Book Club is back! Each month our new host, Mamamia writer Billi FitzSimons, will be joined by two Mamamia writers to discuss the books you can’t put down right now. This season of Book Club is available exclusively to MPlus members. To join, head to mamamia.com.au/mplus.  If you want a head start, our first three books are as follows... The Survivors by Jane Harper Ghosts by Dolly Alderton A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing by Jessie Tu As well as access to our new Chatterbox function -...

Dropping into your feed in 2021 with a bonus ep from Mamamia Out Loud. After a year many of us struggled to find the energy and attention span for a lot of reading, Holly, Jessie and Mia are here with the page-turners you won't be able to put down in 2021... From big hits to an old classic, and even one from our very own, here is your definitive list of book recommendations to read this summer, into the rest of 2021 and beyond. THE END BITS  Books mentioned: The Good Sister by Sally...

Hey! We're just popping into your feed to share an awesome episode of Lady Startup Stories with you - the podcast where Mia Freedman interviews female founders about the highs and lows of running their own business. This episode features Sally Hepworth. Sally is an author, a mother, a wife, and the primary breadwinner for her family. From the outside, Sally’s business is successful. Amy Poehler has even optioned the rights to turn one of her books into a TV show.  But last year, Sally was...

It was Gloria Steinem who said, “The truth will set you free… but first it will piss you off.” Now, 62 years since she wrote her first book, ‘The Thousand Indias’, Steinem has published a book of her most iconic quotes. “Without leaps of imagination” she once wrote, “or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” And then there was, “Some of us are becoming the men we wanted to marry.” Now 85, Steinem is the author of eight books, and...

Ask a woman to name her favourite book of all time, and many, without skipping a beat, will tell you it’s The Bronze Horseman.  Often referred to as one of the greatest love stories of all time, The Bronze Horseman is set in Leningrad, upon the backdrop of World War II. As Hitler’s armies encroach on the Russian city, Tatiana, nearly 17, meets, Alexander, and their relationship begins to develop.  When Paullina Simons was writing the novel, she prayed that someone else would feel just half...

Peter FitzSimons is one of Australia’s best selling non-fiction authors of the last 20 years. With no less than 36 published works to his name, FitzSimons is also one of the countries most popular columnists and after-dinner speakers.  In 2011, FitzSimons was named a Member of the Order of Australia for his service to literature, and his significant community contributions to conservation, disability care, social welfare and sport.  But despite how busy he is, FitzSimons endeavours to write...

Jane Harper is the author of international bestsellers The Dry, Force of Nature and The Lost Man, and is inarguably one of the biggest names in Australian fiction.  Harper, a former journalist, has a formula for writing a book that’s now been shared all over the world. She knows better than just about anyone, how to build intrigue, mystery and suspense, upon the backdrop of Australia’s harsh and unforgiving landscape.  So, how does she make sure that the reader is entirely unable to put her...

Trent Dalton’s childhood was filled with dark people, underground rooms and strange secrets. In his critically-acclaimed debut book Boy Swallows Universe, memoir meets fiction, as Dalton explores suburban Australia, brotherhood and the most unlikely of friendships.  All the questions you had after reading Boy Swallows Universe are answered as Jessie Stephens interviews Trent Dalton about what is widely considered one of the best Australian novels of the last decade. Remember, this is a Book...

Can you love and dislike a character at the same time? Does a story about of two being good to each other enough to make it a good book? Is this book an accurate description of loneliness? And what the hell is a jerkin? On our final episode, we’re going to be discussing Gail Honeyman's book Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine.   Described as ‘up lit’, Gail Honeyman created the character of Eleanor in response to an article she read about loneliness, and now it’s being made into a movie by...

It’s not every day you pick up a book about people having sex with a fish. But if you’re listening to this podcast you’ve probably read Melissa Broder's book The Pisces, and you’re probably here because, well, you need to talk about the fact that a woman had sex with a merman. On this episode, Jessie is joined by her twin sister Clare and they have a lot of questions... What do you do when you fall in love with a merman? How many metaphors were there in this book and did we understand them...

What's it like doing a book club on your bosses book? Let's find out. This week Jessie & Rachel Corbett sit down to discuss Holly Wainwright's latest novel How To Be Perfect. And we're not going to lie, they get honest. From how, How To Be Perfect compares to Holly's first book, The Mummy Bloggers, who the characters are based on and whether Frances REALLY pressed record when she was in the room with Dr Darling, the ladies have a lot to say... Remember, this is a Book Club, so we're...

What do you call a book that's part memoir, part diary, part recipes? Are female friendships the ultimate love story? And can you write a memoir when you don’t have that much to say? Jessie Stephens and Polly Taylor are talking about Dolly Alderton's Everything I Know About Love, and they have a lot to say... Remember, this is a Book Club, so we're assuming if you're listening you've read the book too.  That means there will be spoilers, so if you haven't read it, grab a copy, get reading...

Jane Harper rose to fame in 2015 when her manuscript The Dry won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards. Three years and two books later, Harper has positioned herself as one of Australia’s best novelist. But is her third book 'The Lost Man' all it’s cracked up to be? Producer Lize joins Jessie to discuss... Remember, this is a Book Club, so we're assuming if you're listening you've read the book too.  That means there will be spoilers, so if you haven't read it, grab a copy, get reading...

Liane Moriarty is one of the most successful authors on the planet and it's fair to say we love everything she does here at Mamamia. Which is why on this episode we're going deep on her latest novel Nine Perfect Strangers. There's so much to discuss, like did it need a trigger warning? Were nine characters the perfect amount or too many? Was the plot a little far-fetched or just right? And how does it compare to her other books? Polly Taylor joins Jessie Stephens to discuss... Remember,...

Should you always stand up straight with your shoulders back? Can you really bother children when they are skateboarding? Does life REALLY only need 12 Rules?  Jordan Peterson is one of the most divisive public intellectuals on the planet. And his 12 rules are just as divisive. So much so that Rachel Corbett didn't even finish it.  But what did Jessie Stephens think? Lets find out... Remember, this is a Book Club, so we're assuming if you're listening you've read the book too.  That means...

Trent Dalton's Boy Swallows Universe has been labelled one of the must-read books of the year so what better way to kick off this summer season of Book Club.  And joining Jessie Stephens to discuss it is writer and self-confessed Trent Dalton fangirl, Holly Wainwright. So did this book live up to all the hype? Did the fantasy element make or break it? Can a book so heavy with drugs and abuse really be all about love? And how important is the title? Let's find out... Remember, this is a...

This summer we are bringing back the Mamamia Book Club. Over 8 weeks we'll be discussing 8 of the biggest books of the year. We’re kicking it off on the 16th of December with Trent Dalton’s Boy Swallows Universe. Then every Sunday after that a new episode will drop. There will be Jordan Peterson’s 12 Rules For Life, Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers, Jane Harper’s The Lost Man, Dolly Alderton’s Everything I Know About Love, Holly Wainwright’s How To Be Perfect, Melissa Broder’s The...

Mamamia Out Loud host Holly Wainwright's first novel focused on the complicated lives of three blogging mum's desperate for their blog to win the coveted Blog-ahhs.  In the sequel, How To Be Perfect, the focus shifts to the world of wellness. Fellow Outlouders, Mia Freedman and Jessie Stephens sit down to talk about Holly’s new book with Holly and give you a sneak peek of what you'll find inside... Buy Holly's book How To Be Perfect here.

For our final book of the season, we're taking on the cult of Michelle Bridges. Whether you're a cynic or a self-help devotee, Make It Happen is about breaking down the barriers that might be blocking your path to achieving your goals. But can it break the mould of cliched, woo-woo self-help books? The book shares a glimpse of what the health and fitness entrepreneur has learnt on her own journey, provides real solutions to everyday challenges, and helps you achieve your goals, whether they...

Art theft. A femme fatale. Wealth and status, class and sexxxxx. Labelled the "most shocking thriller of the year", this is a book sold for a SEVEN figure advance, that already has a Hollywood script in development. But is this sexy crime thriller just Fifty Shades of Grey meets The Goldfinch, and not in a good way? Does it live up to the hype? We talk self-serving female characters and why they rile so many readers up, whether the graphic sex in this novel was completely pointless, how...

What does Jane Austen have to do with crossfit and paleo diets? Nothing until now. Eligible is a modern-day re-telling of the Jane Austen classic Pride and Prejudice. While this contemporary, tongue-in-cheek retelling of Pride and Prejudice does follow the Bennet family, there are some updated differences from the classic. So, did it WORK? How does the modern day Elizabeth Bennet compare to the original? What’s going on with weirdo Mary? How believable is Darcy? And does the love story pack...

Imagine being doubled over from laughing, only to stand up and be punched straight in the guts. This debut novel from one of the most exciting writers in the Australian landscape, Rosie Waterland, will do that to you. Famous for her hilarious Bachelor Recaps, her memoir is a huge departure from the sequinned world of Bachie mansion. This is a skillful and raw depiction of life growing up in a dysfunctional family. And whilst the humor is black, the writing is like a lightning bolt. There is...

It’s been dubbed 'The New Gone Girl'. A fast-paced female psychological thriller from an author who has twice won the Walkley award for investigative journalism. If you haven’t read this book, stop right there, thankyou very much. There is a big fat twist that we are busting to talk about it. Did it leave you throwing the book across the room, or throwing back a champers because you picked it a mile off? Does a book need to have likeable characters to be a good book? We’ll take a look at the...

It's chick-lit, but not as you know it. Big Little Lies is a brilliant take on schoolyard scandals, kindergarten cliques, with a death thrown in for good measure. This New York Times best seller is being made into a TV series with HBO, and with good reason. It's a wolf in sheep's clothing: dark themes masked with a pace and lightness that belies it's depth. But did everyone love it? Or was it too far-fetched for some?  Show notes: Your hosts are Monique Bowley and Jacqueline Lunn with Jo...