Time to Catch up on Reading – Your COVID-19 Book List

2020 is already the year where new terms came into our everyday language – self isolation, social distancing… thanks coronavirus. But like everything, this too shall pass. In the meantime, we have the opportunity to spend more time with family, and to read. In fact, this is the perfect time to catch up on reading. Thanks coronavirus. In all seriousness, this is a stressful time and immersing yourself in a great book will really help alleviate that stress. Here are a few great titles to start with.

Our advice is to catch up on author backlists.

Dervla McTiernan’s latest book The Good Turn hit the bestseller list at #1. Take time to read that and her two previous books, The Ruin and The Scholar.

Trent Dalton has another novel coming out in June, so read Boy Swallows Universe first.

Holly Ringland has just signed for two more books. Read The Lost Flowers of Alice Heart and be prepared for her next novel.

Candice Fox is one of Australia’s top crime writers and always a great read. Her latest novel Gathering Dark is out in April, and she also has an extensive backlist to keep you entertained at home.

If you haven’t already read Heather Morris’s The Tattooist of Auschwitz and her follow up novel, Cilka’s Journey… now’s the time.

Also, catch up on the big reads you normally never have time for.

The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel.

Hilary Mantel brings the Wold Hall trilogy to a triumphant close. She traces the final years of Thomas Cromwell. The Mirror and the Light is an astonishing achievement, exceptional in every way. It’s a masterpiece. If you haven’t read the Wolf Hall trilogy, start now with Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies.

Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts

It’s on our Top 100 list and is a fabulous read. But this big book takes time, so perfect for quarantine.

The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili

A big book that was the hit of the year in Germany and around Europe and an incredibly family saga set in Georgia. At the heart of this tale is a delicious chocolate recipe, passed down the generations.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez books

Nobel prize winner and author of One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez tells a tale of an unrequited love that outlasts all rivals in his masterpiece Love in the Time of Cholera. One Hundred Years of Solitude is also a good choice for when you’re in solitude.

Read the books on the Stella Prize shortlist.

The Stella Prize celebrates women’s writing. Take some time to read the books on the shortlist, and support Australia’s female authors. Our team particularly loves:

The Yield by Tara June Winch – the story of a people and a culture dispossessed. And while you’re at it, read her first book, Swallow the Air. Sensational.

There was still Love by Favel Parrett – Set between Prague and Melbourne, strong women who bind families together, despite dislocation and distance.

Here Until August by Josephine Rowe – a series of stories intertwined.

Ignore the world and escape into something lighter

Sometimes you simply need to escape. Books are perfect for that. Try these wonderful titles that will take you far away from the news today.

Jane in Love by Rachel Givney where Jane Austen time-travels to the future and falls in love.

Grown Ups by Marian Keyes who brilliantly tapped into family dynamics with this book.

The Paris Model by Alexandra Joel, a stunning novel of love, betrayal and family secrets for all fans of Fiona McIntosh and Natasha Lester. It’s a tale of glamour and heartbreak that takes you from the rolling plains of country Australia to the elegant salons of Paris.

Let’s not forget the kids

Digital books are our advice. Our go-to for audiobooks is Bolinda, but if you can’t afford to buy audio books, Bolinda created the excellent Borrowbox app, where you use your library card to download books. Kids can listen to classics such as Storm Boy, and Charlotte’s Web. Choose from authors like Enid Blyton titles, Alison Lester, James Patterson, and Emily Rodda. Digital books are a great way to have some downtime when the kids are with you 24/7