Summer Reads from Greens MPs

Chasing the Scream

by Johann Hari

After a three-year, 30,000-mile journey, journalist Johann Hari shares some surprising truths about drugs, addiction, and the war on drugs.

Recommended by Senator Richard Di Natale

Eyrie

by Tim Winton

"I'm a third of my way through Tim Winton's Eyrie at the moment and it's shaping up to be one of my favourite books ever. It's brilliantly written, it's authentically Australian, it's so evocative of its place, Fremantle; it covers broad fields of environment, capitalism, community, family, disconnection, despair, life's struggles and people doing it tough… in short it's a brilliant read, and has been keeping me up at night far past when I should have been turning out the light."

Recommended by Senator Janet Rice

Cloudstreet

by Tim Winton

"It is such a great story, well written and perfectly captures Perth and Western Australia. Reading it you are right there, thinking of our bright sunshine and feeling the afternoon sea breeze come in."

Recommended by Senator Rachel Siewert

The Slap

by Christos Tsiolkas

Read the book behind the ABC television series from a few years ago. "It's a great human drama, but also a reminder of the different lenses and world views we all apply to situations," says Robert.

Recommended by Senator Robert Simms

Island Home

by Tim Winton

"This passionate story describes how Winton's relationship with the Australian landscape came to be, and how it has influenced his ideas, his writing and his life. It is also somewhat of an inspiring plea for all of us to always make time to feel the ground beneath our feet.

Tim Flannery put it well when he said, 'Island Home is thus part political manifesto that presents a profound challenge to traditional rural conservatism as well as to the right in general. Conservatives say they love their country. Winton lays bare how very destructive of it some of their actions have been.'"

Recommended by Senator Peter Whish-Wilson

Feathers, the evolution of a natural miracle

By Thor Hanson

What are feathers? How did they evolve? Hanson, a biologist, takes the reader on the journey exploring research by paleontologists, ornithologists, biologists, engineers, and even art historians. "Entertainment and wonderment on one of my favourites subjects — birds," says Lee.

Recommended by Senator Lee Rhiannon

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

"This is my favourite summer re-read, for its wonderful humanity and delightful structure of letters written between characters. This charming tale is loosely historical fiction but not at all hard work, with colourful and frank characters, and a good strong female central lead. The story unfolds in layers and from the first page you are endeared to this assemblage of people. The whole read leaves you with a warm fuzzy glow which I need after this full-on parliamentary year!

I also want to finish Annabel Crabb's The Wife Drought, which I'm halfway through and find myself in vehement agreement with!"

Recommended by Senator Larissa Waters

1984

by George Orwell

"With the Labor and Liberal Parties voting to approve indiscriminate mass surveillance earlier this year, it's probably time to dust off this old classic. This Orwellian masterpiece will remind you of what's at stake and what we're up against."

Recommended by Senator Sarah Hanson-Young

Post-capitalism

by Paul Mason

"PostCapitalism is carefully researched, sceptical of what Mason terms "bullshit jobs" (those that pay little and demean the worker), and unflinching in his illustration of history's brutality. At times it feels deliberately confrontational.

Get hold of a copy, tear it apart and help revise it — a piece of work like PostCapitalism adds to the collective wisdom of an increasingly angry crowd. And above all, against the scale of the multiple waves breaking over our troubled global community, Mason advises we'd best cast aside timidity and be as absurdly ambitious as our age demands."

Recommended by Senator Scott Ludlam

The Rise And Fall of Gunns Ltd

by Quentin Beresford

At its peak, Gunns Ltd had a market value of $1 billion and was the largest employer in Tasmania. Most of its profits came from woodchipping, mainly from clear-felled old-growth forests. Its collapse in 2012 was a major national news story, as was the arrest of its CEO for insider trading. “If you ever want to know why Tasmania's economy is under-performing, read this denouncement of crony capitalism,” says Nick.

Recommended by Senator Nick McKim

The Luminaries

by Eleanor Catton

"The Luminaries tells a story of fortune and complication, law and crime, in the goldfields of Aotearoa/New Zealand in the nineteenth century. Once you reach the end, you know in your heart it will be quite a while before you read another story as well told as this one. Well after reading and loving this book, I found out the author wonderfully described the governments of Australia, Canada and New Zealand as 'neo-liberal, profit-obsessed, very shallow, very money-hungry politicians who do not care about culture... They care about short-term gains. They would destroy the planet in order to be able to have the life they want'. And if that's not enough to get you reading, know that she won the Booker Prize at 28 for this novel, the youngest ever winner."

Recommended by Adam Bandt, MP