{"title":"Essential Summer Reading","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"the-year-of-magical-thinking-joan-didion-9780007216857","title":"The Year of Magical Thinking","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom one of America's iconic writers, a portrait of a marriage and a life - in good times and bad - that will speak to anyone who has ever loved a husband or wife or child. A stunning book of electric honesty and passion.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e Joan Didion explores an intensely personal yet universal experience: several days before Christmas 2003, John Gregory Dunne and Joan Didion saw their only daughter, Quintana, fall ill with what seemed at first flu, then pneumonia, then complete septic shock. She was put into an induced coma and placed on life support. Days later - the night before New Year's Eve - the Dunnes were just sitting down to dinner after visiting the hospital when John Gregory Dunne suffered a massive and fatal coronary. In a second, this close, symbiotic partnership of forty years was over. Four weeks later, their daughter pulled through. Two months after that, arriving at LAX, she collapsed and underwent six hours of brain surgery at UCLA Medical Center to relieve a massive hematoma.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis powerful book is Didion's 'attempt to make sense of the weeks and then months that cut loose any fixed idea I ever had about death, about illness...about marriage and children and memory...about the shallowness of sanity, about life itself'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e*Notes to John, the remarkable recently discovered journal from Joan Didion is available now*\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Joan Didion","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":43176702017779,"sku":"9780007216857","price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9780007216857.jpg?v=1662088221"},{"product_id":"this-is-not-a-book-about-benedict-cumberbatch-the-funny-feel-good-book-about-finding-the-thing-you-love-for-fans-of-bonnie-garmus-and-caitlin-moran-shortlisted-for-the-act-notable-book-awards-2023-tabitha-carvan-9781460760659","title":"This Is Not A Book About Benedict Cumberbatch: The funny feel-good book about finding the thing you love for fans of Bonnie Garmus \u0026 Caitlin Moran, shortlisted for the ACT Notable Book Awards 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003eIf you feel that sense that there is something missing from your life, some gap between who you are on the inside and who you are on the outside - then this is the book for you. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e This is, as the title says, not actually a book about Benedict Cumberbatch.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e  In fact, it's a book about women and what we love, about what happens to women's passions after we leave adolescence and how the space for joy in our lives is squeezed ever smaller as we age, and why. More importantly, it's about what happens if you subvert that narrative and simply love something like you used to.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing upon her personal experience of unexpectedly falling for the British actor Benedict Cumberbatch while stuck at home with two young children, Carvan challenges the reader to stop instinctively resisting the possibility of experiencing pleasure.  Hers is clarion rallying cry: find your thing, whatever it may be, and love it like your life depends on it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFunny, intelligent, transporting and liberating, this book is a total joy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Winningly effervescent... an aria of joyous discovery...' Slate\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Witty, erudite and fierce in its message - that women should seek joy and find fun. Happily, this book provides both in abundance. I loved it.' Jacqueline Maley\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'You know when you bite into a chocolate, and unexpectedly discover it's filled with delectable cherry kirsch that explodes into your mouth? That's this book.  Original, highly entertaining, fast-paced, personal read that contains unexpected revelations at every corner. It's funny, it's smart, it's compelling. But most of all, it's a battle cry: sit up, pay attention and follow your heart and find joy. After all, our time on this earth is short. C'mon. The clock is ticking.'  Ginger Gorman\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Intimate, self-deprecating ... like an Australian Caitlin Moran or Dolly Alderton ... an easy, lighthearted read about serious subject matter: feminism, passion, relationships and creativity, and owning the strength of the passions felt in childhood and adolescence.' Books+Publishing\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A surprise midlife obsession with British actor Benedict Cumberbatch provides the occasion for musings on passion, aging, and identity in this spirited debut. . . Carvan's self-aware approach wrings the absurdity out of her story to hilarious effect while touching on the realities of motherhood and fandom: \"It's not just about what we love, but how that love figures in our lives, and how it makes us feel.\" The result is a weird-in-the-best-way account of self-discovery that brims with humor and insight.' Publishers Weekly, starred review\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Remember that feeling you had as a kid, when you loved things wholeheartedly, boldly, and loudly? If you feel a sense that there is something missing from your life, some gap between who you are on the inside and who you are on the outside, then this is the book for you.'  Eve Rodsky, author of Find Your Unicorn Space and Fair Play\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'This really isn't a book about Benedict Cumberbatch. It's about so, so much more: Losing yourself and finding yourself, oppression and emancipation; sadness and joy. Tabitha Carvan's book will make you think and make you cackle. It's the most delightful book I've read in a long time.'  Melinda Wenner Moyer, author of How to Raise Kids Who Aren't Assholes\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Wonderfully fresh... Subversively important stuff.' The Chicago Tribune\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'This year's most hilarious self-help book.' The Daily Mail UK\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'An excellent account... It's about opening yourself to life, about treasuring your own tender heart.' The Sydney Morning Herald (Richard Glover)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'This book was better than it had any right to be. It was a totally unexpected five stars.'  Feminist Book Club\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A very powerful, astonishingly incisive view on feminism and the patriarchy.' Sorta Awesome\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'I love this book so, so much and I'm going to force it on every human being.' #AmWriting podcast\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tabitha Carvan","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":43176733147379,"sku":"9781460760659","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9781460760659.jpg?v=1662088567"},{"product_id":"reasons-not-to-worry-brigid-delaney-9781743310496","title":"Reasons Not to Worry","description":"\u003cp\u003eWe're all searching for answers to the biggest questions: How can we be good? Find calm? Properly grieve? Beat FOMO? Work out what truly matters? Well, the good news is that the wisest minds in history asked the exact same questions - and they found answers. The ancient philosophy of Stoicism shows us that we are already in possession of the very tools we need to excavate this much-needed wisdom for ourselves.So into the past we go with Brigid Delaney, to a time not unlike our own: one full of pandemonium, war, plagues, pestilence, treachery, corruption, anxiety, overindulgence, and - even back then - the fear of a climate apocalypse. By living and learning the teachings of three ancient guides, Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius, Brigid shows us how we can apply their lessons to our modern lives in a way that allows us to regain a sense of agency and tranquillity.Stoicism can be a tough medicine to swallow, but no longer - this book is awash with insight, humour and compassion. Timely, so very useful, and filled to the brim with ways you can wrest back control, here are all the reasons not to worry.'Brigid has the most incredible gift of taking seemingly complex and esoteric concepts and explaining them to the reader in a way that is generous and clear, but above all, relatable. Reading this book is like having a long walk with your cool big sister while she just happens to be giving you the skinny on Greco-Roman philosophy.' Ben Lee'Reasons Not to Worry is both an introduction and an interrogation of Stoicism. With acute thoughtfulness and a genial lightness, Delaney convinces us that this ancient philosophy is still relevant and necessary. I appreciated the kindness in this book and I was grateful for the care and commitment and joy of the writing and argument.' Christos Tsiolkas, bestselling author of Damascus and Seven and a Half'A real eye-opener . . . Stoicism is the way I've been trying to live my life.' Richard Harris, on ABC Radio National 'This the perfect book for the times. I've been loving it. I found it really fantastic . . . this is going to be a reference book for me. She's also bloody funny.'Zan Rowe, Bang On podcast 'It's the book I'm going to be giving everyone I love this Christmas. It's so good!'Myf Warhurst, Bang On podcast 'Delaney convincingly points out how relevant and evergreen the teachings of the Stoics are to our present-day dramas.'ArtsHub  'This is Brigid Delaney's fascinating, hilarious and highly practical guide to using the philosophy of Stoicism to help you deal with the vicissitudes of everyday life . . . a calming balm for anyone who has been through a pandemic or is fearful about the future - basically all of us!' Readings\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Brigid Delaney","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":43238556139763,"sku":"9781743310496","price":29.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9781743310496.jpg?v=1669257090"},{"product_id":"small-things-like-these-claire-keegan-9780571368709","title":"Small Things Like These","description":"\u003cp\u003e'Exquisite.' Damon Galgut\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Masterly.' The Times\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Miraculous.' Herald\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Astonishing.' Colm Toibin\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Stunning.' Sunday Independent\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Absolutely beautiful.' Douglas Stuart\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA Book of the Year in The Times and The New Statesman\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt is 1985, in an Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal and timber merchant, faces into his busiest season. As he does the rounds, he feels the past rising up to meet him - and encounters the complicit silences of a people controlled by the Church.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A genuine once-in-a-generation writer.' The Times\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'[A] snowglobe of a story that fits a whole bustling, striving, yearning world into 114 finely wrought pages.' Sunday Times\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Powerful and affecting and very timely . . . deeply moving.' Hilary Mantel\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Stunning . . . A haunting, hopeful masterpiece.' Sinead Gleeson\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Remarkable . . . Truly exquisite.' Daily Telegraph\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A restrained and intensely moral book, full of hope and love.' Observer\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Marvellous - exact and icy and loving all at once.' Sarah Moss\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Claire Keegan","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":43394313453811,"sku":"9780571368709","price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9780571368709.jpg?v=1666380759"},{"product_id":"the-satsuma-complex-bob-mortimer-9781398523647","title":"The Satsuma Complex","description":"\u003cp\u003eMy name is Gary. I'm a thirty-year-old legal assistant with a firm of solicitors in London. To describe me as anonymous would be unfair but to notice me other than in passing would be a rarity. I did make a good connection with a girl, but that blew up in my face and smacked my arse with a fish slice.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e Gary Thorn goes for a pint with a work acquaintance called Brendan. When Brendan leaves early, Gary meets a girl in the pub. He doesn't catch her name, but falls for her anyway. When she suddenly disappears without saying goodbye, all Gary has to remember her by is the book she was reading: The Satsuma Complex. But when Brendan goes missing, Gary needs to track down the girl he now calls Satsuma to get some answers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e And so begins Gary's quest, through the estates and pie shops of South London, to finally bring some love and excitement into his unremarkable life...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e A page-turning story with a cast of unforgettable characters, The Satsuma Complex is the brilliantly funny first novel by bestselling author and comedian Bob Mortimer.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bob Mortimer","offers":[{"title":"Fair","offer_id":43590517194995,"sku":"8880002832258","price":8.5,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9781398523647.jpg?v=1673465184"},{"product_id":"foster-claire-keegan-9780571379149","title":"Foster","description":"\u003cp\u003e'A real jewel.' Irish Independent'A small miracle.' Sunday Times\n\u003cbr\u003e'A thing of finely honed beauty.' Guardian\n\u003cbr\u003e'Thrilling.' Richard Ford\n\u003cbr\u003e'As good as Chekhov.' David Mitchell\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the author ofthe Booker-shortlisted Small Things Like These\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a hot summer in rural Ireland. A girl is sent to live with foster parents on afarm, not knowing when she will return home. In the strangers' house, shefinds a warmth and affection she has not known before and slowly begins toblossom in their care. But in a house where there are meant to be no secrets,she discovers how fragile her idyll is.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Foster confirms Claire Keegan's talent. She creates luminous effects with spare material, so every line seems to be a lesson in the perfect deployment of both style and emotion' - Hilary Mantel\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Claire Keegan","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":43599743975667,"sku":"9780571379149","price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0634\/4284\/5939\/products\/9780571379149.jpg?v=1673983056"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.harryhartog.com.au\/collections\/perfect-christmas-gifts.oembed","provider":"Harry Hartog Bookseller","version":"1.0","type":"link"}