Meet the team that makes Good Reading happen, as they share their favourite books.

Rowena – Publisher and Editor

I have chosen four books that might not be enormously fast paced or gripping, but they changed me. Whether through conservation, history or lived experience, each challenged my assumptions and taught me something important about the people and places that share our planet.

Woman in the Mists: The Story of Dian Fossey and the Mountain Gorillas of Africa introduced me to the importance of conservation and the extraordinary individuals willing to risk their lives to protect wildlife. Together with The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert (both now out of print, but try your library!), it inspired me to do whatever I can to support and protect nature – something that feels more urgent than ever as our planet faces the challenges of a changing climate. It keeps me awake at night.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini opened my eyes to the experiences of the Hazara people and gave me a greater understanding of what it is probably still like to be a child growing up in Afghanistan during a period of enormous change and upheaval.

Stan Grant’s Talking to My Country helped me learn about generational trauma and gave me a better understanding of what it is like to be Indigenous in this country.

Akina – Editorial Manager

Ursula K Le Guin’s 1974 novel, The Dispossessed, is a book I often think about – and it has never been timelier. Set in a future system of twin planets, the story contrasts Urras, a hyper-capitalist, greed-driven society with Anarres, its arid, anarchist neighbour. Le Guin holds up a mirror to our own societal flaws, tackling everything from geo-political tensions and censorship to staggering wealth divides. Her ability to articulate the best and worst of our humanity elevates her work far beyond any label or genre. It’s an incredibly moving novel that reminds us of our capacity to rise above our own biases and recognise our shared humanity.

Russell – Proofreader

No End to the Way by Neville Jackson had a profound effect on me in the mid-1960s. I would not be the person I am today had it not come my way. Brisbane at that time was not an easy place for someone coming to terms with themselves. Despite a failed three-year marriage, I eventually came out in a big way in 1968. I am now celebrating more than 55 years with the man I married in 2018.

The Alexander Principle by Wilfred Barlow. While working as an actor in the early 1970s, I was introduced to what is described as ‘a technique for postural re-education’. The technique has been followed by many influential people, including Aldous Huxley, and is believed to have contributed to the poise and elegance of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle shows us a path to living in the present moment, where problems do not exist. Since discovering his writings and online seminars, I have found them a great help as I grow into my 90th decade.

David – Advertising Manager

I’m nominating five books – with a common theme.

Animal Farm – as a 10-year-old, George Orwell’s anti-Stalinist allegory was the first really serious book I’d read and it made an immediate and lasting impression. It makes the cut (just) ahead of 1984.

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich – powerful and uplifting; room for hope in every small triumph of the individual in the face of capricious and malevolent state power.

Stalingrad by Theodor Plievier – the futility and horror of war and the madness of the Nazi enterprise writ large in this novel charting the destruction of the German 6th Army. One of the great anti-war, anti-totalitarian novels.

For Whom the Bell Tolls – Ernest Hemingway’s epic novel of the Spanish Civil War by an author who loved Spain and as always, being there, knew exactly what was at stake.

Cultural Amnesia – a prose masterpiece; erudite, witty and accessible. Clive James’ celebration of Western humanism and the perfect guide to the cultural triumphs and tragedies of the 20th Century.

Rachel – Publishing Assistant

The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter has probably had the biggest impact on me to date, introducing me to Carter and feminist Gothic fiction, which has consumed my life ever since. It’s an amazing book. Beautiful, purplier-than-purple prose, and she pioneered the style of the dark, feminist fairytale re-telling through this anthology.

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White is about a trans autistic boy fighting to exist as himself in a Victorian-inspired, oppressively patriarchal society, one where the veil between the living and the dead has thinned. I have never felt more seen by a book. The themes of bodily autonomy and colonial/gender-based violence are so viscerally confronting, but White’s absolutely furious, take-no-prisoners prose inspires me every single day.

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir is the first book in my favourite speculative fiction series of all time. The unofficial tagline is ‘lesbian necromancers solve a murder mystery in space’ and that basically sums it up. Laugh-out-loud hilarious, and it has some of the most memorable characters and writing choices I’ve ever encountered.

DAVID – Finance Manager

Echo Park by Michael Connolly is a gripping novel on Harry Bosch (an LAPD detective) who revisits a cold case of a murdered woman, who a serial killer now claims he knows of the woman’s fate. A great investigative piece for some who has in the past been in similar investigative government activities.

Men in This Town by Giuseppe Santamaria. Interest in such books comes from a family upbringing in men’s tailoring, as well as being employed in a London tailoring shop and a large costume business again in London. This book brings together a reader’s passion for menswear and tailoring – loads of pictures from London, Milan, New York, Sydney and Tokyo.

Tilly – Library Coordinator

Reading Maeve Binchy is like drinking a hot chocolate on a winter’s day. Circle of Friends is a favourite read of mine as Binchy offers profound insight into ordinary human relationships. I love stories that focus on friendship, and those that are set in Ireland are even better!

M Train is a beautifully poetic memoir exploring the depths of human experience and creativity. The sheer vulnerability of Patti Smith’s writing almost makes it feel as if I’m reading her diary. M Train is part memoir, travelogue, poetry and philosophical musings all in one.