Welcome to ABC Arts' monthly book column. Each month, we present a shortlist of new releases read and recommended by The Bookshelf's Kate Evans and The Book Show's Claire Nichols and Sarah L'Estrange — alongside recommendations from freelance writer and critic Declan Fry.
All four read voraciously and widely, and the only guidelines we give them are: make it a new release; make it something you think is great.
The resulting list features an unputdownable mystery inspired by the wildly popular Teacher's Pet podcast; a darkly comic coming-of-age novel about two teenage misfits who unwittingly instigate a moral panic; a "marvellous" and overdue biography of one of Australia's most influential 20th-century writers; a searing WWI tale of a city in flames told from the perspective of four real historical characters (including our own Miles Franklin); and a groundbreaking essay collection showcasing Indigenous voices from around the world.
