Drawing on thousands of interviews over a lifetime of research, Hugh Mackay in his new book presents a compelling portrait of Australia today - and reflects on where we’re headed.

In The Way We Are, the much-loved and highly respected social psychologist examines the trends that affect our way of life. It is an uplifting reflection on Australian society today that notes none of our differences are nearly as significant as the humanity we share.

Join us to reflect on the way we are and what kind of society we want to become.

Hugh Mackay is a social psychologist and bestselling author of The Good Life, Australia Reimagined, The Kindness Revolution and The Art of Belonging. His novels include The Therapist and The Question of Love. His is an Officer of the Order of Australia and an honorary professor at ANU.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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Best Wishes is the funny new book from the bestselling, much-loved and eternally hopeful Richard Glover, who has set out to make the world a better, less annoying place - one wish at a time.

If you, too, think the world could be improved if people got back their sense of humour, here is proof that you are not alone. 

Heartfelt and hilarious, serious but sly, Best Wishes is the ultimate encyclopedia of ‘can do better’.

Richard Glover’s books include award-winning memoir Flesh Wounds, The Land Before Avocado, a series of letters between a city dog and his country parents called Love, Clancy and The Mud House. He writes for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Washington Post, and presents Thank God It’s Friday on ABC Radio.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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Frank, fearless and funny, Wendy Harmer is one of Australia’s best-known and loved comic performers. She has made a career of making us laugh - on the stage, in print and on radio. 

In her new tell-all memoir, Lies My Mirror Told Me, Wendy reveals the secrets of her unlikely success.

We know her as a hilarious stand-up comedian, national television host and, for a time, the highest-paid woman in the cut-throat world of Sydney FM radio. But she started life with a severe facial deformity, growing up in remote one-teacher, one-room country schools and coping with a missing mother. 

Join us to hear Wendy reflect on an extraordinary life, in conversation with journalist and producer Suzannah Cowley.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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We are delighted to welcome to Bowral Paul Bangay, Australia's leading garden designer. Greatly admired for his creative expressions of timeless elegance and classic simplicity, Paul has shaped some of the world's most elegant gardens, including his own Stonefields in Victoria.

His books on garden design are bestsellers that continue to find new readers.

Paul Bangay: A Life in Garden Design is his new memoir, offering an intimate look at his creative journey.
Join us to hear first hand about Paul’s earliest inspirations and current masterpieces, and experience the vision and meticulous craftsmanship that go into each of his designs.

Paul will be in conversation with Mickey Robertson of Glenmore House.

For this special event, Mittagong Garden Centre will creatively transform Centennial Vineyards Restaurant into an even more beautiful space, for an afternoon as inspiring as one of Paul’s own gardens.

Tickets: $70, includes author talk, lunch + glass of wine

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Join us to meet iconic Australian storyteller Bryan Brown. His face is familiar to us from a lifetime of film and television roles, from Breaker Morant to Red Dog and The Light Between Oceans.

In 2021, he released his debut book, a collection of short stories on crime called Sweet Jimmy. It was a tremendous success, revealing his talent as a writer.

Bryan Brown’s debut novel is The Drowning. With his characteristic laconic storytelling style - humorous, tough and suspenseful - he introduces us to the residents of a sleepy coastal NSW town, where murder, drugs, liaisons and lies stir up secrets and bring them slowly to the surface.

Bryan will be in conversation with Jennifer Byrne: journalist, TV presenter, publisher and former host of The Book Club for ABC TV.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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We are honoured to invite you to meet Anna Funder: author of the book of the moment, international bestseller and literary award-winner.

In Wifedom, we slip into the pages of Anna’s literary hero, George Orwell, as she uncovers his forgotten wife. We find Eileen O’Shaughnessy’s literary brilliance shaped Orwell’s work - yet she is written out of his story.

With Eileen’s letters, Funder recreates her life. Wifedom highlights the unsung work of women, illuminates the past and speaks to our present.

Anna Funder is the author of Stasiland and All That I Am - both international bestsellers, published in more than 24 countries - and the novella The Girl with the Dogs. Her books have won multiple literary awards, including the Miles Franklin.

She will be in conversation with Kylie Needham, award-winning screenwriter and the author of Girl in a Pink Dress.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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Thomas Mayo and Kerry O’Brien are well placed to answer all your questions about the Voice and forthcoming referendum.

The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need is a useful, easy-to-read contribution to the decision we’ll make together. With cartoons by Cathy Wilcox, it’s the book we need right now.

Join us to hear what the Voice will mean to Australians, the history that led us to this point, why a referendum is needed, the Uluru Statement and other FAQs.

Thomas Mayo is a Kaurareg Aboriginal and Kalkalgal, Erubamle Torres Strait Islander man. He is a signatory of the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

Walkley award winner Kerry O’Brien is one of Australia’s most respected journalists who has covered all the Indigenous issues of our time.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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Antiques dealer Athol Salter is a treasure trove of stories about treasured belongings and the people who own them. Jane Crowley, his daughter and business partner, grew up listening to those yarns of ramshackle country sheds, crumbling mansions and unforgettable characters. 

Together, they’ve created Beeswax and Tall Tales, a collection of memories from Athol’s 60 years as an antiques dealer. It includes anecdotes from his hardworking, funny, adventurous life, as well as stories of priceless objects, overseas adventures, colourful eccentrics and dodgy dealers.

Jane Crowley’s antiques career began at 8 with the sale of a desk she restored herself. Since then, Jane and her dad, Athol Salter, have bought and sold more pieces of furniture than they could count – and together founded the much-loved Dirty Janes.

Jane and Athol will be in conversation with Rachael Oakes-Ash, author and journalist.

Tickets: $70, includes dinner + glass of wine

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Mystery in the Highlands - Lucy Campbell & Joan Sauers

A Literary Morning Tea

Two recently published mystery novels are set in the Southern Highlands, and you must wonder… which of our friends were inspirational?!

Join authors Lucy Campbell and Joan Sauers to hear how they came to set their thrilling mysteries right here amongst our busy boutiques, sleepy villages and wild wonders of nature.

They’ll be in conversation with The Bookshop Bowral’s own Marie Fitzpatrick, who will also lead an audience Q&A.

Lowbridge by Lucy Campbell is a heart-wrenching mystery about girls who are lost. In the 1980s, a teenager goes missing from the sleepy town of Lowbridge; 20 years on, a woman moves to her husband’s hometown, joins the historical society and becomes obsessed with the mystery.

Echo Lake by Joan Sauers is a thriller set in the sleepy, scenic Southern Highlands, where a young woman goes missing; six years on, a recently divorced historian starting a new life in the Highlands uses her powers of persuasion and knack for deciphering clues to pursue the case.

TICKETS: $45 (including morning tea)

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The Dictionary of Lost Words is one of the most successful and beloved Australian novels ever published. Now Pip Williams has published The Bookbinder of Jericho, a beautiful companion novel that is just as intelligent, thoughtful and rich as her debut.

Familiar characters return in a standalone story that explores another little-known slice of history seen through women’s eyes. It’s a story about knowledge – who makes it, who can access it, and what is lost when it is withheld – intelligently raising questions of class and gender that remain remarkably relevant today as they were in 1914.

Pip Williams became an international bestselling author with The Dictionary of Lost Words, based on her original research in the Oxford English Dictionary archives. The Bookbinder of Jericho combines her talent for historical research and beautiful storytelling. 

Pip will be in conversation with Karen Viggers, award-winning, international bestselling author of The Stranding, The Lightkeeper’s Wife, The Grass Castle and The Orchardist’s Daughter.

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Join us to celebrate the launch of the debut novel by Kylie Needham, Girl In A Pink Dress. For this exclusive event, Kylie will be joined in conversation with celebrated artist Ben Quilty.

Girl In A Pink Dress asks: is it possible for two ambitious artists to thrive in one relationship? It wrestles with power and privilege, womanhood and motherhood, artistic doubt, the male gaze, and the commodification of art.

Kylie Needham is an award-winning screenwriter whose work has been published in prestigious literary journals. She lives in the Southern Highlands with her husband, Ben Quilty, and their children.

Ben Quilty is an acclaimed Australian artist whose works are in the collections of the Art Gallery of NSW, the NGA and elsewhere. He is on the board of Ngununggula, Bowral.

TICKETS: $70 (includes dinner + glass of wine)

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In Belinda’s Kitchen: Essential Recipes is a beautiful book of delicious, failsafe recipes and delightful stories from one of Australia’s favourite home cooks, Belinda Jeffery.

A companion volume to A Year of Sundays, inspired by her Sunday Instagram posts, Belinda’s latest cookbook includes her absolute die-hard favourite recipes and their stories.

Join us for a celebration of seasonal cooking and to hear Belinda share scenes from her kitchen and garden, as well as her local farmers’ market.

Belinda Jeffery is one of Australia’s best loved cookery writers and teachers. Her most well-known cookbook is the classic bestseller Mix & Bake, named by the Guardian as one of the 20 best Australian cookbooks.

TICKETS: $45 (includes morning tea)