The small but influential publisher Sleepers is winding up its operations.

Guests at the Batemans Bay Writers Festival will include former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer, Dr Leah Kaminsky and many more.

A former judge, Colin Steele, reveals another instance of the political interference that has afflicted the Prime Minister's Literary Awards.

My son was a lawyer for a week. By that I mean he shaved each morning, he wore a tie and he caught the early bus. To be honest he seemed more the accused than the intern. But still, Finn fetched briefs and coffees for the week, he photocopied transcripts, ghosted the courts.

Shakespeare and Me. Edited by Susannah Carson. Foreword by Harold Bloom. Oneworld Publications. $21.99.

A novel that spans Holland, New York and Sydney and follows the mystery of a replica of a 17th-century painting and the original is delighting buyers at independent bookshops.

Marcel Weyland's memoir is about wartime escape and the emergence of an artistic spirit.

Colin Dillon's simple, but dramatic, tale of police corruption in Queensland.

Most of us just know the art works themselves; Simon de Pury moves in the kind of smooth, rich circles that buy and sell the stuff.

John Birmingham offers practical advice for anyone who wants to make a go with their writing.

J.K. Rowling has slammed as a "bunch of racists" online critics who complained about the casting of a black actor to play Hermione.

A plane crash plus sinister secrets result in Noah Hawley's suspenseful thriller.

The reversal of fortunes in Jung Yun's Shelter leads to dramatic revelations.

Forsaking grievance for martyrdom, Akram Khan decides to become a suicide bomber, planning to detonate himself among crowds on Armistice Day.

Alan Furst is renowned for his spy thrillers that are set during World War II and are thorughly researched and imagined.

Every vendor has their own story. In their yellow hi-vis vests and dotted like fluoro mushrooms around city and major regional centres of Australia, they position themselves and prepare for another day of hustling for custom.

Labor has promised more than $140 million in additional spending on arts funding and the ABC, but it has not ruled out changes to copyright laws.

At last there's a book about the Rolling Stones with writing that matches their extraordinary talent.

Append is a poem by Melbourne poet Leah Muddle

The Dry is a story about heroism, the sins of the past, and the struggle to atone. And it is a quintessential Australian story beautifully told.

Eileen thrives on awkward and uncomfortable juxtaposition. It progresses through tensions that perch on the horizon, with Ottessa Moshfegh working like a magician.

The Passage spans almost 100 years, The City of Mirrors a thousand more - it is the culmination of an epic saga, built on a mythology.

Cory Taylor and Jenny Diski write about their terminal illnesses in different but beautiful ways.

The interplay of character and place is skilfully and movingly managed in Rose Tremain's latest novel.

Katie Rowney is a communications wizard and recovering journalist. She grew up on Tamborine Mountain, Queensland, and made it as far as Brisbane before settling down with her husband, two dogs and two cats. Her new debut novel, Front Page News, was selected from Penguin's open submissions pile.