists' negotiations but also the language of love between lovers who cannot understand what the other is saying. Ultimately, it is the terrorist strike that does more to promote foreign relations than anyone could have hoped to achieve with the party.Book Club Competition
If you're in a book club, we'd love to hear which were your favourite books of 2015. Which books sparked fabulous conversation, which divided the group, what did everyone love? Tell us in 30 words or less why you'd recommend it to other book clubs and go into the draw to win a $50 Jeffreys Books voucher. Entries can be made on Facebook or left in-store. Entries close 31 January.
Last Tuesday Book Club (Fiction)
The Waiting Room - Leah Kaminsky
Compelling, moving and memorable. Graeme Simsion. The Waiting Room captures the sights, sounds, accents and animosities of a country overflowing with stories. Dina is a family doctor living in the melting-pot city of Haifa, Israel. Born in Australia in a Jewish enclave of Melbourne to Holocaust survivors, Dina left behind a childhood marred by misery and the tragedies of the past to build a new life for herself in the Promised Land. After starting a family of her own, she finds her life falling apart beneath the demands of her eccentric patients, a marriage starting to fray, the ever-present threat of terrorist attack and the ghost of her mother, haunting her with memories that Dina would prefer to leave on the other side of the world. Leah Kaminsky plumbs the depths of her characters' memories, both the sweet and the heart-wrenching, reaching back in a single climactic day through six decades and across three continents to uncover a truth that could save Dina's sanity - and her life.Please note - Book Club will be held on Wednesday 27 January at 7pm as we are closed for Australia Day.
January e-News from Jeffreys Books
Now $12.95 Now $49.95 Now $19.99 Now $14.99 Now $14.95 Now $29.95
We'll be here throughout January for your holiday reading and back to work and school needs. Please note we'll will be closed on Australia Day.
Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
Backlist Book of the Month: Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
Beth's quote: "I'm excited about Bel Canto. So far Ann Patchett hasn't missed a beat."
Bel Canto is poignant and at times very funny. Latin terrorists storm an international gathering hosted by an underprivileged country to promote foreign interest and trade, only to find that their intended target, the President, has stayed home to watch his favourite soap opera on TV. Among the hostages are a world class opera singer and her biggest fan, a Japanese tycoon who has been persuaded to attend the party on the understanding that she will perform half a dozen arias after dinner. The tycoon's engaging and sympathetic translator plays a vital role in the subsequent relationships between so many different nationalities closeted together, interpreting not only the terrorists' negotiations but also the language of love between lovers who cannot understand what the other is saying. Ultimately, it is the terrorist strike that does more to promote foreign relations than anyone could have hoped to achieve with the party.Book Club Competition
If you're in a book club, we'd love to hear which were your favourite books of 2015. Which books sparked fabulous conversation, which divided the group, what did everyone love? Tell us in 30 words or less why you'd recommend it to other book clubs and go into the draw to win a $50 Jeffreys Books voucher. Entries can be made on Facebook or left in-store. Entries close 31 January.
Last Tuesday Book Club (Fiction)
The Waiting Room - Leah Kaminsky
Compelling, moving and memorable. Graeme Simsion. The Waiting Room captures the sights, sounds, accents and animosities of a country overflowing with stories. Dina is a family doctor living in the melting-pot city of Haifa, Israel. Born in Australia in a Jewish enclave of Melbourne to Holocaust survivors, Dina left behind a childhood marred by misery and the tragedies of the past to build a new life for herself in the Promised Land. After starting a family of her own, she finds her life falling apart beneath the demands of her eccentric patients, a marriage starting to fray, the ever-present threat of terrorist attack and the ghost of her mother, haunting her with memories that Dina would prefer to leave on the other side of the world. Leah Kaminsky plumbs the depths of her characters' memories, both the sweet and the heart-wrenching, reaching back in a single climactic day through six decades and across three continents to uncover a truth that could save Dina's sanity - and her life.Please note - Book Club will be held on Wednesday 27 January at 7pm as we are closed for Australia Day.
Extended Hours at Jeffreys Books
Sunday 20 December - 10 am to 6 pm
Monday - Wednesday - 9 am to 6 pm and on
Thursday (Christmas Eve) - 9 am to 5.30 pm
We're always happy for you to email us at orders@jeffreysbooks.com.au if you're having trouble selecting books or getting into the store. If you're able, please include a telephone number for us to call with any queries.
Happy reading
Linda and all the team at Jeffreys Books
