This month on Litty Committee: Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney. That’s it, that’s the introduction.
As always, the good people at Booktopia are running a sale on a number of these reads.
Our Sunburnt Country by Anika Molesworth
About the book:
“Anika Molesworth fell in love with her family’s farm, a sheep station near Broken Hill, at an early age. She formed a bond with the land as though it were a member of her family. When the Millennium Drought hit, though, bringing with it heatwaves and duststorms, the future she’d always imagined for herself began to seem impossible.
“As she learned more about the causes of – and the solutions to – the extreme weather that was killing her land and her livelihood, Anika became fired up and determined to speak out. Talking to farmers and food producers all around the world, she soon realised that there was a way forward that could be both practical and sustainable – if only we can build up the courage to take it.
“Beautifully written and full of hope, Our Sunburnt Country shows that there is a way to protect our land, our food and our future, and it is within our grasp.”
Category: Non-fiction
On sale: August 31, 2021
Price: $28.75 (RRP $34.99)
ebook: $14.99
My Body Keeps Your Secrets by Lucia Osborne-Crowley
About the book:
“Lucia Osborne-Crowley didn’t tell a soul when she was raped aged fifteen. Then, eighteen months after she was attacked, her body began to turn on her – and what followed were sudden bouts of searing, unbearable pain that saw her in and out of hospital for the next ten years.
“At 25, Lucia for the first time told the truth about her rape. This disclosure triggered an endless series of appointments with doctors, trauma specialists and therapists. Meanwhile, Lucia threw herself into researching the shadowy intricacies of abuse, trauma and shame.
“In My Body Keeps Your Secrets, Lucia shares the voices of women and trans and non-binary people around the world, as well as her own deeply moving testimony. She writes of vulnerability, acceptance and the reclaiming of our selves, all in defiance of a world where atrocities are committed and survivors are repeatedly told to carry the weight of that shame.
“Widely researched and boldly argued, this book reveals the secrets our bodies bury deep within them, the way trauma can rewrite our biology, and how our complicated relationships with sex affect our connection with others. Crafted in a daring and immersive literary form, My Body Keeps Your Secrets is a necessary, elegant and empathetic work that further establishes Lucia’s credentials as a key intersectional feminist thinker for a new generation.”
Category: Non-fiction
On sale: August 31, 2021
Price: $24.25 (RRP $29.99)
ebook: $14.17
The Housemate by Sarah Bailey
About the book:
“Three housemates. One dead, one missing and one accused of murder.
“Dubbed the Housemate Homicide, it’s a mystery that has baffled Australians for almost a decade.
“Melbourne-based journalist Olive Groves worked on the story as a junior reporter and became obsessed by the case. Now, nine years later, the missing housemate turns up dead on a remote property. Olive is once again assigned to the story, this time reluctantly paired with precocious millennial podcaster Cooper Ng.
“As Oli and Cooper unearth new facts about the three housemates, a dark web of secrets is uncovered. The revelations catapult Oli back to the death of the first housemate, forcing her to confront past traumas and insecurities that have risen to the surface again.
“What really happened between the three housemates that night? Will Oli’s relentless search for the murderer put her new family in danger? And could her suspicion that the truth lies closer to home threaten her happiness and even her sanity?”
Category: Fiction
On sale: August 31, 2021
Price: $26.25 (RRP $32.99)
ebook: $14.94
All About Yves by Yves Rees
About the book:
“What happens when, aged 30, you understand you’re transgender?
“This was the question that confronted Yves Rees, a historian whose life was upended by gender transition in 2018. Then known as a woman called Anne, Yves was forced to grapple with the sudden knowledge that they were not, in fact, female at all.
“But when you’ve lived a lie for so long, how do you discover who you really are? And how do you re-learn to live in the world as a different gender?
“All About Yves tells their moving journey of re-becoming, at the same time laying bare the messiness of bodies, gender and identity. It shares the challenges and joys of being transgender in Australia today, and reveals how trans experiences like Yves’ can teach all of us about what it means to be human.”
Category: Non-fiction
On sale: August 31, 2021
Price: $26.25 (RRP $32.99)
ebook: $22.43
Lies, Damned Lies by Claire G. Coleman
About the book:
“In Lies, Damned Lies acclaimed author Claire G. Coleman, a proud Noongar woman, takes the reader on a journey through the past, present and future of Australia, lensed through her own experience. Beautifully written, this literary work blends the personal with the political, offering readers an insight into the stark reality of the ongoing trauma of Australia’s violent colonisation.
“Colonisation in Australia is not over. Colonisation is a process, not an event – and the after-effects will continue while there are still people to remember it.”
Category: Non-fiction
On sale: September 1, 2021
Price: $26.25 (RRP $32.99)
ebook: $10.66
Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
About the book:
“Alice, a novelist, meets Felix, who works in a distribution warehouse, and asks him if he’d like to travel to Rome with her. In Dublin, her best friend Eileen is getting over a break-up, and slips back into flirting with Simon, a man she has known since childhood.
“Alice, Felix, Eileen and Simon are still young-but life is catching up with them. They desire each other, they delude each other, they get together, they break apart. They have sex, they worry about sex, they worry about their friendships and the world they live in. Are they standing in the last lighted room before the darkness, bearing witness to something? Will they find a way to believe in a beautiful world?”
Sally Rooney is the author of Normal People and Conversations with Friends. The former hurt me so much I’m still too afraid to read the latter.
Category: Fiction
On sale: September 7, 2021
Price: $22.50 (RRP $29.99)
ebook: $8.42
What A Happy Family by Saumya Dave
About the book:
“Nestled in the suburbs of Atlanta, a family learns the funniest punchlines can hide the hardest truths in this evocative women’s fiction novel from the author of Well-Behaved Indian Women.
“From the outside, the Joshi family is the quintessential Indian-American family. Decades ago, Bina and Deepak immigrated to America, where she became a pillar of their local Indian community and he, a successful psychiatrist. Their eldest daughter, Suhani, is following the footsteps of her father’s career and happily married. Natasha, their middle daughter, is about to become engaged to the son of longtime family friends. And Anuj, their son—well he’s a son and what could be better than that?
“But a family scandal shows that nothing is as it seems. Bina’s oldest friendship starts to unravel and she finds herself as an outsider in the community she helped build. Suhani discovers that her perfect marriage isn’t as solid as she thought. Natasha faces a series of rejections that send her into a downward spiral.
“As they encounter public humiliation, gossiping aunties, and self-doubt, the Joshi family must rely on each other like never before. But sometimes, family has to fall apart in order to come back stronger than before.”
Category: Fiction
On sale: September 14, 2021
Price: $25.80 (RRP $25.99)
ebook: $15.99
The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
About the book:
“Intrigue, riches, and romance abound in this thrilling sequel to the New York Times bestselling The Inheritance Games, perfect for fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson.
“The Inheritance Games ended with a bombshell, and now heiress Avery Grambs has to pick up the pieces and find the man who might hold the answers to all of her questions – including why Tobias Hawthorne left his entire fortune to Avery, a virtual stranger, rather than to his own daughters or grandsons.
“As the mystery grows and the plot thickens, Grayson and Jameson, the enigmatic and magnetic Hawthorne grandsons, continue to pull Avery in different directions. And there are threats lurking around every corner, as adversaries emerge who will stop at nothing to see Avery out of the picture – by any means necessary.
“With nonstop action, aspirational jet-setting, family intrigue, swoonworthy romance, and billions of dollars hanging in the balance, The Hawthorne Legacy will thrill Jennifer Lynn Barnes fans and new readers alike.”
I inhaled the first book, The Inheritance Games, in two days. It’s SUCH a fun and easy read.
Category: Fiction, young adult
On sale: September 14, 2021
Price: $15.25 (RRP $16.99)
ebook: $9.99
Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty
About the book:
“From the outside, the Delaneys appear to be an enviably contented family. Even after all these years, former tennis coaches Joy and Stan are still winning tournaments, and now that they’ve sold the family business they have all the time in the world to learn how to ‘relax’. Their four adult children are busy living their own lives, and while it could be argued they never quite achieved their destinies, no-one ever says that out loud.
“But now Joy Delaney has disappeared and her children are re-examining their parents’ marriage and their family history with fresh, frightened eyes. Is her disappearance related to their mysterious house guest from last year? Or were things never as rosy as they seemed in the Delaney household?”
Category: Fiction
On sale: September 14, 2021
Price: $22.95 (RRP $32.99)
ebook: $14.99
Social Queue by Kay Kerr
About the book:
“Zoe Kelly is starting a new phase of her life. High school was a mess of bullying and autistic masking that left her burnt out and shut down. Now, with an internship at an online media company—the first step on the road to her dream writing career—she is ready to reinvent herself. But she didn’t count on returning to her awkward and all-too-recent high-school experiences for her first writing assignment.
“When her piece, about her non-existent dating life, goes viral, eighteen-year-old Zoe is overwhelmed and more than a little surprised by the response. But, with a deadline and a list of romantic contenders from the past to reconnect with for her piece on dating, she is hoping one of her old sparks will turn into a new flame.
“Social Queue is a funny and heart-warming autistic story about deciphering the confusing signals of attraction and navigating a path to love.”
Category: Fiction, young adult
On sale: September 28, 2021
Price: $17.50 (RRP $19.99)
ebook: $16.99
Litty Committee is Pedestrian.TV’s twice-monthly book column. Every month, we’ll take you through the newest reads and spotlight a novel we think you might like.
You can catch up on our other Litty Committee recommendations here.
