Feel Good Reads
American humourist P.J. O'Rourke once said, "Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it." But sometimes we simply feel like reading something other than all those worthy and impressive literary award winners - something lighter but still well-written, something wonderfully witty which makes us laugh out loud, or maybe just a cracking good adventure. So for all of you who wander in and tell us that you're looking for something different to read, but you don't really know what you want; or who need something for a friend in hospital; or a book to take on holiday; or just something to escape from the grimness of the nightly news - we are delighted to present a new area in our bookshop entitled "Feel-Good Reads."
Titles include both fiction and non-fiction options - beloved classics from P.G. Wodehouse, Barbara Pym, and Nancy Mitford; hilarious travel narratives from Bill Bryson; amusing essays from David Sedaris and Augusten Burroughs; modern Australian classics from John Clarke, Shane Maloney, and Thea Astley; plus many more from Kurt Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions to Sue Townsend's Adrian Mole series; from Alexander McCall-Smith's warm and witty Scottish tales to Paul Carter's gripping and often hilarious true-life adventures.
We will also be promoting Feel-Good Friday where we will feature a chosen title from these shelves and posting on facebook, twitter and instagram so keep an eye out for your next great read.
The Lido by Libby Page
$22.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction
THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER Meet Rosemary, 86, and Kate, 26: dreamers, campaigners, outdoor swimmers... Rosemary has lived in Brixton all her life, but everything she knows is changing. Only the local lido, where she swims every day, remains a constant reminder of the past and her beloved husb ...Show more
The Sparkle Pages by Meg Bignell
$32.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction
'Is marriage just a series of texts about where the children are and whether we need milk until one of you dies?? Susannah Parks - wife, mother, cleaner of surfaces and runner of household - is a viola virtuoso. Except she hasn't picked up a viola for over a decade. She has, however, picked up a lot o ...Show more
Paris and Other Disappointments by Adam Rozenbachs
$34.99 AUD
Category: Travel Writing | Reading Level: 4 Non Fiction
Sick of going overseas and enjoying himself, comedian Adam Rozenbachs decided he should take his father on the trip of a lifetime to Europe. For his dad, it was a chance to return to the place he hasn't seen fleeing post-war Germany as an immigrant. For Adam, it was a chance to repay his dad for everyth ...Show more
The Other Half of Augusta Hope by Joanna Glen
$32.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction | Reading Level: 1 Fiction
'YOU'RE NOT LOST. YOU'RE JUST LOOKING. Augusta Hope has never felt like she fits in. At six, she's memorising the dictionary. At seven, she's correcting her teachers. At eight, she spins the globe and picks her favourite country on the sound of its name: Burundi. And now that she's an adult, Augusta has ...Show more
Listening to the Animals: Becoming the Supervet, Listening to the Animals by Noel Fitzpatrick
$32.99 AUD
Category: Biography & Memoir
A powerful, heart-warming and inspiring memoir from the UK's most famous and beloved vet, Professor Noel Fitzpatrick - star of the Channel 4 series The Supervet. Growing up on the family farm in Ballyfin, Ireland, Noel's childhood was spent tending to the cattle and sheep, the hay and silage, the tract ...Show more
The Last Voyage of Mrs Henry Parker by Joanna Nell
$32.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction | Reading Level: very good
A poignant ode to love and the memories that make a well-lived life, from the author of THE SINGLE LADIES OF JACARANDA RETIREMENT VILLAGE As the wife of retired ship's doctor Dr Henry Parker, Evelyn is living out her twilight years aboard the Golden Sunset. Every night she dresses for dinner - gown, tia ...Show more
Adults by Emma Jane Unsworth
$29.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction | Reading Level: very good
'DAZZLING' Marian Keyes, 'HILARIOUS' Dolly Alderton, 'TENDER' Jessie Burton, 'MAGNIFICENT' Daisy Buchanan, 'INCREDIBLE' Candice Carty Williams, 'MOVING' Laura Jane Williams, 'BRILLIANT' Nikesh Shukla, 'I LOVED IT' Sam Baker, 'PAINFULLY TRUE' Kate Davies Jenny is unloved, unemployable and emotionally unf ...Show more
The Department of Sensitive Crimes (#1 Detective Varg) by Alexander McCall Smith
$19.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction | Series: Detective Varg Ser. | Reading Level: near fine
In the Swedish criminal justice system, certain cases are considered especially strange and difficult, in Malm , the dedicated detectives who investigate these crimes are members of an elite squad known as the Sensitive Crimes Division. These are their stories. The first case: the small matter of a ma ...Show more
Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon
$19.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction
The bestselling author of the "remarkable...masterfully constructed, pitch-perfect" (Booklist, starred review) debut The Trouble with Goats and Sheep delivers a suspenseful and emotionally satisfying novel about a lifelong friendship, a devastating secret, and the small acts of kindness that bring peopl ...Show more
The Secret Life of Shirley Sullivan by Lisa Ireland
$32.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction
'An endearing novel about one gutsy, smart and inspirational woman. I want to be Shirley when I grow up.' Rachael Johns 'Elderly. Is that how the world sees me? A helpless little old lady? If only they knew. I allow myself a small smirk.' When Shirley Sullivan signs her 83-year-old husband, Frank, out o ...Show more
The Origin of Me by Bernard Gallate
$32.99 AUD
Category: Feel Good Fiction
Lincoln Locke's fifteen-year-old life is turned upside down when he's thrust into bachelor-pad living with his dad, after his parents' marriage breaks up, and into an exclusive new school. Crestfield Academy offers him a new set of peers - the creme de la creme of gifted individuals, who also happen to ...Show more
The Hungover Games by Sophie Heawood
$35.00 AUD
Category: Biography & Memoir
'The Hungover Games deftly explores expectations of modern womanhood through a beautiful, wild, painfully honest, hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking story. Full of adventure and awe, Sophie Heawood has written a soulful, truthful homage to a life lived with appetite, intensity and wonder.' Dolly Alde ...Show more