Life

05.07.2023

What the Fashion Journal team are reading this July

WORDS BY MAGGIE ZHOU

Happy reading.

Stephen King once said, “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write.” As a writer, it’s advice I’ve tried to knock into my head. Thankfully, it’s easier to prioritise reading when there’s an endless pile of great books vying for your attention. Case in point: this neat list of 11 books our team is currently reading or itching to pick up this month.

Looking for more thought-provoking reads? Try our Life section.

As we’re shivering through the depths of winter, there’s no better time to (literally) curl up with a good book. Below, suss an assortment of genres, ranging from whodunnit thrillers and investigative non-fiction to contemporary Australian literature and TikTok-viral romances. All have been handpicked and brought to you by Fashion Journal‘s in-house team and a selection of our contributors.

Big Swiss by Jen Beagin

Recommended by: Daisy Henry, FJ contributor

A bejegyzés megtekintése az Instagramon

Gbas (@good_book_appreciation_society) által megosztott bejegyzés

After reading countless rave reviews online, I’m so excited that Big Swiss has finally been released in Australia. Described as a dark comedy, it’s a contemporary fiction about a sex therapist’s transcriptionist who becomes infatuated with a client while listening to her sessions. The client, nicknamed ‘Big Swiss’, is a married gynecologist who was brutally attacked by a man about to be released from prison. After a chance meeting, the two begin an affair.

Tackling themes like trauma, infidelity and sex, it seems like a refreshingly quirky and unique novel. My friend recently picked it up and has been loving it, so I’m looking forward to starting it soon.

Get it here.

Search History by Amy Taylor

Recommended by: Georgina Woolcock, FJ’s Partnerships and Campaign Coordinator

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Amy Taylor (@amy_ester_)

After reading an excerpt from the first chapter on Fashion Journal and staring at the cover sitting on Izzy’s desk across from mine for months, I finally decided to pick up Amy Taylor’s debut novel. Set locally in Melbourne (which is always a delight), the book follows Ana’s obsession with her new boyfriend, exploring topics like comparison and identity in 21st-century romance. Endearing and charmingly witty, the novel is a page-turner and undeniably relatable for anyone who has experienced modern dating.

Get it here.

Conversations on Love by Natasha Lunn

Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking

Recommended by: Cat Forsyth, FJ contributor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Natasha Lunn (@natashachloelunn)

Currently, I’m juggling two nonfictions, (and no romance – how very unlike me!). Despite exploring vastly different topics, both Conversations on Love by Natasha Lunn and Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking cater to my endless desire to learn more about people, the universe and myself. I’m so curious about the way things work and I’m glad to have found two books that enable me to learn more with every page turn! P.S. I just finished Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow which I recommend to every single person I discuss books with!

Get them here and here.

The Panic Years by Nell Frizzell

Recommended by: Cait Emma Burke, FJ’s Editor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Henry Sene Yee Design (@henryseneyee_design)

Like many women nearing the milestone birthday of the big 3-0, the question of whether or not to have children has been weighing on my mind. Some of my close friends are having babies, or declaring their intention to have babies in the next few years, and while I’m happy for them it’s also made me spin out a bit. As it turns out, there’s a name for this stage of life: ‘the panic years’.

Coined by writer Nell Frizzell, and explored at length in her debut book of the same name, it’s an apt title for a period of time that can feel so full of doubt, worry, fear and comparison. I’m about 70 per cent of the way through, and I’m loving how Nell writes about her own struggles during this time with such raw, relatable honesty. It’s a must-read for anyone who, like me, is in the thick of their own panic years.

Get it here.

Tissue by Madison Griffiths

Recommended by: Kate Streader, FJ contributor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Madison Griffiths 🌈 (@madisonrgriffiths)

I’m dying to get my hands on Tissue by Madison Griffiths, which is out this month. I love their podcast Tender, and how it explores domestic violence in such a thorough, thoughtful way, so I’m really eager to see how Madison unpacks abortion in her debut book. I mostly read non-fiction and am a big fan of books that dig deep into important topics, so Tissue looks like it will be right up my alley.

Get it here.

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Recommended by: Jackie Zhou, FJ contributor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by jocelyn aspa (@themessyannotator)

Yellowface was recommended to me by my friend when we were on a cafe-hopping mission around the CBD. She said that the novel reminded her of me because of its sarcastic and humorous tone while being deeply critical of how screwed up, racist and culturally insensitive the publishing industry is. Being a person of colour who may want to work in publishing one day, I’m kind of scared but I’m ready to give this one a go because the premise sounded really interesting!

Get it here.

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

Recommended by: Izzy Wight, FJ’s Assistant Editor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ᛕꪖꪗꪶꫀꫀ (@kayleeneedsanewbook)

After recently finding myself in a stubborn reading rut, I picked up this whodunnit to pique my interest. While not always the most profound (and sometimes a little cheesy), a whodunnit thriller is usually the page-turner I need to get back into reading. The Family Upstairs was no exception. After Libby Jones inherits a creepy abandoned mansion on the River Thames, she’s hopeful it might be the key to her mysterious family history (and unsolved deaths at the centre of it). The Family Upstairs is atmospheric, suspenseful and an ideal moody winter read.

Get it here.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Recommended by: Ella Taverner, FJ’s Partnerships and Campaign Manager

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ecco (@eccobooks)

An exploration of reckoning, hope and connection, Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel follows the unlikely friendship between recent widow Tova Sullivan and a giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus. If you too had your heartstrings tugged by Netflix’s 2020 documentary My Octopus Teacher, then you’re in for a real (emotive) treat. Without giving too much away, the pair’s unconventional connection uncovers some hard truths about Tova’s past and unearths a future ahead that she never deemed possible.

Get it here.

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

Recommended by: Ruby Staley, FJ contributor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by irene ⚘ (@books4irene)

My friend gifted me this for my birthday last month and I’ve been happily ripping through it on my daily tram commute. Set in New York (we love), it’s a complex love story that gets into some interesting and fairly devastating mental health topics. I’ve really enjoyed this slightly odd, but incredibly honest, depiction of a relationship from its intense beginnings to its fractured end. Although it gets dark at times, it felt incredibly light and easy to read the whole way through. Would recommend for anyone looking for a quick read that’s not too mentally taxing that will transport you to a The Devil Wears Prada-esque world.

Get it here.

The Albatross by Nina Wan

Recommended by: Maggie Zhou, FJ’s Branded Content and Features Editor

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Monica // #bookstagram 🇦🇺🇳🇿🇨🇳 (@tackling.my.tbr)

Working in media, I’m spoilt by choice when it comes to reading new releases. It’s hard to figure out what to prioritise in my ‘to read’ pile. More often than not, I’ll gravitate to a title because of its alluring cover. This was one of those times. Nina Wan’s The Albatross, published in April this year, comes in a fluorescent green sleeve; I was instantly intrigued. The crux of the book follows a tried-and-true formula for me: a contemporary, Australian fiction novel about a woman who’s struggling with identity or relationships (or both).

One aspect of the novel that diverged from my usual reading habits is that golf is one of its main themes. Yes, golf. I’m halfway through the book now – which follows a 36-year-old Chinese-Australian woman grappling with her strained marriage, mental health battles and the unexpected return of her teenage crush – and I’m happy to say that there’s more to the story than putts and pars.

Get it here.

For this year’s best book releases, head here.