Staff Reviews

When the shooting stopped, August 1945 by Barrett Tillman

Available in print 

This fascinating history tells the story of the final weeks of the war, detailing the last brutal battles on air, land and sea with first-hand accounts from pilots and sailors caught up in these extraordinary events.

Barrett Tillman expertly details the first weeks of a tenuous peace and the drawing of Cold War battle lines as Soviet forces concluded their invasion of Manchuria. When the Shooting Stopped draws on accounts from all sides to relive the days when the war finally ended and the world was forever changed.

Home maintenance for dummies by Tom Kraeutler

Available in print

Home Maintenance For Dummies gives you the know-how you need to inspect, tune up, and make repairs to every room of your house. Learn how to stop drafty windows and doors, fix roof leaks, unclog pipes, silence squeaky floors, test your water pressure, fix a dripping faucet, and beyond. Plus, learn tricks of the trade to stop wasting energy, lower energy bills, and improve the comfort of your home.

Some home maintenance jobs are easy to ignore, but you'll save thousands in repair costs if you keep things running properly. And when things do break, you can save even more money with DIY repairs. You'll be amazed how easy it is to do many common upkeep tasks yourself. With step-by-step guides, detailed diagrams, and instructions for every room of the home, you'll finally be able to fix those little problems that have been nagging at you.

Everybody loves chocolate by Jennifer Donovan

Available in print

Whether you want to bake homemade cakes or brownies, create spectacular desserts for a party or craft mini chocolate treats, you’ll find something to love here.

Take a tour around the globe and learn the best chocolate recipes from the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia–Pacific and Africa. A one-stop bible for chocoholics, this book offers everything you need to quench your sweet tooth cravings.

Machines: a visual history by Dominic Chinea

Available in print

Filled with stunning illustrations and lively, engaging text, Dom Chinea guides readers through this celebration of the history and uses of 100 machines that have allowed artisans to create beautiful items for centuries. Fans of prime-time TV shows The Repair Shop and Make It at Market will not want to miss Dom’s insightful and complete appraisal of history’s most game-changing mechanisms, with commentary that allows readers to get under the hood of inventions that have defined modern life as we know it.

Grug goes to school by Ted Prior

Available in print

Available in a brand new large paperback format for the first time. Have fun going to school with Grug!

What will you learn at school today with Grug? This classic Aussie hero is back from the bush to enchant a new generation of youngsters!

At school I'll grow by Carly Gardiner

Available in print

At school I’ll grow, there’s so much to know! Beginning school can be an emotional time for young children. Feelings of excitement, curiosity and anticipation of the unknown are commonplace.

This beautiful book, informed by the Australian Curriculum and accompanied by whimsical illustrations, allows readers a glimpse of the wonder, learning and friendships they will experience in this, their first year of school.

I can do it even if I'm scared by Lisa Katzenberger

Available in print

A sweet story about how to face our fears no matter how silly they may seem, from Lisa Katzenberger, comes a positive take on new experiences, fear, and worry.

Have you ever been so scared that your tummy tumbled and your heart hiccupped and your fingers fiddled? You're not alone! Elephant, Cheetah, and Gator feel the same way. Join these three friends as they find their brave self by first imagining themselves as brave and growing into being brave!

I Can Do It Even If I'm Scared is perfect for:

• Preschool classrooms and teachers looking for books on feelings, social emotional learning, mindfulness and social skills
• School counsellors and children's therapists looking for cognitive behavioural therapy technique books for children
• Parents looking for books on bravery, courage, and facing fears

Hooray! It's our first day by Martha Mumford

Available in print

Get ready to start school with the bunnies, as our four favourite friends set off on an exciting lift-the-flap adventure to get to their first day of school. With lunchboxes, fresh pencils, school bags and treats to find hidden under the flaps, it's an action-packed treasure hunt! Can you find everything you need to get ready for your first day – and get the bunnies there on time?

Reassuring and full of fun, this is perfect for any little one starting or returning to school.

Easy paper crafts for kids By Catherine Woram

Available in print

Kids love crafting, and paper-based crafts are particularly popular, as they require no specialist equipment or hard-to-find craft supplies – just this exciting book and some paper, scissors and glue! Easy Paper Crafts for Kids is divided into four vibrant sections containing 45 fun projects.

The first section, Cutting, features découpage, collage-making and mosaics, while Folding contains simple origami projects as well as cute hanging mobiles, classic paper planes, dress-up hats and fans. In Printing and Painting, kids can look forward to paper-plate masks, treasure maps and marbling paint techniques.

Finally, Modelling contains a papier-mâché pig, doll’s house furniture and a supersonic cardboard space rocket. Every project can be completed in four easy steps – just follow the instructions and you can't go wrong.

The secret life of LEGO® bricks By Daniel Konstanski

Available in print

This first official book for Adult Fans of LEGO takes the reader on a visually stunning journey from the very earliest hollow bricks to the complex shapes and building techniques of today.

LEGO® bricks are design icons and marvels of engineering. Virtually unchanged for over fifty years, the brick is still at the very centre of ethos: each brick connects to every other brick, allowing the construction of almost anything you can imagine. LEGO minifigures may be the friendly faces of the LEGO world, but bricks in all their different shapes and forms are its very foundation.

The Secret Life of LEGO Bricks explores the brick’s rich history in full colour and unparalleled detail. Granted unprecedented access by the LEGO Group, Daniel Konstantski has interviewed design masters, element testers and the so-called ‘rock stars’, the set designers, to reveal for the first time how and why new LEGO bricks are made.

This is the book the fans have always wanted: a truly behind-the-scenes look at the story of the beloved LEGO brick and the company which makes it, with a wealth of exclusive visual material from the LEGO Archive in Billund.

LEGO fans have long wanted to learn the inside story of beloved LEGO bricks from inside the LEGO Group: to have long-standing questions answered and see the veil pulled back on how LEGO elements and products came to market – or didn’t – through the LEGO brick’s 70 year history. Such an authoritative telling of the story has never been possible – until now.

Is my phone reading my mind? by Dr Matt Agnew

Available in print 

Let Dr Matt explain everything you and your kids need to know about Artificial Intelligence and why you don't need to be afraid!

When you think of AI, you might imagine a walking, talking robot or you might think of a giant computer that wants to take over the world, but the reality is that AI is a brilliant human invention that can be found in nearly every modern device from our computers to our cars.

AI can seem scary at times, so working out where we use AI and why is an important part of making the best of this exciting technology. So, what is an algorithm and can it help you choose pizza? Can ChatGPT do your homework? And when you watch TV, is it watching you back? All these questions and more about AI are answered in a fun, funny and engaging way.

Get unstuck by Ben Nash

Available in print

Does managing your money leave you feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or anxious? Are you looking for tactics and strategies to get on top of your money and get ahead faster? In Get Unstuck, bestselling author Ben Nash covers the three key frameworks you can use to create a winning money mindset, make saving and investing easy, and get the results you want. Discover how your thoughts and emotions influence your money behaviours and spending, and learn how you can hack your thinking to set yourself up for financial success.

The truth is that success with money is simple. You need to spend less than you earn — and start investing intelligently. We all know that isn’t as easy as it sounds. But having the right systems in place will make your progress easier. In this book, you’ll learn the money behaviours you need for true financial security. You’ll develop the thinking you need to make your money actually work for you — and build the systems that will help you plan, save, and invest. All while you live well today.

You don’t need to know everything about money right now. You just need to know enough to take your next step. Get Unstuck will help you take that step with confidence.

Music as medicine by Daniel Levitin

Available in print

Daniel Levitin, world-leading neuroscientist and internationally bestselling author, explains the extraordinary power that music has to improve our health.

We are only just beginning to appreciate the healing power of music. In recent years, a wave of scientific research has upended everything we once knew about its effects on our brains: not only in reducing stress, but also in enhancing cognitive function, slowing the spread of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, even strengthening our immune systems.

Here, a neuroscientist and celebrated musician introduces a bold new paradigm for medical treatment, rooted in the unexpected influence of music on our minds and bodies. From explaining how ‘rhythmic auditory stimulation’ can fight multiple sclerosis, to examining why Tracy Chapman’s songs might just help cure PTSD, Professor Daniel Levitin offers surprising insights into the new science of music as medicine.

Along the way, he explores how each of us can use music to calm our thoughts, repair our memories and heal our deepest psychological wounds. The result is both a surprising tour through the science of music, and a joyful celebration of humanity’s oldest obsession.

People power by George Williams & David Hume

Available in print

Why has success been so rare in Australian referendums? From the failed attempt to ban communism in 1951 to the unsuccessful Voice referendum in 2023, Australians have been cautious about constitutional change, voting ‘Yes’ to only eight out of 45 referendum proposals.

In People Power, the only full history of constitutional change in Australia, constitutional experts George Williams and David Hume closely examine our referendum record and explain why success is difficult to achieve. They interview leading proponents for constitutional change and analyse each referendum campaign, the public response and the forces that shaped the outcome.

This comprehensively updated edition of People Power includes analysis on the 2023 Voice referendum along with discussion of the rise of interest in state and territory referendums, and the 2017 national plebiscite on same-sex marriage.

And the answer to holding a successful referendum in Australia? Truly engaging the people in the political process.

Our Dear Daisy by Rosie Goodwin

Available in print, large print and eAudiobook

Nuneaton, 1880. Twenty-year-old Daisy Armstrong lives a happy life with her father Jed. They have a special bond, particularly after losing her mother and brother. But when Jed falls in love with Victoria Peake, a local widow, everything is set to change for them both.

With expensive tastes and a lavish lifestyle, moving into Daisy and Jed’s humble forge is not what Victoria or her spoiled son Gilbert expected – and they make that very clear. Worked to the bone trying to look after their home, Daisy is exhausted. But her one glimmer of hope is Lewis, Gilbert’s brother, a gentle and hard-working young man.

Then something terrible happens to Daisy, and she finds herself sent away from home. After unbearable suffering, but finding incredible strength within, she might finally have a chance at the life she wants. But she will ever find her way back to Lewis?

Murder at Midwinter Manor by Anita Davison

Available in large print

1916, Midwinter Manor: Desperate for a Christmas weekend break from war-torn London, Hannah Merrill and her Aunt Violet take Bartleby the cat and themselves off to visit Hannah’s sister, in her beautiful country estate, deep in the English countryside.

The huge house is full of relatives, friends and merrymakers, and everyone’s excited to have a Christmas to remember.

But then, when a fellow-guest’s body is found in the library – apparently bludgeoned to death – and a precious ruby is stolen from another guest, it appears that it’s going to be memorable for all the wrong reasons.

With the house snowed in, and the rural police force completely incapable of finding a single credible suspect, Hannah and Aunt Violet realise that once again it’s going to be down to them to get to the bottom of it.

Because whoever’s behind the crimes must be at Midwinter Manor…And if they’re not found, who knows what their next ‘gift’ will be?

An eye for an eye by Jeffrey Archer

Available in print, large print, CD, eBook and eAudiobook

In one of the most luxurious cities on earth, a billion-dollar deal is about to go badly wrong. A lavish night out is about to end in murder. And the British government is about to be plunged into crisis.

Thousands of miles away, in the leafy Berkshire countryside, Lord Hartley, the latest in a line of peers going back over two hundred years, lies dying. But his will triggers an inheritance with explosive consequences.

Two deaths. Continents apart. Completely unrelated.

So why are they at the centre of a master criminal’s plot for revenge?

And can Scotland Yard’s Chief Superintendent William Warwick uncover the truth before an innocent man’s life and legacy are destroyed?

We solve murders by Richard Osman

Available in print, large print, CD and eAudiobook

Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar habits and routines: the pub quiz, his favourite bench, his cat waiting for him when he comes home. His days of adventure are over: adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s business now.

Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. As a private security officer, she doesn’t stay still long enough for habits and routines. She’s currently on a remote island keeping world-famous author Rosie D’Antonio alive. Which was meant to be an easy job…

Then a dead body, a bag of money and a killer with their sights on Amy have her sending an SOS to the only person she trusts. A breakneck race around the world begins, but can Amy and Steve stay one step ahead of a deadly enemy?

Vertical gardening by Martin Staffler

Available in print 

With low-cost and sustainable DIY projects, this practical guide helps gardeners to make use of small spaces by growing upwards.

Vertical gardening offers great opportunities to grow flowers, vegetables, succulents and herbs, particularly for those with a balcony, patio or compact garden. It can also be a fantastic way to showcase creative and sustainable design choices, whether you've got wood, terracotta pots, burlap sacks, fabric or even plastic bottles.

From privacy screens to foldable storage, this helpful guide includes step-by-step DIY projects, plant care tips and tricks, and practical information on the special challenges that come with planting in a compact garden, including advice on pests, drainage and plants suited for gardens with limited light.

Beautifully illustrated throughout with aspirational photography and useful diagrams, Vertical Gardening celebrates the versatility of growing up in a small or awkward space.

A Periodic tale by Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki

Available in print, eBook and eAudiobook

How did a shy Polish immigrant kid - Karl Sven Woytek Sas Konkovitch Matthew Kruszelnicki - evolve into the fabulously eccentric Dr Karl?

The only child of Holocaust survivors who fled to Australia in 1950, Karl has always forged his own destiny in an idiosyncratic way. Before he became one of the world's favourite scientific storytellers, he ambled through a convoluted cacophony of a career.

In the 1960s, he got his start as a physicist at the Port Kembla Steelworks and promptly joined the Steel Industries Auto Club, racing modified rally cars on Wollongong's deserted back roads. In the 1970s, he entered his self-described 'drug-crazed hippie years', making a living as a long-haired, dope-smoking taxi driver. After he applied to be a NASA astronaut in the 1980s and 'failed', he ended up live broadcasting the first space shuttle launch on Triple J instead. Unexpectedly, that blasted off his media career, and from there it was a stratospheric rise from radio to TV, books, newspapers, speaking, podcasts and the internet.

Karl's story teaches us that you don't have to know all the answers, as long as you ask the right questions. He has wandered down more than a dozen career paths, from being a TV weatherman (really) to a professional four-wheel drive tester in the outback (really) to being a roadie for Bo Diddley (really). All of these seemingly random experiences have helped create the Karl we know today.

In this long-awaited memoir, you will learn that it's okay to not take a linear path through life, and that by following our curiosities and our passions, we can bend the universe to our liking.

The Red Emperor: Xi Jinping and his new China by Michael Sheridan

Available in print

A concise, readable and revelatory biography of the most powerful man in the world.

The Red Emperor presents an eye-opening portrait of Xi Jinping, the man who presides over 1.4 billion people and the second largest economy on earth. Born a 'princeling' to one of Communist China's ruling families, the young Xi was exiled to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution. He fought his way back to the top by stealth, privilege and guile. In 2012, following the spectacular fall of his rival Bo Xilai, Xi Jinping became the leader of China.

In a compulsively readable narrative, veteran foreign correspondent Michael Sheridan takes the reader from the poor, isolated country of Xi's youth to the military and economic superpower of today. In Xi's new China, family mafias struggle for power amid murder, corruption and sex scandals as ministers and generals vanish in purges. No one is safe in his techno-security state. Xi is an absolute ruler whose word is law on everything from war and peace to the ruthless campaign against Covid-19. He aims to dominate world trade, to defeat Western democracy and to make China the supreme power in the East. A loner and a risk-taker, he is the most consequential leader of our time.

Drawing on intimate stories from the closed world of China's leading families and two decades of first-hand reporting, Michael Sheridan sheds new light on the history and politics of China. The book reveals that behind the facade of the Chinese Communist Party there is a modern dynasty and a new emperor.

The buy right approach to property investing by Cate Bakos and Pete Wargent

Available in print

The basic premise of this book is that the best time to sell property is never, provided you buy the right property in the first place.

The Buy Right Approach to Property Investing will help you to achieve a passive income and financial freedom through investing in Australian property.

Cate and Pete’s industry knowledge of Australian property investing shines through with detailed reflections on a multitude of investor successes and mistakes. Importantly, they outline what’s involved in buying the right property, which includes:

• doing your due diligence on areas, properties and price
• researching historical capital growth and performance
• calculating your return on investment
• adopting a cautiously optimistic outlook and long-term view
• managing your risk

Their mission is to demystify much of the jargon in the world of real estate and enable readers not only to better understand and relate to property investment goals but to embrace their confidence and take sensible, well-informed action.

Bad girls of Ancient Greece by Lizzy Tiffin

Available in print

Bad Girls of Ancient Greece contains profiles of wayward wives, mad mothers, scandalous sisters and damsels, that quite frankly, caused others A LOT of stress in the ancient world.

With the ever-growing popularity of mythological retellings, Lizzy Tiffin has written THE guide to all the baddies of ancient Greece. This book stands as a reminder that us women really have been bad – in the best way possible – from the start.

Written with humour and sass, Lizzy profiles the women in Greek myth and legend covering: mortals, goddesses, titans and nymphs. Here you’ll find the weird and wonderful escapades of the women we’re often led to believe were minor characters.

Bad Girls of Ancient Greece is an accessible, intelligent, hilarious (sometimes spicy) guide to the women we love and know – Athena, Medusa, Aphrodite – and those we may not, like Polyphonte, who was cursed with burning hot lust for a wild bear … imagine!

Dive into the stories you thought you knew with Bad Girls of Ancient Greece as your illuminating guide…

The Whole Truth: Jackie O by Jackie Henderson and Konrad Marshall

Available in print and eAudiobook

I’ve always strived to be honest in my public life; however, there’s a lot I’ve kept private. Now, it’s time to tell the whole truth.

Jackie Henderson, known to most as ‘Jackie O’, has graced Australia’s airwaves since 1993. Through hard work and openness with her listeners, she rose from minor on-air roles to form one half of the country’s biggest radio programs alongside controversial co-hosts Kyle Sandilands and ‘Ugly Phil’ O’Neil.

Here, for the first time, Jackie speaks candidly about her life in and out of the spotlight. She takes us behind the scenes of the spectacles and scandals of The Kyle and Jackie O Show and shares stories from thirty years spent working with huge celebrities, big egos and legions of both fans and detractors.

Her body. Her relationships. Her parenting. Her salary. Her health. All have been discussed across gossip pages and on social media, but there are parts of her life Jackie has kept private.

In this brave, no-holds-barred memoir, she is finally telling all. Forget everything you think you know about Jackie O. This is the whole truth.

Heartstrong: Chumpy, Minnie & Me by Ellidy Pullin

Available in print

A powerful, moving memoir on love, loss and this one precious life.

'If not with you, then for you.'

It was a perfect Wednesday morning when Alex 'Chumpy' Pullin kissed his partner, Ellidy, goodbye to go spearfishing. Most days, Ellidy would go to the beach too, but that day she didn't. Later, there was a knock at the door. A man had been found unconscious on the ocean floor. It was Chumpy.

From that moment, Ellidy's world stopped. There was deep grief, disbelief and then the gradual realisation that this was real. Ellidy's partner of eight years, a World Champion snowboarder, a man of energy and music, was gone. And so was the life they had built together and the dream of the child they had been trying for. In the hours that followed, a suggestion was made: did Ellidy want to harvest Chumpy's sperm and try for the baby they both wanted so deeply?

There was a ticking clock and the need to discuss with family and friends. They had thirty-six hours before it would be too late . . .

Heartstrong is an unforgettable book about love, joy, grief, hope and finding a way to keep going in the darkest of times.

Taylor Swift style: fashion through the eras by Sarah Chapelle

Available in print

For Taylor Swift, fashion and music go hand-in-hand--each playing a powerful role in shaping the narrative of this generation's most prolific storyteller. Red lipstick isn't just a makeup choice--it's the emblem of an era. A mini skirt isn't simply part of a cute outfit--it's a suit of armour. From cowboy boots to teetering heels, fairytale dresses to bleach-tinged tresses, and the many memorable moments in between, Taylor Swift Style tells the fashion story behind every single Taylor Swift album, tracing Swift's musical evolution along with her ever-changing personal style.

From red carpet looks, to streetwear, to tour costumes, Sarah Chapelle of the successful Instagram and blog Taylor Swift Style, has spent more than a decade documenting Swift's fashion choices and the intention behind each ensemble. Her deep dives into songs, lyrics, and behind-the-scenes insights paint a portrait of a megastar who knows exactly what she is doing. Taylor Swift Style seeks to explain the 'why' behind Swift's outfits--the Easter Eggs and deeper meanings behind every hemline and haircut--that speak to the emotional context of each musical moment.

With over two hundred photos dating from Swift's earliest days as a country singer in Nashville, up through the present as a renowned pop icon, paired with insightful commentary, Taylor Swift Style is a one-of-a-kind keepsake and a must-have for Swifties.