MILKY'S BOOKISH GIFT GUIDE

Image: Vasili Papathanasopoulos

It’s been a wonderful bookish year, so we here at MILKY have put together the ultimate gift guide for book lovers. Highlighting some key selects over the year, as well as honouring favourite moments, these are books we wouldn’t mind seeing under our tree. 

Make it Australian: There’s nothing we love more than stories told via an Australian voice. Australian authors create such rich, diverse tapestries of writing. Particularly when detailing Aussie life and of course, at times, set against the backdrop of our beautiful country.

1. The Wedding Forecast by Nina Kenwood

2. Together We Fall Apart by Sophie Matthiesson

3. Dusk by Robbie Arnott

4. To Sing of War by Catherine McKinnon

5. Juice by Tim Winton

6. The Temperature by Katerina Gibson

7. Translations by Jumaana Abdu

8. Woo Woo by Ella Baxter

9. The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

10. Venetian Lessons in Love by Jenna Lo Bianco

Make it special: Special editions are just that, something special. Harking back to the traditional style of unique editions of books, things like the sprayed edge are making a comeback. Whilst book subscriptions are on the rise, we like to look at something that will be a bit kinder on your bank account. 

1. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

2. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

3. Hooked by Emily McIntyre

4. The Duke and I and The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn

5. The Deluxe Hunger Games Collection by Suzanne Collins

6. The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E. Pearson

7. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

8. Powerless by Lauren Roberts

9. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

10. Circe by Madeline Miller

Make it Super: We were fortunate enough to meet several authors at Supanova Sydney and here are some selects from these talented writers.

1. A Sea of Wolves by Sarah Street

2. Ghost of the Neon God by T.R. Napper

3. After the Forest by Kell Woods

4. Everything Under the Moon: Fairy tales in a queerer light by Michael Earp

5. The Assassin Thief by Madeline Te Whiu

6. The Anatomy of Songs by Megan White

7. Akarnae by Lynette Noni

8. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Make it yummy: As someone who treats cookbooks like the ultimate guide to succeeding as a host these will be welcome under the Christmas Tree.

1. Good Cooking Every Day by Julia Busuttil Nishimura

2. Bake with Brooki by Brooke Bellamy

3. Karkalla At Home: Native Foods & Everyday Recipes for Connecting to Country by Mindy Woods

4. Everyday Eats by Jasmin Weston

5. The Pasta Queen: The Art of Italian Cooking by Nadia Caterina Munno

6. RecipeTin Eats: Tonight by Nagi Maehashi

7. Turkuaz Kitchen by Betül Tunç

8. The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook The New Classics

9. Some of My Best Friends are Cookies by Emelia Jackson

10. Ottolenghi Comfort by Yotam Ottolenghi & Helen Goh

Make it international: Taking a leaf out of Jack Edwards’ book this year was all about exploring beyond our shores.

1. What you are looking for is in the library by Michiko Aoyama Translated by Alison Watts

2. Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck Translated by Michael Hofman

3. Until August by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

4. Greek Lessons by Han Kang Translated by Deborah Smith and Emily Yae Won

5. Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

6. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

7. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa Translated by Eric Ozawa

8. About Love by Anton Chekhov

9. The Lantern of Lost Memories by Sanaka Hiiragi

10. We’ll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida Translated by E. Madison Shimoda

Make it inspiring: Books that ignite our imaginations and set us on the course of adventure and discovery.

1. Adventures Unlimited: The Land of Lost Things by Andy Griffiths

2. The 113th Assistant Librarian by Stuart Wilson

3. Guinness World Records 2025

4. Inkspell by Cornelia Funke

5. The Skin I’m In by Steph Tisdell

6. Skandar and the Skeleton Curse by A.F. Steadman

7. Hover Car Racer: The Graphic Novel by Matthew Reilly

8. Spider-Man Stories from the Spider-Verse by Preeti Chhibber

9. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

10. 9 From the Nine Worlds by Rick Riordan

Make it true: We’re big fans of non-fiction and actually started our book club with a non-fiction selection. It was the year of focusing on memoirs, particularly those within the music industry. 

1. The Voice Inside by John Farnham and Poppy Stockell

2. Unlovable by Darren Hayes

3. Wild Creature Mind by Steve Biddulph

4. Cher: The Memoir, Part One by Cher

5. From Here to the Great Unknown by Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough

6. What I Ate in One Year by Stanley Tucci

7. A Bit on the Side by Virginia Trioli

8. Sonny Boy by Al Pacino

9. We Are the Stars by Gina Chick

10. Never: A Memoir by Rick Astley

Make it 2024: Simply put these are 24 selects from 2024.

1. Vilest Things by Chloe Gong

2. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

3. We Solve Murders by Richard Osman

4. Compassion by Julie Janson

5. The Games Gods Play by Abigail Owen

6. Three Wild Dogs and the Truth by Markus Zusak

7. Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett

8. The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

9. Love Unwritten by Lauren Asher

10. Molly by Rosalie Ham

11. Quicksilver by Callie Hart

12. Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst

13. Too Easy by Donna Hay

14. James by Percival Everett

15. Funny Story by Emily Henry

16. A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang

17. Because I Love Him by Ashlee Donohue

18. All I Want for Christmas by Karen Swan

19. Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten

20. Three Boys Gone by Mark Smith

21. Daydream by Hannah Grace

22. Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

23. Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

24. Play Along by Liz Tomforde