SHELF LIFE
SIX FRESH FEMALE -FOCUSED READS TO REVIVE YOUR WANING BOOK CLUB
GRACE MOTHERS: LETTERS TO OUR CHILDREN BY GEORGIE ABAY, JULIE ADAMS AND CLAIRE BRAYFORD
This compilation of letters from notable women – Teresa Palmer, Pandora Sykes, Sophia Webster and Bobbi Brown, among others – penned to their daughters is a touching tribute that any mother (and in turn, their children) will find joy in. Gift it to your mum and get ready for her to weep. Out April 1 ($65, Bauer Books)
THE BABY BY MARIE DARRIEUSSECQ
Based on notebooks written after the birth of her son, French author Darrieussecq ruminates on both the magical and trivial ins-an-douts of motherhood, and contemplates topical questions around how we define mothers. The book is as much of a must-read for those with children, as it is for those considering whether (or not) to have them. Out April 2 ($27.99, Text Publishing)
GINGERBREAD BY HELEN OYEYEMI
Oyeyemi has taken the well-trodden folklore motif of gingerbread you grew up with (think: The Gingerbread Man and the witch’s abode in Hansel And Gretel) and woven it into a wildly unexpected read akin to a grown-up fairy tale. Centred around a British mother and daughter who live among plants that talk and who share a bewitching ginger brerad recipe, this is a singular tale unlike anything else you will read this year. ($29.99, Picador)
THE VAN APFEL GIRLS ARE GONE BY FELICITY MCLEAN
The Virgin Suicides meets Picnic At Hanging Rock in this mystery, centred on the disappearance of the three Van Apfel sisters as remembered by their friend Tikka, who was 11 at the time. Haunted by the manner in which they vanished (and often, their faces around her adopted Baltimore), an adult Tikka returns to Australia to put her demons to rest. Out April 1 ($32.99, 4th Estate)
I MISS YOU WHEN I BLINK BY MARY LAURA PHILPOTT
A debut collection fromthe New York Times essayist, Philpott’s stories cover the complicated spectrum of womanhood, as she reflects on the depression she suffered despite having achieved all she thought she wanted. With refreshing, relatable musings on perfectionism and failure, consider it Eat Pray Love for those without the leisure of a months-long sabbatical to figure their shit out. E Out April 2 ($27.99, Murdoch Books)
SING TO IT BY AMY HEMPEL
Lauded as a master of the contemporary short story, and with multiple awards to her name, Hempel’s 15-story anthology is a must-read. In one, titled “The Quiet Car”, a relationship comes to a painful end over the course of just two pages, and in others, a woman tracks down the older subject of her husband’s affair, while another is tormented by thoughts about the baby she gave up as a teenager. Hempel’s writing can be sparse and blunt, but touching nonetheless, and her eccentric characters are immediately compelling. Out March 26 (approx $35, Scribner)