Want to read contemporary American fiction about the Iraq war that doesn’t put a heroic spin on the realities of warfare?
Try Redeployment by Phil Klay
With a hard-eyed realism and stunning emotional depth, former marine captain and Iraq veteran Phil Klay depicts the the human cost of war.Redeployment is a deserving winner for the National Book Award for Fiction. (Find the full list of National Book Award Winners here.)
Want to read a soon-to-be classic of nature writing about grief, the author T.H. White and training a goshawk?
Try H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
This extraordinary book made history this year as the first memoir to win the Samuel Johnson prize. Claire Tomalin, the chair of the judges, said, ‘…this book is so intense and magnificent it knocks you over’. In it, Helen Macdonald documents her attempts to win the trust of her goshawk Mabel while grieving the loss of her father.
Want to read an unpredictable tale that flips between 1997 San Francisco and 2030 Melbourne?
Try A Wrong Turn at the Office of Unmade Lists by Jane Rawson
Jane Rawson’s novel was recognised as the Most Underrated Book of 2014. (This award is presented annually to the best title released by a small, independent Australian publisher that, for whatever reason, didn’t receive its fair dues when first published.) Judges described A Wrong Turn at the Office of Unmade Lists as ‘refreshing’ and ‘full of dark humour’.
Want to read a novel about WWII described as ‘extremely powerful’?
Try The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan won the 2014 Man Booker Prize for this, his sixth novel. The philosopher AC Grayling, who chaired the judges, said, ‘Written in prose of extraordinary elegance and force, it bridges East and West, past and present, with a story of guilt and heroism.’
Want to read a book that will surprise you?
Try Only The Animals by Ceridwen Dovey
Look… We know you may be put off by this book’s premise – animals souls sharing stories of how they’ve died in human conflicts over the last century – but we guarantee this book will surprise you with both its playfulness and emotional punch. After all, it wasn’t the inaugural winner of Readings New Australian Writing Award for nothing!
Want to read a tightly-wound narrative that is hauntingly beautiful and darkly mysterious?
Try All the Birds Singing by Evie Wyld
Set between Australia and a remote English island, All the Birds Singing won the Miles Franklin Literary Award this year. Jake Whyte is the sole resident of an old farmhouse on an unnamed island, a place of ceaseless rains and battering winds. It’s just her, her untamed companion, Dog, and a flock of sheep. Until something starts picking off her sheep, one by one…
Want to read something brilliant and challenging?
Try A Girl is a Half-formed Thing by Eimear McBride
The winner of the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, Eimear McBride’s astonishing debut novel is the story of a young woman’s relationship with her brother, and the long shadow cast by his childhood brain tumour. In her review of the book novelist Anne Enright called McBride ‘that old fashioned thing, a genius…’
Want to read about a significant part of Australian history and folklore that has previously been ignored?
Try The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka by Clare Wright
The winner of this year’s Stella Prize, The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka, ‘…revisits that well-trodden territory from an entirely new perspective, unearthing images, portraits and stories of the women of 1850s Ballarat and the parts they played not only in its society but also in its public life.’
Want to read an epic, immersive story that features a Dickensian cast of characters and antiques?
Try The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
The winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling power. Our reviewer writes, ‘Tartt captures the romantic intensity of adolescence, alienation and suffering beautifully, and expertly portrays a boy growing up too fast in modern America without moralising.’
Want to lose yourself in a smart, fast-paced crime thriller about a spectacular escape and a game-changing man-hunt?
Try In the Morning I’ll be Gone by Adrian McKinty
Sean Duffy’s got nothing. And when you’ve got nothing left to lose, you have everything to gain. So when MI5 come knocking, Sean knows exactly what they want, but he hasn’t got the first idea how to get it. This thrilling third book in the Sean Duffy thriller series was awarded the 2014 Ned Award for Crime Fiction.
For some inspiration on book’s you’ll love to read – try these:
Get Reading! The Little Refugee - Anh Do & Suzanne Do Illustrated by Bruce Whatley The 26-Storey Treehouse - Andy Griffiths & Terry Denton Absolution Creek - Nicole Alexander After the Darkness - Honey Brown Beneath the Darkening Sky - Majok Tulba Blood - Tony Birch Cold Grave - Kathryn Fox Foals Bread - Gillian Mears Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East - Benjamin Law The Light Between Oceans - M.L. Stedman My Journey - Jim Stynes Rotten Gods - Greg Barron Say You’re Sorry - Michael Robotham Secrets of the Tides - Hannah Richell The Boy Who Fell to Earth - Kathy Lette The Engagement - Chloe Hooper The Inca Prophecy - Adrian d’Hagé The Mothers’ Group - Fiona Higgins The Girl in Steel-Capped Boots - Loretta Hill The Street Sweeper - Elliot Perlman Velocity - Steve Worland Wattle Creek - Fiona McCallum We All Fall Down - Peter Barry Days Like These - Kristian Anderson & Rachel Anderson My Hundred Lovers - Susan Johnson Nine Days - Toni Jordan No Sex in the City - Randa Abdel-Fattah After - Morris Gleitzman Braveheart: Lessons Learnt from Life - Brett Kirk & Hayley S. Kirk Brotherband 1: The Outcasts - John Flanagan DADS: A Field Guide - Justin Ractliffe & Cathie Glassby A Confusion of Princes - Garth Nix Conspiracy 365 Code Black: January - Gabrielle Lord EJ12 Girl Hero 14: Kimono Code - Susannah McFarlane Micky O: Determination, Hard Work and a Little Bit of Magic - Michael O’Loughlin with Jim Main Pennies for Hitler - Jackie French The Legacy of Lord Regret - Sam Bowringgacy The Traitor Queen - Trudy Canavan The Children of the King - Sonya Hartnett The Prez - David Spiteri White Ninja - Tiffiny Hall Word Hunters: The Curious Dictionary - Nick Earls & Terry Whidborne Batavia - Peter FitzSimons Clementine Rose and the Surprise Visitor - Jacqueline Harvey The Price of Valour - John Hamilton The Very Cranky Bear - Nick Bland Omega Squad 1: The Time Thieves - Charlie Carter Lighthouse Bay - Kimberley Freeman Band-Aid for a Broken Leg - Damien Brown Endless -Jessica Shirvington
This article was originally published on readings.com.auand has been republished here with full permission.
Looking for something to read? Readings bookshop matches your literary inclinations with a prize winner of 2014.
Top Comments
I want to read some good sci fi and fantasy. Its not all crap
Patrick Rothfuss?
thanks I will give it a go. I just get mad that whenever books are suggested they are all "good" books, or what would be ticked by an English teacher (hello my sister). I was trying to encourage others to discuss books that aren't classified as "well written", sorry cant think of a polite way to express the type of book that is discussed
Highly recommend "Band aid for a broken leg" (being a doctor with No Borders) by Damien Brown - a young Australian doctor's account of working for aid agencies in places such as Mozambique - fascinating and moving read.