April Top 10

Some new Autumn April books that we love at irresistible prices!

	RANSOM David Malouf normally $29.95, our price $20.97    With learning worn lightly and in his own lyrical language, David Malouf revisits Homer’s ILIAD. Focusing on the unbreakable bonds between men – Priam and Hector, Patroclus and Achilles, Priam and the cart-driver hired to retrieve Hector’s body. Pride, grief, brutality, love and neighbourliness are explored. The minute you finish this novel you will want to return to the beginning and start all over again.
DOG BOY Eva Hornung normally $32.95, our price $23.07 In a deserted Moscow apartment building four-year-old Romochka waits for Uncle to come home. Outside the snow is falling, but after a few days hunger drives Romochka outside, his mother’s voice ringing in his ears. Don’t talk to strangers. Overlooked by passers-by, he follows a street dog to her lair in a deserted basement at the edge of the city. There he joins four puppies suckling at their mother’s teats. And so begins Romochka’s life as a dog. The story of the child raised by beasts has fascinated through the ages, but Eva Hornung has created such a vivid and original telling, so utterly emotionally convincing, that it becomes not just new but definitive: yes, this is how it would be. Dogboy is the most visceral, utterly amazing novel you will read this year.
	THE KINDLY ONES Jonathan Littel normally $34.95, our price $24.47 With its brilliant, frightening, furious, apocalyptic vision, The Kindly Ones is a literary tour de force, winner of the Prix Goncourt and other prizes and already an explosive bestseller across Europe, selling over 1 million copies.This book which deals with some of the harsh realities of Nazi genocide of the Jews has certainly sparked debate within the literary community. Check out http://thekindlyones.wordpress.com/
THE FLYING TROUTMANS Miriam Toews normally $35.00, our At once hilarious and heartrending, The Flying Troutmans tells the story of a fractured family on the verge of spinning off its axles and a road trip that just might keep them together. Belly-fits of laughter!
See a trailer for the book here.	JOHN THE REVELATOR Peter Murphy normally $29.95, our price $20.97 ‘I was born in a storm…’A universal story of love, family and betrayal, John the Revelator is narrated in the compelling voice of an introverted, watchful adolescent, John Devine.Brilliantly evoking all the frustrations and pent-up energy of a parochial adolescence, John the Revelator also gradually becomes the story of her past. Suffused with eerie imagery, black humour and told in hypnotic prose, John the Revelator is a novel to fall in love with.
THE PLEASURES AND SORROWS OF WORK Alain De Botton normally $45.00, our price $31.50 We spend most of our waking lives at work — but surprisingly little gets written about what makes work both one of the most exciting and most painful of all our activities. The Pleasures and Sorrows of Workis an exploration of the joys and perils of the modern workplace, beautifully evoking what other people get up to all day – and all night – to make the frenzied contemporary world function. With a philosophical eye and his characteristic combination of wit and wisdom, Alain de Botton leads us on a journey around a deliberately eclectic range of occupations, from rocket science to biscuit manufacturing, accountancy to art – in the name of exploring what makes our jobs either fulfilling or soul-destroying
	THE DECISIVE MOMENT : HOW THE BRAIN MAKES UP ITS MIND Jonah Lehrer normally $34.95, our price$24.47 In The Decisive Moment, Jonah Lehrer arms us with the tools we need, drawing on cutting-edge research by Daniel Kahneman, Colin Camerer and others, as well as the world’s most interesting ‘deciders’ – from airline pilots, world famous sportsmen and hedge fund investors to serial killers, politicians and poker players. Lehrer’s goal is to answer two questions that are of interest to just about anyone, from CEOs to fire-fighters: How does the human mind make decisions? And how can we make those decisions better?
THE LOST LIFE Steven Carroll normally $30.00, our price $21.00  England‚ September 1934 Two young lovers‚ Catherine and Daniel‚ have trespassed into the rose garden of Burnt Norton‚ an abandoned house in the English countryside. Hearing the sound of footsteps‚ they hide‚ and then witness the poet T.S. (′Tom′) Eliot and his close friend Emily enter the garden and bury a mysterious tin in the earth.Tom and Emily knew each other in America in their youth; now in their forties‚ they have come together again. But Tom is married‚ and his wife has no intention of letting him go. What is it that binds Tom and Emily together? What happens when the muse steps out of the shadows? In the enclosed world of an English village one autumn‚ their story becomes entwined with that of Catherine and Daniel‚ who are certain in their newfound love and full of possibility.	From one of Australia′s finest writers‚ this is a moving‚ lyrical novel about poetry and inspiration‚ the incandescence of first love and the yearning for a life that may never be lived.′A writer worth cherishing. His prose is unfailingly assured‚ lyrical‚ poised.′  – The Australian
	THE BOOK OF EMMETT Deborah Foster normally $23.95, our price $16.77  A stunning first novel from a Melbourne author. The story of the Brown family will wrench at your heart and make you hug those you love ever tighter. Emmett Brown is as dark as Heathcliff, and as unpredictable. Sometimes he’s an inspiration, but not often. He’s a man of booze and obsessions: one of them is his ‘System’, an attempt to bend the laws of probability. But when the lottery numbers and horses fail him, so do love and reason, and he becomes an ogre to his wife and children. Over the years, the consequences of Emmett’s rages shape both their spirits and psyches, but as he lies dying they discover that love – however imperfect – is the best defence against pain.
HANDPICKED Siew Siang Tay normally $28.00, our price $19.60  Laila is desperate to escape life in the longhouse in her Malaysian village. Desperate enough to travel alone to Australia to marry Jim‚ a fruit−picker living in Renmark‚ South Australia. Jim hasn′t had much luck with women −− they′ve always given him a hard time. He pins his hopes on Laila changing all that. Marital bliss‚ a new life. But when Laila and Jim finally meet‚ they each discover the reality of the other‚ and things don′t go as planned. Handpicked is a subtle and sensitive exploration of the world of the mail−order bride. It is also a compelling and finely observed account of expectations and consequences‚ words and actions‚ truth and love.

 

March Top 10

The dust is finally settling from Unibooks’ busiest month of the year. Addmitedly we’ve neglected our little blog for a little bit there, but we’re now back as we present our March top 10 for 2009.

	THE STATUTE OF LIBERTY : How to Give Australians Back Their Rights Geoffrey Robertson normally $19.95 our price $13.97  Geoffrey Robertson QC puts the case for an Australian Bill of Rights cogently and dramatically, proving with evidence from other countries how a statute of liberty helps ordinary citizens and improves standards of governance and public services. He exposes the lies and urban myths the Australian people face from opponents of the bill, and shows how the charter he has drafted reflects the history and real contemporary values of Australians. This is a provocative argument for change, which explains that real democracy only exists if politicians give the courts power to defend citizens against abuses of their human rights by governments and public servants.
DOG BOY Eva Hornung normally $32.95, our price $23.07  In a deserted Moscow apartment building four-year-old Romochka waits for Uncle to come home. Outside the snow is falling, but after a few days hunger drives Romochka outside, his mother’s voice ringing in his ears. Don’t talk to strangers. Overlooked by passers-by, he follows a street dog to her lair in a deserted basement at the edge of the city. There he joins four puppies suckling at their mother’s teats.  And so begins Romochka’s life as a dog. The story of the child raised by beasts has fascinated through the ages, but Eva Hornung has created such a vivid and original telling, so utterly emotionally convincing, that it becomes not just new but definitive: yes, this is how it would be. Dogboy is the most visceral, utterly amazing novel you will read this year.
	THE KINDLY ONES Jonathan Littel normally $34.95, our price $24.47   With its brilliant, frightening, furious, apocalyptic vision, The Kindly Ones is a literary tour de force, winner of the Prix Goncourt and other prizes and already an explosive bestseller across Europe, selling over 1 million copies. This book which deals with some of the harsh realities of Nazi genocide of the Jews has certainly sparked debate within the literary community. Check out http://thekindlyones.wordpress.com/
THE BRAIN THAT CHANGES ITSELF Notman Doidge normally $35.00, our price $24.50   An astonishing new science called neuroplasticity is overthrowing the centuries-old notion that the human brain is immutable. Using marvellous stories to probe mysteries of the body, emotion, love, sex, culture, and education, Dr. Doidge has written an immensely moving, inspiring book that will permanently alter the way we look at our brains, human nature, and human potential.
See a trailer for the book here.	JOHN THE REVELATOR Peter Murphy normally $29.95, our price $20.97  ‘I was born in a storm…’  A universal story of love, family and betrayal, John the Revelator is narrated in the compelling voice of an introverted, watchful adolescent, John Devine. Brilliantly evoking all the frustrations and pent-up energy of a parochial adolescence, John the Revelator also gradually becomes the story of her past. Suffused with eerie imagery, black humour and told in hypnotic prose, John the Revelator is a novel to fall in love with.
GUANTANAMO BOY Anna Perera normally $20.00, our price only$14.00   In the tradition of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas‚ this is the story of one boy′s experience of the war against terror − behind the barbed wire. Khalid is a normal fifteen−year−old. He likes footy‚ seeing his friends‚ playing football down the park. He isn′t too excited about visiting his family in Karachi‚ but his Mum and Dad shame him in to going with them − for the family′s sake. So he goes‚ and one day opens the door to an unthinkable nightmare. Kidnapped by unknown assailants‚ Khalid is forced to go to a place no child should ever see. A place where systematic humiliation‚ torture and brutality are part of the daily routine. A prison he is powerless to escape. A living hell called Guantanamo Bay.
	THE DECISIVE MOMENT : HOW THE BRAIN MAKES UP ITS MIND Jonah Lehrer normally $34.95, our price$24.47   In The Decisive Moment, Jonah Lehrer arms us with the tools we need, drawing on cutting-edge research by Daniel Kahneman, Colin Camerer and others, as well as the world’s most interesting ‘deciders’ – from airline pilots, world famous sportsmen and hedge fund investors to serial killers, politicians and poker players. Lehrer’s goal is to answer two questions that are of interest to just about anyone, from CEOs to fire-fighters: How does the human mind make decisions? And how can we make those decisions better?
A MOST IMMORAL WOMAN Linda Jaivin normally $33.00, our price$23.10   Inspired by a true story‚ A Most Immoral Woman is a surprising‚ witty and erotic tale of sexual and other obsessions set in the ′floating world′ of Westerners in China and Japan at the turn of the twentieth century. At its heart stands an original and devastatingly honest woman‚ as seen from the perspective of the extraordinary man who was drawn to love her.
	THE VANISHING FACE OF GAIA James Lovelock normally $29.95, our price $20.97   ‘Our wish to continue business as usual will probably prevent us from saving ourselves,’ says Lovelock, so we must adapt as best we can and try to ensure that enough of us survive to allow a more capable species to evolve from us.  There could hardly be a more important message for humankind.  James Lovelock has been an active and accurate observer of the Earth environment since the 1930s and was the first to find CFCs and other gases accumulating in the air.  This is his final warning.
THE MARRIAGE BUREAU FOR RICH PEOPLE Farahad Zama normally $30.00, our price$21.00  What does somebody with a wealth of common sense do if retirement palls? Why, open a marriage bureau of course. And soon Mr Ali, from beautiful Vizag, sees his new business flourish as the indomitable Mrs Ali and assistant Aruna look on with careful eyes. But although many clients go away happy, problems lurk behind the scenes as Aruna nurses a heart-rending secret while Mr Ali cannot see that he rarely follows his own sage advice dished out so freely to others. And when love comes calling for Aruna, an impossible dilemma looms… A colourful coastal town proves the perfect backdrop for a splendid array of characters in this witty yet acutely observed debut novel. Indeed The Marriage Bureau for Rich People is just what Jane Austen might have written if she had ever been lucky enough to set foot in a contemporary Indian marriage bureau.

 

February Top 10

Unibooks proudly presents our top 10 new releases titles for February! These books may be cheap in price, but they’re certainly not cheap on quality! All are available at your local Unibooks store at the University of Adelaide, Flinders University and UniSA campus bookshops.

	THE LIFE YOU CAN SAVE : ACTING NOW TO END WORLD POVERTY Peter Singer normally $34.95 our price $24.47    In The Life You Can Save, singer makes the irrefutable argument that giving will make a huge difference in the lives of others, without diminishing the quality of our own. This book is an urgent call to action and a hopeful primer on the power of compassion, when mixed with rigorous investigation and careful reasoning, to lift others out of despair.
BUTTERFLY Sonya Hartnett normally $29.95 our price $20.97  Growing up during the 1980s in the safe complacency of the Australian suburbs, Plum Coyle should be happy. But on the cusp of her fourteenth birthday – and on the fringe of her peer group – she lives in terror of the disapproval of her cruel and fickle girlfriends, and most of all, she hates her awkward, changing body with a passion.So when Plum’s glamorous next-door neighbour Maureen, a young wife and mother, befriends Plum, Plum responds with worshipful fervour. Plum feels herself reinvented. With Maureen, she becomes the girl she’s always wanted to be. But Maureen has an ulterior motive for taking Plum under her wing . . .	Read an extract here.
	EMBRACING THE WIDE SKY : THE ENORMOUS POTENTIAL OF YOUR MIND Daniel Tammet normally $35.00 our price $ 24.50    This is a personal, revealing and beautifully written exploration of the extraordinary mental powers that bestselling author Daniel Tammet argues are within each person. Tammet demonstrates how all of us can tap into extraordinary skills in memory, learning and imagination that we already have, we just don’t know how to use them yet. Daniel Tammet is one of fewer than 50 savants living worldwide. A real life Rain Man, Daniel holds the world record for reciting Pi to over 22,000 digits and can learn entire languages in less than a week.
THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE Stieg Larsson normally $32.95 our price $23.07     The second volume in the bestselling Millennium Trilogy… Lisbeth Salander is a wanted woman. Two Millennium journalists about to expose the truth about the sex trafficking trade are murdered and Salander’s prints are on the weapon. Her history of unpredictable and vengeful behaviour makes her an official danger to society – but no-one can find her. Mikael Blomkvist, editor-in-chief of Millennium, does not believe the police. Using all his magazine staff and resources to prove Salander’s innocence, Blomkvist also uncovers her terrible past, spent in criminally corrupt institutions. Yet Salander is more avenging angel than helpless victim. She may be an expert at staying out of sight – but she has ways of tracking down her most elusive enemies.
	VIRTUOSO Sonia Orchard normally $28.00 our price $19.60     This assured, beautifully written debut novel is inspired by the brilliant life of Australian pianist Noel Mewton-Wood. Sonia Orchard vividly evokes the artistic world of post-war London in a novel of striking illuminations about music and imagination that is also a compelling and deeply moving love story.
THINGS I’VE BEEN SILENT ABOUT Azar Nafisi normally $32.95 our price $23.07      From the bestselling author of Reading Lolita in Tehran comes the brilliant memoir of a mother, a daughter, a family. The book offers a vibrant portrait of women’s lives in Iran.
	VAGRANTS Yiyun Li normally $28.00 our price $19.60     In the provincial town of Muddy Waters in China a young woman is sentenced to death for her loss of faith in Communism. She is 28-years-old and has already spent ten years in prison. The citizens stage a protest after her death and, over the following six weeks, the town goes through uncertainty, hope and fear… a painfully powerful story of struggle, tragedy, love and betrayal.
MORE Austin Clarke normally $33.00 our price $23.10     From the winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize comes a mesmerising, powerful, inspiring and beautifully controlled story of a mother’s loss of her son to the world of gang crime, and her memories of life in the Caribbean.
	THE CROSSROADS Niccolo Ammaniti normally $32.95 our price $23.07     Cristiano is sixteen. Home life is far from perfect, and when his drink-sozzled father and two reprobate friends come up with a plan to rob a bank, Cristiano sees the chance of a better life. But as a tremendous storm brews that night, the perfect crime will have shocking consequences for all involved. And Cristiano must put childhood behind him once and for all. The utterly absorbing novel has pace, plot twists and glorious characters. An epic drama of innocence and delusion, The Crossroads is Ammaniti’s most engaging novel yet.
THE SWEETNESS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PIE Alan Bradley normally $33.00 our price $23.10     It is June 1950 and a sleepy English village is about to be awakened by the discovery of a dead body in Colonel de Luce’s cucumber patch. The police are baffled and when a dead snipe is deposited on the Colonel’s doorstep with a rare stamp impaled on its beak, they are baffled even more. Only the Colonel’s daughter, the precocious Flavia – when she’s not plotting elaborate revenges against her nasty older sisters in her basement chemical laboratory, that is – has the ingenuity to follow the clues that reveal the victim’s identity and a conspiracy that reaches back into the de Luce family’s murky past.

 

Sunny summer reading… bliss…

We’re well into the swing of 2009 and beach weather has been plentiful. Compulsory items at the beach? Towel, sunblock, sunnies and a good book! We’ve compiled these books as highly recommended beach reading this summer…

$24.95
Book of Longing is most recent collection of work from the masterful poet, lyricist and musician Leonard Cohen. His poetry is both vivid and painfully beautiful. Leonard Cohen will be in South Australia for A Day on the Green at Leconfield Wines, Flerieu Peninsula, Monday 26 January 2009.

$29.95
Like I Give a Frock
Meet Michi – fashionista and quirky odd ball.  She is geeky, arty, sassy & stylish, and a bona fide fashion nerd. Like I Give a Frock is a visual feast for the eyes as Michi gives advice about how to be a tragic fashion victim and not give a frock about it. From stilletos and leg warmers to fingerless gloves and fake tans, this is a highly entertaining beautifully presented gem where fashion, art and comedy collide.

$30.00
Elephants on Acid and other bizarre experiments. by Alex Boese.
In 1962 Tusko the Elephant is given the largest ever single dose of LSD… and you can probably guess what the result was, but it’s fair to say there was anarchy and a lot of furious trumpeting going on in Tusko’s pen that day! Elephants on Acid is a wonderfully entertaining and quirky collection of history’s most bizarre experiments, from the mathematical equation for the point at which chatter at a drinks party becomes loud to nineteenth century creation of zombie kittens. This collection is an absolute gem!

$24.95
The Geography of Bliss is a hilarious travel memoir by foreign correspondent Eric Weiner who travels to various sports around the world, including Iceland, Bhutan, Moldova and Qatar, to search out how different countires define a persue happiness. This is a brilliantly entertaining holiday read and is highly recommended.

Part travelogue, part personal-discovery memoir… reads like Paul Theroux channeling David Sedaris on a particularly good day.
- KIRKUS REVIEWS

$29.95
By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami is rich and revealing, both for fans of this masterful yet private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running.

$29.95
For wordsmiths and non-wordsmiths alike, Damp Squid is full of interesting facts about the English language, and is both entertaining and thought-provoking. A uniquely revealing exploration of English to uncover the genuine article.

$20.00
To-do lists, doodles, confessions, love-letters messages, poetry on napkins, kid’s homework  – we’ve all found things that have been discarded or lost, and wondered about the story behind them. Picked up from all over the world, the items are sometimes hilarious, other times heartbreaking, but always honest and always fascinating.

If you haven’t heard of the phenomenon of Found before check out the online magazine @ http://www.foundmagazine.com … always good for a laugh!

Mention this blog post at any Unibooks store to get 15% off these featured titles!

Rebound Bookmarks

Our Unibooks stores at Adelaide, City West and Flinders are now proud to stock Rebound Bookmarks! These little unique little gems are lovingly homemade in the fine city of Melbourne by Natalie and Ben @ Rebound Books. They are each made using the spine of an old hard cover book and reinforced with cardboard backing.

Rebound Bookmarks are only $3.95 each. Each bookmark is unique, so come into a Unibooks store near you and find yourself or someone you love a bookmark with a difference!

Check out Rebound Books at http://www.reboundbooks.net/ where you can also find journals, sketchbooks, albums and diaries which use unwanted pre-loved hardcover books.

Books should never go to waste!

Staff favourites

Here’s some of our staff favourites for 2008. It was so difficult to choose just one book! We’re all looking forward to the Christmas break and nerding it up with even more fine literary (and not so literary) delights.

Refer further down for Unibooks’ closure dates over the Christmas / New Years break. 

ADELAIDE :
Closed from24th December – Reopens 5th January

FLINDERS :
Closed from 24th December – Reopens 5th January

CITY WEST :
Closed from 24th December – Reopens 5th January

CITY EAST :
Closed from 15th December – Reopens 12th January

MAGILL :
Closed from 8th December – Reopens 12th January

MAWSON LAKES :
Closed from 8th December – Reopens 12 Janauary

December Top 10

THE SLAP

Christos Tsiolkas

normally $32.95 our price for summer $23.07

Tsiolkas turns his blowtorch onto the belly of middle-class suburban Australia and its aspirations and fears… a poingant, provocative novel about the nature of loyalty and happiness, compromise and truth. The Slap is a definite favourite for 2008 amongst us fellow Unibooks employees and is highly recommended.

THE HOUR I FIRST BELIEVED

Wally Lamb

normally $35.00 our price for summer $24.50

A profound and heart-rendering work of fiction. Wally Lamb proves himself a virtuoso storytelling, assembling a variety of voices and an ensemble of characters rich enough to evoke all of humanity. Highly recommended!

WANTING

Richard Flanagan

normally $35.00 our price for summer $24.50

An interwoven story of loss and desire between a young Aboriginal girl, Mathinna, then Governor of Van Diemen’s Land Sir John Franklin and his wife Lady Jane, and the most famous writer of his time Charles Dickens. Their lives intersect and impact on each other in unexpected and profound ways. Inspired by historical events Wanting is a novel about art, love, and the way in which life is finally determined never by reason, but only ever by wanting.

THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD

J.K. Rowling

normally $16.95 our price for summer $11.87

The Tales of Beedle the Bard played a crucial role in assisting Harry, aided by his friends Ron and Hermione, to finally defeat Lord Voldemort. Here, fans have the opportunity to read the tales in full.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is without doubt an exciting addition to the canon of Harry Potter. They also reveal the wonderful versatility of the author, as she tackles with relish the structure and varying tones of a classic fairy tale. There are five tales included in the book: ‘The Tale of the Three Brothers’, which is recounted in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; plus four more – ‘The Fountain of Fair Fortune’, ‘The Warlock’s Hairy Heart’, ‘The Wizard and the Hopping Pot’, and ‘Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump’. Each tale has its own magical character and will variously bring delight, laughter and the thrill of mortal peril.

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK

Neil Gaiman

normally $27.95 our price for summer $19.57

When a baby escapes a murderer intent on killing the entire family, who would have thought it would find safety and security in the local graveyard? Bod has an eccentric childhood learning about life from the dead. But there is also the danger of the murderer still looking for him – after all, he is the last remaining member of the family.

An original adventure story about a boy raised by the resident ghosts, ghouls and spectres of a local graveyard. From the inimitable, bestselling author Neil Gaiman.

THE GOOD MAYOR

Andrew Nicoll

normally $28.00 our price for summer $19.60

The Good Mayor is a novel of love‚ loss‚ magic‚ friendship‚ wonderful food‚ a brass band‚ an Italian witch‚ a large lawyer‚ an occasional dog and a car chase that takes place at walking pace.

A CUP OF LIGHT

Nicole Mones

normally $30.00 our price for summer $21.00

Lia Frank‚ an appraiser of fine Chinese porcelain‚ is sent from New York to Beijing to catalogue and appraise a rare collection of twenty pieces. At the private house she has been given to work in‚ however‚ she finds eight hundred pieces‚ many originating from the imperial porcelain collection.

Are all these beautiful objects authentic? Or are some brilliant fakes?

As Lia examines her treasure‚ she finds herself drawn into the underworld of Chinese art −− professional smugglers who take porcelain between mainland China and Hong Kong‚ connoisseurs looking for a special piece‚ and the Chinese police‚ who seek to impose the highest penalty 
on smugglers. And Lia begins a love affair that could alter the course of her life forever. In this world beauty always has a price and nothing can be judged too finely.

CHINA WITNESS : VOICES FROM A SILENT GENERATION

Xinran

normally $34.95 our price for summer $24.47

A hugely important, groundbreaking book, this unprecedented oral history of a vast and powerful national gives voice to a silent generation and tells the secret history of 20th century China.

COOEE

Vivienne Kelly

normally $32.95 our price for summer $23.07

Cooee’s acerbic narrator, Isabel Weaving, is not quite what she seems. True, she’s a daughter, a sister, a mother and an ex-wife, having escaped one unsatisfactory marriage, although not with her relationships with her children intact. Her second husband, Max, is the love of her life but is no longer on the scene, the grief caused by his absence only tempered by the visits of her beloved granddaughter. Gradually and unwittingly, Isabel reveals more and more about herself, her relationships and Max’s disappearance.

This literary suspense novel, brimful of twists and turns, will have you gasping at its unexpected revelations, but also doubled over at Isabel’s blackly comic wit. She’s one highly entertaining yet unreliable narrator.

GEOGRAPHY OF BLISS

Eric Weiner

normally $24.95 our price for summer $17.47

In Weiner’s quest to find the world’s happiest places, he eats rotten Icelandic shark, meditates in Bangalore, visits strip clubs in Bangkok and drinks himself into a stupor in Reykjavik. Full of inspired moments, The Geography of Bliss accomplishes a feat few travel books dare and even fewer achieve: to make you happier.

“Part travelogue, part personal-discovery memoir and all sustained delight, the wise, witty ramble reads like Paul Therous channeling David Sedaris on a particularly good day… Fresh and beguiling.” – Kirkus Reviews

The Graveyard Book

Many of our customers (and need we add, ourselves?!) are fans of the seminal work of the beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman. Needless to say we were pretty excited when his latest offering, The Graveyard Book was released last month. And the verdict? It’s a winner! The book is a homage to Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, and is a highly inventive, witty and adventurous roller-coaster ride of a tale about a boy who is raised by the resident ghosts of a local graveyard. This book is a book for all ages, and is bound to become a classic. A book to cherish for many many years to come.

Listen to Neil Gaiman speak about The Graveyard Book…

It does, after all, take a graveyard to raise a child…

The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
RRP $27.95 Our in-store price for December $19.57

Philosophy shaken, not stirred.

For many, slogging through the thick “high brow” philosophical texts from Kant to Descartes, Derrida to Sartre, can be very hard to digest. Those intimidating big questions about ethical dilemmas, existentialism, and the nature of self, are tedious and old. Philosophy’s public relations department sure has some issues! Talk about an existential crisis!

For me, the image of an old pipe-smoking philosophy professor with a giant beard sitting in his leather chair comes to mind. And the last thing I want to do is have an in-depth argument with him about the tired “to be or not to be?” question. I’d much rather ask questions like “what’s with that freaky island in that show Lost?” and “why does my boss share so many traits with David Brent from The Office?”

The Blackwell Philosophy and PopCulture series understands my concerns.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reading these books doesn’t make you any less of a philosopher I think. Thinking deeply about pop culture and all things TV, movies and music with a serving of philosophy is fun and thought-provoking. I don’t think Immanuel Kant would be turning in his grave at the thought of this series. On the contrary, he would be listening to Metallica lyrics and watching episodes of South Park and determining how the ‘categorical imperative’ is explored in both texts.

The books in this series explore some of the finest examples of popular television, movies, and music through all the hallmarks of philosophical thought including democracy, feminism, existentialism, morality, religion, emotions, and identity – just to name a few. An intersection of popular culture and philosophy to make you laugh, think and debate!

The books from the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series retail at $27.95 and are available at Unibooks today!

Movember – A celebration of Mo Willems

Each November is a celebration of Moustaches. We largely have Movember to thank for this phenomenon – a celebration of facial hair of the upper-lip in the name of charity.

However, at Unibooks we’re celebrating Movember of a different variety – our author of the month – Mo Willems.

Mo Willems at Adelaide Unibooks

Mo Willems has written Emmy Award-winning scripts for Sesame Street and is also a stand-up comedian. But first and foremost he is a children’s author extraordinaire, and dare we say genius! Mo brings to life an eccentric team of characters; from the demanding egomaniac Pigeon, as well as Edwina (the dinosaur who didn’t know she was extinct – oh dear), to the endearing Elephant and Piggie and their steadfast friendship.

As books for pre-schoolers, most children (and many adults) will recognise themselves in Mo’s Pigeon series. The books assist with developing preschoolers’ reading skills whilst having mountains of fun! But maybe it’s the child-within that has impressed us at Unibooks – that, and also these books are a nice break from contract law and accounting textbooks which share our shopspace with Mo and his friends. At the University of Adelaide bookshop you’ll find staff members debating about which Pigeon book is the best. It’s probably a toss-up between “The Pigeon Wants a Puppy!” and “The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog!“

We’re also gushing over the Elephant and Piggie’s endearing and enduring friendship. Children’s classics to be sure!

Everyone has a bit of Pigeon, Elephant & Piggie in them. Mo Willems is an author for young and old. His wit is remarkable and he certainly has the Unibooks crew rolling down the bookshop aisles with laughter.

Get to know Mo at http://www.mowillems.com

Come into a Unibooks store near you and explore the world of Mo’s books. You can also purchase Mo Willems at Unibooks online.

Unibooks hearts Mo!

Mo Willems at Adelaide Unibooks