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Strong governments stand up for little people.

Donors have pledged $15 million for a makeover of the State Library of NSW, with the aim of transforming the sandstone building into a "global cultural destination".

It was a night of mixed emotions as Georgia Blain won a posthumous Victorian Premier's Literary Award and playwright Leah Purcell took out the $100,000 Victorian Prize for Literature.

Alison Evans' Ida melds far-out physics with late-adolescent pathfinding and ultra-liberal gender politics.

Dark Heart features high-octane action, pitting lone wolf - Jed walker, ex-CIA - against sinister conspiracy.

Luke Rhinehart's aliens in Invasion are cute little polymorphs with a playful streak.

The Golden Legend is a luxuriant, fable-like novel that arms beauty against anger, hope against fear.

If you read this informed and engaging life of Australian war correspondent Chester Wilmot you will find it hard to forget him.

Vladimir Putin is a construct of the people running the Kremlin, according to Mikhail Zygar's book.

The bush emerges from Don Watson's compilation of voices and stories as a complex, moving organism.

It's best known for the Beatles and the zebra crossing outside, but Abbey Road studio has had some of the greats inside during its 80-plus years of recording.

When I started work as literary editor of The Sydney Morning Herald in January 1996, one of my first pleasant duties was to attend Sydney Writers' Festival. Back then, as a small offshoot of the Sydney Festival, it wooed about 18,000 sedate book lovers away from more hedonistic entertainment to listen to writers talk in the galleries of the State Library.

Advance for planned presidential memoir is expected to break the $US15 million record set by Bill Clinton.

"The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command," wrote George Orwell.

Literary news and events in Canberra.

Like few other pastimes, crosswords seem to offer that lifelong affair, an intimate tussle to keep the brain supple, from breastfeeding to that last dinner tray.

Cordelia Fine examines the assumption that testosterone is what turns young boys into stereotypical men.

Scott Pape's The Barefoot Investor tops the independent bestsellers chart.

According to Alex Soojun-Kim Pang, the eight-hour day has become a dimly remembered base line, but four hours work is all that's necessary.

Heyman literally immersed herself to write her new novel, Storm and Grace, spending two years learning to free-dive.

Andy Jones' rom-com offers a fresh take on a convention-bound genre.

Cecelia Ahern's novel about reality TV is intricately plotted and, at times, extremely moving.

"In the modern world we hardly need to think about where we live because we eat the same food, go to the same shops."

Ali Land's novel is an interesting treatment of the subject: what happens to the children of criminals?