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Diary of a Marine Biologist (Anita Thomas, illus Sarah Wilkins & Anita Thomas, Walker)

Released February 2025

Did you know that oysters are often called the kidneys of the ocean because they filter a bathtub’s worth of water every two days? Or that marine biologists play a... Read more

We Speak of Flowers (Eileen Chong, UQP)

Released February 2025

How can we occupy spaces after death? Where do we place our grief when we lose someone close to us? Eileen Chong (A Thousand Crimson Blooms) explores these tender questions... Read more

The Library of Bears (Cat Rabbit, Berbay)

Released February 2025

The Library of Bears, the fourth book by textile artist and designer Cat Rabbit (How to Make Friends: A Bear’s Guide), reassures children that while trying new things can be... Read more

Ten Ways to Find Love … and How to Keep It (Lisa Portolan, Echo)

Released February 2025

Lisa Portolan’s Ten Ways to Find Love … and How to Keep It explores the idea that pursuing love in the digital age is not just about finding love but... Read more

Wonders Under the Moon (Tai Snaith, T&H)

Released February 2025

When the sun goes down, weird and wonderful night-time creatures come out to play. Tai Snaith’s new reference picture book, Wonders Under the Moon: A Collection of Night-Time Creatures, features... Read more

All the Colours of the Rainbow (Rae White, illus Sha’an d’Anthes, Lothian)

Released February 2025

In All the Colours of the Rainbow, Jem sometimes wants to wear their yellow dress with blue sandals and sometimes blue jeans with orange sneakers. The story invites readers into... Read more

When the Deep, Dark Bush Swallows You Whole (Geoff Parkes, Penguin)

Released February 2025

Set in Aotearoa New Zealand, Geoff Parkes’ debut crime novel, When the Deep Dark Bush Swallows You Whole, is a twisting thriller that explores the shadows that lurk behind the... Read more

Those Opulent Days (Jacquie Pham, Ultimo)

Released February 2025

At first glance, Jacquie Pham’s debut novel, Those Opulent Days, might appear to be a classic whodunit murder mystery, except the true ‘villain’ is far from the usual suspect. Set... Read more

Women of a Certain Courage (ed by Bron Bateman, Fremantle)

Released February 2025

In this compelling anthology, 18 women from diverse backgrounds challenge traditional notions of what it means to be courageous. Edited by Bron Bateman (Of Memory and Furniture), Women of a... Read more

A Piece of Red Cloth (Leonie Norrington, Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs, Djawa Burarrwanga & Djawundil Maymuru, A&U)

Released February 2025

The best fiction allows the reader to enter times, cultures and places otherwise inaccessible. Children’s fiction writer Leonie Norrington was commissioned by her adoptive mother, Yolŋu woman Clare Bush, to... Read more

Somebody Down There Likes Me (Robert Lukins, A&U)

Released February 2025

Somebody Down There Likes Me begins with a limousine pulling up to a defunct gas station near a United States ghost town, setting an apt tone for a novel that... Read more

The Humongous Humdingle Family and the Tiny House (Michelle Wilson, illus PJ Reece, EK Books)

Released February 2025

In The Humongous Humdingle Family and the Tiny House, Michelle Wilson introduces readers to the eight human members of the multi-generational Humdingle family, and their many pets, who all live... Read more

Jungle Escape (Nathan Luff, Walker)

Released February 2025

Jungle Escape is the latest middle-grade title by Nathan Luff, author of Bad Grammar and the Family Disasters and Nerd Herd series. This stand-alone novel is filled with comedic mishaps, deliberate misunderstandings, and... Read more

The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress (Sue Williams, A&U)

Released January 2025

The latest, standalone historical fiction from Sue Williams, The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress, is a prequel to her bestselling and critically acclaimed novels Elizabeth & Elizabeth and That... Read more

Three Boys Gone (Mark Smith, Macmillan)

Released January 2025

Award-winning writer Mark Smith is a familiar name on the young adult shelves, with his acclaimed Winter trilogy finding its way onto school lists nationwide. Venturing into fiction for adult... Read more

Essence (Thuy On, UWAP)

Released February 2025

Thuy On’s latest poetry collection, Essence, is a meditation on life as an artist. The poems span a variety of subjects and are divided into three sections. The first, ‘Art’,... Read more

A New Day (Emmaline Carroll Southwell, illus Heather Dryden, Affirm)

Released January 2025

The opening lines of A New Day, Emmaline Carroll Southwell (Our Family Pledge) and Heather Dryden’s bright and hopeful picture book, immediately give readers a sense of security: ‘Today’s a... Read more

Gustav Glows with Gold (Kathy Creamer, illus Patricia Ward, Little Pink Dog)

Released February 2025

Kathy Creamer, co-founder of indie children’s publisher Little Pink Dog Books, lovingly introduces upper-primary readers to the captivating work of Austrian artist Gustav Klimt in her creative nonfiction picture book... Read more

The Serpent Rider (Yxavel Magno Diño, Bloomsbury Children’s)

Released January 2025

Inspired by Filipino folklore, Yxavel Magno Diño’s debut novel, The Serpent Rider, is a mesmerising middle-grade fantasy. All Tani wants is for her bakunawa egg to hatch so she can... Read more

The Pool (Hannah Tunnicliffe, Ultimo)

Released January 2025

In Hannah Tunnicliffe’s latest novel, The Pool, a motley group of southside Melburnians meets for a summer party. The young families are connected through work and children, but they’re not really... Read more