Item category 1: Society & Culture

The relationship between the US and China, the world's two superpowers, is peculiarly volatile. It rests on a seismic fault of cultural misunderstanding, historical grievance, and ideological incompatibility. No other nations are so quick to offend and be offended. Their militaries play a dangero...

The #MeToo and Time's Up movements have exposed the truth that many already knew: sexual violence is real, pervasive, and causing widespread trauma for millions of survivors. This visibility is also shedding light on the lack of resources available for victims to heal from their pain. Many surviv...

Trigger never knew what each shift would bring - tragedy, laughter, adventure, danger - sometimes all on the same day. Trigger's personal journey, fuelled by a thirst for adventure and special forces training, led him to the frontline of policing. He faced life-threatening situations and earned c...

Science doesn't speak for itself. Neck-deep in work that can be messy and confounding and naïve in the ways of public communication, scientists are often unable to package their insights into the neat narratives that the public requires. Enter celebrities, advocates, lobbyists, and the funders b...

At a time in our world when it is crucial to be able to identify and challenge rhetorical half-truths, this book helps readers to better understand flawed argumentation and develop logical literacy. Unrivaled in its breadth of coverage and a worthy companion to its sister volume, "Just the Argume...

Both a translation and critique of an early 20th century seminal French text on the physical effects of corseting, The Bad Corset explores contemporary anti-woman bias to challenge the commonly accepted assertions about corsetry's contribution to disease, disfigurement, and disorders of the femal...

'Pink is my favourite colour. I used to say my favourite colour was black to be cool, but it is pink - all shades of pink. If I have an accessory, it is probably pink. I read Vogue, and I'm not doing it ironically, though it might seem that way. I once live-tweeted the September issue.' In these ...

In August 1925, Audrey Jacob shot dead her former fiancé, Cyril Gidley, in full view of hundreds of guests at a charity ball in Perth's Government House. When she was arrested, she still held the gun in her hand. It was an open-and-shut case of wilful murder - that is until lawyer Arthur Haynes t...

Censorship of one form or another has existed almost as long as the written word, while definitions of what is "acceptable" in published works have shifted over the centuries, and from culture to culture. Banned Books explores why some of the world's most important literary classics and seminal n...

The story that bonds Ernest Rutherford and Marcus Oliphant is as extraordinary as it is unlikely. They were kindred souls whose restless intellect and tireless conviction fused in the crucible of discovery at Cambridge University's celebrated Cavendish Laboratory. Their brilliance illuminated the...

On Tik Tok, Instagram, and his podcast, The Be a Man Guy discusses what it takes to be a man. Now, this funny and insightful book showcases all new stories, vignettes, anecdotes, and pearls of wisdom.

Be Brave is the first in a series of erasures in which author JM Farkas puts a feminist, revisionist spin on classic literature. Permanent marker, meet Beowulf. A former high school English teacher, Farkas transforms Beowulf into an unlikely guide for the brokenhearted that is both irreverent and...

Say 'Good morning' first, sit somewhere new, cook a meal for a neighbor, or set up a new bird feeder outside. Our human ability to create space in our day to reach out with small kindnesses is a powerful thing. The benefits ripple out and have the potential to create a worldwide community that lo...

Marcus Aurelius wisely said, "Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one." Building on that quote and making its wisdom applicable, Jimmy Rex's book Be One, cuts through the noise and provides readers a single roadmap to being a good man and becoming the best possible version of...

Bruce Lee's daughter illuminates her father's most powerful life philosophies, and how we can apply his teachings to our daily lives. 'Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless like water'. Bruce Lee is a cultural icon, world renowned for his martial arts and film legacy. But Lee was also a deeply ...

"Beautiful Outlaw offers a dynamic portrait of Jesus in all his huanity, dismantling the religious nonsense and helping us understand the living, breathing man behind the stained glass. Focusing on his compelling personality, bestselling author John Eldridge shows us the real Jesus - playful, wil...

Becoming a Private Investigator puts a seemingly out-of-reach profession within the your grasp. Weaving practical how-to advice with inspiring case studies, Kahn provides actionable steps anyone can take to pursue a career as a P.I. as he shadows two experienced American P.I.s, Sheila Wysocki and...

Growing up in the public eye-- a reality star in the Duggar family documentaries-- Vuolo grew up believing the Bible was primarily a rulebook and that faith was about executing God's laws to perfection. These ingrained principles were less about God's love and grace and more about man's willingne...

Dispenza explores how common people are doing the uncommon to transform themselves and their lives. Becoming Supernatural marries some of the most profound scientific information with ancient wisdom to show how people like you and me can experience a more mystical life. Readers will learn that we...

This collection of excepts selected from talks by Reverend Ming-An Chen, illuminates the mindsets and attitudes necessary to grow as a person and Buddhist practitioner. In his characteristically clear and straightforward manner, Reverend Chen encourages us to demand more of ourselves, view things...

A good night's sleep is fundamental to our well being and our health, yet in our busy world, dominated by screens, and juggling the demands of home and work, our sleep is often poor and overlooked. Now is the time to stop a while, and be reminded that while memories of bedtime stories as children...

Let me tell you a story. When Chloe Hooper's partner is diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer, they have to find a way to tell their two young sons. Can the news be broken as a bedtime tale? What practical lessons does children's literature with its innocent orphans and evil adults, magic, ...

Across the world today, people of all ages are doing fascinating, creative, messy things with gender. These people have a rich history - but one that is often left behind by narratives of trans lives that focus on people with stable, binary, uncomplicated gender identities. As a result, these sto...

Bob Wallace had a stellar career, retiring as a Deputy Superintendent in NSW Corrective Services. Shortly after, he was diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia. Sarah had the skills to care for her husband, having worked in the UK and Australian health systems but she could not have imagined the nightm...

An extraordinary, eye-opening look behind the razor wire into life inside the walls of one of the most notorious hospitals for the criminally insane, a hellish world inhabited by mass murderers, serial killers and other figures from our nightmares.

The definitive book on the Chinese Communist Party's extensive campaign over the last two decades to take the pole position of global dominance. For several decades Chinese ascendancy has been supported by an astonishingly broad and deep portfolio of soft power. The stories of their reach are bre...

Whakapapa. You belong here. Whakapapa is a Maori word which embodies our human need to belong. It represents a powerful spiritual idea - we are all part of an unbroken and unbreakable chain of people who share a special culture. Owen Eastwood places this concept at the core of his methods to maxi...

Making the world a better, less annoying place one wish at a time. Do you hate gambling ads, pre-ripped jeans and pedestrians who walk five abreast? Do you also have a problem with plastic-wrapped fruit, climate-change deniers and take-away sandwiches priced at $14.95? And, most of all, do you th...

What if there was an algorithm that could predict which novels become mega-bestsellers? Are books like Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code and Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl the Gladwellian outliers of publishing? The Bestseller Code boldly claims that the New York Times bestsellers in fiction are predictab...

A true Cold War espionage thriller set around the ultra-secret Berlin Tunnel - where British officer George Blake must run a high-stakes double cross to maintain his cover.