Dark Emu is extraordinarily interesting; while I knew that the agricultural systems of the First Nations Peoples were far more sophisticated than most Australians have been taught to believe, I was really clueless as to the true extent of the agri- and aqua- cultural management of Australia before European invasion. Pascoe demonstrates how those practices were woven into the spiritual and political life and helped to ensure a peaceful society.

Right, well, if Mr Backman, you could just stop breaking my heart every time, I‘d be grateful.... or would I?

A gently meandering and beautifully written story, Azar gave me a glimpse of an Iran unknown to me. Magic realist in feel, with it‘s ghosts and jinns, fables and fairytales, woven into the daily fabric of life. It is also a love letter and eulogy to the history and culture of Iran and to the individuals - the ordinary, everyday people, who could be any one of us - who have experienced loss and suffering on a massive scale. Enchanting and powerful.

Don‘t you love it when you #surprisebookmail yourself?! I hadn‘t forgotten I‘d ordered it, I just lost track of when to expect it, so I got a little thrill today 😊 now I‘m going to save it for a while so I can look forward to it - plus I‘m reading two books that I‘m really enjoying at the moment 😋

The Bedevilments of Creativity ....

If you‘re a Nick Cave fan, you‘ll probably love this. It was very much like reading one of his songs and gave me a perfect Sunday morning.

Life has been a little frantic lately so maybe that‘s why, when this beautiful package from @Louise arrived, I couldn‘t open it. It spoke of a generosity of time and spirit that I couldn‘t do justice to. So it sat on my shelf for two weeks until today, I found some breathing space. Every bit of this made me smile. Thank you so much Louise, I‘ll be wearing the elephant scarfs to work tomorrow and it will make me smile all day long.

"Moist and his unhappy but hopeful band were shepherded surreptitiously from behind by Of the Twilight the Darkness, who was becoming a great lieutenant, despite the fact that he brazenly considered Moist to be a bit of a tit. But a useful tit all the same." After starting a new job yesterday, I've come back to an old friend for a comfort read; my brain is too fried from information overload for anything new. #sirterry #discworld

This was good without being great. Think "plucky hero against impossible odds" but the odds here are so heavily stacked against him that it's almost distracting. I do love a series though so I will probably read the rest when I need something to snack on. I do hope they get a little stronger and the female characters get a little less patronised as we go.

You know when you start one of those randomly selected books and are surprised by its brilliance? I could not stop reading. The premise was intriguing - a town that is forbidden by regulation to learn any history before 1800 - and a cast of fascinating characters. There was a lot going on but for me it struck a good balance between enough clues to work some things out without giving away everything.

I read In The Woods with my bookgroup and ever since I've gone back to Tana French once or twice a year. I love her stories and her characters - though there is something incredibly distinct about her tone; I'm glad to have a break in between each book so they don't blur into each other. But I love the rolling protagonist structure, each story told from a POV of a different detective instead of a single über detective.

The cat thought it unreasonable that I wanted a photo of books. Nevertheless I am enjoying the series. I read several Napoleonic era series as a kid - Patrick O'Brien and Bernard Cornwall because my older brother owned them - and this series adds dragons 🐉 so how could I not enjoy it? I also like that Novik continues to develop the themes of freedom and self-determination for the dragons.

This is the kind of book I can listen to on audio - I can still get a lot of the meaning even if I tune out occasionally! But an interesting listen and full of practical strategies to improve happiness through both purposeful and pleasurable activities.

I remember having a crack at this as a teenager, but it was mostly over my head. Enjoyed it this time round. The Netflix series is brilliant although quite different to the book. The second season is released here tomorrow so can't wait to dive in.

Damn, @TheDoubleLetterThief I didn't really need this, but what a brilliant concept!

I was pretty rapt to find this at my library (one of the most important social institutions ever devised). The world building is incredible and the illustrations are ridiculously lush - which I got a bit squeamish over in parts (being one of those who hides behind barely-parted fingers during the gory bits of Game of Thrones). Probably not for the faint-hearted, but definitely intriguing if you like the fantastical.

I just loved this. Fairytales and magic and intrigue. Brilliant characters, kept me engaged to the very end (which came sooner than I expected due to a glossary and sample chapter lurking at the end). I was disappointed that it was finished.

Thanks for my pressie @Michelle_mck I love it! And love the idea of a Difficult Women read-along, how awesome 😊

Keeping in mind that it's 5.30pm December 30th where I am - and tomorrow I have to shop and bake for, and attend a NYE get together - can I fit one more book into 2017? It's YA and only 243 pages long. I reckon I can make it 😝

This was brutal and devastatingly sad. I took a three week break about 75% of the way through (how nice to be able to take a mental break from the trauma of a fictional person - if only real life worked like that!). The voice of Mireille will stay with me in it's joy and sorrow, anger, fear and determination. Not a pleasant read, but a good one.

I got a book voucher for Christmas - picked up a behemoth for book group, an old read and a new read.

This was the final in The Tribe trilogy by Ambelin Kwaymullina of the Palyku people of Western Australia. A dystopian series great for older teens. Kwaymullina also wrote one of my favourite children's books - The Two-hearted Numbat.

While the blurb leads you to think this is another in the "loveable curmudgeon" set, it's actually deeply beautiful and relatable. Hendrik's self-deprecating style pokes fun at himself as well as the foibles of the residents of his aged care home. It also examines what makes life worthwhile even in the face of illness and death. And OK, sometimes he does get a bit grumpy, curmudgeonly even ... but so do we all. Highly recommend.

It's early days @TheDoubleLetterThief but I'm not quite sure about this...

"I am growing less respectable all the time." Goals for getting older ?

I'm a strong believer in the need for #diversebooks. Mainly because I remember desperately trying to find myself in books as a teenager - or at least someone I could aspire to be. I'd wish for everyone to have that opportunity (as well as access to books, and access to literacy education). My more selfish reason is that without #diversebooks I would actually miss out on fabulous stories like this - and that just doesn't bear thinking of.

About to dive into this - which I managed to snaffle with a bit of double-dealing at book group Christmas - but I have a thing about slip-covers. I just can't read a book with a slip-cover on; I must remove it for reading. Anyone with me?

This was enjoyable but somehow not quite as charming as I'd imagined. Still, it was a sufficiently engaging story and a pretty good set of characters. Perhaps it just needed a little more editing for flow. If I stumble on the second instalment at the library, I would definitely borrow it.

Just stole @TheDoubleLetterThief 's photo of our book group Christmas collection - just as I stole her copy of Akata Witch. Pretty happy with that result 😊

Some afternoon company while I read. #catsoflitsy

This was advertised for release in January, but I pre-ordered it late one night after a few wines. Then it was released early! Bonus! Can't wait to get into this fourth instalment of The Invisible Library series.

Anyone else get sucked in by the Enid Blyton box set at Aldi? Childhood memories and getting ten books for $8 - priceless. Now if they would just do the same with Nancy Drew. What other childhood favourites would you like in a box set?

@JoanneL these are coming your way - I do have Bad Feminist as well but it has disappeared into the black hole of my bookshelf!

Well Samantha Irby, you just got invited to my fantasy author dinner party - at which, in deference to your preferences, I will rig up a microphone so you can hear us while sending us text messages from a remote location. You won't even have to put on a bra.

A friend reminded me I had Shrill sitting on my shelf yet to be read. Thanks @JoanneL I'm really enjoying it. While I've gotten quite a few laughs, this passage spoke to me.

Normally I can't buy books in a series when they are different sizes - I have to wait until they all come out in standard paperback size. For the Nevernight Chronicle I've made an exception. While I was almost put off initially by the formatting (lots of footnotes and italics) I was eventually lost in the story and can't wait to read the conclusion - at some far too distant point in time 😞Will have to read everything else #jaykristoff has written

Brilliant! Well written and a completely fascinating subject.

It took immense courage to write this book. For a person to write things that make her feel so incredibly exposed and vulnerable is a gift to the rest of us.

My darling 11 year old decided he needed to organise his books before he went to school this morning. I'm both impressed - who doesn't love a good book-organising session? - but also a little amazed at the number of books he owns. Wonder where he gets that from? 😂😂😂 This is only a selection as well - this doesn't include his picture books or his non-fiction books!

I can't quite think of the words to describe this book. Mostly a couple of sentences to express a thought or a feeling but with a depth belied by the brevity. I liked the way it forced me to focus - my mind couldn't get distracted by other thoughts, because if it did, I would miss the whole meaning of the passage. It was almost an exercise in mindfulness. Beautifully written, I will keep this around to revisit.

Lots of fun and more information about records than you would have thought possible. Though I'm not sure the lead character is actually as irresistible as his author thinks he is!

I read an article by Paul Kalanithi published just before he died and remembered it for the beautiful simplicity and depth of his writing. The book did nothing to tarnish my memory of his writing. Finished this today on my lunch break at work and had to stop my lip from wobbling.

Exciting times - though sometimes I feel sorry for the authors who chose a book title that we Littens find convenient to post about something else. #litsypenpals

Many of us don't think of ourselves as poetry readers - for me it was the poetry I had to read in school and uni; so much of it was inaccessible and difficult to relate to. But modern poetry is a different beast and I am enjoying the ride. A finely written poem is a blow to the heart, it's the martial art of writing. Neil Hilborn is so sharp you don't even realise you've been cut until you see the blood. #neilhilborn #litsypoetry

Just a few more books - only one more to arrive. It's slightly possible that I've gone a tiny bit overboard! #bookbinge #tbr

After a very early start and a busy day at work, what could be nicer than coming home to a comfy couch, a blazing fire and a stack of new books arrived in the mail? Warsan Shire is the thin brown volume between Grant & I and Because We Are Bad. #bookbinge

Took the kids to the library to choose some books. Ended up with a few of my own 😝

"We both had parents who believed / us when we said we weren't OK, but mine could afford / to do something about it." #neilhilborn #ohmyheart

I'm loving Neil Hilborn's words, he writes so beautifully.