The unforgettable new novel from the Dagger award-winning author of Wimmera, Mark Brandi. A novel that shows small-town life is unforgiving if you’re from the other side of the tracks.
We always listen out for the train when we’re down in the cutting because sometimes they come quicker than you expect. There aren’t as many trains as there used to be. Mostly just the freight ones, like the one that nearly killed us on the bus… The best train is the Southern Aurora. It goes all the way from Melbourne to Sydney, and from Sydney to Melbourne. It stops in Mittigunda because we’re pretty much exactly halfway between.’
Jimmy is a kid growing up fast on the poorest street in town. He tries to do everything right and look out for his mum and his younger brother. His older brother is in jail, so it’s up to Jimmy to hold things together. But small-town life is unforgiving if you’re from the other side of the tracks.
If only his mum didn’t drink so much.
If only he could win the school billycart race.
If only his best friend understood.
If only he could stop his mum’s boyfriend from getting angry.
If only he was there.
Jimmy soon learns that even when you get things right, everything can still go wrong.
We have 40 copies of this book to give away. For your chance to Preview this book, click on the link and fill in the registration form.
OUR FORM DOES NOT GO LIVE UNTIL 1:30PM – IF YOU CAN’T SEE IT AFTER 1:30PM, PLEASE REFRESH YOUR PAGE. THERE IS NO NEED TO EMAIL BETTER READING – IT IS A SIMPLE REFRESH ISSUE.
This Preview sign-up period has now closed. Keep an eye out for future Previews being announced!
Better Reading Preview: An exclusive chance to read and review free books before anyone else
We invite our trusted community to engage directly with the nation-wide conversation about books by registering for Preview, our new crowd-sourced book review platform. Due to the insight and perceptiveness of our readers, we are launching a platform that allows your voice to be heard.
How do I express interest in reviewing a book?
Like us on Facebook AND subscribe to our newsletter (if you haven’t already!) to hear about the next Preview campaign. You must subscribe to our newsletter to hear about the latest Preview campaigns.
When a campaign is launched, readers will have 24 hours in which to send through their expression of interest, by filling in the registration form above. After 24 hours, Preview readers will be randomly selected from the pool of those who expressed interest in receiving and reviewing a free advance copy of the specified book. Usually these advance copies are printed three to four months before they hit bookshops, making Preview a great way to find out about upcoming titles before anyone else.
But be warned – there are only limited copies of each Preview book available for review.
You will only be contacted if you were successful in being selected.
When you register you are expressing interest for the following:
A free advance copy of the specified book sent to your postal address, in exchange for a brief review of the book that may be used for promotional purposes by Better Reading and the relevant publisher.
Important details:
– We need all your details, including your email address and postal address, for your expression of interest to be successful.
– Preview is currently only open to Australia-based readers.
– A successful registration to review a Preview book is for that single title, only. With every new Preview book announced, you will need to express interest again.
– When announced, Preview expressions of interest are open for 24 hours.
– Better Reading and the relevant publisher will never share the details provided by Preview reviewers for any purposes beyond the relevant Preview campaign.
– Preview demand is very high, and there are only limited spots available for each title. To keep things fair, if you fail to provide a review for a Preview title on two occasions, you will unfortunately not be selected for future Preview titles.
What happens after I express interest?
If you have been successful, you will receive a confirmation email shortly afterwards from Better Reading. This will contain a review deadline and a link through which to submit your review. It will also contain other details on the reviewing process.
About your Preview review:
– Preview reviews may feature on the Better Reading website and the Better Reading Facebook page. The relevant publisher may also use the reviews for promotion. When reviews are used for promotional purposes, each reviewer will only be identified by their first name and Australian state. Reviews may be edited slightly, just for the purposes of brevity and clarity.
– Social media posts about Preview may be shared by Better Reading on its social media channels and/ or website.
– All Preview reviews must be no longer than 200 words and must be received by the deadline specified in your confirmation email. You will generally have four weeks to submit your review, from the time you receive your book.
– We want you to have fun with Preview – post photos of your book on Instagram or Facebook when you receive it, and when you’ve read it, share your thoughts using the hashtag #BRPreview. Be sure to tag Better Reading in your posts – we love to hear from our readers! And if you have a Goodreads account, we encourage you to share your reviews there too.
This book looks amazing !
Excited to read this book.
It is truly exciting to find ‘at last’, Aussie Writers are being recognised in our own country as being, selections of ‘first choice’ in Bookshops everywhere! It’s like the flood gates have been opened. It’s not only the diversity and richness of the stories they have to tell; but it’s the way they use ‘language’. We instantly know where we are, we’re ‘home’! Like wearing a comfortable pair of old slippers! I can’t wait to add Mark Brandi to my growing list of ‘favourites’!