Advances in AI platforms have been oddly benchmarked through their engagements with the short story form. What does the latest literary AI scandal tell us?
- Senior Lecturer, Writing, Department of Media and Communication, Swinburne University of Technology
Michael Winkler’s quietly provocative second novel, Griefdogg, asks: what if you had enough money to just … exist?
We should not close ourselves off to the possibility that a fun, charismatic David Foster Wallace fan may theoretically exist, somewhere in the world.
New year’s reading resolutions are a fun way to take your reading seriously. Here are some ideas – from no phones before bed, to deep diving into one author’s work.
We found out the favourite 2025 books of 35 expert readers – and the Books & Ideas team shares our own picks, too.
Literature is full of dysfunctional families. We asked critics to nominate their least favourite mothers.
Literature is full of dysfunctional families. We asked critics to nominate the most troublesome fathers.
Dominic Amerena’s debut novel explores the selfish side of literary life: the desire to have a real story, no matter who it belongs to – or what it may cost.
Catherine Chidgey’s new novel, set in an alternative UK under a version of Thatcher, continues her exploration of murky morality and the legacy of Nazi Germany.
Evidence suggests male writers and readers are in decline – in Australia and elsewhere. Is a male-only publishing house the solution?
At Vanity Fair, Graydon Carter oversaw iconic coverage and launched the Oscars party. His memoir recalls the golden age of magazines – and ‘the expense account life’.
“Review bombing” – where authors receive a multitude of one-star reviews intended to lower their overall rating – has become a persistent threat on Goodreads.
‘When all novels are thrust upon you as words of genius,’ wrote George Orwell, ‘it is quite natural to assume that all of them are tripe.’
New, tech-driven developments, including new imprints by Microsoft and BookTok’s ByteDance, promise to make book publishing faster and more efficient. But what’s lost in the process?
We’ve invited writers, from fields as diverse as wildlife ecology, politics and literature, to nominate their best books of 2024. And this year, the Books & Ideas team share their own picks, too.
Richard Powers has a gift for making complexity feel majestic rather than overwhelming.
We were dismayed to see no Australians on the New York Times Best Books of the 21st Century – so, with the help of 50 experts, we created our own, all-Australian list. You can have your say, too!
Oblivion’s exploration of the empty spaces and lives created by urbanism can come close to indulging an overly familiar fantasy of high-rolling disconnection. But in places, it’s strikingly beautiful.
Catherine Chidgey’s disquieting, award-winning novel The Axeman’s Carnival explores the disintegrating relationship of a rural couple from the perspective of their pet magpie, Tama.
Ketika media digital mulai berkembang pada tahun 2010, sedikit orang yang percaya bahwa majalah dapat bertahan. Meskipun industri ini sudah tidak seperti dulu lagi, majalah masih tetap hidup. Mengapa?
As digital media took off in the 2010s, few believed magazines could survive. While the industry isn’t what is once was, magazines are still very much alive, but why?
What do professional readers choose to read on holiday? The answers include romance fiction, science-fiction classics, a French detective, Japanese assassins … and War and Peace.
Twenty two essays marking the tenth anniversary of the Sydney Review of Books make for a diverse, thoughtful collection.
Plan your summer reading or catch up on what you missed with The Conversation’s selection of the best books of the year.
It’s remarkable to see these three innovative, bravely experimental and often unsettling Australian story collections – by a debut author and two prize-winners – published so closely together.
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