20 Books of Winter 2026
Lisa Hill launches her annual "20 Books of Winter 2026" reading challenge, running from June 1 to August 31. She targets the U‑V‑W‑X‑Y‑Z sections of her 974‑book fiction TBR shelf, aiming to clear space and refresh her collection. The curated list features 22 titles—including four from the 1001 Books challenge, six translations, and works from Europe, Africa, the US and UK—allowing for duds and deletions. Hill invites readers to suggest reading order as she tackles the winter backlog.
Phantom Days (2026), by Angela O’Keeffe
Angela O’Keeffe’s latest novella, *Phantom Days* (UQP, 2026), extends her celebrated series of works narrated by non‑human voices. The 168‑page paperback is told through the perspectives of a stray book and the ashes of a mother, weaving art, pandemic anxiety,...
Good Boy (2026), by Michelle Wright
Australian author Michelle Wright’s new novel *Good Boy* (Allen & Unwin, 2026) follows Cookie, a young inmate in a 1997 minimum‑security prison, who trains an abandoned dog named Nigel to avoid euthanasia. Wright leverages her own experience working in prisons...
Dust of Nineveh (1946) by Mary Kent Hughes
The review uncovers Mary Kent Hughes’s 1946 novel *Dust of Nineveh*, a wartime romance set among British Army nurses in the Iraqi desert. Hughes, an Australian‑trained doctor who served as a major in the Royal Army Medical Corps, draws on...
The Complete Stories of Alan Marshall, (1977), Illustrated by Noel Counihan
Alan Marshall’s *The Complete Stories* was issued by Nelson in 1977, earning the Colin Roderick Award and featuring 497 pages of short fiction illustrated by Noel Counihan. The volume assembles stories originally printed between the 1940s and 1970s across a...
Six Degrees of Separation, From Wild Dark Shore
Lisa Hill’s May 2026 #6Degrees newsletter spotlights Charlotte McConaghy’s Wild Dark Shore as the starter book, noting its long‑list status for the Women’s Prize and the Stella award. The piece also previews upcoming titles such as Subhash Jaireth’s poetry Lamentations and Michelle Wright’s novel...
A Better Life (2026) by Lionel Shriver
Lionel Shriver’s 2026 novel *A Better Life* dramatizes a Brooklyn family that takes in a Honduran migrant through a city‑run incentive program, aiming to showcase host‑nation reactions to the influx of migrants. The story follows Gloria, her son Nico, and the...
‘Why Iranians Continue to Seek Refuge in Australia’ by Shokoofeh Azar
Iranian‑Australian journalist Shokoofeh Azar’s 2012 essay “Why Iranians Continue to Seek Refuge in Australia” remains strikingly relevant, exposing the persistent flow of Iranian asylum seekers and the security risks they face. Azar, whose Persian‑language novels are anonymously translated to protect...
All Her Lives, Nine Stories (2025), by Ingrid Horrocks
Ingrid Horrocks’s short‑story collection *All Her Lives* weaves together nine narratives that echo the feminist legacy of Mary Wollstonecraft. Spanning from a WWI nurse on Anzac Day to a present‑day mother confronting her son’s climate activism, the book explores duty,...
Beyond the Broken Years: Australian Military History in 1000 Books (2024) by Peter Stanley
Peter Stanley’s 2024 volume *Beyond the Broken Years* surveys a thousand Australian military‑history titles, tracing how the subject has been written, who has written it, and how narratives have shifted over the past half‑century. The book contrasts academic scholars with...
‘The Hotel’ (2026), by Nicole Hazan
American Jewish Book Council has launched Paper Brigade, a program aimed at countering the growing exclusion of Jewish authors from literary platforms. As part of its debut, the council released the speculative short story ‘The Hotel’ by emerging writer Nicole...
Vale David Malouf (1934-2026)
Beloved Australian author, poet, playwright and librettist David Malouf died at 92, ending a five‑decade literary career. He amassed a remarkable list of honors, including the 2000 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, the 2016 Australia Council Lifetime Achievement Award, and...
When I Am Sixty-Four (2026), by Debra Adelaide, and some Thoughts About ‘Grief-Lit’
Debra Adelaide’s 2026 novel *When I Am Sixty‑Four* is an autofiction that chronicles her attempt to care for a close friend who died by suicide. While rooted in factual events, Adelaide reshapes the narrative with lyrical prose, humor, and stark...
The Rest of Our Lives (2025), by Ben Markovits
Ben Markovits’s *The Rest of Our Lives* was shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize, joining titles like Susan Choi’s *Flashlight* and Katie Kitamura’s *Audition*. The novel follows middle‑aged lawyer Tom as his daughter leaves for college, prompting a road‑trip that forces him to...
Heat Wave in Berlin (1961), by Dymphna Cusack
Dymphna Cusack’s 1961 novel *Heat Wave in Berlin* follows Australian mother Joy Miller as she visits her German‑born husband’s influential family in West Berlin, only to uncover their covert neo‑Nazi agenda and wartime crimes. The narrative blends thriller pacing with...