Arguably - Essays

In the News

Penguins and Funder and Hitchens, oh my!

Here are the latest entries into our store:

A whole lot of new titles have been added to the Popular Penguins range (RRP$9.95). Titles include:

The High Window, Raymond Chandler - another Phillip Marlowe mystery.
Boy, by Roald Dahl - Dahl's boyhood memoir.
Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad - the novel adapted for the film Apocalypse Now.
The Eye in the Door, Pat Baker - the second book in the Regeneration series.
Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell - Orwell's political classic.

 

Also in-store is Anna Funder's All That I Am (RRP$29.95):

"'When Hitler came to power I was in the bath. The wireless in the living room was turned up loud, but all that drifted down to me were waves of happy cheering, like a football match. It was Monday afternoon ...'

Ruth Becker, defiant and cantankerous, is living out her days in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. She has made an uneasy peace with the ghosts of her past - and a part of history that has been all but forgotten.Another lifetime away, it's 1939 and the world is going to war. Ernst Toller, self-doubting revolutionary and poet, sits in a New York hotel room settling up the account of his life. When Toller's story arrives on Ruth's doorstep their shared past slips under her defences, and she's right back among them - those friends who predicted the brutality of the Nazis and gave everything they had to stop them. Those who were tested - and in some cases found wanting - in the face of hatred, of art, of love, and of history. Based on real people and events, All That I Am is a masterful and exhilarating exploration of bravery and betrayal, of the risks and sacrifices some people make for their beliefs, and of heroism hidden in the most unexpected places. Anna Funder confirms her place as one of our finest writers with this gripping, compassionate, inspiring first novel."

 

And Christopher Hitchens' Arguably (RRP$32.99):

"He raises hackles or receives resounding cheers, he's loved or hated but never ignored. Christopher Hitchens is possibly the most provocative writer of our time, fearless and forthright with no subject off limits. This volume of essays spans a remarkable four decades of writing. From early articles in the New Statesman, where he worked alongside writers such as Ian McEwan and Martin Amis, through to his pieces for Salon, The Atlantic and Vanity Fair, these articles display his rare genius, indomitable wit and singular command of language. World figures from Clinton to Mother Teresa, Kissinger to Benazir Bhutto go under his unforgiving microscope. Issues from Vietnam to Iraq, Afghanistan to Iran and literary musings on the leading writers of the last fifty years form the richest tapestry a reader could ask. 'Don't mince words' is the title of one of these pieces. Nor does he, nor has he over the course of a dozen books of which the most recent are the best-selling God is not Great and Hitch-22, and hundreds of articles of which the cream of the crop is here."

SUMMER READING GUIDE

 

Summer has finally arrived, and what better way to while away the hours, at the beach or under a shady tree, than with a good book.

What was that? Don’t know what to read?

With everything from Murakami to the Stephen King, from philosophy to sci-fi and classic literature, as well as all the best biographies, cookbooks for the foodies and travel guide essentials, there is definitely something for everyone…

 

1Q84 Haruki Murakami

This voluminous novel, set in 1984, is simultaneously a mystery, a love story and a dystopian fantasy that raises questions of psychology and ethics - a must for Murakami fans.

BETTER ANGELS OF OUR NATURE Steven Pinker

Are humans essentially good or bad? Has the past century seen moral progress of moral collapse? Pinker addresses these questions and more.

11/22/63 Stephen King

A meditation on memory, loss, free will and necessity, King’s novel sends a teacher back to 1958 by way of a time portal in a Maine diner. His assignment is to stop Lee Harvey Oswald – but first he must make sure of Oswald’s guilt.

AND SO IT GOES. KURT VONNEGUT: A LIFE Charles J Shields

From Dresden to his mother’s suicide, the early death of a beloved sister, serial unhappy marriages and literary anxiety, Vonnegut earned his status as Man of Sorrows, as this diligent and often heartbreaking biography shows.

PARIS TO THE PAST Ina Caro

With lively historical stories, dramatic biographies and countless tips on everything from charming bistros to grand hotels, Caro guides readers through all the splendours of French history – all via twenty-five train trips from central Paris.

GAME OF THRONES George R R Martin

Fantasy literature has never shied away from grandeur, but the sheer mind-boggling scope of Martin’s epic makes this is a remarkable page-turning read, with a whole series to follow it.

ARGUABLY Christopher Hitchens

Hitchens’ recent passing inevitably throws a shadow over this spirited, provocative, prodigiously witty collection, which spans four decades of writing.

NATURE Alain Ducasse

Michelin starred French chef, Alain Ducasse, unveils some of his secrets on how he enjoys hosting, simply with friends gathered around a delicious, yet simple and surprisingly healthy, nutritious meal.