A celebration of friendship, renewal, nature and the human spirit told through letters between a writer and an 80-year-old priest. Original, surprising - both highly entertaining and deeply moving.Dear Ailsa, Sometimes I wonder whether the friendship that has caught us both-a most unlikely friendship I must confess-might find an echo in a far off Irish village somewhere in the wild, windy hills of old Donegal. Or am I allowing that uncontrollable imagination of...

An unforgettable and moving insight into loss, hope and starting again, aided by the incredible healing power of nature and a community of unexpected angels—for fans of Phosphoresence by Julia Baird.After I swim, I watch an osprey hanging in mid-air. If those who came before really do dissolve and dissipate, and if their cells really are all around us, then that bird is held there by Mum and Peter and billions of others of the long-dead. The osprey is ...

For fans of Julia Baird's Phosphorescence, Heather Rose's Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here or Indira Naidoo's The Space Between the Stars comes an unforgettable and moving insight into loss, hope and starting again, aided by the incredible healing power of nature and a community of unexpected angels.I landed in this place six years ago in a welter of panic, pain and instinct. I'd been in fight-or-flight mode for twelve months, wanting only to keep on flying – or fleeing. I brought alm...

It all began when Tony Doherty, an 80-year-old priest, emailed writer Ailsa Piper to say how much he enjoyed her latest book. Soon emails were flying back and forth as these two inquisitive minds shared stories, experiences, questions and ideas over the course of many seasons. And through this exchange grew an unexpected but deep friendship.

Walking has been the constant in Ailsa Piper's life. Setting down one foot after the other takes her to a transformative-and transcendent-place.Her bestselling memoir Sinning Across Spain was inspired by the tradition of medieval walkers who were paid by others to carry their sins to holy places. The cargo included anger, envy, pride and lust. She hiked alone through the endless olive groves of the Camino Moz�rabe, from the legendary southern city of Granada toward the cen...

Pilgrim seeks sinners for mutually beneficial arrangement. Tireless. Result-oriented. Reliable. Seven Deadlies a specialty.On her 1300 kilometre pilgrimage from Granada to Galicia, Ailsa Piper carried an unusual cargo. Walking in the tradition of medieval believers who paid others to carry their sins, Ailsa lugged a swag of confessions from friends, colleagues and strangers. Although some days her load weighed heavy, Ailsa’s story celebrates impossible kindnesses, the wonders of Spa...

A woman abandons her city life and marriage to return to the place she grew up, finding solace in a small religious community hidden away on the stark plains of the Monaro.She does not believe in God, doesn't know what prayer is, and finds herself living this strange, reclusive life almost by accident. As she gradually adjusts to the rhythms of monastic life, she ruminates on her childhood in the nearby town. She finds herself turning again and again to thoughts of her mother, whos...

WINNER, 2016 STELLA PRIZECO-WINNER, 2016 PRIME MINISTER'S LITERARY AWARDWINNER, FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR, 2016 INDIE AWARDSWINNER, 2016 INDIE BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDThe Natural Way of Things is a gripping, starkly imaginative exploration of contemporary misogyny and corporate control, and of what it means to hunt and be hunted. Most of all, it is the story of two friends, their sisterly love and courage.With extraordinary echoes of The Handmaid's Tale...

A long-haul flight. Two ambitious dance mums. A child in danger.Bridget and Simone aren’t friends. But their daughters are in the same dance troupe, so they’re flying to Los Angeles for the girls to perform at Disneyland. Simone’s daughter Zahra is indisputably a leader in the group, but Bridget’s daughter Becky is a talent on the rise.Simone and her husband are accustomed to business class, but Bridget is less comfortable there. Both lonely women are surprised to find somet...

Charlotte Wood’s The Writer's Room is essential reading for writers at all stages of their careers, and also pure reading pleasure for booklovers everywhere. Charlotte's interviews with a wide variety of well-known writers, range in topic from the subject matter of the writers' work to intricate - and intimate - revelations about the ways in which they work. Frank about the failures and successes, the struggles and triumphs of the writing life, this is a must-read for writers and readers.

It is the winter of 1985. Hope Farm sticks out of the ragged landscape like a decaying tooth, its weatherboard walls sagging into the undergrowth. Silver's mother, Ishtar, has fallen for the charismatic Miller, and the three of them have moved to the rural hippie commune to make a new start. But here, at just thirteen, she is thrust into an unrelenting adult world, and the walls begin to come tumbling down, with deadly consequences.

Meet Jimmy Flick. He's not like other kids - he's both too fast and too slow. Jimmy's mother Paula is the only one who can manage him. She teaches him how to count sheep so that he can fall asleep. She holds him tight enough to stop his cells spinning. It is only Paula who can keep Jimmy out of his father's way. But when Jimmy's world falls apart, he has to navigate life on his own, and make things right.