What the HerCanberra team is reading this summer
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Looking for some suggestions for binge-worthy books to fill your days this summer?
Here’s your inspiration to make a head-start on that pile of books by the bedside table you promised you’d tackle in 2024.
Emma Macdonald, Associate Editor
I’ll let Myself In by Hannah Diviney
I’m ashamed of how little I read last year, save for all the mandatory work reading. I have found it hard to get invested in several books, and now I no longer bother if something doesn’t grab me by the first 50 pages. I am much more likely to read a non-fiction book and adore biographies. I am going to recommend two books by two incredible women who inspired me last year. I’ll let Myself In by Hannah Diviney is a beautifully crafted look inside the mind and world of a young Australian disability activist and actor who lives with cerebral palsy. I first read it in 2023 and got even more from it during my second read. With touches of humour and insights into the raw pain and loneliness of being different, Hannah opened my eyes wide to the need for inclusion and representation.
Unbreakable by Jelena Dokic
The second book, Unbreakable by Jelena Dokic is the story of childhood abuse and manipulation this number four world-ranked tennis star endured at the hands of her monstrous father. Having watched Jelena play, and the surrounding media coverage of her life at the time she was being abused, I felt such a huge sense of culpability. The media knew she was not safe, they knew her father was deranged. And yet the world stood by and watched. Jelena’s resilience, strength and commitment to living a good life and discarding any bitterness about her past is something to behold. And while it was difficult and tearful reading, I came away with nothing but admiration.
Erin Cross, Online Editor
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
I’m a bit behind the times when it comes to reading this book, but with the Netflix adaptation receiving rave reviews I swore I would read it before binging it. Almost a year later I picked up Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton and I can finally cross it off my list.
I’m sad to admit that it didn’t live up to the hype. I do think it’s beautifully written and emotionally tragic (which usually sucks me in like nothing else) but I just couldn’t get into the story. I loved the distinct Australian feel to Boy Swallows Universe, but for whatever reason I never felt completely invested, or charmed. In all honesty, I found the mix of mysticism, and gritty realism messy and the ending a little unsatisfying.
That said, I’m glad I read it and I can appreciate it as a piece of literature. It’s just not one of my favourites.
Want: Sexual Fantasies by Anonymous. Collected by Gillian Anderson
I’ll be honest: I was a little hesitant about sharing my thoughts on this book. After all, reading a collection of sexual fantasies is a very personal experience for many reasons (which I’m sure you don’t need me to outline). But I wanted to mention it for two reasons, which also happen to be the reasons I picked it up in the first place:
- It explores how sex is interlinked with womanhood and motherhood, infidelity and exploitation, consent and respect, fairness and egalitarianism, love and hate, pleasure, and pain.
- It also supposedly reveals how women feel about sex when they have the freedom to be anonymous.
Edited by actor, writer, and activist Gillian Anderson, Want is a collection of anonymous letters from hundreds of women from around the world (along with her own anonymous letter). Featuring 174 fantasies, when I first picked up this book, I couldn’t help but wonder if it would actually be thought-provoking. While there was a lot of content that was NSFW (although some say not as erotic as Nancy Friday’s 1973 book My Secret Garden, which I’ve never read), what stood out to me in this book wasn’t the sexual material.
Instead it was the chapters were women wrote their ultimate fantasy is to be desired for who they are – not just their body – and to feel safe and loved, desired and respected… at the same time. It broke my heart.
And while I did find Want an interesting insight into the psyche of women, when you take a step away, what does it say about our society that for so many women feelings of safety and respect feel so out of reach? I’ll leave it up to you if you want to read it.
Taboo: Conversations We Never Had About Sex, Body Image, Work and Relationships by Hannah Ferguson
The minute I heard about Taboo: Conversations We Never Had About Sex, Body Image, Work and Relationships by Hannah Ferguson, it went straight to the top of my TBR as essential summer reading.
As the CEO of Cheek Media Co, a co-host of the Big Small Talk Podcast, and the bestselling author of Bite Back, I’ve been following Hannah and her work for years (yes, I’m a huge fan) and I read her first book in early 2024. While I enjoyed her take on feminism, media, and politics in Bite Back, what excites me about Taboo is the vulnerability of the book and topics she touches on.
Exploring modern womanhood by weaving deeply personal stories with opinions and advice on sex, friendship, family, career, and beyond, Taboo sounds like a book that everyone should read at least once. I’m only 50 pages in and already I can see it becoming one of my top reads of 2025.
Georgie Smith, Digital Content Produce
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
After reading Taylor Jenkins Reid’s The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and The Six, a friend recommended Malibu Rising to me.
The story follows four famous siblings who throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer. But over the course of twenty-four hours, their lives change forever. With references to celebrities and the 1980s Malibu scene, it has a real summer, edgy, pool party fun to it that’s really engaging. I am yet to finish it but so far loving.
Tia Priest-Willimott, Intern
Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau
I read Mary Jane earlier this year and it’s stuck with me ever since. The narrative is fairly slow; this is more of an exploration of character and development, notably the main character Mary Jane.
The story is set in 1975 and follows 14-year-old Mary Jane who takes a job as a summer nanny to five-year-old Izzy Cone. Mary Jane has come from a very traditional home, which contrasts with the Cone’s progressive, forward thinking family. Throughout the course of one summer, Mary Jane learns more about herself and struggles with her identity.
I’d say this is the perfect beach read, it’s nothing too serious and the characters aren’t mind-bogglingly complex. While the book does wrap up almost too quickly, it’s a satisfying coming-of-age arc.
Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My current read is Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I’ve been wanting to read this for a while, especially after it surged in popularity from being made into a TV show. Instead of a traditionally formatted book, this is told through interviews with the characters. There is no narrator, no internal dialogue, it’s all the characters talking directly at you. While this format takes a while to get used to, once you’ve adjusted, it’s an easy novel to read.
The story follows the creation, success, and fall of the fictional band ‘Daisy Jones & the Six’. Reid has done such a fantastic job at creating each character’s voice and tone that after a few chapters, they’re so distinct and memorable, and tell the story in a compelling way.
I can see myself getting through this one very quickly!
Dion Pretorius, Contributor
Galah Magazine
This is a magazine that celebrates regional Australia and has been a calming and surprising addition to my regular reading list. Whether it’s a feature on an indigenous artist in Central Australia, a recipe for the perfect cooked chook, or a doctor’s perspective on the absurd injuries encountered at a ute muster, every story in the Galah has a quirk, a-ha moment, or unexpected twist. It’s also beautiful to look at – the cover, imagery, and design is impeccable and makes for an experience in and of itself. And it always feels great to support a smaller publisher, particularly one that is celebrating some amazing parts of our sunburnt country!
The Tawny Man Trilogy by Robin Hobb
After reading some of Hobb’s novels as a young adult, I’ve returned to her series on and off since. With compelling characters, an extremely rich and complex world, and some unique fantasy themes, I have thoroughly enjoyed returning to her universe to devour another one of her books. If you start, be prepared though – though they are easy to read, her books are lengthy tomes and vast in number.
Sammy Rose, Contributor
Sheltered by Melody Horrill
Grab your tissues, because this book really tugs on the heart strings. Sheltered follows the successful real-life rescue stories of animals that have been surrendered. As a rescue dog mum myself, I found so many of the stories relatable and touching, showing the bond made between rescue animals of all shapes and sizes, and the people who give them a second chance. It recounts true stories about the challenges you face when adopting an animal that’s had a rough time, their distrust of humans and the little things that can help. One of my favourite stories was about Marvin, who was rescued from a violent home as a kitten, and became an unlimited source of joy for his human family, but amazingly also a carer and ‘guard cat’ for puppies and pregnant horses.
Things will calm down soon by Zoe Foster Blake
I’ve read a few of Zoe Foster Blake’s books for adults, after years of reading her beauty advice in the pages of Cosmo magazines as a teen. This was a fun and easy book with no heavy themes and deliciously chick-litty. It follows the life of a talented hairstylist turned entrepreneur who struggles juggling romance, friendships, and avoiding work catastrophes. There was a bit of business jargon, but overall an easy read. The perfect palate cleanser after a more serious read, the kind of book you could read on the beach under an umbrella.
Sarina Dao, Contributor
I’m thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid
I recently decided to re-read this gem of a novel written eloquently by Iain Reid after picking this up for the first time back in 2022, and boy was I reminded of how fantastic this thriller is! It’s everything I look for in a fictional novel – an element of mystery, breadcrumbing, plot twists, and a touch of spookiness.
And without spoiling the story for you, you meet a woman who is on a road trip with her new boyfriend to meet his parents that reside on a remote farm. She seems to have questioned her commitment to the relationship for quite some time and is considering ending things after this trip. But when they take an unexpected detour on the way back home, things take a turn for the worst…
