 
Booktopia Buzz
August 2008 | Edition #2
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BUZZ IN BRIEF
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First of all, a big thank you to all of our readers who were so supportive of the first edition of Booktopia Buzz. We have had lots of people subscribe through the website, or having been recommended by friends. We've had some terrific feedback, we've been overwhelmed by orders, and we have taken on board some constructive criticism.

This month Booktopia Buzz has gone all blokey. Fathers' Day is just around the corner and that means books for big boys. We'd like to think that we can get you sorted in less then 10 minutes. And if Dad isn't a reader, we can set him up with some great story telling to listen to. We also have a fantastic special offer which would make a cracker present for Dad - Somme Mud and In the Footsteps of Private Lynch for $29.95. That's only $29.95 for the two books.

Another bonus in this month's Booktopia Buzz. Pre-order Brisingr for $24.95 ($10 off). Its going to be huge.

What else is there in August's Booktopia Buzz? 
 
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FATHERS' DAY SPECIAL
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In the Footsteps of Private Lynch and Somme Mud

Buy $70 worth of books for $29.95

Will Davies is an historian, writer and film maker. Most recently, he edited the bestselling  Somme Mud: the experiences of an Australian infantryman in France 1916-1919, a gut-churning epic which revisits the pointless devastation of the World War One battlefield.

Somme Mud        +      In the Footsteps of Private Lynch  = $29.95


This month sees the release of Davies companion book, In the Footsteps of Private Lynch, in which he re-constructs the Private Lynch story. Davies meticulously tracks Lynch and his battalion's travels, their long route marches to flea ridden billets, into the front line, to rest areas behind the lines and finally, on to the great push to the eventual victory.

These two books make compelling reading for any one with an interest in military history, as well as anyone interested in what it is to be Australian.

Booktopia is very pleased to be offering these two great books for the very special price of $29.95.

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TONI'S BOOK OF THE MONTH   UNFORGETTABLE MEMOIR
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Crime by Irvine WalshCRIME
Irvine Welsh

I am the first to admit I approached Irvine Welsh's latest novel with more than a degree of hesitation. Well, I have to say upfront, Crime, is gripping, intriguing and that clumsy word, unputdownable.

Welsh certainly can write a thriller that gallops along and grips the reader by the throat. What is more engrossing however, is how he seems to get inside the head of his everyman hero, how he deconstructs his motivation, inexorably linking it back to an incident in his early teens.

This is a great, redemptive book. It leaves you wanting more - much more.

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  Gentle SatanGENTLE SATAN: MY FATHER ABE SAFFRON
Alan Saffron

What an intriguing memoir! This is the inside story of Mr Sin and his families.

Son of the late infamous crime boss Abe Saffron, Alan has spent his life time coming to terms with his father, whom he both loves and hates, with a passion.

Growing up the son of Australia's kingpin of vice, Alan Saffron had little chance of a normal life.

With unabashed candour, Alan reveals the remarkable personal lives of those who lived with Mr Sin.

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FATHER'S DAY SORTED IN TEN MINUTES
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Pressured for time? Can't quite decide? Booktopia Buzz will get you sorted in less that ten minues.

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FLY   PETER BROCK
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Fly FLY: TRUE STORIES OF COURAGE & ADVENTURE FROM AIRMEN OF WORLD WAR TWO
Michael Veitch

All over the world during World War II, thousands of young men who had never so much as been near an aeroplane left offices, farms and classrooms to learn to fly and fight in the greatest conflict the world has ever seen.

In these candid and moving stories, Michael Veitch captures the events that defined a generation of men before these stories are lost forever. Fly is a tribute to these airmen - and their fellow warriors - both friend and foe.

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  Peter BrockPETER BROCK: HOW GOOD IS THIS! THE REAL STORY
Wayne Webster

Peter Brock's friend and co-driver Wayne Webster gives an honest account of a man with unmatched intuition in the car, a deep affection for his fans, and a less than perfect - but very human - record in his personal relationships.

Brock's untimely death during a 2006 rally shocked the community and brought his contributions into relief. In Peter Brock: How Good is This,  Brock's story is told through insightful interviews with friends, family and business associate.

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1001 WINES   FIRED UP
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1001 Wines1001 WINES YOU MUST TRY BEFORE YOU DIE
Neil Beckett

Among the thousands of great wines on the market, which should you try at least once in your lifetime? 1001 Wines You Must Try Before You Die ensures that you make the right decision every time. This evocative and informative guide takes you beyond the initial taste sensation to give you history, anecdote, facts and opinion. The perfect gift for anyone fascinated with wine.

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  Fired UpFIRED UP
Ross Dobson

Fired Up is a wonderful new barbecue cookbook which features a comprehensive range of no-nonsense recipes to cover all your barbecuing needs. It is divided into four straightforward chapters - bird, cow, fish and on the side - which all offer a mouth-watering selection of grilling and hot-plating fare.

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                                             BRISINGR : for only $24.95 Pre-Order Today
                                            by Christopher Paolini

Brisingr by Christopher PaoliniBrisingr is coming. Are you prepared for its world-wide release on Saturday September 20 (eastern standard time)?

Booktopia
is pleased to announce that we will be selling Brisingr at $24.95, a massive $10 (30 per cent) off the listed price of $34.95. Follow the link below to pre-order your copy now (shipment from the warehouse on September 19 or store pick-up from 2.01pm).

Brisingr is the much anticipated third installment of Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Cycle, whose first two books, Eragon and Eldest became world-wide publishing phenomena. In fact, 13 million copies of the first two have been sold, 400,000 of which were in Australia. Lovers of fantasy, September 20 will be your day!
 
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FATHERS' DAY FOR LITTLIES
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DAY WITH DAD   HUGS FOR DAD
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A Day With DadA DAY WITH DAD
Bo Holmberg  and Eva Eriksson

Tim has recently moved to a new town with Mum but today is special because today is the day he gets to spend with his Dad.

With its lovely pencil and water colour illustrations, A Day with Dad is a charming, subtle & realistic treatment of single parenthood as well as it is also a marvellous picture book for four to eight year olds in any situation. It would also make a great Father's Day selection.

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  Hugs For DadsHUGS FOR DADS

He's a rock to lean on, a shoulder to cry on, and a friend to rely on. This book is the ideal gift for dads with kids from babies through to adults. Its collection of witty and wise sayings on dads and fatherhood, compiled from the thoughts of people of all ages from around the world, demonstrates the important place fathers hold in the lives of their sons and daughters.

Complemented by amusing animal photographs, it is the ideal way to say “Thanks” and “I love you".

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GRIZZLY DAD   MY GRANDPA IS AMAZING
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Grizzly DadGRIZZLY DAD
Joanne Harrison

Dad woke up this morning in a grizzly mood. All morning he groaned, grizzled and grumped, before giving up and going back to bed. But when his little boy pulled back the covers to see how he was, it wasn't Dad at all. He had turned into a great big grizzly bear.

This is the story of how one little boy looks after a grizzly bear for the day. It is warm and original and it celebrates Dads, even the grumpy ones.

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  My Grandpa is AmazingMY GRANDPA IS AMAZING
Nick Butterworth

Part of a series of simple paperback picture books for young readers (age three to six) which examine the talents of various relatives, all from the view point of a child, My Grandpa is Amazing is a book to share with that special grandfather. With about eight words on the left hand page and lively illustrations on the right, it is a book that invites talking and laughter. This is one to share on Father's Day.

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BOOK BUZZ - our favourite books of the month
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My Columbian DeathMY COLUMBIAN DEATH
Matt Thompson

Debut author, Matt Thompson is every woman's nightmare. A writer for the Fairfax group, Matt was married with his first baby when he decided to de-camp to Columbia to actively seek out risk.

Well, Matt's instincts did work, and he is alive, but only just.   Does he love Columbia? By all means. Does he recommend people behave there as he did? Not at all. This is one trip best experienced on the page.

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  I DREAM OF MAGDA
Stefan Laszczuk

"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Tolstoy wasn't thinking specifically of George and Matthew Harrison when he wrote those words, but maybe he should have been.

This is a quirky, left-field, yet deeply felt and engaging story of families and love, grieving and loss.

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  A Fraction of the WholeA FRACTION OF THE WHOLE
Steve Toltz

With its intriguing title and its clever jacket design A Fraction of the Whole has been building a steady following since Steve Toltz' debut novel was published five months ago. And while readers have been recommending it in droves, A Fraction of the Whole has just been long-listed for the Man Booker Prize, a feat that places Sydney-born Toltz firmly up there with the heavyweights of contemporary writing.

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BEAUTIFUL BOOK
  FROM THE VAULT
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Fred WilliamsFRED WILLIAMS
1927-1982

Patrick McCaughey

Two decades after his death,  Fred Williams remains an iconic figure of the Australian art world, perhaps best known for his highly evocative and sensual  landscapes.
 
This is a  thoughtful, comprehensive and highly illustrated study of Fred Williams. It  traces his career from his student days through his years of mature achievement to the flowering of his art in the last years of his life.

McCaughey has written an absolutely gorgeous  book.

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The House of Sand and FogHOUSE OF SAND AND FOG
Andre Debus

People have been waiting nearly ten years for Andre Debus  new novel The Garden of Last Days. Why the excitement? Well, his previous one, House of Sand and Fog was universally acclaimed.

Combining unadorned realism with profound empathy, House of Sand and Fog is a devastating exploration of the American Dream gone awry. It is a modern day Greek tragedy. If you missed it first time round, catch up with it now. Its a stunner.

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YOU READ ABOUT IT HERE FIRST
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THE HERETIC'S DAUGHTER
Kathleen Kent

The Heretic's DaughterThe Heretic's Daughter was one of the books that was generating a huge amount of interest at Book ExpoAmerica in May. It is concerned with matters of witchcraft and it seeks to  unravel the mass hysteria that takes hold when such claims are made. While set in the past, specifically the Salem trials at the end of the seventeenth century, its themes are presciently contemporary.

This novel, Kathleen Kent's first, does have a certain authenticity given that the author is a tenth-generation descendant of Martha Carrier, who is at the center of her story of superstitious tyranny, courage, defiance and one family's deep and abiding love in the face of persecution.

This book is not listed for Australian publication. Booktopia is happy to supply it.

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50 BOOKS YOU CAN'T PUT DOWN
  BARGAIN BOOKS
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The fourth annual Books Alive campaign is in full swing and has been taken up with a vengeance across Australia. Here at Booktopia, it has been huge, with so many of our customers taking advantage of the terrific selection of books as well as the free especially commissioned crime thriller, Bombproof by Michael Robotham.

Some of Booktopia's favourites include Vietnam: The Australian War, Turn,  Turn, Turn...Please, He'll Be OK and Addition - all of which incidentally, would be terrific choices for Father's Day.

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  Bargain booksThere's no doubt about it, Booktopia Buzz readers sure do like a bargain.

For those of you who haven't caught up with the news, we now have many new titles at bargain prices. All of these titles are in stock at our warehouse,  ready to ship straight to you. Ideal for gifts or for when you want a great read for an exceptionally low price.

Our Bargain Books are fast becoming one of our best selling categories. Stock changes all the time.

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GREAT READS FOR TEENS
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The Goldsmith's DaughterTHE GOLDSMITH'S DAUGHTER
Tanya Landman

Set in the golden city of Tenochtitlan, The Goldsmith’s Daughter follows Itacate, a sixteen year old Aztec girl, born under an ill-fated sky and cursed with bad luck. Itacate falls in love with the blond Spanish conquistador and must fight tooth and claw to defend herself, her father, and her lover.

Tanya Landman is on familiar ground here with another richly descriptive, fascinating novel, this time about life during the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

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  KaimiraKAIMIRA BOOK ONE: THE SKY VILLAGE
Monk & Nigel Ashland

"In a post-apocalytpic world, two young people discover something astonishing in their DNA. From the sky village hovering above China, to the demon caves beneath the ravaged streets of Las Vegas, these teens must find the courage to balance the powers that lurk within and overcome the forces that seek to destroy them. What will it take to restore harmony between humans, animals and machines?"

The first in a five part series, this one has "winner" stamped all over it.

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  The GeneralTHE GENERAL
Robert Muchamore

The world's largest urban warfare training compound stands in the desert somewhere near Las Vegas. Forty British commandos are being hunted by an entire American battalion, but their commando has an ace up his sleeve. He plans to send in ten CHERUB agents and fight the best wargame ever.

James and Lauren are off to America and their tenth adventure, just as gritty, and gripping, as the rest. This series just never slows down.

Booktopia Buzz has five CHERUB packs to give away to purchasers of The General.

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UP COMING EVENTS

August 15
The Children’s Book Council of Australia announces the winners of the best books of the year.
To find out more click here.
August 16- 23
A week of events and celebrations at schools and libraries across the country along the theme of “Fuel Your Mind” To find out more click here.
 August 22 – 31
2008 Melbourne Writers' Festival
For information, tickets and programs, click here.

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MINI BUZZ:  for the young, and the young at heart.
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The Boy From BowralTHE BOY FROM BOWRAL: THE STORY OF SIR DONALD BRADMAN
Robert Ingpen

To mark the centenary of his birth, the doyen of children's books, Robert Ingpen, has written and illustrated an inspiring account of the life of Donald Bradman.

Thoroughly researched and expertly illustrated, Ingpen brings a real Australian hero to life in a book to be treasured.

What more can we say? There is very little that Ingpen turns his mind to that doesn't deserve a place on the bookshelf and The Boy From Bowral is certainly no exception.

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  The Dog Sat on the TuckerboxTHE DOG ON THE TUCKER BOX
Corrine Fenton and  Peter
Gouldthorpe

The Dog on the Tucker Box
is the story of Lady and her master Bill. It is the story of Australia’s pioneers, the bullockies who worked the rough tracks, and of one dog’s unwavering loyalty to her master.

What is marvellous about this picture book is that while most Australian-born adults are familiar with the story of the dog on the tuckerbox, many of their children are not. With both language and illustrations that are vivid and simple, this book presents an old story in a refreshing new light.

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  The Odd EggTHE ODD EGG
Emily Gravett

The Odd Egg is a treat from start to finish, but we shouldn't expect anything less from the much awarded author & illustrator of the books Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears and Meerkat Mail.
In The Odd Egg, Gravett presents a gorgeous hard-back picture book for littlies. With its landscape format and its artfully cut flaps, the story follows the fate of a delightfully daffy duck who is waiting patiently for her rather unusual egg to hatch.

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FIRST IMPRESSIONS
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Loved something you've read lately? Want to share your enthusiasm?
We welcome your reviews, but please keep it printable and under 300 words. Reviews can be sent to marketing@booktopia.com.au and marked to Toni's attention.

Thanks for Nothing, Nick MaxwellClick here for a review from reader, and Booktopia enthusiast Shakira Bollen of Thanks for Nothing, Nick Maxwell by Debbie Carbin.



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USEFUL LINKS
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FATHERS' DAY FOR NON-READERS


Why should Dad be deprived of great story telling just because he doesn't read? What about listening to a terrific yarn? Here is selection of suitable gifts for Father's Day in audio format. Click on the titles below to order a great audio book:
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LINE AND STRENGTH Glenn McGrath
FLY
Michael Veitch
BALLARD OF LES DARCY
Peter FitzSimons

THIS IS NOT A DRILL
Paul Carter

BREATH
Tim Winton

CALLISTO
Torsten Krol

LES NORTON AND THE CASE OF THE TALKING PIE CRUST
Robert G Barrett

FOX HUNT
James Phelan

SIX SACRED STONES
Matthew Reilly

MEASURING THE WORLD
Daniel Kehlmann

TOBRUK
Peter FitzSimons
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WHISPERS

What to look out for in September

Here at Booktopia Buzz we are eagerly anticipating:

John Marsden's reworking of Hamlet for young adults.

Andrew Davidson's  brilliant debut novel, The Gargoyle (To read an extract click here).

Thomas Friedman's Hot Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution and How it Can Renew America will finally be out in early September.
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Still not enough to choose from for Father's Day? To see the Random House selection of Real Books for Real Dads: Click Here
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LATE NEWS

A 93-year-old debut novelist has used the proceeds from her book to move her friends out of nursing homes and into her new country house.

When Lorna Page hit the jackpot with
A Dangerous Weakness, a raunchy thriller set in the Alps, she traded in her flat for a five-bedroom house in picturesque Devon, south-west England, and invited her contemporaries to move in with her.

Page had written the book - about a woman who becomes embroiled in a bitter power struggle after receiving an seemingly innocent invitation to spend Christmas in Switzerland - three years ago but had stored it in a suitcase.

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2008 INKY AWARDS

Booktopia was very pleased to see that our book of the month for August, The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, has been listed for the 2008 Inky Awards, Austalia's only teen choice book awards.

Voting is opened between September 12 and October 27 with the winners announced at a ceremony on November 6.

Click here to find out more and to see the list of nominated books.

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2009 MAN BOOKER PRIZE LONG LIST

The long-list for the 2008 Man Booker Prize, arguably the world's most prestigious literary prize, has been announced, with two Australian titles included, namely The Lost Dog by Michelle de Krester and  Fraction of the Whole by Steven Toltz. The list also includes Booktopia favourite Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh which we featured in last month's Booktopia Buzz.

Click Here to Read More

               OR

Click on the titles below to see details and order.


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THE WHITE TIGER
Aravind Adiga

GIRL IN A BLUE DRESS
Gaynor Arnold
Publishing: Sept 08
THE SECRET SCRIPTURE
Sebastian Barry

THE LOST DOG
Michelle de Krester

FROM A TO X
John Berger
Publishing: Sept 08
SEA OF POPPIES
Amitav Ghosh

THE CLOTHES ON THEIR BACKS
Linda Grant
A CASE OF EXPLODING MANGOES
Mohammed Hanif

THE NORTHERN CLEMENCY
Philip Hensher

NETHERLAND
Joseph O'Neill

A FRACTION OF THE WHOLE
Steve Toltz

THE ENCHANTRESS OF FLORENCE
Salman Rushdie
CHILD 44
Tom Rob Smith
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