The Best Australian Books To Grab Before Christmas

It might feel like an ordinary Tuesday, but for novelists, publishers and bookworms, today is Super Tuesday 2020, the biggest and best day in Australian books in a decade.

If you’re on the hunt for a new read, you’ll be spoilt for choice with over 15,000 books arriving at the Dymocks Sydney store alone – that’s twice as many releases as last year. 

It’s really no surprise that Dymocks is stocking up on incredible novels. A recent Australia Council study found that despite COVID-19 disrupting the publishing industry and pushing back big release dates, Aussies are reading 36% more amidst the pandemic. The Australian Booksellers Association data also reports that book sales are up 7% this year-to-date. 

With National Love Your Bookshop Day approaching this Sunday, October 3, here are 5 of the best Australian books of 2020 to nab before they fly off shelves in the lead-up to Christmas:

Best Australian Books 2020

Honeybee – Craig Silvey

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Today is the day. HONEYBEE is here. I’m so proud of this book. I believe in it. I think it matters. I put everything I have into writing it. There’s one name on the cover, but the truth is, it takes a community to build a book. Thank you to the many generous and inspiring people whose stories shaped this novel. Thank you to the people who support me behind the scenes. Thank you to @jptequilarista and my family at @allenandunwin, whose belief in me gives me strength and courage. Thank you to the many booksellers and librarians who have been such spirited advocates for my work for so many years. And thank you, most importantly, to the readers who do me the great honour of lending their time and imagination to my work. I’m so very fortunate. HONEYBEE is a book about two strangers connecting, and the changes that emerge. This is also true of the relationship between a reader and a writer. It’s a beautiful, profound alchemy; where two people meet across a void and forge a powerful connection. And this is my deepest hope for HONEYBEE, that it might connect us. Reading is a solitary act that makes us feel less alone. I’m so excited to share HONEYBEE with you all, and introduce you to its cast of characters. Thank you for supporting me, and I hope you enjoy HONEYBEE.

A post shared by Craig Silvey (@craigsilveyauthor) on Sep 28, 2020 at 4:44pm PDT

Late in the night, 14-year-old Sam Watson steps onto a quiet overpass, climbs over the rail and looks down at the road far below. At the other end of the same bridge, an old man, Vic, smokes his last cigarette. Honeybee is a heartbreaking, life-affirming novel that throws us headlong into a world of petty thefts, extortion plots, botched bank robberies, daring dog rescues and one spectacular drag show.

All Our Shimmering Skies – Trent Dalton

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#Repost @paulineisreading with @get_repost ・・・ #paulinereviews ALL OUR SHIMMERING SKIES BY TRENT DALTON ✨ After LOVING Boy Swallows Universe, this book was one of my most anticipated releases of 2020 and I know I’m not alone in that. I’m happy to report that…it ???????? did ???????? not ???????? disappoint! At the heart of the story, we have Molly Hook, a 12 year old girl who’s a bit of an oddball – she talks to the sky, digs graves for all her childhood and has a shovel as a best friend. As she runs away from bomb-ravaged Darwin into deep-country Northern Territory in 1942, she comes across Greta, a sassy actress from her hometown and Yukio, a fallen Japanese pilot. AOSS is part adventure in the bush, part family drama and, just like BSU, it’s sprinkled with many magical realism elements. Dalton’s somehow managed to create another world that has such similar feels to his debut, and yet so different. His writing stayed true to form – it’s captivating and rich in details. He took his time in building the setting and the world around his characters. In the hands of a less skilled writer, the plot may end up being too imaginative but we now know that he has such a way with words, that he made it all come together so beautifully! ???????? I don’t want to give too much away as I know many of you have this pre-ordered and looking forward to reading it yourself (if you haven’t pre-ordered…this is your reminder to do it NOW!). Just know that this book is certainly atmospheric, and it describes the Australian bush in such a tender, poetic way. I would also love to see this being optioned for a film, i have no doubt it would be fantastic visually! All in all, it was wonderful read and i’m certain that it will be loved by many. p.s. I listened to ‘Australian Nature Sounds’ playlist on Spotify the whole time and felt like this really added to the experience so I’d suggest you do the same haha ???? 〰️ Huge thank you to the @harpercollinsaustralia team for gifting me this early review copy. This book will now be out in the world on Mon, Sep 28 – so set those alarms! ⏰

A post shared by Trent Dalton Author (@trentdaltonauthor) on Sep 25, 2020 at 7:14pm PDT

A story about gifts that fall from the sky, curses we dig from the earth and the secrets we bury inside ourselves, All Our Shimmering Skies is an odyssey of true love and grave danger, of darkness and light, of bones and blue skies. It is a love letter to Australia and an ode to the art of looking up – a buoyant, beautiful and magical novel, abrim with warmth, wit and wonder.

Women and Leadership  – Julia Gillard & Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

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OUT NOW: My new book with co-author Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala – Women and Leadership: Real Lives, Real Lessons. Featuring @jacindaardern, @hillaryclinton, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, @theresamay , @michellebacheletpdta, @drjoycebanda, @erna_solberg and @christinelagarde Link in bio.

A post shared by Julia Gillard (@juliagillard) on Jul 12, 2020 at 5:55pm PDT

From their broad experience on the world stage in politics, economics and global not-for-profits, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Julia Gillard have some strong ideas about the impact of gender on the treatment of leaders. Women and Leadership takes a consistent and comprehensive approach to teasing out what is different for women leaders.

I Catch Killers  – Gary Jubelin

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The #truecrime book you’ve been waiting for. #instagood #nofilter #instapic #instadaily #instamood #bookstagram #books #dymocks #booklovers #literature #readersofinstagram #readers #nonfiction #nonfictionreads #nonfictionbooks #icatchkillers

A post shared by Dymocks Waurn Ponds (@dymockswaurnponds) on Aug 23, 2020 at 2:44pm PDT

Gary Jubelin was one of Australia’s most celebrated homicide detective, leading investigations into the disappearance of William Tyrrell, the serial killing of three Aboriginal children in Bowraville and the brutal gangland murder of Terry Falconer. During his 34-year career, former Detective Chief Inspector Jubelin also ran the crime scene following the Lindt Cafe siege, investigated the death of Caroline Byrne and recovered the body of Matthew Leveson. In 2020, Jubelin was found guilty of illicitly recording conversations during the Tyrrell investigation. This is his story.

The Dictionary of Lost Words  – Pip Williams

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Mother’s Day is this Sunday and with bookshops all over Australian offering speedy local delivery or collection it’s not too late to give the gift of reading. Our latest releases are full of heart and soul. #TheDictionaryofLostWords #TheThingsSheOwned #NonnaKnowsBest #BeneaththeFigLeaves #TheresOnlyOneMumLikeYou #mothersday #mothersdaygift

A post shared by Affirm Press (@affirmpress) on May 7, 2020 at 11:42pm PDT

Set when the women’s suffrage movement was at its height and the Great War loomed, The Dictionary Of Lost Words reveals a lost narrative, hidden between the lines of a history written by men. It’s a delightful, lyrical and deeply thought-provoking celebration of words, and the power of language to shape the world and our experience of it.