Constant Reader's 30 Best Australian Books of the 21st Century
In early July, the New York Times published their Best 100 Books of the 21st Century. We found it a bit parochial so we put together our own. Here they are, in random order, Constant Reader's 30 Best Australian Books of the 21st Century (So Far):
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up an object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, and it is her first act of book thieve ...Show more
Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens: WINNER OF THE MILES FRANKLIN LITERARY AWARD by Shankari Chandran
24.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
Welcome to Cinnamon Gardens, a home for those who are lost and the stories they treasure. Cinnamon Gardens Nursing Home is nestled in the quiet suburb of Westgrove, Sydney - populated with residents with colourful histories, each with their own secrets, triumphs and failings. This is their safe place, a ...Show more
The In-Between by Christos Tsiolkas
32.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
The tender, sensual and moving new novel from the award-winning and bestselling author of The Slap and Damascus. A compelling contemporary love story between two middle-aged men, told with grace, heart and wisdom. No life is simple, and no life is without sorrow. No life is perfect. Two middle-aged men ...Show more
Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au
26.95 AUD
Category: Fiction
A mother and daughter travel from abroad to meet in Tokyo: they walk along the canals through the autumn evenings, escape the typhoon rains, share meals in small cafes and restaurants, and visit galleries to see some of the city's most radical modern art. All the while, they talk: about the weather, hor ...Show more
The Rain Heron: Winner of the Age Book of the Year 2021 by Robbie Arnott
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
From a 2019 Sydney Morning Herald Young Novelist of the Year and the author of the highly praised novel Flames, comes another beguiling, transformative work of fiction confirming Robbie Arnott as one of Australia's most exciting writers.Ren lives alone on the remote frontier of a country devastated by a ...Show more
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
'The best Australian novel I have read in more than a decade' Sydney Morning Herald 'Astonishing, captivating ... a wild, beautiful, heart-exploding ride' Elizabeth Gilbert The bestselling novel that has taken Australia, and the world, by storm. Winner of Book of the Year at the 2019 Indie Book Awards, ...Show more
Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World by Tyson Yunkaporta
24.99 AUD
Category: Australian Non-Fiction
What happens when global systems are viewed from an Indigenous perspective? How does it affect the way we see history, money, power and learning? Could it change the world?This remarkable book is about everything from echidnas to evolution, cosmology to cooking, sex and science and spirits to Schr dinge ...Show more
The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
From the winner of the SMH/Age Best Young Novelist of the Year and the Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year.Growing up can feel like a death sentenceLife in the troubled neighbourhood of Cabramatta demands too much too young. But Sonny wouldn't really know. Watching the world from her bedroom w ...Show more
Hold Your Fire by Chloe Wilson
32.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
Dark and dangerous, brilliantly unsettling and chillingly funny, this extraordinary debut shows us what we usually deny - the uneasy truce we make with our ruthless desires and gothic fears, and how easily it can be broken. Prize-winning author Chloe Wilson's stories will pin you to the page. 'Chilling ...Show more
Exploded View by Carrie Tiffany
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
Must a girl always be a part?How can she become a whole?In the late 1970s, in the forgotten outer suburbs, a girl has her hands in the engine of a Holden. A sinister new man has joined the family. He works as a mechanic and operates an unlicensed repair shop at the back of their block.The family is unde ...Show more
See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Abuse by Jess Hill
36.99 AUD
Category: Australian Non-Fiction
Winner of the Stella Prize 2020. At the office of Safe Steps, Victoria's dedicated 24/7 family violence response call centre, phone counsellors receive a call every three minutes. Many women are repeat callers- on average, they will go back to an abusive partner eight times before leaving for good. ' ...Show more
Terra Nullius by Claire G. Coleman
22.99 AUD
Category: Fiction
Terra Nullius (def): land belonging to no one; no man's land "Jacky was running. There was no thought in his head, only an intense drive to run. There was no sense he was getting anywhere, no plan, no destination, no future. All he had was a sense of what was behind, what he was running from. Jacky was ...Show more