Products

<p><strong>The national bestseller, <em>Phosphorescence </em>is a beautiful, intimate and inspiring investigation into how we can find and nurture within ourselves that essential quality of internal happiness – the 'light within' – which will sustain us even through the darkest times.</strong></p> <p>Over the last decade, we have become better at knowing what brings us contentment, well-being and joy. We know, for example, that there are a few core truths to the science of happiness. We know that being kind and altruistic makes us happy, that turning off devices, talking to people, forging relationships, living with meaning and delving into the concerns of others offer our best chance of achieving happiness. But how do we retain happiness? It often slips out of our hands as quickly as we find it. So, when we are exposed to, or learn, good things, how do we continue to burn with them?</p><p>And more than that, when our world goes dark, when we're overwhelmed by illness or heartbreak, loss or pain, how do we survive, stay alive or even bloom? In the muck and grit of a daily existence full of disappointments and a disturbing lack of control over many of the things that matter most – finite relationships, fragile health, fraying economies, a planet in peril – how do we find, nurture and carry our own inner, living light – a light to ward off the darkness?</p><p><strong>An intimate, achingly beautiful and inspiring exploration of the ways we can pursue awe, wonder and purpose, from one of our best, most perceptive writers.</strong></p><p>'Like spending an evening with a wonderful friend, with unlimited time and a glass of good wine in hand … A beautiful and rallying read' <em>The Australian</em></p><p>'Julia Baird's new, beautiful consideration of the things that glow through the murk … a book such as this one – one that aims to provoke delight and wonder and comfort, that is at its heart trying to find answers or modes of connection, or light – is of the moment in the best possible way' <em>The Guardian</em></p><p>'Intelligent and emotionally astute ... Many will find sustenance in reading it<em>' Sydney Morning Herald</em></p><p>'That is the beauty of this profound book. It transports you into all the deep, inner yearnings you've had for a long time, and then articulates them for you ... I could rave about this gem of a book forever. We need this book. You need this book. It is the perfect gift for us all right now. It is perfect' <em>Better Reading</em></p><p>'Julia Baird is an alchemist, turning the dross of her life's harshest blows into shimmering prose. Both timeless and timely, this is a book of wisdom and wonder.' Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of <em>March </em>and <em>Caleb's Crossing</em></p><p>'This book is a love letter to the world by a brilliant writer who nearly left it. Julia Baird has gone into the depths of human experience-her own, and others'-and come back with this luminous and profound celebration of people and the planet. <em>Phosphorescence</em> is a treasure to read and re-read your whole life.' Anna Funder, author of <em>All That I Am</em> and <em>Stasiland</em></p><p>'I loved this book. A cupped hand full of light in a darkened world. A collection of glittering curios. I'll hold it close in trying times.' Cal Flyn, author of <em>Islands of Abandonment</em></p>

RoseThe voyage of Rose de Freycinet, the stowaway who defied the French for love.In 1814, in the aftermath of the French Revolution, nineteen-year-old Rose Pinon married handsome naval officer Louis de Freycinet, fifteen years her senior. Three years later, unable to bear parting from her husband, she dressed in men's clothing and slipped secretly aboard his ship the day before it sailed on a voyage of scientific discovery to the South Seas. Living for three years as the sole female among 120 men, Rose de Freycinet defied not only bourgeois society's expectations of a woman in 1817, but also a strict prohibition against women sailing on French naval ships.Whether dancing at governors' balls in distant colonies, or evading pirates and meeting armed Indigenous warriors on remote Australian shores, or surviving shipwreck in the wintry Falkland Islands, Rose used her quick pen to record her daily experiences, becoming the first woman to circumnavigate the world and leave a record of her journey.Suzanne Falkiner tells this story of courage, enduring love, curiosity and a spirit of adventure - and of the pivotal voyages that led to it - while revealing a uniquely female view into the hitherto largely male world of 19th-century life at sea.PRAISE'A beautifully written, heart-lifting saga of adventure and romance' Grantlee Kieza'A leisurely, thoughtful work, richly and broadly detailed, quietly absorbing' Helen Garner

Winner of multiple prizes, Neige Sinno has created a powerful literary form with Sad Tiger, a book that took France by storm and is an international phenomenon."Reading Sad Tiger is like descending into an abyss with your eyes open. It forces you to see, to really see, what it means to be a child abused by an adult, for years. Everyone should read it." -Annie ErnauxWinner of multiple prizes, Neige Sinno has created a powerful literary form with Sad Tiger, a book that took France by storm and is an international phenomenon."Reading Sad Tiger is like descending into an abyss with your eyes open. It forces you to see, to really see, what it means to be a child abused by an adult, for years. Everyone should read it." -Annie ErnauxSad Tiger is built on the facts of a series of devastating events. Neige Sinno was seven years old when her stepfather started sexually abusing her. At 19, she decided to break the silence that is so common in all cultures around sexual violence. This led to a public trial and prison for her stepfather and Sinno started a new life in Mexico.Through the construction of a fragmented narrative, Sinno explores the different facets of memory-her own, her mother's, as well as her abusive stepfather's; and of abuse itself in all its monstrosity and banality. Her account is woven together with a close reading of literary works by Vladimir Nabokov, Virginia Woolf, Toni Morrison, Christine Angot, and Virginie Despentes among others.Sad Tiger-the title inspired by William Blake's poem "The Tyger"-is a literary exploration into how to speak about the unspeakable. In this extraordinary book there is an abiding concern- how to protect others from what the author herself endured? In the midst of so much darkness, an answer reads crystal clear- by speaking up and asking questions. A striking, shocking, and necessary masterpiece.Winner of the Le Monde Literary Prize, 2023Winner of the European Strega Prize, 2024Winner of the Prix Femina, 2023Winner of the Goncourt des Lyceens, 2023Winner of the US and UK Goncourt Prizes, 2024Winner of the Le Monde Literary Prize, 2023Winner of the Inrockuptibles Prize, 2023Shortlisted for the Medicis Prize, 2023Shortlisted for the Decembre Prize, 2023Winner of the Goncourt Prizes in Belgium, Slovakia, India, Turkey, Tunisia, and South Korea, 2023

Thirty years ago, Gina Chick’s mother Suzanne wrote a bestselling memoir after discovering that her birth mother was none other than iconic Australian writer Charmian Clift. That book, Searching for Charmian, is now being rereleased for Mothers’ Day 2025 with a new foreword by Gina and an afterword by Suzanne. When forty-eight-year-old Suzanne Chick discovers the identity of her birth mother, suddenly nothing will satisfy her but knowing everything. Charmian was nineteen when she gave birth to her baby girl and had to give her up for adoption. By the time Suzanne unearthed her birth mother’s name, Charmian was dead, having taken her own life in 1969 at the age of forty-five. By then she was a beloved columnist, novelist and essayist whose name was known to thousands of readers. But for all her talent, intelligence and extraordinary beauty, Charmian's life was marked by deep unhappiness. As Suzanne learns about the mother she will never meet, she finds herself re-examining the course her own life has taken, gaining insight into the woman who brought her up – her adoptive mother, Marjorie Shaw. More than just a fascinating piece of literary history, this is a moving account of the consequences of adoption and Suzanne's search for identity. ‘My mother’s life changed forever the day she discovered her birth mother was Charmian Clift. In the tsunami of self-discovery that followed this surprising revelation, Mum went on to write her own book, Searching For Charmian, as she turned her life and identity upside down discovering the mother she never knew … Ma, growing up, I never realised what an extraordinary woman you were, because you were just there being amazing in an effortless dance of being yourself. But now I know, and I wonder at my luck, having you as my mother. Every time I look at your face I see a postcard from my future and I’m glad of it. I love that face more than the sun.’ – Gina Chick, bestselling author, inaugural winner of Alone Australia, daughter of Suzanne and granddaughter of Charmian

From Hanif Kureishi, author of The Buddha of Suburbia, a memoir about the accident that left him paralysed'A few days ago, a bomb went off in my life, but this bomb has also shattered the lives of those around me. My partner, my children, my friends.'On Boxing Day 2022, in Rome, Hanif Kureishi had a fall. When he came to, in a pool of blood, he was horrified to realise he had lost the use of his limbs. He could no longer walk, write or wash himself. He could do nothing without the help of others, and required constant care in a hospital. So began an odyssey of a year through the medical systems of Rome and Italy, with the hope of somehow being able to return home, to his house in London.While confined to a series of hospital wards, he felt compelled to write, but being unable to type or to hold a pen, he began to dictate to family members the words which formed in his head. The result was an extraordinary series of dispatches from his hospital bed - a diary of a life in pieces, recorded with rare honesty, clarity and courage.This book takes these hospital dispatches - edited, expanded and meticulously interwoven with new writing - and charts both a shattering and a reassembling- a new life born of pain and loss, but animated by new feelings - of gratitude, humility and love.

Sheila was born on a NSW sheep station. She wedded earls and barons, befriended literary figures and movie stars, bedded a future king. Sheila was fêted by London and New York society for forty years before she died as a Russian princess.

'A refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like ... It's an amazing tale' Bill Gates 'The best book I read last year was Shoe Dog, by Nike's Phil Knight. Phil is a very wise, intelligent and competitive fellow who is also a gifted storyteller' Warren Buffett In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed $50 from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Selling the shoes from the boot of his Plymouth, Knight grossed $8000 in his first year. Today, Nike's annual sales top $30 billion. In an age of start-ups, Nike is the ne plus ultra of all start-ups, and the swoosh has become a revolutionary, globe-spanning icon, one of the most ubiquitous and recognisable symbols in the world today. But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always remained a mystery. Now, for the first time, he tells his story. Candid, humble, wry and gutsy, he begins with his crossroads moment when at 24 he decided to start his own business. He details the many risks and daunting setbacks that stood between him and his dream - along with his early triumphs. Above all, he recalls how his first band of partners and employees soon became a tight-knit band of brothers. Together, harnessing the transcendent power of a shared mission, and a deep belief in the spirit of sport, they built a brand that changed everything. A memoir rich with insight, humour and hard-won wisdom, this book is also studded with lessons - about building something from scratch, overcoming adversity, and ultimately leaving your mark on the world.

A significant collection of interviews with the defiant, controversial, and ground-breaking singer, songwriter, and activist throughout her turbulent career . . .A significant collection of interviews with the defiant, controversial, and ground-breaking singer, songwriter, and activist throughout her turbulent career . . ."It's not like I got up in the morning and said, 'Okay, now let's start a new controversy'." -- Sinead O'ConnorSinead O'Connor's music - both in her songwriting and in her beautiful voice -addressed both emotional despair and incandescent joy with glorious ardor. But she may have been just as well known for her outspokenness. This collection of interviews covers the entire span of O'Connor's career, from the early days to her last interview. From giddy teenager to seasoned superstar, she speaks candidly about her meteoric rise to fame, and recounts what happened when she ripped up a photo of Pope John Paul II on live television in an act of protest. Unguarded and unpredictable, O'Connor was a woman who electrified the globe- imaginative, opinionated, and eloquent.