FOR TWILIGHT fans, the excitement is mounting as we edge nearer to the release of New Moon, which is out on November 16 in the USA and on November 20 in the UK.

So what we can expect from the hotly-anticipated sequel, based on the second novel in Stephenie Meyer's vampire romance saga?

Kristen Stewart, who plays Bella Swan, said: "Lots more is introduced in the second film. For a start, Edward leaves Bella, which is interesting - we see them cope without each other." Speaking in Empire magazine, she said: "There's also the world of the werewolves, which comes alive, and we meet Jacob, who is supposed to represent light and warmth. He pulls Bella out of the rut that she's in."

Hinting at a "really tragic" love triangle in the film, she added: "There is just a lot more to work with here. The first film was good but it was about ultimate love, but it's also kind of one-note. Now, it's a more complex story."

Director Chris Weitz hopes the sequel would have wider appeal and promised it had more to offer male viewers through the werewolves, the fight scenes and a larger role for Jacob, whose character is more accessible than the more perfect Edward.

"There are no transforming robots, nor any huge explosions, and no naked women, but we do hope to up the male demographic", he said.

David Slade  Photo:  newmoon.twilightmovies.org/

David Slade is coming down to the end of principal photography on "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse".

He Tweets: "Psycho Sclerosis, the hardening of the attitudes. Allowing fewer & fewer new ideas to pass until finally, I suppose, Psycho coronary arrest."

It should be noted that Slade also made reference to browsing a particular Twitter site, and also said:

"Just browsing #itshouldbeillegal and I think well, #itshouldbeillegal to have a tiny narrow closed mind."

Slade, who is also a photographer, has posted numerous pictures on Twitter during shooting, and most recently captioned one "Sleeping beast of Cthulhu, I mean almost wrap party.'  Cthulhu is a reference to the horror stories of HP Lovecraft.  It's been a long shoot.

Over the past couple of days, Slade has mentioned that he has been wrapping with various actors.not every cast member finishes at the same time.  Some cast members, like Peter Facinelli and Billy Burke, have been working on other projects while "Eclipse" has been in production.

"Wrapped five actors tonight, its getting a lot less crowded in Forks.Best wishes now and into the future to all those who finished work tonight. Just a few more days shooting left. Finish line is approaching...and then there's post production to start, 8 months of it...."

Post-production includes editing, scoring, sound mixing and special effects. Actors sometimes have to come back in to rerecord dialogue either because of background noise in the original takes (Slade has mentioned problems with overhead aircraft) or because the actor never really got it right while shooting the scene. On occasion, reshoots are done.

In any event, although the "Eclipse" cast and crew will be having a wrap party soon, David Slade has a lot more "Twilight" in his immediate future.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer - Twilight Saga Book 3 - 9781904233916

SEX, drugs and corruption. These are common issues plaguing prisons the world over. Now an Australian journalist and author has come out with a book on the goings on in Bali's Kerobokan prison.

"Hotel Kerobokan" is the product of 18 months of research by Kathryn Bonella, who visited the prison every day to interview inmates and observe the relationships between prisoners and guards, reports the Jakarta Globe.

Bonella is the biographer of convicted Australian drug smuggler Schapelle Corby. Schapelle has spent five years in the jail for marijuana possession and who, Bonella says, has become immune to the daily horrors.

According to the publishers, Macmillan Australia, the book depicts Kerobokan as "a bizarre nether world where murderers sleep alongside petty thieves, drug and alcohol addiction is rife, guards are corrupt and money talks."

Bonella writes in the book that at the prison, she encountered a world where "the unbelievable fast became ordinary,".

"I was fascinated with this crazy world of drugs, sex and gambling - where paedophiles, serial killers and rapists sleep alongside card sharks, petty thieves and unlucky tourists caught at a club with one or two ecstasy pills in their pocket," she writes in the book.

Hotel Kerobokan - Kathryn Bonella- 9781405039369

She is foremost of those that I would hear praised." This line from W.B. Yeats comes to mind whenever I read reviews of Alice Munro's work. It is great to see people agreeing with you. It is very moving to see the gestures of admiration and respect afforded to Munro from committees and gatherings of the great and the good. She was recently awarded the third-ever Man Booker International Prize for Fiction. She will be honoured by fellow writers, including Alistair McLeod and Richard Ford, at the Vancouver International Writers Festival in October. Her star has never been higher.

But there is a hesitation in the silence at the end of Yeats's line, an intimation that praise, though appropriate, might be also beside the point. There is a part of me that listens to the response Munro's work now elicits and says, "Would everyone be quiet a minute, and read."

Munro's work famously resists the critics. Some say that this is because she writes about life itself, unmediated by literary technique or pretension, but actually there are many different ways of writing about "life itself." The sense of transparency comes not just from the clarity of her prose, but also from the fact that Munro's characters belong to communities, where certain things are known and other things are not known. The stories have the feel of talk; their shape comes from a sense of "the way life goes," about how a character turns out, or who turns up.

This kind of story-making requires continuity and stability, and though you might think this could not happen, or happen so well, in any country other than Canada, you might also say that the stories create their own stable worlds. The women characters make relationships and families, the way women do; they also make themselves, and they learn lessons along the way about the success and limits of their labours.

Too Much Happiness by Alice Munro - 9780701183059

Audrey Niffenegger was born in 1963 in the idyllic hamlet of South Haven, Michigan. Her family moved to Evanston, Illinois when she was little; she has lived in or near Chicago for most of her life.

She began making prints in 1978 under the tutelage of William Wimmer. Miss Niffenegger trained as a visual artist at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and received her MFA from Northwestern University's Department of Art Theory and Practice in 1991. She has exhibited her artist's books, prints, paintings, drawings and comics at Printworks Gallery in Chicago since 1987.

Her first books were printed and bound by hand in editions of ten. Two of these have since been commercially published by Harry N. Abrams: The Adventuress and The Three Incestuous Sisters.

In 1997 Miss Niffenegger had an idea for a book about a time traveler and his wife. She originally imagined making it as a graphic novel, but eventually realized that it is very difficult to represent sudden time shifts with still images. She began to work on the project as a novel, and published The Time Traveler's Wife in 2003 with the independent publisher MacAdam/Cage. It was an international best seller, and has been made into a movie.

In 1994 a group of book artists, papermakers and designers came together to found a new book arts center, the Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and Paper Arts. Miss Niffenegger was part of this group and taught book arts for many years as a professor in Columbia College's MFA program in Interdisciplinary Book and Paper Arts. She still teaches at Columbia College; currently she is teaching writing courses that specialize in text-image relationships. Miss Niffenegger has also taught for the Newberry Library, Penland School of Craft and other institutions of higher learning.

Miss Niffenegger's second novel, Her Fearful Symmetry, was published in 2009.  She recently made a serialised graphic novel for the London Guardian, The Night Bookmobile, which will be published in book form in 2010. Other current projects include an art exhibit at Printworks Gallery in September, 2010, and a third novel, The Chinchilla Girl in Exile.

Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger - 9780224085625

Millions of disgruntled passengers might say it is more suited to high farce than literary endeavour, but Heathrow attained cultural respectability as the author Alain de Botton made his public debut as writer-in-residence at Britain's largest airport.

The mind behind tomes such as The Art of Travel and How Proust Can Change Your Life is mastering the more prosaic matters of baggage handling and inflight catering as he becomes the latest artistic figure to tread the precarious line between creative independence and commerce after signing a publishing deal with the financial support of Heathrow's owner, BAA.

He follows in the footsteps of others such as bestselling author Fay Weldon, who in one of the most notorious sell-outs of recent times shocked the arts world in 2001 when it emerged that her latest novel had been sponsored by the Italian jewellery firm Bulgari.

De Botton says BAA has given him complete editorial freedom and access to all areas as part of a one-book publishing deal. "One of the first things I said when they offered it to me was that I should be allowed to say what I want to say," De Botton said. "If I see a cockroach coming out of the Carluccio's here then I should be able to write about it. BAA used to be so guarded as an organisation, but they have thrown open their doors to me."

A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton - 9781846683596

In his upcoming memoir, tennis star Andre Agassi admits that in 1997 he used the recreational drug crystal meth -- or "gack," as his assistant, referred to only as Slim, called it. The book "Open: An Autobiography" will be in stores in November,

"...Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table. He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some. I ease back on the couch and consider the Rubicon I've just crossed.

There is a moment of regret, followed by vast sadness. Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I've never felt so alive, so hopeful -- and I've never felt such energy.

I'm seized by a desperate desire to clean. I go tearing around my house, cleaning it from top to bottom. I dust the furniture. I scour the tub. I make the beds...

Later, Agassi tested positive for the drug. It would mean a public suspension, and he feared, a lot more.

"...My name, my career, everything is now on the line. Whatever I've achieved, whatever I've worked for, might soon mean nothing. Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. It's filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth.

I say Slim, whom I've since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth ? which is true. Then I come to the central lie of the letter. I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim's spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely.

I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it.

While the admission now may get him in hot water with some sports officials, it certainly can't hurt his book sales. How many people knew the 1992 Wimbledon champion had a memoir coming out? Now, we all do.

Open - An Autobiography - Andre Agassi - 9780007281442

French writer Catherine Millet made her name with a memoir of her countless sexual flings, but it turns out she was as jealous as any faithful wife would be when she found out her husband was also having affairs.

Author of "The Sexual Life of Catherine M." which has sold over 2 million copies and been translated into more than 40 languages since being published in 2001, Millet is back with a new book called "Jealousy.

It is about a three-year crisis in her relationship with writer Jacques Henric, her partner of 36 years, triggered by her discovery of photos and notebooks about his sexual escapades.

"I suffered terribly because I was torn apart by a contradiction," Millet said from her Paris home, an airy house hidden at the back of a leafy courtyard and decorated with pictures of her, naked, taken by Henric.

"How could I have blamed him for behaving in exactly the same way that I had for so long?" said the 60-year-old author, whose history of orgies and casual sex with strangers in public places is luridly described in "The Sexual Life".

Millet is the editor of a contemporary art review, art press, and the publication of her sexually explicit memoir caused a stir in Paris intellectual circles. With her new book just out, she is once again all over the French papers -- including on the cover of one magazine where she appears naked.

Reflecting her tastes, her house is full of tomes on art and literature but also books with titles like "Forbidden Erotica". Avant-garde paintings vie for space with erotic statuettes.

Jealousy by Catherine Millet - 9781846687181

The first biography of Nobel Prize-winning novelist William Golding by celebrated writer and critic, John Carey.

In 1953, William Golding was a provincial schoolteacher, writing books in his breaks, lunch hours and holidays. His work had been rejected by every publisher he sent it to - until an editor at Faber pulled his manuscript off the rejection pile. This was to become Lord of the Flies, a book that would sell in its millions and bring Golding worldwide recognition.

Drawing almost entirely on materials that have never before been made public, John Carey sheds new light on Golding. Through hundreds of letters, unpublished works and Golding's intimate journals, Carey draws a revelatory and definitive portrait of an extraordinary man. In an absorbing and compelling narrative, he reveals a many-sided figure: a war-hero, a reclusive depressive who considered himself a ?monster', a family man, a victim of fears and phobias who battled against alcoholism, and a writer who trusted the imagination above all things.

William Golding by John Carey - The Man Who Wrote Lord Of The Flies - 9780571231638

Editor Stephen Jay Schneider has brought together 1001 movies ranging from art house classics to westerns, written by leading film critics and journalists. Often witty, always informative, the reviews in this huge volume provide insightful and erudite guides to the best movies ever.

A dozen genres are covered: musicals, thrillers, westerns, science-fiction, comedy, war, horror, epics, film noir, art-house, romance, and social drama, arranged in chronological order. Older classics such as Some Like it Hot, Singin' in the Rain, Casablanca, On the Waterfront, Psycho and High Noon jostle for position with contemporary classics such as Goodfellas, Saving Private Ryan, Braveheart and Star Wars. This magnificent guide covers close to a century of memorable movies.

1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die - Steven Jay Schneider - 9780733327759

Nigerian novelist, short story writer, and poet, one of the leading African writers. In his work Okri has experimented with new literary forms, different styles, genres, and traditions. Okri started as a realist, with postcolonial themes. After exploring with stream of consciousness Okri published novels which mixed realism, modernism, and oral forms, especially those of Yoruba culture. This style has been characterized as an example of magic realism with African flavor, although the author himself has emphasized the realistic dimensions of his work - myths and local beliefs are part of the real world, urban life-world, not that they exist next to the real world.

"We are the miracles that God made
To taste the bitter fruit of Time.
We are precious.
And one day our suffering
Will turn into the wonders of earth."
(from 'An African Elegy')

Ben Okri, a member of the Urhobo people, was born in Minna to Grace and Silver Okri. After his birth his father moved to England to study law. Okri spent his earliest years in Peckham, south London. He attended primary school in London but returned with his family to Nigeria aged seven. His father practiced in Lagos among those who could not afford normal legal fees - this later gave material for the author's fiction. Okri childhood was shadowed by the Nigerian civil war (the Biafran War). As a child he read widely, and his mother told him many African stories. He attended Urhobo College, Warri, for a few years. When he was constantly being withdrawn from various schools he continued his education largely at home in Lagos.

Infinite Riches - Ben Okri - 9780099540335

1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die - Dr Peter Boxall - 9780733327834

John W. Dozier, Jr. began practicing law in 1981 and is recognized, through peer review, for his high level of skill and integrity.   His firm, Dozier Internet Law protects the reputations and intellectual property of businesses by handling legal matters involving online defamation, copyright and trademark infringement, and hacking. John is the author and publisher of the Dozier Internet Law Federal Court Report and is a leading pro-business commentator on Internet law. He lives in Virginia.

Sue Scheff, founder of Parents' Universal Resources Experts, Inc. (P.U.R.E.), a child and parenting advocacy organization, is a noted expert on Internet Defamation by countless mediums after winning $11.3M in a 2006 lawsuit against a woman who posted viral defamatory statements about Scheff and P.U.R.E. She has appeared on The Rachel Ray Show, ABC News, CNN Headline News, Fox News, CBS News: Sunday Morning, and NPR, to name a few.

Michael Fertik,  is a repeat Internet entrepreneur and CEO with experience in technology and law. He is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. In his capacity as CEO of ReputationDefender, Michael serves on the advisory board of The Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe), a non-profit that works for the health and safety of youth online.  Michael Fertik has been featured on ABC News, 20/20, Good Morning America, NBC News, The Today Show, CBS News, The Early Show, Fox and Friends, Fox News, NPR, CNN,  Forbes, Newsweek, Washington Post and many more media outlets for his expertise in online reputation management.

Google Bomb - John W. Dozier Jr -   Expert Solutions to Protect Yourself from Online Attacks - 9780757314155

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is a highly readable list of the best, the most important, and the most influential pop albums from 1955 through 2003. Carefully selected by a team of international critics, each album is a groundbreaking work seminal to the understanding and appreciation of music from the 1950s to the present. Included with each entry are production details and credits as well as reproductions of original album cover art. Perhaps most important of all, each album featured comes with an authoritative description of its importance and influence. Among the critics involved in selecting the list are some of the best known music reviewers and commentators, including Theunis Bates (music writer for Time and urban editor at worldpop.com), Jon Harrington (staff writer at MTV), Seth Jacobson (writer for Dazed & Confused), as well as many others.

Many reference works are highly enjoyable to browse, and some are downright addictive! Case in point: these two delightful compilations of all the awesome albums to hear and books to read before departing Planet Earth. Organized chronologically (Albums are sorted by decade and Books by century), the two volumes devote a page-long entry to each album and/or book summarizing what makes it exceptional. Quibbles naturally abound, but the point here is not to agree but to simply have fun leafing through the glossy pages. You need not order these for your library, but you probably wouldn't mind keeping them for yourself.

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - Robert Dimery - 9780733327841

Raj Patel is looking for solutions to the world's biggest problems, notably poverty and hunger, but he's not satisfied with pat answers. A social justice activist, Patel is apt to challenge the very solutions he espouses. He buys fair trade products, yet concedes that they are probably just "a thin patch on an unsustainable system." He explores participatory budgeting as a progressive solution for cities but also probes its flaws, and he praises the idea of "slow food" but questions its affordability.

"I'm the first person to take the piss out of myself," says the London-born author, who now lives in the United States. "Also, I think that always questioning the foundations you stand on is an incredibly sound idea."

Patel's work, such as his 2007 book, Stuffed and Starved, has often revolved around the sociopolitics of food systems. He widens the net in his new book, The Value of Nothing, which proposes valuing people, places, and animals regardless of their economic worth?a truly radical idea whose time has come.

"Social movements are figuring that value is a political thing, not an economic thing," Patel says. "I'm trying to be the Johnny Appleseed of social change."

The Value of Nothing - Raj Patel - 978186395456

At 75, celebrity agent and confessed philanderer Harry M. Miller looks back on the women he has loved.

"The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it", Oscar Wilder, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Oscar Wilde captured a sentiment dear to my own heart, I'm afraid to say.

My weaknesses have always been women and sweet things like cakes and chocolate. These days, I struggle more with the latter, although that hasn't always been the case. When it came to sleeping with women, I often found myself in two minds - yes or yes. Did I oblige on occasions? Yes but only when pressed. Did I hurt a lot of people? Yes. Do I continue making the same mistakes? Yes.

I'm not one to hold back by nature when it comes to sex, business or anything. I do know my infidelities hurt some people but I am what I am and, try as I might on occasion, very little changes. Perhaps it's a constant craving for pampering. I'm not sure. It's still very much an unresolved part of my life and, though a gentleman doesn't kiss and tell, a man of my age can perhaps get away with revealing a little.

Confessions of a Not so Secret Agent - Harry M Miller and Peter Holder - 9780733624308

Anne Rice gets vampires. She understands the dangerous charm of these wily bloodsuckers and why audiences are attracted to their stories, and she spent years writing about them even before the Tom Cruise-starring big-screen adaptation of "Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles" in 1994. In the last few years, though, Rice quit writing about vampires and another author, Stephenie Meyer, with her "Twilight" tales of teen love, replaced Rice as the superstar storyteller of bloodsucking immortals.

Though she said she hasn't read any of the "Twilight" books, Rice still gets vampires and appreciates why they continue to fascinate people. A viewing of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart's film made all this clear to the author.

"I haven't read any of the 'Twilight' series, but I did see the film," Rice said. "I felt that it reflected the deep desire of young women to have the mystery and protection and wisdom of older men. I think many girls mature much earlier than boys, and they are frustrated when they approach young boys for love or protection. Hence the fantasy of a wise and protective vampire coming into the life of a young girl who, of course, appreciates him in a special way."

"Twilight" isn't the only vampire franchise for which Rice has an appreciation. Since she's no longer writing about the supernatural beings, she can take pleasure in their moment of renewed pop-cultural relevancy. "I think it's wonderful fun," she said. "Now that I don't write the 'Vampire Chronicles' [series of books] I feel free to enjoy it. I really enjoy the HBO series 'True Blood.' When I was writing my own, I wouldn't have wanted to be influenced."

Might Rice again tackle the vampire? Could she herself tap into the cultural phenomenon? That seems unlikely, as she explained in the interview. "Vampires for me were always like feeling grief for my lost childhood faith, being cut off from that life," she explained. "I reached the point where I didn't have any more stories to tell from that point of view. Being on the side of the angels, it feels much better than being on the side of the vampires. Vampires were tortured, tragic figures."

With New Moon" set to hit theaters on Nov. 20, Kellan Lutz is a hot commodity. We talked to the former Abercrombie model who telephoned from Los Angeles during a break from filming "Eclipse," the third movie of the series, which is due out June 30, 2010.

What can you tell me about "New Moon"?

As far as "New Moon" goes, it's similar to the book. Taylor Lautner (who plays Jacob Black) does an amazing job and (director) Chris Weitz does an even better job of captivating the (werewolves) and making them real characters, in a way. It's more of a manly movie.

What do you do to get into character, to get your mind into the vampire world?

For me, when I'm away on set, the energy I get from my workouts and the training I do - especially with filming "Eclipse" right now - helps put myself in the mindset of becoming Emmett. It's a lot of testosterone buildup, I guess (laughs). A lot of times what helps is to do quick pushups to get the heart rate going.

In "New Moon," when Jasper comes out in this whole rage sequence, it's really nice to have your heart pumping during that scene.

What's the craziest thing a fan has ever done to get your attention?

Well, it's not necessarily crazy, but one fan made this action figure doll of me, like it was her personal Emmett. That was the coolest thing.

A kind of "out there" scenario was when a fan asked if she could handcuff herself to me. I thought she was joking but she whipped out handcuffs. It's adorable, though. They are just so in love with the franchise and the books and the characters.

I've heard that you like to do your own stunts. What are some of the more memorable ones you've done?

I did a movie called "The Forgotten Ones." The budget was really low, so we didn't really have stunt doubles; we had guys that would help set up the stuff. It was shot in Costa Rica, and we weren't able to have the best equipment. So there were scenes where I had to fall from a tree. I learned to not have any air in your lungs because once you hit the ground you knock the wind out of yourself. So I learned the hard way - when I couldn't get up and breathe for a couple of minutes. That was the scariest stunt that I had to do.

With "Eclipse," we're doing some really intense (stunts) - ratchets and pulleys and magic carpets and stuff. It's great to be allowed to do some more extreme things than some of the other actors.

You got your start in modeling. How hard was it to transition from modeling to acting?

The transition wasn't too hard. I think it just takes being able to hold your own in front of a camera and to know what to do and what not to do. So I guess all the training with modeling - knowing how to work with the camera or to allow the camera to capture a certain essence that you're trying to portray, that's a big part of the acting world.

I did a lot of studying, because when I first started acting I thought, 'I don't need school for this.' And I learned very quickly that I didn't know what I was doing, and I was failing miserably and not getting callbacks.

Do you have anything to add to your fans?

I have been very fortunate - I think we all have, being part of the "Twilight" saga - to have loving fans. We were all weary doing the first movie, hoping they'd accept us. We're just all ecstatic that they accepted us and support it and allow us to continue with the franchise. I love going and meeting all the fans from different places in the world, it's just great seeing the love.

With a page-turning plot and characters that leap off the page, this is the story of an obsessive friendship and dark secrets that can no longer be hidden.

'Truth or dare?' she asks.

I hesitate. I have so many secrets, so many things I don't want to reveal, but this is only a game, only a bit of fun. 'Truth,' I say finally. 'I can imagine one of your dares, and I don't fancy running down Oxford Street naked tonight.'

'Truth,' Alice says slowly, drawing out the vowel sound as if she's savouring the word. 'Are you sure? Are you sure you can be completely honest?'

'I think so. Try me.'

'Okay.' And then she looks at me curiously. 'So. Were you glad, deep down? Were you glad to be rid of her? Your perfect sister? Were you secretly glad when she was killed?'

Katherine has moved away from her shattered once-perfect family to start a new life in Sydney. There she keeps her head down until she is befriended by the charismatic Alice, and her life takes her in new directions. But there is a dark side to Alice, and as we learn the truth of Katherine's sister's death and Alice's background their story spirals to an explosive finale.

A potent, intense and simply unputdownable psychological thriller from an exciting voice.

Beautiful Malice - Rebecca James - 9781742373003

-------------------------------------------------------

The publishing world is in a frenzy over a debut novel whose Australian author is drawing comparisons to JK Rowling (Harry Potter? Perhaps you've heard of it.). "Beautiful Malice was one of the most extraordinary manuscripts I've read in a very long while," one editor with an insufficient bid says of Rebecca James' thriller, intended for teens and up. "I'm still reeling over having lost it."

James, a 39-year-old mother of four, was literally facing bankruptcy after her kitchen-sales business went bust, only to see her novel picked out of a pile of unsolicited manuscripts. Now, she says she's "gobsmacked" over becoming an overnight millionaire, with Beautiful Malice to be translated into 30 languages. "It was very scary," James tells the Wall Street Journal of the ride, but "this is now an amazing fairy tale."

In Life: Things to Get You By, Marcia delivers her inspiring perspective on life, love, fame and so much more. This gorgeous book comes after the release and success of Marcia's LIFE album - a group of songs that, according to the songstress, truly represented her life and her perspective on living. Now, for the very first time, Marcia shares herself without a backing track.

This is a truly inspirational account of what it means to get by in life - music, love, laughter, spirituality and simple lessons.

Life by Marcia Hines - Things to get you by - 9781401924294

His has been a life of cunning stunts - falling from the sky, jumping off cliffs, crashing motorbikes, rolling cars ... Grant Page, one of the world's best and most fearless stuntmen, tells his extraordinary life story.

If you've watched an Australian film, TV show or ad during the past fifty years, chances are you've seen stuntman Grant Page - falling from the sky, jumping off cliffs, crashing motorbikes, rolling cars, hang-gliding over skyscrapers, or setting himself on fire. He's fearless, forensic and there's nothing he won't try - which makes him the go-to man for anyone wanting a spectacular explosion, a kick-arse fight or an edge-of-your-seat adrenaline rush.

Whether it's falling backwards from a great height on fire, sliding a motorbike under a rolling truck, standing in for Mel Gibson - or Shelley Winters! - or mixing it with the maddest and baddest stars and stunties the film industry can offer, Grant's seen and done it all, and had a wild old time along the way. Strap yourself in for the funniest, most outrageous ride of your life as Man on Fire catapults you into the heart of the action.

'Grant is the guy you get to dodge the cars, slide down the cliff on fire, jump in the water and fight the shark. . . He's the kind of guy who just blocks out pain for as long as necessary. It'll hurt later.' - Brian Trenchard-Smith, director

'The most fearless man I've ever met.' - Stacy Keach, actor

'He was gonzo, just ... whacked. In America you just call that insane. He's still alive? That's a miracle right there!' - Jamie Lee-Curtis, actor

About Grant Page and Steve Wright
Grant Page is one of Australia's best stuntmen. With more than 50 years in the film industry, he has over 200 credits to his name. Page was the stunt coordinator for the Australian action movies The Man From Hong Kong and Mad Max, as well as other Australian and overseas films including the cult horror flick Deathship, The Island with Michael Caine and City on Fire with Shelley Winters, Henry Fonda and Ava Gardner. He also starred in the 1970s Australian TV series Danger Freaks and more recently in the 2008 documentary, Not Quite Hollywood.

Steve Wright was born in London in 1951. He first came to Australia in 1972 and settled in Sydney in 1980 where he has worked as a writer since 1983. His books include the detective stories: 'Love, Avalon', 'A Drop In The Ocean', 'A Break In The Traffic'; and his comic novel, The Life Of Riley.

Man on Fire - Grant Page and Steve Wright - A stunt of a life - 9781741758184

IN 2004, Paula Constant began walking from Trafalgar Square in London. Since then, she has walked over 12000km through 8 countries: England, France, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali and Niger. The walk has been done in three separate stages - the first leg, from London to MHamid el Ghizlaine in Southern Morocco, was walked with her husband Gary during 2004-5. Paula and Gary returned to the desert in September 2005 and continued with four camels and local guides.

When Gary left the walk that November, Paula continued on to walk over 2,800 km through Morocco and the Western Sahara. She returned to Australia in June 2006 after her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and in October of that year returned to Mauritania to continue her walk - this time planning to complete a West to East crossing of the Sahara on foot with only local and camel support. She received sponsorship from Dove Australia, Birkenstock Australia, and Utopia travel insurance for this leg of the walk, and chose to dedicate the walk to raising awareness for the National Breast Cancer Foundation of Australia.

Paula went on to walk over 4,200 km through the Sahara, passing Tomboctou in Mali and entering Niger, where she was stopped by authorities due to a civil war which is as yet unresolved. She was over halfway across the desert when she was forced to halt her walk.

Her first book, Slow Journey South, was released by Random House in Australia in 2008.  Her second, Sahara is due to be instore in October 2009.  Paula is currently based in Australia, and is planning a walk through the Australian deserts for 2010, details of which are in the blog.

Sahara - Paula Constant - 9781741669299

This is the amazing true story of one woman's journey to overcome injury and reach the pinnacle of endurance running - the 135 mile Badwater Ultramarathon. It features dedicated mailing and e-mail campaign to targeted sport related media & organisations.

At 135 miles long and with temperatures reaching 55[degrees]C in the shade, the Badwater Ultramarathon through Death Valley in the United States is arguably the world's toughest foot race. Lisa Tamati was the first Australasian woman to compete in this gruelling feat of endurance in 2008. But Lisa's story is so much more than that one race. At the age of 19, she suffered a crippling back injury and was told she should give up running.

She took that as a challenge and, with her Austrian boyfriend, went on to run, walk, bike and paddle her way across thousands of kilometres of Europe, Scandinavia and Africa before taking on the ultimate challenge - an unassisted crossing of the Libyan Desert. What happened in that desert would change the course of Lisa's life and instil in her a love of desert running. "Running Hot" is a story of a life lived to the max - a story of challenges, setbacks, heartbreaks and triumph.

Running Hot - Lisa Tamati and Nicola McCloy - 9781877505010

Micah Wilkins admits she's a liar. But will murder be enough of a reason to stop lying? An extraordinary and original story that will have you grasping for the truth until the very last page.

Secrets, lies, murder and betrayal.

Micah Wilkins is a liar. But when her boyfriend, Zach, dies under brutal circumstances, the shock might be enough to set her straight. Or maybe not. Especially when lying comes as naturally to her as breathing. Was Micah dating Zach? Did they kiss? Did she see him the night he died? And is she really hiding a family secret? Where does the actual truth lie?
Liar is a breathtaking roller-coaster read that will have you up all night, desperately seeking for something true.

About Justine Larbalestier
Justine Larbalestier is a Sydney girl who divides her time between Sydney and New York City. She is the author of How to Ditch Your Fairy and the Magic or Madness trilogy. Magic or Madness won the 2007 Andre Norton Award and was shortlisted for the 2006 Ethel Turner Award. Liar is the novel that's been messing with her mind for the last five years.

Liar by Justine Larbalestier - 9781741758726

Similarities between his life and Reg Mombassa's were a test of objectivity when Murray Waldren set out to write a biography of the artist Reg and me: Reg Mombassa with biographer Murray Waldren

THE last thing I wanted was to write a biography. The last thing he wanted was to have a biography written about him. So the odds favoured a brief encounter two years ago when, at the persistence of literary agent Lyn Tranter, I met up with Chris O'Doherty, the artist better known as Reg Mombassa.

It didn't start out terribly well. I'd taken along a portfolio of painter profile pieces to prove my credentials to the rock star celebrated for creating the farting dog Mambo T-shirt. He told me how much he admired the book I'd done on rock music posters. It was a double dose of mistaken identities: turns out he isn't Richard Allan, turns out I'm not Murray Walding.

Our shared propensity for klutziness didn't warm us to the project, though. Nor did the discoveries we were born in Auckland two suburbs and four months apart; that our fathers were Irish with a talent for the drink; and that our mothers were English-bred for fierce love and family protection.

Still, our nerdy-edged boyhoods in 1950s New Zealand, lulled in cocoons of vivid imagination and social inertia, and our 60s outsider adolescences of emotional awkwardness and incipient outlawry were points in common, as were our escapes to Australia and the sex 'n' drugs 'n' rock 'n' roll excitement of Sydney's inner-city 70s.

And sure, we'd both written poetry, but didn't everyone then? And OK, we were both in the music biz, even if he was long-time front of stage and feted with Mental As Anything and I was short-time backstage lugging amps and axes for a long-gone heavy metal band.

I empathised with his dry understatement, and his droll scepticism resonated in a strange way. There was the art, too, and the fact his painting career had been (slightly) distracted by 30 years of rock performing and mine (completely) by nearly three decades of jobbing journalism.

And there was more, including separate friendships with Mambo creator Dare Jennings. Even so, none of these was enough to lower his guard fully or to raise my enthusiasm too high, until we started discussing what we liked in painters and painting, and our "same, same" refrains began to roil around.

It was then we encountered the thing that sold me on the project, and it was so minor as to verge on the ridiculous: both of us loved the way Renaissance artists subverted the taste police of the time by using background window glimpses in portraits to lovingly detail landscape. It was a sensibility and idiosyncratic obsession that made me think "Yes, I'd really like to get in and detail this life."

It was fortunate then that a few days later, after we had broken off to think it through, we agreed we could work together, because by then I was set on doing so.

Not that it all went swimmingly. Despite the synchronicities, we were no peas-in-a-pod doppelgangers, and his life was not my life. Mombassa's life, in fact, was more like the lives of three hyperactive people. Lived in double time.

The Mind and Times of Reg Mombassa - Murray Waldren - 9780732287894

Ozzy Osbourne is perched on a sofa in London's Dorchester Hotel, a glass of iced water at hand, cups of unfinished tea on every available surface.

It is late on a cold, dark afternoon and the lighting in the suite is dim. But even up close, there's barely a hint of the shambolic, brain-fried alcoholic who blundered through the world's most famous reality TV show, The Osbournes.

The legendary rocker is back on the road but this time it is to spruik his autobiography, I am Ozzy. He sits for a second, fidgets then leans forward and asks nervously, more like a diffident teenager than the Prince of Darkness: "Did you like the book really? Was it a good read, yeah?"

The book is a great read, a terrifying, disgusting, maudlin but mostly funny odyssey through a life in which one thing is certain: John Michael Osbourne must have been born under a lucky star because no mere mortal could survive that level of substance abuse for more than half a century.

"I tried to put a lot of humour in it, you know. Humour has kept me going throughout my life. When I was at school I had dyslexia. They didn't know what it was back then so I was the class clown. I used to try to make people laugh," he says, suddenly pensive. "Behind the clown is a sad man you know, it's like . oh look, I am not going to harp on about what a bad childhood I had . my folks did the very best they could. But there was six of us in a very tiny house, it was hard. I've been incredibly fortunate in my life, there's been a lot of luck . "

Osbourne says people remain obsessed with three stories - the bat, the dove and relieving himself on Fort Alamo - so he wants to set the record straight.

The bat only lost its head because someone threw it on stage and he thought it was a rubber one. He copped a course of rabies shots for his trouble. The dove was deliberately decapitated during a meeting with record company executives when a plan to release the birds to make a flamboyant point went horribly awry. The bean counters ignored Ozzy, who decided to regain their attention by chomping the dove. And yes, he was arrested leglessly drunk while wearing his wife's evening gown. He'd wandered out, found himself needing a leak and aimed at the closest wall - which was one of America's most sacred monuments to the battle of the Alamo in Texas.

The stories are told with complete lack of embarrassment, such as a visit to the mansion of crooner Roger Whittaker, too many laxatives, a downstairs loo with no paper and curtains.

An interview with Anna Goldsworthy, author of the new release memoir Piano Lessons

Piano Lessons is a memoir about growing up, following your passion, teaching and learning, music, ambition, family and much, much more. Is there one central theme or idea that captures the essence of your story?

I thought I was writing a memoir of vocation, in which I explore my relationship with music through my relationship with my teacher, Eleonora Sivan. But I've had a range of responses from its early readers, each of whom feels it is about something different: anxiety and obsessiveness; the lacerating nature of artistic pursuit; growing up with a writer for a father.

Do readers need to have an understanding of classical music to enjoy Piano Lessons?

At the start of the book, I have no understanding of classical music, so that provides an entry point for a reader with no musical background. I also hope it might be of interest to members of the music-loving public who wonder what goes through a musician's mind on stage.

What made you want to write Piano Lessons?

I had always planned to write a book about Eleonora, but I always imagined this might be a project for my twilight years. Then a couple of years ago I received an email from Chris Feik, the publisher at Black Inc, asking if I might like to write a memoir about the ?piano-playing life'. At first I thought a memoir - how presumptuous! - I'd been studying the piano for twenty-five years but still felt I was only beginning.. but gradually I came around to the idea. It occurred to me that writing such a book might clarify my own thoughts about music, and might also be a way of honouring Eleonora. But the book went beyond this to incorporate many of the themes you mention above.

Did you find it difficult to write about yourself and your family?

I enjoyed writing about childhood but the writing became more problematic for me as I grew up. I didn't think I could still be embarrassed by my adolescence - surely a statute of limitations applies in such cases - but reliving those years was still painful: writing about my teenage anxieties seemed to resurrect them. And while I loved writing about my family, I wondered afterwards if I had said too much.

What has been the reaction from your family after reading the book?

My sister was the first to read it. She's a trainee psychiatrist and had been counselling me through my anxieties about the manuscript before I showed it to her. And while she was very reassuring I could tell she was a little concerned (what has she written about us this time? Can it really be that bad?). So when she called me up to say she loved it, I felt tremendously relieved. My mother was equally gracious, as was my father, who provided me with good editorial feedback (he also suggested that I spice up his dialogue with the occasional witty Latin one-liner, but that didn't seem fair). And although my grandfather fretted that he seemed ?even more pedantic than I admit to', he was generous enough to proof-read the manuscript meticulously, discovering any number of rogue commas and grammatical errors.

How did you choose which parts of your life to include and exclude from the book?

Mostly the material chose itself. There were certain formative events that needed to be there: key triumphs and disappointments, my first audition for Eleonora. I did find I was more drawn to stories of failure than of success, so that by the time I finished the first draft I had completed a catalogue of disasters: the memoir of a failed musician. I'm not sure why this fixation on disaster - self-deprecation gone rampant? An unwillingness to appear ?up myself'? But there's also a relief in admitting to failure. The construction of a c.v. and of a career is all about focusing on successes, while failures contain more comedy, certainly - but also better lessons.

JACOB ROSENBERG was a poet, storyteller and author who lived through one of history's darkest nightmares, and in his writings created a passionate and unique testament. His prize-winning autobiographies, East of Time and Sunrise West, were written in his third language, English.

Yaakov (Jacob) ben Gershon Rosenberg, who has died aged 86, was born in Lodz, Poland, the third child of Gershon and Masha Rosenberg. Theirs was a working-class family of meagre means, a household where books were almost mystically revered. Young Jacob read widely; in his teens he was captivated by the Russian and French classics.

He attended the Vladimir Medem school, and briefly a state school, but his formal education was soon cut short. After the Germans occupied Poland, Jacob was confined to the Lodz Ghetto with his parents, his sisters Pola and Ida, and two nieces. In August 1944 they were transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where all except for Jacob and Pola (who committed suicide just days later), were gassed on the day of arrival.

Rosenberg spent some two months in Auschwitz and the rest of the war in other camps. After liberation in May 1945 from Ebensee (a sub-camp of the Mauthausen network), he stayed in a displaced persons' camp at Santa Maria di Bagni, in the heel of Italy, and it was there that he met Esther Laufer, a survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising and eight concentration camps; they married in January 1946. In March 1948 they boarded ship in Marseilles for Australia. They worked in clothing factories in Melbourne before setting up their own business.

A writer for most of his life, Rosenberg became a regular contributor to Yiddish journals in Australia and abroad. Eventually he published three volumes of prose and poetry in Yiddish: Snow in Spring (1984), Wooden Clogs Shod with Snow (1988) and Light - Shadow - Light (1992). However, sadly aware that readership of his mother tongue was dwindling, and intent on reaching a wider audience, he decided to switch to English.

This marked the start of an explosion of creative energy. Three collections of poetry - My Father's Silence (1994), Twilight Whisper (1997) and Behind the Moon (2000) - were followed by a book of short fiction, Lives and Embers (2003), then East of Time (2005) and Sunrise West (2007). These memoirs, with their short vignette-like chapters and vibrant poetic vision, pay homage to the kaleidoscope of characters who peopled his life. Rosenberg described the books as "a personal weave of autobiography, history and imagination".

The Hollow Tree - Jacob Rosenberg - 9781741759006

Best known for her role as the beloved Ailsa Stewart on Home and Away, Nunn's new novel Maralinga is a military tale of power, love and heartbreak set in the South Australian desert in the 1950s.

Rife with conflict and emotion, Maralinga follows the story of a young British Lieutenant in the wilds of the South Australian desert where an isolated British airbase, atomic weapons testing unit and army of raw youth led by power-hungry men create a cocktail for disaster.

Maralinga is the tenth book from Nunn, who followed her successful career in acting with scriptwriting for television and radio, and in the 1980s decided to turn her hand to prose. The result was two adventure novels for children, Eye in the Storm and Eye in the City, both of which remain extremely popular in Australia and Europe.

In the 1980s, Nunn turned to adult fiction, producing three novels The Glitter Game, Centre Stage and Araluen, set respectively in the worlds of television, theatre and film. Her subsequent bestsellers, Kal, Beneath the Southern Cross, Territory, Pacific, Heritage and Floodtide confirm her as one of the country's leading popular authors.

Maralinga - Judy Nunn - 9781741666786

I think the appropriate subtitle for this article is: the day Clarissa opened up a can of worms that was better left closed.  Mostly because I've seen how passionate Twilight fans can be.  Are Vampire Diaries fans as passionate?

I would like to begin by saying that I have read each and every Twilight book, as well as the entire Vampire Diaries series.  I also saw the first Twilight movie and have religiously followed the Vampire Diaries episodes each week.  In fact, I love them (TVD, that is...).  This article is meant to be a comparison between the two series on a variety of factors that they both share, not necessarily an attack on one or the other.

The Sparkle Factor

I simply cannot say this enough times: vampires should not sparkle in the sun.  The fact that the Twilight vampires do is an out (since Meyer chose to have her characters live in a perpetually cloudy town) and removes the danger factor.  Vampires are DANGEROUS.  They kill people and suck their blood.  So when Edward walks into the sun and gets all shiny I simply cannot take him seriously.  I don't care if he can stop a fast-moving van with his bare hands.  He shouldn't twinkle like Christmas lights.

"Oh, but the Vampire Diaries vampires have rings that protect them from the sun", some of you will argue.  "Isn't that an easy out?"  Yes, it is.  But so far only Damon and Stefan have these magical rings, so if other vampires show up (and presumably they will) there's no guarantee that they will have the same protection, which still allows for potential danger.  It's a plot device, but it's still better than sparkling.

How I long for the Buffy days when the vampires only came out at night.  What was so wrong with that?  It featured high school students too.  It's like they're trying to make vampires into these ridiculously pretty boyfriends instead of the evil undead.  The sparkle thing just tramples on great historical vampire literature (like Bram Stoker's "Dracula"), when vampires feared the sun.

The Sex Factor

You know how hot the vampires are in both series?  They're HOT (more Paul Wesley with no shirt, please!).  With bodies built for sin.  So the fact that the sex quotient in Twilight is so low is kind of ridiculous.  Yes, I understand that Stephanie Meyer is a Mormon and doesn't believe in sex before marriage and that's perfectly fine, but there's a reason that shows like True Blood are so popular.  The vampires there are hot and passionate and sensual.  Which is what vampires are supposed to be.  They don't kiss their girlfriends chastely on the cheek.

And please do not talk to me about the sex scene in Breaking Dawn.  I don't want to discuss broken headboards and ripped pillowcases as proof of Twilight sensuality.  It's difficult, of course, to compare either Twilight or TVD to True Blood, because True Blood is very adult-oriented, whereas the other two are more focused on teens and girls in their early 20s, but I think there's still something to be said for the comparison.

We've already seen more hot make-out sessions in Vampire Diaries than in the first three Twilight books.  It's fun.  And sexy.

The Leading Man Factor

I'm almost afraid to write this, but I feel the Salvatore brothers are much more interesting characters than Edward.  RELAX.  I'm not saying anything about Robert Pattinson and his portrayal of Edward, I'm talking about the characters.  In the books Edward always struck me as rather bland.  Oh, he's so tortured, isn't he?  So tortured and so in love and a bit of a hero and one-dimensional.  You could probably say the same about Stefan on The Vampire Diaries, but Damon (played to perfection by Ian Somerhalder) is so delightfully wicked that he makes up for that.

I think that Stefan has potential to become something more than just a brooding hero who's in love with a human girl.  If they stick close to the books, he might remain a bit one-dimensional, but if they deviate a bit (which they have done), then they can give Stefan a purpose beyond the tortured leading man who resents his current state as a vampire.  Angel showed that you can have a brooding vampire who hates what he's become and still be a complex character.

The Leading Lady Factor

A lot of people have bashed on the Bella characterization in Twilight.  Many people have talked about how she's weak and really exists for no purpose but to love Edward.  I personally don't have a much better opinion of her.  I think it's wrong for young women to idolize a character like Bella (and I say this as a woman).  There is absolutely nothing wrong with love, but the Bella-Edward story takes it to a whole new tragic level that is not particularly healthy.  And why does Bella have to fall down so much?  I'm a klutz too but I can generally get around.

Elena as portrayed in the Vampire Diaries books is a lot different than the Elena on the show.  In the books she was very selfish and superficial.  Completely different from Bella.  In the series she's more grounded and less concerned with popularity.  And, frankly, she's a much stronger girl and character.  In the most recent episode she told Stefan that she couldn't be with him because he was a vampire and had all sorts of vampire problems.  Yes, we ALL know that she's going to go back to him, but at least she wasn't as blindly accepting.  And she fights back.  She was horrified to learn that Stefan was a vampire.  She wasn't just saying "Oh, neat!  Can we make out?"  Elena is no Buffy, but she's not a tragic heroine.  And, frankly, I'm digging her alter-ego (Katherine) in the show.  She's definitely got a mean streak that I want to learn more about.

The Evil Factor

Yes, I'm mentioning Buffy a lot, but Twilight, the Vampire Diaries and the vampire genre in general owes a lot to that show.  It showed that the vampire genre can combine elements of drama and comedy (and musicals!).  So, as Buffy liked to say: "I like my evil like I like my men..evil!"

The danger factor in Twilight is not big.  There's always soooo much build up in the books and then very little payoff (especially in the last one, where I can't recall if anyone important even died despite the fact that Renesmee was supposed to start some sort of clash of civilizations just by being born - in fact, I think there was a face-off in a field without bloodshed, but I could be wrong, so tell me if I am).  Frankly, the first Twilight movie did a much better job of portraying the 'James wants to kill Bella situation' than the book did.  The fight in the ballet studio was kind of cool.  But there's just so much talk in the Twilight books.  Even the Volturi don't feel that dangerous (maybe it's the hair?)

I like how Damon kills without regard in the Vampire Diaries.  I love how he isn't conflicted at all about murder and revels in his evilness.  I want even more danger.  I want people to die. This is not me being sick.  But vampires have been portrayed as evil for a reason.  They're not teddy bears.  At the same time, Damon is capable of love, which is always an interesting twist.

There are more opposing forces in the Twilight series: the vampires versus werewolves scenario.  But even then..even with the whole "vampires and werewolves will NEVER be friends", there's still a truce.  Despite some near misses, the deep-seated hatred between the two clans is focused more on Edward and Jacob's fight over Bella than any real examination of conflict.  Again, that potential gem really goes nowhere.  And ends with Jacob imprinting on a vampire's daughter.  A baby daughter.  Kind of pervy.

Just when you thought there was no part of her she hadn't already bared to the world.

Katie Price unveiled her latest book yesterday - revealing her thoughts on everything from fashion (her role model is Barbie) to her final words if she were facing execution (a foul-mouthed tirade).

Standing Out: My Look, My Style, My Life is full of handy tips for anyone wishing to copy her fashion sense and lifestyle.such as the 28 outfits she needs for a week's holiday and her £17,000 bed linen.

The mum-of-three, 31, launched the tome in typically tasteful style yesterday alongside four men in drag - boyfriend Alex Reid, horse trainer Andy Gould, her brother Daniel Price and stylist Phil Turner.

So without further ado, a glimpse into the world of the icon better known as Jordan.

FASHION
Jordan says: "My icon is Barbie."

Jordan says: "For a week-long trip, I'll take seven daytime outfits for hot weather, seven daytime outfits for not-so-hot weather, seven beach outfits and seven night-time outfits. That's 28, plus underwear, shoes, earrings, bracelets, hairclips and bags."

FINAL MEAL
Jordan says: "My Death Row meal would be chicken kiev, sweetcorn and chips. My last words? F*** you all. Well, I am about to be marched off to the electric chair!"

HOW TO DRESS YOUR KIDS: HARVEY
Jordan says: "He's always got Calvin Klein boxers over his nappies!"

JUNIOR
Jordan says: "I've been getting his hair highlighted for a while. It looks odd if he doesn't have a bit of colour. He loves having his highlights done but can't stand gel and goes absolutely nuts if I try to put any in. I have to cover my hands with gel and pretend to give his hair an affectionate ruffle."

PRINCESS
Jordan says: "I've got her little fake Louis Vuitton bags which she can fit her dummy and bracelets in. Her hair can sometimes look a bit of a fuzzball but I've found the perfect frizz-taming treatment. I use a nail treatment and if I put a little bit in her hair it makes the curl nice and defined."

HER WEDDING DAY
Jordan says: "I was wearing three hairpieces and had my hair pulled so tight underneath that my scalp started to bleed. It was awful!"

Standing Out - Katie Price - 9781846056680

Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series books (Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn) aren't her only best-sellers - as you well know. Her book, The Host, also claimed top marks on the charts (and for good reason).

The Host follows the ninth life of "Wanderer," a "soul," who makes her way to Earth for the first time as a human being. Her host body, though, becomes a strange thing for Wanderer because the human soul of Melanie, the body, refuses to disappear and make way for her own cognitive control.

Wanderer and Melanie form an indescribable (though thoroughly described by Stephenie Meyer, of course) bond through this experience, and Wanderer seeks out those who Melanie (and vicariously Wanderer) loves. Her experience amongst those individuals - particularly the characters Jared, Jamie, Ian, and Jeb - is the crux of the story, and Wanderer's challenge is to keep Melanie "alive" during her incorporation into the group.

In September, the news came out that this book was, like most of Meyer's other books, going to be made into a film. After the initial reports, Meyer expressed an interest in what fans would have to say about potential castmates for the future film. Despite the unending excitement going on in the Twilight film series world, many fans have been putting together their own set of suggestions for that very thing.

The Host by Stephenie Meyer - 9780751540642

Francis Wheen is not terribly impressed by the 1970s. In his brisk global portrait of the decade, Richard Nixon is a "toxic" person, China is ruled by "basket cases", Africa by "crazy" dictators, and "sensational metaphysical tosh" is the predominant western intellectual fashion, swallowed by "drugged-up, spaced-out hippies". The book concludes by comparing the political and social atmosphere of the era to that of communist North Korea.

Wheen, as you would expect of a Private Eye veteran, can be a bracingly irreverent writer. But in this account, behind all the adjectival graffiti, he remains doggedly faithful to the conventional wisdom - steadily undermined though it has been by every subsequent period of international crisis - that the decade was uniquely dark and turbulent.

The fresh element here is his focus on a single gothic theme: the paranoia that infected heads of state and the wider culture. "Slice the Seventies where you will," Wheen writes in his slightly haughty gentlemen's club style, "the flavour is unmistakable - a pungent mélange of apocalyptic dread and conspiratorial fever." In a dozen fluent chapters of potted biography and cultural history, he sketches a broad jittery panorama. An insomniac Nixon plots and frets and, in one startling episode, wanders out of the White House on his own in the middle of the night to speak in riddles to anti-Vietnam war protesters camped nearby. In Uganda, the capricious and vicious Idi Amin expels thousands of law-abiding Asian businessmen from his country as alleged "economic saboteurs". In Britain, the fading prime minister Harold Wilson fears his annual summer holiday on the Isles of Scilly is being monitored, offshore, by Soviet trawlers. Simultaneously, members of the British secret services and the Conservative establishment convince themselves that Wilson is a Soviet agent.

Strange Days Indeed by Francis Wheen - The Golden Age Of Paranoia - 9780007294862

Teens around the country voted John Green's page-turning mystery Paper Towns (Dutton, 2008) as their favorite book this year in the annual Teens' Top Ten vote, sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA).

This year's competition was fierce, with 25 finalists and only 10 slots. More than 11,000 teens voted in the 2009 Teens' Top Ten?and Green's novel beat the hugely popular Breaking Dawn (Little, Brown) by Stephenie Meyer and The Hunger Games (Scholastic) by Suzanne Collins, which came in two and three, respectively.

"I'm so shocked by this that I honestly don't know if I would have been more surprised to win the award for best professional wrestler of 2009," says Green, referring to World Wrestling Entertainment, which promotes the event. "I also want to say how grateful I am for to all the awesome librarians who get great books for kids. This award is so meaningful because it's chosen by teenager, and I respect and admire teenagers as readers so much."

The Teens' Top Ten is a booklist created entirely by and for teens as part of YALSA's Young Adult Galley Project, which gains access to advance copies of young adult books to national teen book discussion groups. These groups evaluated books published between January 2008 through April 2009 and then created a list of 25 nominations. Teen voters across the country then cast ballots for their three favorites, creating the 2009 Teens' Top Ten.

Paper Towns - John Green - 9780732289003

New Moon director Chris Weitz says there has been "no official offer" for him to direct the Twilight series' fourth film. "We'll have to see how people feel about the entire movie, not only the studio but the fans, before the verdict is out whether I direct Number 4," Weitz says "David Slade is doing a great job on the third film, and by the time that comes out, he'll be the flavor of the moment."

Weitz says he didn't shoehorn more Robert Pattinson into the New Moon story just to please rabid fans. "Part of the point was that Edward was away," Weitz says. "Readers of the book know this and appreciate it. The story is about loss and heartache; he is present as an absence. Bella is always thinking of him and affected by him. His return to the film is really powerful and made more so by not having millions of ?back at the ranch' scenes.There are people who would like nothing more that two hours of Rob Pattinson standing there, and I sympathize with them. But I think they'll appreciate getting him back after the second act. We didn't want to shoehorn him into the story."

Continuing, Weitz said that he had a "really good collaboration" with author Stephenie Meyer and consulted her throughout making the film, on crucial elements such as the depiction of the Volturi headquarters in Italy.

From the internationally bestselling author of The House at Riverton, an unforgettable new novel that transports the reader from the back alleys of poverty of pre-World War I London to the shores of colonial Australia where so many made a fresh start, and back to the windswept coast of Cornwall, England, past and present

A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book - a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-first birthday they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and with very little to go on, "Nell" sets out on a journey to England to try to trace her story, to fi nd her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell's death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. At Cliff Cottage, on the grounds of Blackhurst Manor, Cassandra discovers the forgotten garden of the book's title and is able to unlock the secrets of the beautiful book of fairy tales.

This is a novel of outer and inner journeys and an homage to the power of storytelling. The Forgotten Garden is fi lled with unforgettable characters who weave their way through its spellbinding plot to astounding effect.

Morton's novels are #1 bestsellers in England and Australia and are published in more than twenty languages. Her fi rst novel, The House at Riverton, was a New York Times bestseller.

The Forgotten Garden skips from 1913 to 1975, then to present day and back again as a grief stricken young woman digs deep into past, hoping to put ancient ghosts to rest. While at the same time unlocking her own future as well.  This novel is very well written, that you don't get lost, it tempts you to turn each page!

The characters take on an interesting air, as you would expect in this Victorian era mystery. Weaving the lives of these women into a rich tapestry of fascination and betrayal. You will enjoy the old houses and hidden gardens full of secrets and surprises!

 This is a bit of a heavy read, however, I highly recommend adding this novel to your collection!

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton - 9781741757644

Australian booksellers are pushing for a compromise over the Australian Government's proposed changes to Parallel Importation Restrictions.

According to Bookseller + Publisher the Australian Booksellers Association (ABA) has urged its members to contact their local member of parliament and make the case for reform. "If you are aligned with the Australian Booksellers Association's position and have supported the retention of restrictions, but have still called for some reform then your voice is needed right now," it said.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the Coalition for Cheaper Books, led by the Dymocks bookselling chain, has swung its support behind a proposal advanced by smaller bookstores that does not go as far as a Productivity Commission recommendation to end restrictions on book imports.

The compromise suggests keeping import restrictions, but requiring publishers to release a local version of a book within seven days of its release overseas. Publishers now have 30 or 90 days to put out a local version of a book and be protected from import restrictions. Maree McCaskill, the chief executive of the Australian Publishers Association, said the idea was logistically impossible.

Daniel Conner, a student from Scotland, is on his way to Paris to study anatomy under the prestigious Jardin des Plantes. During the late night coach ride into the city, Daniel notices among the other passengers an attractive woman with a small child. He naturally strikes up a conversation with this lady on the long trek to Paris. The next day, he awakens on the coach to find the letters of introduction to the school missing as well as some coral specimens which were meant to be a gift for the school. Embarrassed and annoyed at his loss, he wants to know who this lady was and why she would steal these things. Daniel's quest for takes him into fascinating territories of post-Napoleon Paris.

I loved aspects of this novel. I was fascinated by the historical era this book takes place in. Rebecca Stott really made post-Napoleon Paris come alive. The characters were also so interesting. There was naive Daniel who really evolved and grew up throughout the story. The heroine of the novel - the coral thief - well, I just loved her. What a strong leading lady. And then the whole Les Miserables aspect (there's a Cosette type child and Javert type police inspector).

The Coral Thief - Rebecca Stott - 9780297852957

In this book you will find four stories which actually fit the title of this anthology. That's a huge plus all by itself.

Charlaine Harris, "The Britlingens Go to Hell", 80 pages
Two bodyguards from the Britlingen Collective are chosen for the duty of taking a client to retrieve an item he left.....in Hell. These two bodyguards are absolutely the best at what they do, so figuring out how to escape their prison cells shouldn't be too much of a problem for these women. The hellhounds who are guarding them have very different ideas.

Nalini Singh, "Angels' Judgment", 92 pages
Guild Hunters have a very specific job, hunt down runaway vampires and return them to their Masters. Those Masters just happen to be angels and in exchange for making a person immortal the new vampire owes their master 100 years of service. Someone is out there decapitating the undead as they try to run out on their contracts. It looks like a Hunter has gone rogue. Unfortunately Lucy the hellhound's master is suspected of being the hunter gone bad.

Ilona Andrews, "Magic Mourns", 90 pages
Andrea Nash is trying her best to fill in for Kate Daniels while Kate recuperates from her latest stressful case. Unfortunately everybody who calls in wants to talk to Kate. When Andrea gets a call telling her about a hound straight out of hell as big as a house she loads up with all the weapons she can carry to go find out what it is all about. Raphael, the werehyena who really, really wants Andrea to be his girlfriend needs for her to help him find the dead body of his mother's mate. Did this hound steal the body? Why would Cerberus, the hound from Hell, want to steal the body of Alex Doulos, a Greek pagan?

Meljean Brook, "Blind Spot: A Guardian Novella", 91 pages
After leaving the CIA Maggie Wren has taken a job as butler in the home of vampire Colin Ames-Beaumont. When word comes that Mr. Ames-Beaumont's niece Katherine has been kidnapped Maggie boards a plane for New York City with Sir Pup, the hellhound, to meet Geoffrey Blake, Katherine's brother. Nothing in his dossier had prepared her for the fact that Geoffrey is blind or for the even more unusual facts which are about to be revealed about Geoff and Kathrine.  

These are four truly excellent stories. Well written and well plotted so that the hellhound element is contained within each story as a very natural, vital aspect of the activity that takes place. The idea to have these four authors write stories which showed both the good and the bad sides of these hounds was really a stroke of genius. Each of the stories is entirely different. They all go in completely different directions and so the book never became boring or tiresome for me. Usually there is one particular story in an anthology which entertains me the most but this time I would be hard pressed to chose only one favorite. Plus the authors kept very light touches in the stories, allowing the humor to show through in order to keep things from getting gruesome and too overwhelmingly dark. Have you ever thought about Narcissus flirting with the Devil? Well neither had I but that character was hilarious. My personal favorite was drawing with a Sharpie on the face of a sleeping werehyena who was considered by the ladies as really hot stuff. I chuckled over that one for a long time.

Must Love Hellhounds - Charlaine Harris - 9780425229590

The first email was sent less than forty years ago; by 2011 there will be 3.2 billion users.

The flood of messages is ceaseless. As the toll of email mounts, reducing our time for leisure and contemplation, and separating us from each other in the lonely battle with the inbox, Freeman enters a plea for communication that is more selective and nuanced and, above all, more sociable.

Drawing on the research of linguists, scientists, critics and philosophers, Freeman's history of correspondence reveals how changing methods of communication have eroded the great distances between us. He shows how the telegram, newspapers, synchronised time and railway networks have changed everything from the nature of military intelligence to the messages we write to loved ones.

From carrier pigeon to computer mouse, this fascinating and engaging history of how we communicate will make you view your inbox in a whole new light.

Shrinking the World - John Freeman - The 4,000 Year Story of How Email Came to Rule Our Lives - 9781921520945

"...This Series is captivating. I havent been into a series of vampires since I read The Twilight Saga... This series is incredible. I love Guardian Rose Hathaway and Guardian Belikov. I love Christian & Lissa together... The are like so perfect for each... I cannot wait for the next book in the series called Spirit Bound... Can not wait to see what happens next... Im currently rereading the first book again... read all 4 but when I reread the first book its like I was doing it for the first time. Richelle Mead is doing an Excellent job with this series...'

Richelle Mead has an MA in comparative Religion and a passion for all things wacky and humorous. She currently lives in Seattle with her husband and four cats.

Vampire Academy Collection Box Set - Richelle Mead - 9781595142719

Don Watson went to school at Poowong and Korumburra in Victoria. After gaining a BA (Hons) from La Trobe University, he graduated with a PhD from Monash University.

For ten years he was an academic historian before resigning to write, among other things, political satire for TV and the stage (including The Gillies Report), and speeches for the Victorian Premier John Cain.

After time as research fellow at The University of Melbourne, he became Prime Minister Paul Keating's speechwriter and adviser. He stayed in that position until Keating's electoral defeat in 1996.

Dr Watson's columns, articles and essays have appeared in all major Australian journals and newspapers. He also writes feature films, the latest of which was The Man Who Sued God. His 2001 Quarterly Essay Rabbit Syndrome: Australia and America won the inaugural Alfred Deakin Essay Prize in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards.

Dr Watson has authored a number of best-selling books including Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: Paul Keating Prime Minister (2002), Death Sentence: The Decay of Public Language (2003), and Watson's Dictionary of Weasel Words, Contemporary Clichés, Cant & Management Jargon (2004). One of his most recent books is American Journeys (2008), which won the Age Non-Fiction and Book of the Year Awards, the inaugural Indie Award for Non-Fiction, and the Walkley Award for Non-Fiction. His latest release is Bendable Learnings: The Wisdom of Modern Management, which follows on from Death Sentence and Weasel Words.

Bendable Learnings - Don Watson - The Wisdom of Modern Management - 9781741669046

This is a terrific poker book and a terrific memoir. And therefore, paradoxically, you can feel wholly relaxed about buying it for people who don't know anything about poker or Observer columnist Victoria Coren.

Why is it so good? Most of all, because behind the light, it's-only-me style, Coren is a serious and scrupulous writer. She has taken real care with the macro stuff - the structure of the book, the changes of pace, the link passages, the just-right narrative tug, the changes of emotional register, the careful parsing out of the technical information to ensure that it never overwhelms the exhilaration of the action.

And she has also taken real care with all the micro stuff - the sentence-by-sentence work, the phrasing, the rhythms and cadences of the poker-language, the descriptions of people and place, the lack of cliche, apposite metaphors, well-deployed dialogue, smells, tastes and the neat opening and closing of sections. Very few people do both jobs well; Coren does, and, as a result, the book is engaging, lucid, full of verve and a pleasure to read.

The second thing is the tone, specifically the humour. Because this book is also really funny. Occasionally laugh out loud, but always amusing, wry and witty, such as when a man suggests that Coren adopt the poker-playing nickname of "Sticky Vicky" on the grounds that he once knew a Thai stripper with that name, but Coren decides "to soldier on without it". And yet the wit is not without heart (which wit needs) and the jokes are not without cruelty (which jokes need). Besides which, Coren is happy, too, when she is poking fun at herself - be it her breasts, her bathroom tears or her inability to relax and stop "playing tight" at the poker table. All of this (and there's so much more) combines to make you feel a little bereft when you put the book down. You want to be back in the author's company. And what more can you ask from a read?

Third, there are the characters. These pages are crowded with fascinating people. There are the celebrities, of course (some insight here into Ricky Gervais, the man and the poker player), but more than this, the gallery of people Coren has met, played with or interviewed is so rich and Dickensian that you cannot help but want to know more. Partly this is the result of poker and the peculiarly clever nut-jobs the professional game attracts. Partly it's because they all have ludicrous names (at one point, Coren flies to Vegas to interview a man called Huckleberry Seed). But mainly it is because Coren is so succinct and skilful at rendering these people lifelike on the page.

For Richer For Poorer - Victoria Coren - A Love Affair With Poker - 9781921520792

If readers surfacing from the hectic activity of Ordinary Thunderstorms's opening chapters suspect that William Boyd has set himself the straightforward task of producing an efficient, multi-stranded thriller, a clue soon emerges to hint at a more complex literary purpose. A plot strand involving the evil machinations of the global pharmaceutical industry introduces us to a drug named Zembla-4, the reference leading not only to the imaginary kingdom of Nabokov's Pale Fire but to Boyd's novel Armadillo, in which he coined the word "zemblanity" to describe unhappy accidents, random occurrences that are the very opposite of serendipitous.

And in Lorimer Black, the reluctant hero who began Armadillo by stumbling across a hanged man, we find an antecedent to Adam Kindred, a similarly reasonably intentioned, middle-class chap whose attempt to perform a minor good deed catapults him into a world of assassination, capitalist conspiracy, low-life brutality and the bureaucratic minefield of contemporary life.

In brief: Adam, a climatologist in flight from America and a sexual indiscretion that has thrown a spanner into his marriage and his academic career, is in London for a job interview. Dining alone, he strikes up a conversation with Philip Wang, an immunologist who subsequently leaves a sheaf of papers in the restaurant; when Adam attempts to return them, he finds his new acquaintance taking a siesta with a bread knife in his side. A clever man, Kindred immediately does two stupid things: he removes the bread knife, thus ensuring both death and fingerprints, and goes on the run, pursued by Wang's killer. With a murderer and, shortly, the police on his trail, he creates a hidey-hole in an overshadowed piece of rough ground on the Embankment and settles down to a life of subterfuge, vagrancy and killing seagulls for dinner.

Ordinary Thunderstorms - William Boyd - 9781408802472

In Iceland, cold cases are very cold indeed. Nordic detectives get ever gloomier, but for Erlendur, senior detective in Reykjavik, life is brightening. His diet of microwaved sheep's head has been replaced by tasty smoked lamb: his children are still drug addicts but his son is considering rehab and his daughter trying to cut down. However, a puzzling suicide in beautiful lakeside surroundings sends him deep into his own history, and the loss of his young brother in a blizzard.

Arnaldur Indridason's novel (translated by Victoria Cribb) is about the relationship between past and present, and, in an especially Icelandic way, about the relationship between reality and the supernatural. The dead woman had an unhealthy curiosity about the afterlife, consulting mediums, wondering whether near-death experiences reported from the operating table proved that there was another existence.

She was obsessed not only by the loss of her mother, but the drowning of her father when she was a child. What really happened on that lake years ago? What lengths did she go to to discover the truth?

Erlendur has an admirable doggedness. He will never give up, rebuts the easy verdict of suicide, and continues to plunge into the past of the dead woman (and her husband), as well as the disappearances of two young people.

Indridason has a remarkable understanding of grief and its persistence. But the book is not all gloom: the suspect husband has theatrical connections and there is a brilliantly funny account of a disastrous Othello set in Reykjavik in the 1940s, with Othello a colonel in the American army and Desdemona a local girl involved with GIs.

The answers to Erlendur's quests, however, do not lie in modern Reykjavik. There are superbly descriptive interludes of the magical Icelandic landscape, in which many secrets are hidden. In addition, Indridason combines psychological acuteness with great stylistic economy and a pleasing pace.

Hypothermia - Arnaldur Indridason - 9781846552625

Australian history is full of disasters and colossal debacles. Some are natural but many more are man-made, results of individual or collective stupidity, poor choices, short-sightedness or outright greed. In Disasters that Changed Australia, historian Richard Evans nominates the disasters that have been instrumental in creating the Australia we know today.

From natural phenomena such as Cyclone Tracy, the great drought and the Ash Wednesday and Black Friday fires, to key moments in our military history such as the battle at Flanders in 1917 and the fall of Singapore, to the drug wars and the Snowy Mountains scheme, Disasters that Changed Australia is an essential guide to understanding the people, the ideas and the events that defined the course of Australia's history. It is also a call for Australia to re-examine its past, look beneath the familiar comforting stories, and rethink how Australians have responded to disaster.

Author Information

Richard Evans is a Melbourne writer and historian. He has worked as a journalist on newspapers and legal magazines, and was a lecturer in journalism at RMIT University. He has a PhD in Australian history from Monash University, and is the author of The Pyjama Girl Mystery: A true story of murder obsession and lies and co-author of Constructing Australia. His work has appeared in HQ, Quadrant, The Age, Overland and The Republican, and been broadcast on ABC Radio National

Disasters that Changed Australia - Richard Evans - 9780522856491

"...This thriller was written in 1979 but it is frighteningly similar to what has happened since the 9/11 terrorist bombings. It has so many similarties that one has to wonder if bin Laden himself may have read this book years ago before it went out of print. Read as US government officials, spy agencies and TV news personalties grudgingly work together to solve a world terroist threat. My wife came across this book at a yard sale and I had it for the whole summer before reading it in November of 2001.

I was shocked at what I was reading because of the very things the terriosts were doing in the book were the same things happening in the world today. The methods that the mastermind desert dweller bad guy Middle Eastern terrorist leader uses are very close to what we hear about today, that is, fully fueled jets used as bombs, acquiring small nuke devices, suicide bombers, cave shelters and others. There is also a presidential election with controversial results, a la Bush/Gore. It is somewhat dated and has a Cold War feel, but in 1979 that is what the reality was. An interesting read in light of todays events..."

"...It's been awhile sice I read this book, but after 9/11, I thought about how shockingly close to the actual events The Better Angels becomes. Especially note worthy is the Islamic cleric hiding in caves and the rigged election using what was then very ahead-of-its time computer technology. This book along with all of McCarry's work is excellent fiction. He writes so well, its a shame his books never became best-sellers. Very recommended..."

The Better Angels - Charles McCarry - 9781921640018

The international best-seller, "The Silver Spoon" has confirmed Italian cuisine to be one of the most popular cuisines in the world, and the best-loved Italian dish is pasta. Pasta comes in all shapes and textures, and can be simply cooked to create delicious dishes that appeal to both the novice cook and the gourmet. Now, for the first time, "The Silver Spoon Book of Pasta" presents a complete reference guide to all types of pasta with 350 classic and modern recipes.

The recipes are easy to follow and fully explained for the UK and US markets, and include the most popular pasta dishes from "The Silver Spoon", along with over 250 new recipes collected by the same team and published in English for the first time. They are simple to prepare in any kitchen and yet utterly authentic, enabling any aspiring cook to successfully cook iconic dishes, or helping more experienced cooks to expand their repertoire. In traditional Italian cooking, each pasta shape must be accompanied by a specific range of sauces:

"The Silver Spoon Book of Pasta" provides an introduction to every type of pasta, a guide to the different shapes and the best sauces to accompany them, as well as tips for dos and don'ts. A comprehensive and lively book with specially commissioned photographs and illustrations, its simple and user-friendly format makes it both accessible and a pleasure to read. "The Silver Spoon" has become the classic in the Italian cooking booklist for the international market and shares the bookshelves with other iconic cookery manuals such as "The Joy of Cooking".

The first of a new series, "The Silver Spoon Book of Pasta" provides the definitive recipe book for Italian pasta.

The Silver Spoon Book of Pasta - 9780714857169

The Complete Adventures of Blinky Bill - Dorothy Wall - 9780732284343

This book is to France as Joy of Cooking is to America. It is a jewel. The recipes are easy to follow and laid out in a simple manner. It is a huge volume of "frenchness". Lots of recipes for every day of the week and fabulous, simple recipes for sauces, soups and pastry cremes.

The original book is certainly not a learner's book; if anything it's more of a complement to something like Mastering The Art Of french Cooking, to be used as a reference after working through the more technique-oriented books. Comparisons to Joy Of Cooking are apt; while very few books on the market are quite as ambitious as Joy (which has a level of information density that is intimidating even by most professional standards), Mathiot certainly cast her net wide for traditional French cooking, even adding a few foreign recipes (one situation where the book sadly underachieves). This book does take some liberties, fleshing out some of the recipes for overseas audiences and adding the now-traditional selection of specialties from overseas French chefs (including, among others, Daniel Boulud, but sadly fewer other A-listers than you'd expect).

I Know How to Cook - Ginette Mathiot - 9780714848044

Revised edition!

Cheaper than a crystal ball and twice as fun, this book by futurist and web creator Watson examines what "someday" could be like, based on the five key trends of ageing; power shift to the East; global connectivity; the "GRIN" technologies of Genetics, Robotics, Internet, and Nanotechnology; environmental concerns, and 50 less general but equally influential developments that will radically alter human life by the year 2050.

Watson gently scoffs at Jetsons-like wishful-thinking technology and flying cars; instead he predicts the fanciful (mindwipes, stress-control clothing, napcaps that induce sleep) and the useful (devices to harness the sea to generate energy; self-repairing car paint; retail technology that helps us shop, based on past buying habits; hospital plasters that monitor vital signs). In between the fun and frivolity, he prognosticates the frightening: the "extinction" of individual ugliness and free public spaces; the creation of hybrid humans; a society made of people who are incapable of the tiniest tasks; and insects that carry wireless cameras to monitor our lives.

Part Jules Verne, part Malcolm Gladwell, Watson has a puckish sense of humor and his book is a thought-provoking, laughter-inducing delight.

Future Files - Richard Watson - A History of the Next 50 Years - 9781921372957

E-Online reports that Kirsten Prout ("Kyle XY," Elektra) has been cast as vampire Lucy in Summit Entertainment's The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the third film in the franchise scheduled to hit theaters on June 30, 2010.

Lucy is a prominent part of Jasper's backstory and builds a bloodsucking army with Catalina Sandino Moreno's Maria.

The David Slade-directed film stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Billy Burke, Bryce Dallas Howard, Xavier Samuel, Jack Huston, Julia Jones, BooBoo Stewart and Jodelle Ferland.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer - Twilight Saga Book 3 - 9781904233916

October 10, 2009 -- When Artem Samsurov first came to Brisbane in 1911, the Russian exile noted that the poor did not eat horse meat like they did in his native country and he wondered whether this did indeed make it true that Australia was a "working man's paradise"? A diet that was no stranger, however, to rabbit, and bread and lard, suggested otherwise.

Tom Keneally's latest novel, The People's Train, follows the political and romantic adventures of Samsurov, a fictional character closely based on Fedor (``Artem'') Sergeyev, a Bolshevik who escaped from exile in Siberia after the crushing of the 1905 revolution in Russia and who was a political activist in Brisbane for six years. [See the Australian Dictionary of Biography's entry for Fedor``Artem'' Sergeyev below this review.]

In regular trouble with the Red-persecuting Queensland police, Sergeyev returned to Russia in 1917 in time to be elected to the central committee of the Bolshevik Party and play a leading role in the Russian Revolution.

The first half of Keneally's novel follows the fictional Samsurov and his successful efforts to radicalise the Association of Russian Emigrants in Brisbane and set up a Russian-language newspaper. Samsurov is also active in organising union struggles and the 1912 general strike. As Lenin tells Samsurov in a letter, "?You cannot help organising things, Artem'. He didn't say whether [this] was a disease or a virtue".

While Samsurov is fighting for free speech, labour rights and the political consciousness of his Russian exiles, his enemies (a Russian informer and agent provocateur, and the Queensland police) try to stitch him up on a murder charge.

His beatings in Boggo Road jail provide further material for Samsurov to disabuse those Russians who still think Australia has escaped class warfare. Neither, notes a fiercely anti-war Samsurov, has the existence of a national Labor Party prime minister (Andrew Fisher) kept Australians out of the mince-grinder of World War I.

Through all this, the Bolshevik Samsurov battles, futilely, with "the simperings of bourgeois love" and "bourgeois jealousy" ? the source of his problems being the alluring Hope Mockridge, a lawyer and middle-class convert to the labour and socialist movements.

The Peoples Train by Tom Keneally - 9781741667431

The stunning Ashley Greene was interviewed recently, and she talked about The Twilight Saga: New Moon, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, her career, her castmates, and her halloween costume (she's going to be a bird).

About Eclipse, Greene revealed that she was definitely one of the castmates involved in the intense fight scene filming. According to her interview, she was working alongside co-stars Kellan Lutz and Nikki Reed for some of the sequences in question.

There's a lot of action in this [movie], a lot of fight-sequence choreography. Me, Nikki [Reed], and Kellan [Lutz] are working today, and we're doing another installment of the fight sequences. We're doing a section of the huge vampire/Cullen/wolf/newborn battle.

Greene also spoke to VF about New Moon, particularly her favorite parts, what it was like to film it (especially in Italy), and how it brought her and her castmates closer together. One of the more interesting things that Greene said in the interview was that she was happy with the way the script turned out and how it incorporated her character so well.

It was incredible, and I think the timing was right. I'm glad that [my role] wasn't that big in the first one because I was wide-eyed and nervous. By the second one, I had the time to fully develop this character, and I'm really comfortable with Alice Cullen now. It's going to be sad to be done with it. I was really excited when I read the script because I had, of course, read the book and you never know how they're going to translate it, how it's going to read, and filming it was great. Chris [Weitz, the director] was awesome.

Most Twilight fans are in agreement with Greene's sentiments here because what started out as a change of hands (with hope that Weitz would bring a faithful translation of the books) has turned into a "Chris Weitz for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn" campaign all over the web-o-sphere.

Adam LeBor is an author and journalist based in Budapest. He has written six critically-acclaimed non-fiction works including the best- selling HITLER'S SECRET BANKERS, an investigation into Swiss complicity with the Third Reich, which was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize, and CITY OF ORANGES, the story of Arab and Jewish families in Jaffa, which was shortlisted for the Jewish Quarterly Wingate Literary Prize.

His most recent non-fiction work, THE BELIEVERS, an investigation into the Madoff fraud, focusing on the psychology and sociology of the $65 billion scam, is published by Weidenfeld and Nicholson.  His first novel, THE BUDAPEST PROTOCOL, a conspiracy thriller inspired by wartime US intelligence documents, was published this year to great reviews. Foreign rights to his books have been sold in fourteen countries including America, Japan, France, Spain, Israel, Poland, Hungary and Indonesia.

He writes regularly for The Times, The Sunday Times and Monocle magazine and reviews books for The Sunday Times, the Economist, the New York Times and the Jewish Chronicle. He has appeared at the Edinburgh and Bath literary festivals, Jewish Book Week and the Montreal literary festival.

The Believers - Adam LeBor - How America fell For Bernard Madoff's $65 Billion Investment Scam - 9780297859215

Any parent who struggles with behavior problems on the part of their child knows all to well the frustration, sadness and guilt that comes along with it. NOW THERE'S 'HELP!' Dr. Swanson has given us an easy-to-use quick reference guide to better understand and effectively intervene when these problems arise. With the use of this incredible tool, parents can stop the fighting and start building strong bonds and a lifetime of fulfilling attachment.

David Swanson, Psy.D., a licensed clinical psychologist practicing in Encino, California, treats children, teens, and families suffering from anxiety disorders, behavioral difficulties, and social problems to improve parent-child relationships.

Help - My Kid is Driving Me Crazy - David Swanson - The 17 Ways Kids Manipulate Their Parents and What You Can Do About It - 9780399535260

In the Nebula Award winning Red Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson began his critically acclaimed epic saga of the colonization of Mars, Now the Hugo Award winning Green Mars continues the thrilling and timeless tale of humanity's struggle to survive at its farthest frontier.

Nearly a generation has passed since the first pioneers landed, but the transformation of Mars to an Earthlike planet has just begun The plan is opposed by those determined to preserve the planets hostile, barren beauty. Led by rebels like Peter Clayborne, these young people are the first generation of children born on Mars. They will be joined by original settlers Maya Toitovna, Simon Frasier, and Sax Russell. Against this cosmic backdrop, passions, rivalries, and friendships explode in a story as spectacular as the planet itself.

Red Mars garnered a Hugo nomination and rave reviews across the country with its sweeping story of Martian colonization. Packed with scientific detail, compelling characters, and a thrilling story of humankind living at its newest frontier, this second volume in the epic promises to become a classic.

Green Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson - 9780007310173

The Enchanter is the Ur-Lolita, the precursor to Nabokov's classic novel. At once hilarious and chilling, it tells the story of an outwardly respectable man and his fatal obsession with certain pubescent girls, whose coltish grace and subconscious coquetry reveal, to his mind, a special bud on the verge of bloom.

In paperback for the first time, The Enchanter is the precursor to Vladimir Nabokov's most famous novel, Lolita. At once hilarious and chilling, it is the story of a middle-aged man's fatal obsession with certain pubescent girls. "A heady combination of passion, humor, and beauty . . . suspenseful, funny, and shocking."--The New York Times Book Review.

A novella written in Russian when Nabokov lived in Paris in 1939, The Enchanter resurfaced among his papers 20 years later. Nabokov described it then as ``the first little throb of Lolita '' and said its title anticipated the ``enchanted hunter'' motif in the later novel. Here it refers to the lecherous, ironic, middle-aged protagonist who woos an unappetizing widow to get access to her nymphet daughter. But his phallic ``magic wand'' (paralleled by his antique coral-headed walking stick) transforms wolfish lust into the dream of a fairy idyll, with overtones of Lear/Cordelia and Little Red Riding Hood, to produce an unexpectedly surreal effectand a denouement strikingly different from that of Lolita. Narrated in the third person, the novella has the remoteness of a tale, with its nameless characters and vaguely foreign ambienceunlike the novelistically specific Lolita, rooted in Americanness and told by its main character, Humbert Humbert. The Enchanter is entertaining independent of its Lolita connection. It is arch, delicious and beautifully written. As translator, the author's son writes an endearingly fussy afterword thatrecalls Nabokov's own self-parodying penchant for the long footnote.

The Enchanter - Vladimir Nabokov - 9780141191188

The Groundbreaking Brain Balance Program for Children with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Neurological Disorders.

Dr Robert Melillo who is a specialist in functional neurology and founder and Executive Director of Brain Balance Achievement Centers. He is also the author of the new book Disconnected Kids which helps the parents of children who have autism and other brain related issues.

While he doesn't think that vaccinations are the smoking gun in the outbreak of autism he does think they might make symptoms worse. If there is an imbalance in the nervous system that can make kids sensitive to certain foods. And he did spend some time explaining Jenny McCarthy's position on vaccinations. He expressed frustration that parents are being told that medication is the only option for these kids when he has seen many children improve profoundly through other methods. Dr Melillo's Brain Balance program has been successfully freeing children (and their families) from the detrimental effects of neurological disorders for over a decade. His breakthrough book Disconnected Kids help parents understand what is happening to their child.

Disconnected Kids - Robert Melillo

You'd almost think that Nora was a typical teenager.  She has that quirky best friend, a menacing biology lab teacher, a hard-working single mother, and that one boy who is pursuing her.   But, there's something about Nora that is anything but typical. she's brave to the point of being nearly fearless.  Once determined to discover the truth about something or someone, she is single-mindedly on that path until she's satisfied.

Another thing about Nora. when strange things start happening around her, she doesn't react in the way a typical teenager would.  Take, for example, the time that she suddenly hits a man with her car, or, was it that a man actually jumped on and attacked her car, most teenagers would share this information with their parents and most likely the police.  NOT Nora.  She sees that something wasn't quite right with that accident as the car wasn't nearly as damaged as she had assumed.  Nora does tell her best friend about it, but nobody else.  Or, maybe that time when an intruder jumped out her bedroom window.  This time, Nora did call the police, however when they arrived there were no signs of the disturbance to her room.  Even though the intruder had ransacked her room, all signs had basically vanished.  Intruders and police visits should warrant a discussion with your mother, right?  For Nora, NO!  But, above all else, you would imagine that a teenager would finally go to her mother when her best friend was attacked on the street while acting as Nora's decoy after the two friends noticed they were being followed.  No.  Not Nora.  Like I said, she's seemingly fearless and tackles issues as an independent young lady.

Despite her adversity to bringing authority in to assist her with her supernatural issues, she faces the mysteries around her head-on.  Trying to unravel the mysteries affiliated with the two young men who are equally interested in her just seems to lead to more questions for Nora.  One thing she learns is that she can't avoid true love. once it's come for you, it's bound to overtake you.  And, it did just that to Nora.  But, finding safety in that love is an entirely different question!

Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick - 9781847386953

"This herd is beyond help. They have been badly interfered with too many times and now see humans purely as enemies." Lawrence Anthony, who owns the 2 000ha Thula Thula reserve with his French wife Francoise, accepted the challenge.

The elephants were indeed damaged, aggressive and dangerous. This is the story of how they came to accept the reserve and the people who could guarantee their future.

Now the tricky bit: Anthony believed the elephants both learnt and communicated across the species barrier. How?

As he says, if an acacia tree - by definition brainless - can communicate threat to other acacias, as happens, then why not a much higher evolved form?

There's much more, including a battle against poachers from within. Overall, an astonishing story by the same man involved in Operation Babylon... rescue of the Baghdad zoo animals. - James Mitchell

The Elephant Whisperer by Anthony Lawrence and Anthony Spence - 9780230741744

The story of how Clemons first met Bruce Springsteen has entered into E Street band folklore.

...One night we were playing in Asbury Park. I'd heard The Bruce Springsteen Band was nearby at a club called The Student Prince and on a break between sets I walked over there. On-stage, Bruce used to tell different versions of this story but I'm a Baptist, remember, so this is the truth. A rainy, windy night it was, and when I opened the door the whole thing flew off its hinges and blew away down the street. The band were on-stage, but staring at me framed in the doorway. And maybe that did make Bruce a little nervous because I just said, "I want to play with your band," and he said, "Sure, you do anything you want." The first song we did was an early version of "Spirit In The Night". Bruce and I looked at each other and didn't say anything, we just knew. We knew we were the missing links in each other's lives. He was what I'd been searching for. In one way he was just a scrawny little kid. But he was a visionary. He wanted to follow his dream. So from then on I was part of history.

Big Man - Clarence Clemons - 9781847443540

When you find the body of your murdered lover, what do you do? Bonnie Graham calls her best friend and asks for help getting rid of it. But is that the action of an innocent woman?

Bonnie is devastated by the death of Hayden, an enigmatic musician with a mysterious, unknown past. And hiding her part in his disappearance is taking its toll. How much longer can she keep up appearances before she cracks? The police are taking a keen interest in her movements and when it comes to light that Hayden had been beating her, suddenly there's a motive.

But Hayden had many enemies, among them Bonnie's ex-boyfriend, Amos, and long-time admirer, Neal. And one thing is certain, Bonnie wasn't the only woman he was seeing at the time of his death.

As Hayden's complicated past is revealed, it becomes all too clear that everyone is telling lies. But is anyone prepared to tell the truth to uncover the murderer?

Complicit - Nicci French - 9780718154943

Jamie will try real American food and meet the most interesting cooks and producers that this vast country has to offer. His epic journey will take him to the heart of America: its people, culture, music and, most importantly, its food. Along the way Jamie will be getting his hands dirty - meeting hunters, cowboys, fishermen and local producers - as he finds out about the best (and strangest) ingredients on offer. He won't just be sampling, he'll be getting involved: entering a gumbo 'throw-down' in Louisiana, fishing in California and sampling bison in Montana as he joins life on a ranch.

As well as being a visually stunning journey Jamie's America will is a practical cookbook, with each chapter focusing on the food and recipes of a different state. And the food will be as varied as the landscapes - from spicy Mexican in the desert to freshly caught Alaskan salmon. With 120 brand new recipes, and Jamie's diary narrative running alongside, this will be a celebratory cookbook of a country with a wide food heritage.

'Jamie is the best in the business at making simple food great and his recipes include fine versions of pork and beans, baby back ribs, Waldorf salad and yes, hamburgers. Overflowing with character and superb photography, Jamie's America is a very tasty place to be.' Delicious

Jamies America - Jamie Oliver - 9780718154769

Enter the workday of real policemen. Follow fifteen detectives, three sergeants, and a lieutenant, whose job it is to investigate Baltimore's 234 murders. You will get a cop's-eye-view of the bureaucracy, the highs of success, the moments of despair, and the non-stop rush of pursuits, anger, banter, and violence that make up a cop's life. Now an acclaimed television series, this extraordinary book is the insider's look at what you have always wondered about.

We seem to have an insatiable appetite for police stories....David Simon's entry is far and away the best, the most readable, reliable and relentless of them all....An eye for the scenes of slaughter and pursuit and an ear for the cadences of cop talk, both business and banter, lend Simon's account the fascination that truth often has....Fueled by coffee, cigarettes, and the drive to "put down" (i.e. close) cases, these heroes keep at it long after ordinary mortals would have lost heart.

Homicide - A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon - 9781847673121

Everyone loves a list. From the 'need to know' to the true-but-extraordinary, The Australian Book of Lists brings together a wide-ranging collection of facts and figures about our nation. In this essential home reference, Steve Barnett has compiled arcane, curious and hilarious listings which cover Australian culture, people, places, sport, the natural world and everything in between. Some of the listings you will discover include:

The twenty most popular names for pets
The sixteen best lines from Australian movies 
Eight original inventions from down under 
Nine great sports scandals 
The eleven best beaches - and the five most hazardous ones 
Six facts about blokes 
Four conspiracy theories that just won't go away

Part encyclopaedia, part cultural guidebook, The Australian Book of Lists is an amusing and insightful companion to life in Australia

The Australian Book of Lists - Steve Barnett

I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt

Corroboration that emerged following publication of the hardcover edition of this fascinating account of a dark side of American history confirms that Charles Brandt has finally solved one of the greatest and most enduring mysteries of our time, the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa, and created a real-page turner that is sure to become a true-crime classic.

The book's title comes from the first words Jimmy Hoffa ever spoke to Frank "the Irishman" Sheeran. To paint a house is to kill a man; the paint is the blood that splatters on the walls and floors. In the course of nearly five years of recorded interviews Frank Sheeran confessed to Charles Brandt that, among the twenty-five to thirty other hits he handled for the mob and the Teamsters, Sheeran shot Hoffa behind the right ear in the vestibule of a house in Detroit. Just prior to the book's release a forensic lab team went into the house. Luminal sprayed on the floorboards revealed eight separate spots where blood had been, the pattern and location an exact match of Sheeran's confession. Over the years the public's most-asked question about the Hoffa disappearance has been: "Where's the body?"

 Thirty years of outlandish speculation has included burial in the end zone at Giants Stadium. Sheeran revealed that after he killed Hoffa, mob boss Russell Bufalino, the man who ordered the hit, told Sheeran that Hoffa's body was cremated at a funeral parlor in Detroit within an hour of his death. Sheeran also provides stunning new information - information that has been corroborated since the book was published - on two other notorious mob hits: Joseph "CrazyJoey" Gallo, blown away as he celebrated his forty-third birthday in New York's Little Italy, and Salvatore "Sally Bugs" Briguglio, long suspected of being a player in the kill-Hoffa plot. And Sheeran explicitly implicates Hoffa, for the first time, in personally ordering murders in order to retain his own hold on the Teamsters Union while serving as its president.

I Heard You Paint Houses - Charles Brandt

Truth by Peter Temple

Stephen Villani is the acting head of the Victoria Police homicide squad. But his first months on the job have not gone well: two Aboriginal teenagers shot dead in a botched operation he authorised in the provincial city of Cromarty; and, no progress on the killing of a man in front of his daughter outside a private girls' school. Now five men are found dead in horrifying circumstances on the outskirts of the city. Villani' superiors and the media are baying for arrests.

To add to his woes, some of the country's richest people are alarmed by the baffling killing of a young woman in the high-security tower where they live. Villani, a man who has built his life around his work, begins to find the certainties of both crumbling. As the pressure mounts, he finds that he must contemplate things formerly unthinkable. "Truth" is a novel about murder, corruption, family, friends, honour, honesty, deceit, love, betrayal and truth.

Truth - Peter Temple

Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne

Since the early 1980s, David has been riding a bike as his principal means of transportation in New York City. Two decades ago, he discovered folding bikes and started taking them with him when travelling around the world. DB's choice was initially made out of convenience rather than political motivation, but the more cities he saw from his bicycle, the more he became hooked on this mode of transport and the sense of liberation, exhilaration, and connection it provided. This point of view, from his bike seat, became his panoramic window on urban life, a magical way of opening one's eyes to the inner workings and rhythms of a city's geography and population.

Bicycle Diaries chronicles David's observations and insights ? what he is seeing, whom he is meeting, what he is thinking about ? as he pedals through and engages with some of the world's major cities. In places like Buenos Aires, Istanbul, San Francisco, and London, the focus is more on the musicians and artists he encounters. Politics comes to the fore in cities like Berlin and Manila, while chapters on New York City, and on the landscaped suburban industrial parks and contemporary ruins of such spots as Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Columbus are more concerned with history in the urban landscape. Along the way, DB has thoughts to share about fashion, architecture, cultural isolation, globalization, and the radical new ways that some cities, like his home town, are becoming more bike-friendly ? all conveyed with a highly personal mix of humor, curiosity, and humanity.

Bicycle Diaries - David Byrne

The Man in the Shed by Lloyd Jones

Normal behaviour is suspended in Lloyd Jones' career-spanning short stories.

A virtually translucent shirt hanging from a washing line is a most appropriate cover image for Lloyd Jones' career-­spanning short-story collection, The Man in the Shed. The startling shape of the garment suggests both absence and presence, motifs central to each of the 13 finely crafted stories. In the opening piece, the figure known to the young narrator only as the man in the shed turns up unannounced one day and is accommodated by the boy's family. The man in the shed is seen but rarely heard, but a relationship inexorably develops between the newcomer and the boy's mother. An excruciating tension builds as the father never addresses the matter, nor speaks much at all, but tries to put himself between his wife and the man. By the time the boy witnesses his pregnant mum being reeled in from the sea at the end of a fishing line, a surrealistic element has crept into the story, a stylistic thread that runs through the entire collection.

"The world has a strange tilt to it these days," observes a character in a later story, and it's in tilting the world slightly that Jones excels in this collection. His settings allow surreal moments to unfold as normal behaviour is suspended. On a night train in Russia, a New Zealander and his wife are prompted to rediscover their ardour for one another; a skating rink in Who's That Dancing with My Mother? ­provides an emotionally if not sexually liberating arena for a neglected housewife; there is a park in which a man and his dog encounter a Polish amputee and her dog at night. And then there is the sea, the ultimate symbol of the unconscious. "The world we cannot see," says a narrator about jellyfish dotted along the shore, "has heaped clues in a neat line along the high-tide mark."

Peeling back the lid of contemporary New Zealand, Jones reveals through his characters a collective neurosis, a sense of estrangement and a craving for escape that seems to have its roots in an earlier, more repressive era. When suburban housewife Jude sees her neighbours prepare for a spot of tree-planting, family history might well be repeating itself as she experiences pangs of isolation and emptiness. There is the suggestion, in the lightest of touches, that Jude's smirking husband, Tom, isn't unlike Jude's "self-centred pig" of a father who plundered various exotics from around the world to create the private tropical garden she so loathes.

Jones takes huge risks in this collection, but each piece crackles with originality, startling images and lucidity. However, although the language throughout gives off much light, many of the stories generate little warmth. There is considerable verve but the language is controlled almost to the point where craftsmanship ends and bloodlessness begins. On the other hand, it's what Jones leaves out that takes root in the mind, stays there and reveals even deeper subtleties on rereading.

Lloyd Jones was born in Lower Hutt. A highly-regarded writer working in both fiction and non-fiction, in 2007 Lloyd won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, the Montana Medal for Fiction and Reader's Choice Award, and the Kiriyama Prize for his novel Mister Pip. It was also shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. In 2008, Lloyd was made an Arts Laureate and received a Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement. A volume of Lloyd's selected stories, The Man in the Shed is due out in 2009 (Penguin).

The Man in the Shed - Lloyd Jones

My Father's Tears and Other Stories - John Updike

John Updike published some 60 books during his lifetime. Since his death in January, two more have arrived in the bookstores: Endpoint and Other Poems in March and, more recently, My Father's Tears and Other Stories. Will anyone be surprised if there are another 60 books by this prodigiously prolific writer awaiting posthumous publication? However many there are, one can only hope that they're of the quality of the strongest parts of this latest short-story collection, which has Updike working in his characteristic milieu: the melancholic landscape of thoughtful, lustful, damaged and damage-making New England men, usually confronting the daily dramas of marriage, children and work, more often than not with affairs, divorce and travel thrown in, and always with a penchant for lyrical remembrances of a finer, more innocent American past that they themselves have sullied over the course of their own imperfectly pursued lives.

Most of these stories were composed in Updike's last years (and first appeared in The New Yorker and Harper's), which matters only insofar as it explains the focus on medical treatments, visits to distant children and grandchildren, cosmopolitan elder travel and, most significantly, reflective men nearing the end of their days and remembering, remembering, remembering. (In fact, two stories are about old men attending high school reunions.)

A notable exception to these grey contours is the opening story, Morocco, which concerns the misadventures of an American family travelling through North Africa. The father (and narrator) is aware of the absurd figure he and his wife and children cut, he describes the family on a bus bound for Tangier, and Moroccan women "wrapped in black, some with veils, all eyes glittering upward in alarmed amazement at this onrush of large, flushed, childish Americans." But this self-satire never erodes the affection the father has for his brood even if, by story's end, when they triumphantly make it to Paris, Updike underscores that affection just as he suddenly reveals further details that undermine its sustaining power. Addressing his children directly, lovingly, the father observes, "We had achieved, in Morocco, maximum family compression, and could only henceforth disperse. Growing up, leaving home, watching your parents divorce ? all, in the decade since, have happened. But on a radiant high platform of the Eiffel Tower I felt us still molded, it seemed, forever together."

Elsewhere, Updike tracks the ravaging effects of time and flawed humanity on his characters, and likewise their unexpected responses to them: In Free, a man has the opportunity to resume an affair with a woman from deep in his past but, when the moment is at hand, decides to remain faithful to his dead wife's memory, even if he repeatedly and callously failed her in life with this very woman. In The Accelerating Expansion of the Universe, a henpecked old husband bored with everything finds sudden vitality in being mugged while travelling through Spain, then later, back home, in being trapped under a pile of domestic detritus that, "with thrift's absurd inertia," (what a perfect phrase) he'd been saving for no good purpose for years. And in Blue Light, the thrice-married protagonist undergoes a pre-emptive cancer treatment in his lonely old age that inspires him to attempt meaningful contact with his children and grandchildren. Confronting their youthful indifference, both to him and to the greater worries of life as he now understands them, the old man is inspired more to pity his loved ones than envy them for their careless enjoyment of life.
There are a few weak stories, notably a long, poorly conceived piece about the attacks of Sept. 11 from a wide variety of perspectives of individuals directly involved in the event. The most successful are concerned with various combinations of family, marital folly, joy, wreckage and wistfulness, all of which Updike unfolds through thoughtful interior monologues, often effortless narration and crystalline dialogue, a few clumsy, overly detailed sex scenes and, now and then, simply beautiful descriptions of his characters' surroundings: Evoking autumn in tree-lined Boston in one story, for instance, Updike describes "maples letting go in gusts of gold and red."

Elsewhere, the storytelling makes elegant, moving declarations about life itself, as in the title story. My Father's Tears is the story of a man who makes his way from rural Pennsylvania to Boston, where, at Harvard, he meets his future wife. Over the years, he becomes ambivalently involved in her family's life while growing increasingly distanced from his own, only to return home, years later, now divorced, for his father's funeral. At this point, the full force of a distant memory, of his father crying while shaking his hand at a train station, comes home to him. Over time, he has come to appreciate the source of those tears: "My father did foresee, the glitter in his eyes told me, that time consumes us, that the boy I had been was dying if not already dead, and we would have less and less to do with each other. My life had come out of his, and now I was stealing away with it." As this story and the others in this often-moving collection suggest, we each experience this kind of insight about time's unceasing hand and family's long reach, from both perspectives, eventually, inevitably.

Unseen Academicals - Terry Pratchett - Discworld 032

Unseen Academicals is brilliantly clever. It rivals Night Watch insomuch as it is not rip-roaringly funny, but is intelligently brilliant. The story is complex and compelling, making the reader think to keep up with what is going on.

The characters introduced in this novel are tremendously clever. From Nutt's development arc to the relationship between Trev and Jules, and the fact that Glenda did evolve, Pratchett once again manages to effortlessly (or so it seems) weave together a cast as if he had the strings to each marionette in his hands.

But maybe the real joy was in seeing characters like Vetinari, Ridcully and Ponder receive more face time. More often than not acting as sub-characters in previous books - there to help the book along but not the focus - these three characters are the source of some of the funniest and intelligent scenes.

All of that being said, however, and we are still left with a minor problem. Whether it was because Pratchett no longer had direct control over the writing (he had to dictate this book to an assistant) or something else, there were some unhappy grammatical errors and a few scenes that seemed unpolished. One can almost let it pass, seeing as who we're dealing with, but at times I was thrown for a loop as I tried to comprehend what I was reading. The mistakes are small, and not overly numerous, but new to a Discworld novel.

Were these errors enough to make me dislike the book? Oh heavens no! Pratchett has written a book that, with rereads, will probably climb my Pratchett scale and rank as a great book. I know I missed stuff, and I look forward to going back and finding it. Just another proof that Pratchett knows how to write a brilliant fantasy book.

So do I suggest going to get the book upon its release? I sure do! Queue up at the bookstore and make sure you get it as soon as possible. You won't be disappointed, and you'll crave more Pratchett stories when you finish. What else do you want from a book?

Unseen Academicals - Terry Pratchett

Greek Cookery From The Hellenic Heart - George Calombaris

The Greek taverna is a place for quiet reflection and spiritual discussion; a place for love or war; a place to feed the belly and the spirit. The taverna is the kitchen table of the village or the street - a place for family and friends to gather; a watering hole, a debating hall, a gambling den and a cafe rolled into one.

George Calombaris' Hellenic Republic taverna captures that mood and combines it with a menu that champions the full breadth and myriad influences on peasant cuisine across the islands, territories and regions we call Hellenic Republic.

Here you'll find the fingerprints of Phoenicians, Florentines, Cypriots, Macedonians, Byzantines, Cretans, and Spartans. You will greet your favourites and fall in love with new friends. From breakfast rich in yoghurt and Cypriot sausage, move onto plates of tzatziki and peppered figs. Taste the slow cooked pork and moussaka and wash down the saganaki with crisp white wine.

Then sit down with the Calombaris family and taste his Mum's fabulous authentic recipes that she has handed down through the generations. Enjoy Cypriot pies, meat balls and hommus and the tender Afelia that is braised pork and coriander. Share the fabulous chargrilled octopus and dolmades.

Welcome to the Hellenic Heart.

Greek Cookery From The Hellenic Heart - George Calombaris

The Catastrophe Continues - Selected Interviews by John Clarke

For twenty years, Bryan Dawe has been trying to get some sense out of John Clarke.

In 1987, John and Bryan began to broadcast on radio a series of weekly interviews in which prominent and newsworthy figures spoke openly about issues of the day. This noble public service soon took to television screens, where their weekly report has brought a welcome splash of colour to the week's events for over two decades. To celebrate this milestone, Text is publishing the very best of these interviews in one volume for the first time.

All the stars of the era are here: Keating, Kennett, Howard, Costello, Latham, Ruddock, Rudd. John, as the prominent or newsworthy figure, deals with matters as he sees fit. Bryan persists with dignity and strives for understanding.

The Catastrophe Continues - John Clarke

The Great Crash of 2008 by Ross Garnaut

FOLLOWING the great crash of 2008, huge amounts of money were being disbursed from the public purse to a wide array of activities and enterprises whose bailing out was seen as important to economic stabilisation and recovery.

Officials' decisions rather than competitiveness in the marketplace now determined the fortunes of many businesses.

One lesson from the great crash is that more effective regulation of financial markets is required. But this does not mean greater regulation of markets or government intervention in the economy more generally.

The early policy response (of stimulus spending) risked entrenching rationalisations for much more widespread state intervention in markets. This would impose persistent high costs on the integrity of our democracy as well as on our market economy.

The great recession that followed the great crash of 2008 should leave an important legacy of ideas and practice for macroeconomic policies. But it may not.

In Australia, the senior Treasury and central bank officials responsible for macro-economic policy have taken early opportunities to explain why monetary policy should not be influenced by asset bubbles and external payments imbalances.

However, the early official response is unlikely to be the last word. There was debate during the technology stock market bubble of the 1990s, and again in the early 21st century, about whether high and rising asset prices warranted a tightening of monetary policy.

At the time, the dominant view was that they did not.

Adjustment of policy in response to asset bubbles was seen as inconsistent with inflation targeting: the guide to monetary policy in most developed countries. Monetary policies were tightened when expectations of increases in the prices of goods and services rose above an acceptable and known range. The tightening would continue until price rises or expectations of them were back within the range.

The alternative view is that asset as well as general goods and services prices are relevant to monetary policy. When these prices are moving in very different ways, there will be an awkward need for the exercising of judgment. Such an awkward moment would arise if, in the period immediately ahead, asset inflation was strong while goods and services inflation remained weak.

The big test will come in the next asset price boom. It is unlikely that the awful experience of this decade will be ignored.

The Great Crash of 2008 - Ross Garnaut

Heartless - Tasma Walton

At 7, she discovers that love isn't necessarily forever.
At 21, she finds love but it escapes her.
At 35, she learns that love can be dangerous.
By 49, she realises that the greatest love of all comes from the heart.

As her life's milestones come and go, you will recognise yourself in her: her loves, her mistakes, and her belief that she doesn't deserve more. Tasma Walton's debut novel is a moving and confronting fable about the power of the human heart, the worthiness of its desires and the often dire consequences of ignoring them.

Heartless - Tasma Walton

Killing the Black Dog by Les Murray

A controversial figure, Les Murray enjoys a reputation as Australia's greatest living poet. He overcame both a life threatening illness and a severe bout of depression in the 1990s. He takes stock of his tumultuous and passionate life journey.

Les Murray was born to a poor farming family in Bunyah, in northern New South Wales. He's known physical isolation as well as social isolation in his life, and his battles with depression have been widely reported. And so have his public stoushes with fellow writers and academics for his outspoken views on issues ranging from feminism to indigenous relations.

Now in his 60s, having returned to his home town of Bunyah, and overcome both a life-threatening illness and a severe bout of depression in the ?90s, he can take stock of a tumultuous and passionate life journey.

The Holy Show.

I was a toddler, wet-combed
with my pants buttoned to my shirt,
and there were pink and green lights, pretty
in the day, a Christmas-tree party
up the back of the village store.
I ran towards it; the big sad people

stepped out. They said over me, It's just like
for local kiddies and but let him join in;
the kiddies looked frightened
and my parents, caught off guard

One beat behind me, grabbed me up
in the great shame of our poverty
that they talked about to upset themselves.
They were blushing and smiling, cursing me
in low voices Little bugger bad boy!

for thinking happy Christmas undivided.
whereas it's all owned to buy in parcels
and have at home; for still not knowing
you don't make a holy show of your family;
outside it, there's only parry and front.

Once away, they angrily softened to
me squalling, because I was their kiddie
and had been right about the holy show
that models how the world should be
and could be, shared, glittering in near focus.
Right up to the Sex frontier.

Killing the Black Dog - Les Murray

30 / 90 Rule in need of an 'Update'

READERS of opinion pages would be familiar with the parallel import debate under way in the book industry. The arguments in favour of keeping the restrictions on a bookseller's ability to stock overseas editions of books appear to have held sway.

If recent reports are an indication of the government's response, the focus has now shifted to a search for a compromise that still delivers competitive reforms.

When most booksellers joined with publishers, printers and authors in rejecting the removal of all restrictions on parallel importation, we agreed, on balance, that these restrictions helped define our market and set the conditions for the growth of Australian and independent publishing. Alongside this growth in publishing an integral part of the book industry's success has been the development of bookshops, both chain and independent.

Just as dangerous to the future viability of our industry is the complacent approach that tiredly states "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". While the amendments of 1991 created a set of circumstances that have helped our industry flourish, the introduction of the internet, digital books and print-on-demand all make the conditions set in the 1991 legislation obsolete.

In 1991 it was thought reasonable to wait up to 90 days for a book; our customers find this laughable today. Booksellers and their customers are being asked to operate under conditions set for the past rather than those geared to the future.

The Australian Booksellers Association and others have been consistent in their calls for dramatic reductions in the 30-90 day rule, not just to give the reader a technological dividend for the advances of the past two decades but to keep booksellers competitive for the next two decades.

In spite of the willingness of booksellers to engage with publishers on a compromise position, the rest of the book industry seems content to chant the mantra of status quo. In order for booksellers, and in particular our vibrant independent sector, to continue to flourish, there needs to be a dramatic improvement in the criteria for maintaining territorial exclusivity.

First, we call for the removal of the 90-day rule (on older titles), replacing it with a zero-day requirement where publishers only maintain copyright when they hold stock. They would not lose copyright, but parallel imports would be allowed if the title was reported out of stock.

Second, subject to any treaty requirements, we call for a reduction of the 30-day rule on new titles.

Finally, we call for a full investigation of a price cap based on Canadian legislation that allows a bookseller to parallel-import if the local edition is priced too high.

With our market uniquely situated between the two largest English-speaking publishing markets, and with internet access to these markets very affordable, there needs to be a mechanism to keep local prices competitive as exchange rates fluctuate.

We reject arguments that these reform options are either too complex (the Canadians manage a price cap arrangement quite well) or undermine territorial copyright.

This debate has been framed in terms of the potential damage to Australian publishing by an open market, but a similar danger exists for the future of bookshops if the legislation is left unchanged.

There can be no argument against a proposal that, simply put, wants to put a book in a reader's hand as quickly as possible. Bookshops across Australia stock books that reflect their local community, and while it appears we can no longer expect publishers to completely service this diverse market, nor should they expect to be protected when they can't.

Australian publishers are to be admired for their development of the Australian voice and the innovative way in which they have expanded their business in partnership with Australian booksellers. If the Australian book industry is to continue to be a success story, we need legislation that works with the digital age.

We ask that when it comes to maintaining parallel importation protections, we set the bar at a level where the best of our publishers are able to achieve, not the worst.

Malcolm Neil is chief executive of the Australian Booksellers Association.

Absolute Mayhem - Confessions Of An Australian Porn Star by Monica Mayhem

How a girl from Brisbane became one of porn's biggest stars

'Do you really want to know what it's like to be a porn star? Brace yourself, because I'm not going to pull any punches. Here's what a "busy day at the office" might mean for me . . .'

"...I am filled with anxiety and excitement, hoping that it will be a number one seller. According to everyone who has read the book so far, it's a hit! And it's a total dream for me to actually be listed on the Random House website as an ?Author'. I've been writing my whole life, and never thought that I would actually end up writing a book to be published by one of the biggest publishers in the world! Though its only available in Australia so far, however, we are working on getting US and European rights to publish overseas.

And to top all that off, I actually have a 6 page spread and story, out in Marie Claire Australia Nov issue! I'm very happy with the way it came out, and the photos are amazing, so old Hollywood glam. Lets hope the media are kind to me when I go back to Australia in a couple of weeks.

My lingerie line is coming along, it's just a matter of getting my ideas across, and making sure everything is exactly the way I picture it. It's a lot of work, and also a lot of fun. I'm in no rush at all to get this project finished, I wouldn't want to put my name and approval on anything that I wasn't 100% happy with.

I've been madly researching health and nutrition lately, to the point where, I may even write my own cookbook - don't quote me on that, it could take years at this rate! But it's very interesting, some of the things I'm learning, and I'm actually putting together meal plans for myself, which pretty much takes a whole day to create, talk about tedious work! But it's all worth it to feel super fit and happy with yourself. I've always been somewhat of a health and fitness freak, but I'm taking it to the next level now!..."

Absolute Mayhem - Monica Mayhem

Who Wants to Be a Billionaire - Paul Barry

THE retreat of James Packer from public life over the past year is the result of the emotional impact that came with the loss of part of the immense wealth left to him by his late father Kerry, according to a new book by journalist Paul Barry.

Barry's book, Who Wants to Be a Billionaire? The James Packer Story, portrays Mr Packer as more attached to money than his father, and measuring his own self-worth by his wealth.

Barry writes that Mr Packer took the global financial crisis harder than some other business leaders, and that "James was suffering because he took money so seriously", Fairfax reports.

Barry says the value of Mr Packer's assets dropped by up to $4 billion, leading him to resume smoking, put on weight and become depressed.

It may also have made him more feisty. He clashed with former Nine Network chief David Leckie at a birthday party at Sydney's Opera House, The Daily Telegraph reports.

Mr Leckie, now chief at Seven, approached Mr Packer to shake his former boss's hand. Instead, the magnate swore at him and suggested they "go outside". He is said to be furious over what he sees as a campaign by Seven against him.

Who Wants to Be a Billionaire - Paul Barry

I, Mick Gatto - Mick Gatto

Melbourne's underworld has returned to the surface with the launch of gangland survivor Mick Gatto's autobiography. Gatto mingled with celebrities including MasterChef's George Calombaris and actor Simon Westaway at today's launch, in Bourke Street's Grossi Florentino.

I, Mick Gatto was written with Tom Noble and is touted as an insight into a "colourful and mysterious" world, revealing the man behind the headlines. The autobiography charts his early days growing up in the inner city, his career as a heavyweight boxer, to his 14 months in jail awaiting trial for the murder of Andrew Veniamin, of which he was acquitted.

Noble, a former Age journalist, said Gatto had many good anecdotes and was very candid with his story. "Mick is a great Melbourne story," he said.

Gatto spoke briefly with a subdued demeanour which betrayed little of the colourful character often portrayed. He thanked his family, who he revealed did not initially want him to write the book. "I had to put pen to paper ... get my story out there before (others) could paint me as a drug dealer or a two-headed monster or whatever," he explained.

Westaway, who played Gatto in the television series Underbelly, joked as he addressed the sharply dressed crowd, "This is so not intimidating at all". Introduced as being more Mick Gatto than Mick Gatto, Westaway spoke of meeting the underworld figure over lunch and finding him a man "comfortable in his own skin".

"This is book about a past ... but he's in the present now," he said. One well-wisher in the crowd was Silvana Laird, who had met Gatto after she was diagnosed with cancer late last year. "He is, I feel, a legend ... People will always have their thoughts but if he tells his story, that's his story," she said "People should learn to mind their own beeswax."

Gatto will be touring the book, released by Melbourne University Press, around Australia throughout October.

I Mick Gatto - Mick Gatto

The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood

The times and species have been changing at a rapid rate, and the social compact is wearing as thin as environmental stability. Adam One, the kindly leader of the God's Gardeners?a religion devoted to the melding of science and religion, as well as the preservation of all plant and animal life?has long predicted a natural disaster that will alter Earth as we know it. Now it has occurred, obliterating most human life. Two women have survived: Ren, a young trapeze dancer locked inside the high-end sex club Scales and Tails, and Toby, a God's Gardener barricaded inside a luxurious spa where many of the treatments are edible.

Have others survived? Ren's bioartist friend Amanda? Zeb, her eco-fighter stepfather? Her onetime lover, Jimmy? Or the murderous Painballers, survivors of the mutual-elimination Painball prison? Not to mention the shadowy, corrupt policing force of the ruling powers . . .

Meanwhile, gene-spliced life forms are proliferating: the lion/lamb blends, the Mo'hair sheep with human hair, the pigs with human brain tissue. As Adam One and his intrepid hemp-clad band make their way through this strange new world, Ren and Toby will have to decide on their next move. They can't stay locked away . . .

By turns dark, tender, violent, thoughtful, and uneasily hilarious, The Year of the Flood is Atwood at her most brilliant and inventive.

Atwood is funny and clever, such a good writer and real thinker that there's hardly any point saying that not everything in the novel works. Why should it? A high level of creativity has to let in some chaos.The flaws in The Year of the Flood are part of the pleasure, as they are with human beings, that species so threatened by its own impending suicide and held up here for us to look at, mourn over, laugh at and hope for. Atwood knows how to show us ourselves, but the mirror she holds up to life does more than reflect?it's like one of those mirrors made with mercury that gives us both a deepening and a distorting effect, allowing both the depths of human nature and its potential mutations. We don't know how we will evolve, or if we will evolve at all. The Year of the Flood isn't prophecy, but it is eerily possible.

Year of the Flood - Margaret Atwood

Stand by Her - A breast Cancer Guide For Men by John W Anderson

Writer John W. Anderson knows a thing or two about helping the women in his life battle breast cancer. His mother, Annie, died from the disease and his mother's best friend Caryl, his sister Mary, and his wife, Sharon, all battled breast cancer and survived. In the process, Anderson learned how breast cancer affects men and what men can do when women in their lives become its victims.

Anderson used his experience to write Stand By Me: A Breast Cancer Guide for Men, after his wife reached her five-year cancer-free milestone. The book is a comprehensive reference and compass for husbands, fathers, sons, brothers and other caring men to help the women in their lives cope with this devastating disease.

The book is a step-by-step program targeted to men who want to become invaluable breast cancer caregivers to their loved ones, while at the same time helping them address and overcome their own personal fears, frustrations and anxieties caused by this disease. Combining anecdotes from his own and others' secondhand experiences of breast cancer with extensive research and abundant resources, Anderson provides information, strategies and guidance on countless medical and emotional minefields men face every day.

Beginning with the dreaded moment of diagnosis, Anderson clearly explains the range of breast cancer treatments -- from lumpectomy and chemotherapy to double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery. He also provides expert advice on medical, psychological, family relationships, sexual and financial issues.

Stand by Her - John W Anderson

Fantastic Twilight Saga Box Sets From Stephenie Meyer

Stephenie Meyer's legions of fans will devour these gorgeous complete gift sets. each stunning set comes complete with all four hardcover or softcover books, depending on your preference. These sets make the perfect gift for fans of the bestselling vampire love story.

        The Twilight Saga Paperback Set                      The Twilight Saga Hardback Box Set

New Moon Film Edition by Stephenie Meyer - World Wide Release Today!

Exclusive New Moon Poster Included!

In Stock And Ready To Ship Today!

I stuck my finger under the edge of the paper and jerked it under the tape. Shoot, I muttered when the paper sliced my finger. A single drop of blood oozed from the tiny cut. It all happened very quickly then. No! Edward roared... Dazed and disoriented, I looked up from the bright red blood pulsing out of my arm - and into the fevered eyes of the six suddenly ravenous vampires.

For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of an evil vampire but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realise their troubles may just be beginning...

New Moon - Stephenie Meyer

The Infinities by John Banville

John Banville is one of the finest and most critically-acclaimed writers of his generation. With elegance, insight and wit, he has secured a devoted readership, and there can be few more eagerly anticipated literary events than a new John Banville novel - and, indeed, this is the first novel under his own name since he won the 2005 Booker Prize with The Sea.

The Infinities is a bitter-sweet erotic comedy with magical overtones, a sort of demotic Midsummer Night's Dream. Set across one single summer's day, from dawn to the early hours of the next day, it tells the story of Adam, a successful mathematician who is lying in a coma after a stroke, surrounded by his family and a series of unexpected and mysterious guests.

Combining myth and social comedy, The Infinities is clever, charming and a true delight.

Author Information

John Banville was born in Wexford, Ireland, in 1945. He is the author of 14 previous novels including The Sea, which won the 2005 Booker Prize. He has received a literary award from the Lannan Foundation. He lives in Dublin.

The Infinities - John Banville

New Moon Film Companion World Wide release Today!

Another bit of the Twilight madness has been released today. A New Moon movie companion book is now on sale.

The book features never before seen pictures from the upcoming film New Moon. Some new details are included in the book as well. This is just one of many teasers that has been exciting Twilight fans everywhere. The excitement surrounding this release of the second movie in the Twilight saga is mind blowing.

Stephanie Meyer has updated her website to correlate with this newest companion book release. The website also hints at more New Moon material that will be coming out as soon as next week.

Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, are already working on the third installment of the Twilight series, Eclipse, which will be released sometime next year. There are currently four books in the Twilight series.

The movie has teenagers and adults alike counting down the days before it is released. The Twilight films are based on the novels by Stephanie Meyer. The novels are geared more towards a tween audience, but with heartthrobs like Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, the film has drawn in an older crowd. The New Moon movie will be released on November 20th, 2009.

The Twilight Saga New Moon Official Trailer 2009

Hannah Montana Essential Guide - Elizabeth Hester

Hannah Montana: The Essential Guide is a scrapbook-y chronicle of that famous girl, the girl-next-door Miley Stewart who throws on a blonde wig and becomes pop sensation, Hannah Montana.  If you have a daughter, or niece, or granddaughter who is a huge fan of the character that brought Miley Cyrus to the limelight, you now have a handy-dandy hardcover reference to explain the phenomenon.

Inside the sparkly, holographic stars of the cover you'll find a nice assemblage of facts, scenes from the television series and movie, and full-color pictures galore to acquaint you will all aspects of Hannah Montana's world. Right off the bat you get a two-page spread of the primary cast with the name of their character and an arrow pointing to their head.  Bookmark this for quick reference during your pre-teen's next name-dropping conversation.

You're introduced to the scenario of the series next to a collage of stills from many of the episodes. Scattered with factoids, you become acquainted with the small-town girl transplanted to California, then her alter ego, including the accoutrements needed for the transformation into acclaimed pop star. Each family member and friend gets a two-page outlay with large portrait and includes their own disguises as associates of Hannah Montana. Frenemies and reoccurring relatives get a small index card-sized blurb.

Behind the scenes, you get a look at the funky clothing in Hannah Montana's closet, and backstage at her concerts. You get to sample the lengths Miley has gone to to keep her celebrity secret, and review her transition to the California way of life.

A relatively large portion , 10 of the 48 pages , is reserved for events in "Hannah Montana: The Movie." With a return to Crowley Corners, Tennessee, Miley hopes to get back to her roots and away from the glamorous life for a while. The rural community has its own collection of unique personalities, and we get a brief look at them. Not to be left out, the animals featured in the film are identified and get their own plug.

The campaign to save their open countryside from development is laid out, including plans for the benefit party.  Finally, her dual personalities and the forces that attempt to influence her behavior reveal some lessons to be learned about keeping things in perspective.

And that's it!  You are now an informed individual on the spectacle of Hannah Montana and have the potential of upping your cool factor by being able to converse intelligently on the subject.

Hannah Montana: The Essential Guide packs in a lot of information without the layout seeming too busy.  It was rather clever the way episode plots were integrated into each character's bio.  Aiming for the 9 to 12-year-old crowd, this book is indispensable for the young fan, but may be even more valuable for those much older as an accessible handbook for Hannah Montana knowledge.

Hilary Mantel's 'Wolf Hall' Wins 2009 Booker Prize

British author and bookies' favourite Hilary Mantel has won the £50,000 Man Booker Prize for Fiction for her historical novel Wolf Hall.

Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel

Wolf Hall, set in the Tudor court when Henry VIII was on the throne but struggling without an heir, has been the favourite since the long-list was announced in July.

The Booker judges described Mantel's latest work as a "thoroughly modern novel set in the 16th century", but James Naughtie, chairman of the judges, admitted that the decision had not been unanimous.

He said a secret ballot among the panel resulted in Mantel's book winning by three to two, but declined to name the book the other two judges had selected, insisting that all involved were happy with the final result.

He said: "We voted by secret ballot and I genuinely didn't know who would emerge the winner. It wasn't a unanimous decision but it was one all the judges were content with. It was a difficult decision. This year's short-list was one of the strongest."

Mantel, who was shortlisted for a Commonwealth Prize and the 2006 Orange Prize for fiction, has written several other novels, including the critically acclaimed Beyond Black.

She won the prize over South African-born Australian J.M. Coetzee, who would have been the first person to win it three times, and other bestselling and acclaimed writers, including Sarah Waters and A.S. Byatt.

The long-list, described as one of the strongest in years, included the debut novel by former Herald journalist Ed O'Loughlin, Not Untrue and Not Unkind.

Naughtie said Wolf Hall contained "a vast narrative sweep that gleams on every page with luminous and mesmerising detail".

"It probes the mysteries of power by examining and describing the meticulous dealings in Henry VIII's court, revealing in thrilling prose how politics and history is made by men and women.

"In the words of Mantel's Thomas Cromwell, whose story this is, 'The fate of peoples is made like this, two men in small rooms. Forget the coronations, the conclaves of cardinals, the pomp and processions. This is how the world changes.' "

Mantel was herself a judge for the prize in 1990 when A.S. Byatt's Possession won.

This is the first time the publisher Fourth Estate has had a Man Booker Prize winner. It has previously published three short-listed books:  Nicola Barker's Darkmans (2007) and Carol Shields's novels Unless (2002) and The Stone Diaries (1993).

The Devil's Punchbowl - Greg Iles

When he was a prosecuting attorney Penn Cage sent hardened killers to death row. But it is as mayor of his hometown, Natchez, Mississippi, that Penn will face his most dangerous threat.

Urged by old friends to try to restore the town to its former glory, Penn has ridden into office on a tide of support for change. But in its quest for new jobs and fresh money, Natchez has turned to casino gambling. Five fantastical steamboats float on the river beside the old slave market like props from Gone With the Wind. But one boat isn't like the others. Rumour has it that the Magnolia Queen has found a way to pull the big players from Las Vegas. And with them comes an unquenchable taste for one thing: blood sport, and the dark vices that go with it.

When a childhood friend of Penn's who brings him evidence of these crimes is brutally murdered, the full weight of Penn's failure to protect this city hits home. So begins his quest to find the men responsible. But it's a hunt he begins alone, for the local authorities have been corrupted by the money and power of his hidden enemy. With his family's life at stake, Penn realizes his only allies in his one-man war are those bound to him by blood or honour.

The Devils Punchbowl - Greg Iles

The Life and Death of Democracy - John Keane

John Keane's The Life and Death of Democracy will inspire and shock its readers. Presenting the first grand history of democracy for well over a century, it poses along the way some tough and timely questions: can we really be sure that democracy had its origins in ancient Greece? How did democratic ideals and institutions come to have the shape they do today? Given all the recent fanfare about democracy promotion, why are many people now gripped by the feeling that a bad moon is rising over all the world's democracies? Do they indeed have a future? Or is perhaps democracy fated to melt away, along with our polar ice caps?

Transition - Iain Banks

A world that hangs suspended between triumph and catastrophe, between the dismantling of the Wall and the fall of the Twin Towers, frozen in the shadow of suicide terrorism and global financial collapse, such a world requires a firm hand and a guiding light. But does it need the Concern: an all-powerful organisation with a malevolent presiding genius, pervasive influence and numberless invisible operatives in possession of extraordinary powers?

On the Concern's books are Temudjin Oh, an un-killable assassin who journeys between the peaks of Nepal, a version of Victorian London and the dark palaces of Venice; and a nameless, faceless torturer known only as the Philosopher. And then there's the renegade Mrs Mulverhill, who recruits rebels to her side; and Patient 8262, hiding out from a dirty past in a forgotten hospital ward.

As these vivid, strange and sensuous worlds circle and collide, the implications of turning traitor to the Concern become horribly apparent, and an unstable universe is set on a dizzying course.

Transition - Iain Banks

Book Review Juliet Naked by Nick Hornby

Nick Hornby has written about the seductive power of pop music in High Fidelity and how a hobby can become an obsession in Fever Pitch. His new novel marries those two themes so perfectly that it deserves one of those smashup names. High Pitch, anyone? Juliet, Naked is the actual title, and it's just right, like so much of this book....

Read the full review here.

New Moon Board Game In Stock And Ready To Ship Today!

• Enter the world of the Twilight Saga and reunite Bella and Edward
• Challenge your friends to see who knows more about New Moon, the more you know, the greater your chance of winning
• Includes Board, Scene cards, Playing Pieces and dice
• Answer questions about Twilight New Moon and your friends to move forward around the board
• Have your friends over for a New Moon party

Five Greatest Warriors by Matthew Reilly

IT BEGAN WITH SIX STONES
Jack West Jr and his loyal team are in desperate disarray: they've been separated, their mission is in tatters, and Jack was last seen plummeting down a fathomless abyss.

IT FINISHES HERE
After surviving his deadly fall, Jack must now race against his many enemies to locate and set in place the remaining pieces of The Machine before the coming Armageddon.

WHO ARE THE FIVE WARRIORS?
As the world teeters on the brink of destruction, he will learn of the Five Warriors, the individuals who throughout history have been most intimately connected to his quest.

OCEANS WILL RISE, CITIES WILL FALL
Scores will be settled, fathers will fight sons, brothers will battle brothers, and Jack and his friends will soon find out exactly what the end of the world looks like...

Author Information

Matthew Reilly is the international bestselling author of seven novels: Contest, Ice Station, Temple, Area 7, Scarecrow, Seven Ancient Wonders, The Six Sacred Stones, the children's book Hover Car Racer and one novella, Hell Island. His books are published in over 20 languages, with worldwide sales approaching four million copies.

Five Greatest Warriors - Matthew Reilly

The Capitalism Delusion by Bob Ellis - How Global Economics Wrecked Everything

In the free market we trust.  Look where that's got us.

With our economy based upon money as illusory as God's love, Bob Ellis calls time on free market fundamentalism.

We put our faith in a system that awards do-nothing CEOs with millions as their companies collapse and provoke a global crisis. We judge corporate success on the number of sackings, fund the privatisation of essential services with public money and favour cheap goods discounted by the loss of our jobs. We sign up for wars in which capitalism makes a killing.

Continuing from his classic dissection of economic rationalism, First Abolish the Customer, Ellis presents 345 arguments challenging the free market orthodoxy with ferocious intelligence and wit. His free-flowing meditation on the gross inequalities in our society contends that we are irresponsibly fixated on the sale of goods, instead of on delivering jobs that put money into people's hands. Skewering the legacies of Thatcherism, he proposes some radically simple remedies, including restoring tariffs, investing in country towns and restricting corporate salaries.

The Capitalism Delusion is vintage Ellis: exasperated, impolite and inspiring.

The Capitalism Delusion - Bob Ellis

The Complaints by Ian Rankin

More than 20 years on since his first novel appeared, Ian Rankin is one of the literary world's most recognised and well-loved authors. With an unerring eye for the shadowy secrets beneath the surface of modern life, his gripping crime novels have not only got under the skin of a city, but of a nation.

Hailed as both one of the top crime writers of a generation and a master chronicler of the dark side of our society, Ian Rankin is a writer of rare honesty, perception and skill.

This new novel shows a writer at the top of his game and dares you to turn the pages on a story that will engage, fascinate and intrigue.

The Complaints - Ian Rankin

The Tiger Man of Vietnam by Frank Walker

The Vietnamese hilltribes made him a demi-god. The CIA wanted to kill him. This is the remarkable true story of Australian war hero Barry Petersen.

In 1963, 28-year-old Australian Captain Barry Petersen was sent to Vietnam as part of the 30-man Australian Training Team, two years before the first official Australian troops arrived. Seconded to the CIA, he was sent to the remote Central Highlands to build an anti-communist guerrilla force among the indigenous Montagnard people. He was sent off with bagloads of cash and a vague instruction to get to know the natives.

Petersen took over the running of the paramilitary force that had been started by the local police chief and started to earn the Montagnards respect. He lived, drank and ate with the Montagnards, learned their language and respected their skills. The Vietcong dubbed Petersen's force Tiger Men . When Petersen heard this, he had special badges made for their berets and supplied tiger print uniforms.

The Montagnards loved Petersen and flocked to join his force but the CIA were worried. They thought he was out of control and too close to the Montagnard people...

The Tiger Man of Vietnam - Frank Walker

Girl by Sea by Penelope Green

The eagerly awaited conclusion to Penelope Green's trilogy of memoirs about her life in Italy. After living in Rome and Naples, Penny and her Italian partner Alfonso move to the small and very beautiful island of Prodica in the Gulf of Naples, across the bay from Capri.

Penny and Alfonso want a change of scene and decide to accept the challenge set by Enzo, the owner of the island's Bar Capriccio, who tells them that young couples come to Procida, But not many last. Adapting to life in the small community, where many locals are wary of newcomers and the conveniences of the city are more than an hour's ferry trip away often on rough seas is hard for Penny, and could become even more isolated when Alfonso has to leave for three months to tour with his band.

But with her trademark optimism and determination, Penny sets her own goal. She is going to ask her Procidan neighbours to teach her to cook. Over kitchen tables, in cafes and sharing family meals under vine-covered pergolas, Penny learns the art of Italian cooking, and enters into the lives of people on the island as friendships form and stories are traded.

Girl by Sea - Penelope Green

Kristen Stewart - Infinite Romance - Josie Rusher

Hollywood's hottest young star, Kristen Stewart, is set for global stardom and in this book you can learn everything you need to know about this interesting, beautiful and glamorous film star.

From her early roles in films with Jodie Foster and Sharon Stone, Kristen showed her true potential as a child star who could make it big. But nothing was to prepare her for global superstardom when it was announced that Kirsten was to play Isabella 'Bella' Swan in the movie Twilight, based on Stephenie Meyer's bestselling vampire/romance novels. Along side Robert Pattinson, who plays her vampire boyfriend, Kristen smashed box office records and confirmed herself as the actor most teens would like to be.

INFINITE ROMANCE includes all the news from the sets of New Moon. Become her soul mate and consider this mortal as she truly is: a beautiful and complex young actor who has stolen our imaginations and created a Bella we can all believe in.

Kristen Stewart - Infinite Romance - Josie Rusher

I Am Ozzy - Ozzy Osbourne

Has there ever been a more extraordinary rock-star story than Ozzy Osbourne's? Born into a life so poor that the whole family slept in one room, Ozzy endured a tough upbringing. Music was his salvation and his band Black Sabbath went on to change the music scene forever.

But along with the rock and roll came the inevitable sex and drugs and Ozzy fell into a long relationship with addictive substances. The stories of Ozzy's days on the road are legendary - biting the head off a live bat, losing his best friend and writing partner Randy Rhoades in a tragic plane crash - but few know of the real heartbreak he suffered during those days of excess. In the end it was love that saved him: the love of his wife Sharon and kids Kelly, Jack and Aimee.

In his highly anticipated autobiography, Ozzy comes clean: in all senses.

I Am Ozzy - Ozzy Osbourne

A Colossal Failure Of Common Sense by Larry Mcdonald

The no-holds-barred account of the destruction of Lehman Brothers, by insider Larry McDonald

When Lehman Brothers bank went under, the world gasped. One of the world's biggest and most successful banks, its downfall was the event that sparked the slide of the world economy toward a Great Depression II.

This is the gripping inside story of the dark characters who ruled Lehman, who refused to heed warnings that the company was headed for an iceberg: the world-class, mid-level people who valiantly fought to get Lehman off its disastrous course; the crash that didn't have to happen. A news-breaking explanation that answers the question everyone still asks: "why did it happen?"

Larry McDonald, a former vice-president at Lehman Brothers in charge of distressed debt trading and convertible securities, was right at the center of the meltdown of the company and gives an intimate look at the mad house that Lehman became. This book shows beyond a doubt that Richard Fuld, the long-time CEO of Lehman, and his top executives, were totally out to lunch, allowing Lehman's risk profile to reach gargantuan proportions.

While the traders, like Larry McDonald, clearly predicated more than two years in advance that the market for packaged subprime mortgages and credit default swaps would evaporate, the high-flying Lehman bosses pushed hard on the gas pedal until the very end.

A Colossal Failure Of Common Sense - Larry Mcdonald