Five new release books to read right now
Looking for your next great read to take your mind off real life? Here are five new release books you need to add to your to-be-read pile.
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DEEP WATER
by SARAH EPSTEIN
ALLEN & UNWIN, RRP $19.95
Australian author Sarah Epstein’s latest novel is written for young adults/teenagers but readers of adult thrillers will find it just as satisfying. Set in the mythical small town The Shallows a few hours outside Sydney, it follows Chloe Baxter’s efforts to find out what happened to her friend, Henry, 13, who disappeared on the night of a violent storm. The story starts three months after Henry’s disappearance and works backwards, with Chloe and her group of former school friends gradually unravelling events leading up to Henry’s disappearance. The story tackles some meaty subjects — there are marriage breakdowns, blended families, same-sex families, custody arrangements, alcoholism, teens navigating relationships, and sexuality confusion. It sounds like a lot, but it actually works well, as each character is brought to life. Small towns have many secrets, and the kids at the centre of this mystery are confronting them as they try to work out if Henry has run away or met with foul play. The language, violence levels and complexity is perfectly pitched for older teens, but adults will still find this an excellent read — fast-paced and cleverly avoiding any overblown angst as the teenagers make their way through the events of one school holiday period.
– reviewed by Ellen Whinnett
VERDICT: Compelling page-turner
APEIROGON
by COLUM McCANN
BLOOMSBURY, RRP $30
There’s no easy way to describe this novel/true story that comes even close to describing its beauty and how profoundly moving
it is. At the heart of its 1001 chapters — some just a single sentence or a photograph — are interviews with Rami Elhanan and Bassam Aramin. One an Israeli whose daughter was killed by Arabic suicide bombers, the other
a Palestinian whose daughter was killed by a rubber bullet fired by an Israeli soldier. The closest of friends, they travel the world to talk about their tragedies, bound by a total commitment to peace. The deaths of the two girls are a constant presence, mixed with discussion of birds, John Cage and a host of other topics, each showing a different side of this conflict, of these deaths. And that’s where the book’s title comes from: It means something with a countably infinite number of sides (effectively a circle). An astonishingly good book.
– reviewed by Corinna Hente
VERDICT: HEART-WRENCHING AND BEAUTIFUL
UNTAMED
GLENNON DOYLE
VERMILION, RRP $35
Fans of Oprah Winfrey and Eat Pray Love author Elizabeth Gilbert, this one’s for you. Glennon Doyle follows up her bestseller
Love Warrior by tracking
her journey from a broken marriage, alcohol addiction, anxiety and trying to meet others’ expectations to a new life, new wife (love at first sight in a crowded room) and new outlook. Doyle uses the metaphor of a caged cheetah at a zoo to explain her life before breaking free. The book is
divided into indexed chapters, so it doesn’t have to be read in one sitting, and is littered with thought-provoking statements such as “a broken family is one in which any member has to break herself into pieces to fit in”. While this book won’t suit everyone and is a tad long, getting bogged down in personal detail, it will be a source of hope for those looking for Winfrey-type wisdom, especially in these challenging times.
– reviewed by Carina Bruce
VERDICT: EMPOWER UP
THE THINGS SHE OWNED
by KATHERINE TAMIKO ARGUILE
AFFIRM PRESS, RRP $30
Bi-racial London chef Erika had a complex relationship with her often cruel, self-absorbed Japanese mother Michiko. Likewise, Michiko had a confusing relationship with her callous father in Tokyo during World War II. After Michiko’s death, Erika, who has never known her father, cannot face the funeral rituals expected by her heritage. So an urn with some of her mother’s remains gathers dust at home. But the arrival of a long-lost cousin forces Erika to open family wounds. And a set of diaries discovered with items she inherited as Michiko’s only child sends her back to the island of her ancestors. Painful truths and secrets, happy times and shocks about Erika’s past are unearthed. Author Katherine Tamiko Arguile takes us on an intergenerational journey that opens our hearts to new understanding, recovery and forgiveness. Including Japanese language, artefacts and cooking practices provides a link to the author’s own heritage.
– reviewed by Carina Bruce
VERDICT: LANGUAGE OF LOVE & LOSS
HOW TO ARGUE WITH A RACIST
by ADAM RUTHERFORD
WEIDENFELD & NICOLSON, RRP $30
People bring meaning to their lives by developing identity and belonging to communities. Sadly, the comfort in belonging to one group can be enhanced by suppressing competing groups, and this suppression is rich soil from which racism can grow. Historically, racists used various arguments to marginalise, penalise, or even enslave, other people. With time and effort, those arguments were shown to be false. Today, however, nationalism is on the rise worldwide and racism is making a comeback, armed with arguments based on the new science of genetics. Author Adam Rutherford examines commonly held beliefs, many of which become the foundations of racism, such as black people make better athletes, or East Asian students learn maths easier, then exposes the limitations of DNA testing to reveal, “You are not your genes, and you are not your ancestors”. It is a fascinating and timely book.
– reviewed by Jeff Maynard
VERDICT: EQUALISER
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