This is the follow-up book to “The Art of Happiness”, written by the same author. Meditation is, according to this book, the “inner transformation through training the mind.” It is a challenging and daunting prospect. Meditation is a difficult discipline to master and practise effectively. The structured way in which Matthieu Ricard leads his readers, […]

Most of us might see being happy as a matter of luck, chance, or situation, perhaps something that can be “found”. Happiness is often confused with pleasure, joy or being in love. The English language is so full of subtleties, there is a particular word for every nuance of any emotion. The unusual aspect of […]

Those with a strong arm and capacious handbag capable of carrying this weighty book will reap the rewards of an interesting read about the people who made Australia the wonderful country it is. This work is the follow-up to the first volume of “Australians” and introduces the reader to the faces of colonial society in […]

Rating: There’s two things new mums don’t need. One – twelve (or more) months stuck in their maternity jeans. Two – a complicated, time-consuming regime for getting rid of said jeans. New mums are too busy being new mums, looking after their health and the health of their new babe, and attempting to catch up […]

Rating: We’re a funny species. We know what we need to do. We know what we should be eating and should not be eating. We know all about exercise. We are totally au fait with comfort eating. We’re cohesive of the fact that too much booze and fat, and too many sweets will undo our […]

Rating: It’s Christmas time – a time that’s meant to be the happiest of the year but for many, the festive season is fraught with stress, relationship strain, financial burden and that Scrooge-like feeling that can seriously test the boundaries of inner contentment. Balancing the ‘perfect’ get together with family and friends can become an […]

Rating: Could there be a more perfect time for a book on everyday kindness? Author and holistic wellbeing expert Stephanie Dowrick has long been tapped into Australia’s emotional zeitgeist, plucking needful gems from society’s ills and polishing them into beautiful books that lay open the requirements at hand. Whether it be learning about intimacy in […]

Rating: “Treasury” is an apt description of this wonderful collection of over 40 short stories. Each of the stories is a real gem, unique and beautiful. Some are as subtle as aquamarines, or dazzling with the bright fire of diamonds; a few perhaps glowing with the depth of rubies and others, gentle like pearls. All […]

Rating: Susan Duncan is no stranger to sea-side living: her best-selling memoirs A Life on Pittwater and Salvation Creek both touch on her experiences as a new resident in the coastal town of Pittwater. In The Briny Cafe, Duncan’s first novel, Pittwater is given a fictionalised treatment. Given the moniker of Cook’s Basin, it’s joyfully […]

Rating: How far would you go for love and when does it cross the line into obsession? The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Liane Moriarty tells the tale of a hypnotherapist named Ellen O’Farrell, her lover Patrick and Saskia, who is Patrick’s ex-girlfriend and stalker. Ellen O’Farrell leads a normal life helping people overcome some of […]

Rating: This is an extremely well-crafted novel, one that will enthral and convert even the most reluctant of crime fiction readers. The arrival of an elderly American tourist in London mysteriously sets off a seemingly unconnected chain of events. What might have been mere self-indulgence in nostalgia, draws out past misdeeds to seriously threaten the […]

Rating: There’s a lot of pressure on any author who has been writing a series since they were 14 as Isobelle Carmody has. She began writing the first book in this series back then and the expectation from the readers is that she will bring her trademark use of words, evoking the world of Obernewtyn, […]

Rating: Inspector Malcolm Fox is a man challenged by the past, on more than one level. Firstly, within the confines of this novel, he stumbles across a hushed-up 25-year-old mystery that his superiors are determined to let lie. Secondly, as a fictional character, he’ll always be compared to his predecessor, Rebus. Scottish author Ian Rankin […]

Rating: Wood doesn’t hammer her themes but there is plenty to think about in this novel. As a sucker for books where the characters learn something, I recommend Animal People as a very satisfying read. As someone who has always lived with animals, whether cats, fish, rabbits, chickens, dogs or farm animals, I tend to […]

Rating: Di Morrisey immerses the reader in the world of the Australian Outback: raw, powerful, harsh and supremely beautiful. Highly recommended. In the land of the Opal hunters, there is so much more than the eye can see and not just underground. Many who take refuge in the remote and lonely outposts of the desert […]

Rating: An extraordinary family secret links a seemingly ordinary Australian family to an exotic plantation in Malaysia. This story spans three generations of political upheaval and change in what was then known as Malaya. It is a beautifully told story of one family’s quest to find the truth about its past, how the pieces of […]

Rating: How glorious it is to travel. To wander the planet and delight in the cultural and geographical wonder stretching to all corners of the globe. To delve into, experience, treasure … and perhaps even amass the odd memento, souvenir, precious object that found its way to us, whether by chance or deliberately-plotted hunt. Bringing […]

Rating: This is quite an astonishing book. And no, I’m not star-struck … I’ve always liked Hollywood icon Goldie Hawn, yes, but I’m not a die-hard fan or anything. Except … I am now. This gorgeous book, penned in cahoots with author Wendy Holden, is an absorbing read. After almost three solid years of writing […]

Rating: Nora Roberts is the undisputed master of the romance but she might have just come up with a really clever concept this time. She outdid herself with the excellent Bride Quartet series and in The Next Always combines her stand-alone romance with a series of three giving us both love and danger. So here’s […]