Summer reads: the best book I ever read
David Malouf, Terri Irwin and other members of our UQ community share their favourite books of all time.
Image: Adobe Stock
Image: Adobe Stock
Words: Hayley Lees
Book cover illustrations: Alysha Addicott
We asked 10 of our most bookish alumni, experts and community members for their best book ever, and with some deliberation and thoughtful reflection they have come through with the literary goods. From epic fantasy sagas to the foundation of linguistics – here are the best books ever, according to our wonderful UQ community of book lovers.
Read to the end to see what books you voted for – with hundreds of our alumni and community contributing their best book ever.
Professor Alastair Blanshard
Bachelor of Arts (Hons) '92
Paul Eliadis Professor of Classics and Ancient History
The best book I ever read was: Homer’s Iliad will always be special to me, but I see that David Malouf has already nominated that. So, instead, I’m going to nominate a guilty pleasure, Entertaining (1982) by Martha Stewart.
What’s it about? This is the book that kicked off the Martha Stewart phenomenon. No other cookbook is like it. Over the course of 300 pages (and about just as many recipes), Martha guides you through a glamorous sequence of polo brunches, clam bakes and post-opera buffets. Want to know how to convert a barn for an oh-so-chic country wedding for 275 guests, this is the book for you.
Why do you love it? Where were you in your life when you first read it? I was a teenager when I first read it. Stuck in Brisbane, it conjured up a world that was so outrageously exotic and fabulous, I was hooked. Nobody I knew was serving up coulibiacs of bass at soirées dansantes. I couldn’t put it down.
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer? Caterer, television personality and convicted criminal. Does Martha Stewart need an introduction? As a prose stylist, Martha is no Nabokov. But she makes up for it with unbridled confidence. ‘The cocktail party is probably America’s greatest contribution to the world,’ she declares. One admires the ‘probably’ here, leaving space as it does for the Declaration of Independence and the Moon landing. It is tempting to suspect irony, but Martha doesn’t do irony. Snow peas stuffed with goat’s cheese, yes. Irony, no.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? When you’ve just been asked to throw together a summer omelette brunch for 60 or need advice about the best way to encase your vodka bottles in iced rose petals.
Beny Bol
Master of Governance and Public Policy '14
Youth worker and community advocate; Vice-Chancellor's Alumni Excellence Award winner '24
The best book I ever read was: The book that I would recommend is Stronger: How losing everything set me free (2022) by Dr Dinesh Palipana.
What’s it about? This is a great book about his personal journey from Sri Lanka to Australia and his near death car accident that left him with spinal injuries and paralysis, yet he went on to become a medical doctor. His story of resilience, determination and ambitions is the first of its kind.
Why do you love it? Where were you in your life when you first read it?
I only came to read about his book when Dr Dinesh Palipana, without my knowledge, mailed to me through the African Village Centre, a copy of his book as a special gift in recognition of my leadership after he'd been following me on media responding to a series of incidents and crises over the past couple of years. He wrote a short note inside thanking me for my leadership.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? I spent time reading it when I was travelling to Africa to visit my family.
Britt Wilkins
Editor, Contact magazine
The best book I ever read was: My Brilliant Friend (2011) by Elena Ferrante (and, by cheeky extension, the subsequent books in her Neapolitan Quartet).
What’s it about? The story follows two girls born into a violent, struggling neighbourhood in postwar Naples. Spanning their entire lives, it explores how they’re shaped by class struggles, family, love, loss, creativity, marriage, motherhood and – woven through it all – the complex but magnetic bond they share.
Why do you love it? Before reading this series, I had never encountered a narrative that portrayed female friendship with such profound gravity. It felt like reading a war epic about girlhood.
Where were you in your life when you first read it? I read it during the pandemic, a time when I was ready to settle into an immersive journey – and to memorise 100 Italian surnames.
Who wrote it and why are they a great author? Though little is known about the pseudonymous Elena Ferrante, the fact she shares a first name with the protagonist (Elena ‘Lenù’ Greca) has sparked speculation that the Neapolitan Novels are autobiographical. If they aren’t, their realism is even more astonishing. Special praise goes to her translator, Ann Goldstein, whose work here is invisible in the best sense.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? When you’re hungry for something to really sink your teeth into – or planning a trip to Italy.
Dr David Malouf AO
Bachelor of Arts '55
Doctor of Letters honoris causa '91
Award-winning author; UQ Alumnus of the Year (created by Alumni Friends) '92
The best book I ever read was: Homer’s The Iliad (550 BCE).
What's the book and what is it about? Homer’s The Iliad was produced, as far as we know, 27 centuries ago. It is an account of the conflict between Greeks and Trojans end of the great Greek panoply of gods who themselves play a part in the embodiment of the forces of nature and human psychology. They are presented here, in a very good way, as a dysfunctional, comic family.
Why do you love it? For its scope. Its close observation of human behaviour, both in heroic events and in its many extended similes of everyday occupations and diversities. Nothing in our literature offers a larger and more compassionate view of the survivors of separation from family, suffering and forms of death. No single book in our culture surpasses it.
Where were you in your life when you first read it?
I first read it in E.V. Rieu's acclaimed translation in 1950, 5 years after his translation of The Odyssey became the first Penguin Classic, an event that revolutionised our literary times by making Classics in many languages available in paperback and cheaply to the general reader.
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer?
We call the author Homer and see him as a single figure, a blind reciter of heroic tales. He may be fiction, representing several books in an oral rather than a textual translation. What matters is the work.
When’s the perfect time to read this book?
Can be read from cover to cover, or selectively, in all of its 25 books. Any page of it will be engrossing, enlightening, moving, or in its very great way (when it comes to the ‘gods’) both fearsome and amusing.
Jack D'Allura
Current UQ student and President of the UQ Writing Society
The best book I ever read was: Shadow of the Wind (2001) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.
What’s it about? Shadow of the Wind is set during post-WW2 period Spain in 1940s Barcelona. The story follows a boy called Daniel who is drawn to and finds a book also called Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax and reads it all within a night. However, when he tries to find more books by the author, he finds that something has been mysteriously destroying all of Carax’s books.
Why do you love it? I love it because nearly every single character has a story to tell, whether it’s tragic or typical or heroic.
Where were you in your life when you first read it? It was near the end of 2023 when I had started it and I was far more naïve about pretty much everything. I had just finished multiple major sections of my life and I was in this strange in-between period there was nothing I could do but think and read.
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer? Carlos Ruiz Zafòn wrote it, and although I read an English translation you can clearly tell that Zafòn put so much effort into creating such beautifully crafted images that show his love for his hometown, Barcelona.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? The perfect time to read this book is when you feel (or you’ve been told) that you need to do some serious introspection in your life.
Professor Kim Wilkins
Bachelor (Honours) of Arts '98
Masters (Research) '00
Doctor of Philosophy '05
Professor of Writing and Deputy Associate Dean (Research) Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
The best book I ever read was: The Lord of the Rings (1954) by JRR Tolkien.
What’s it about? Where do I start? Set in a fantastical medieval world, a group of heroes set out on a thrilling quest to destroy an artefact of evil. There are battles, large and small, and lots of strange creatures.
Why do you love it? The writing is utterly utterly beautiful. It evokes a deep mythic Englishness that I adore, and the story is full of wisdom and unexpected heroics. I love you, Samwise!
Where were you in your life when you first read it?
I was 14, reading it in the library with my other outcast nerdy friends. The second time I read it, it was actually read aloud to me by a man who was trying to woo me. It worked.
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer?
J. R. R. Tolkien. The source of his writing brilliance is his deep knowledge of philology, literature, and history.
When’s the perfect time to read this book?
Any time! I dip in and out of it all the time, reminding myself of passages that I love or sections that stick in my head. But if I were pushed to define THE perfect time, I’d say on a winter holiday in Europe, by a fireplace, with a fine brandy.
Madonna Duffy
Bachelor of Arts '88
Publishing Director, University of Queensland Press
The best book I ever read was: Controversially, I have picked 2 novels because they had equal impact on me in their own ways: True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey (UQP, 2000) and Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko (UQP, 2023).
What’s it about? Carey’s rendering of one of Australia’s famous historical figures, Ned Kelly, was audacious and daring in its time. Over 20 years later, Lucashenko’s Edenglassie presents a very different picture of colonial violence, this time it’s Brisbane/Magandjin through the lens of the traditional owners at the time of colonisation and, in the second narrative, their proud, funny and indomitable modern descendants.
Why do you love it? Both novels were so influential in their own eras for reinventing and reimagining what Australian literature could be, fully inhabiting their vivid characters. They each celebrate strength and resilience, but Edenglassie is also about hope and love. Both novelists have brave and distinctive writing styles that define what great writing should be.
Where were you in your life when you first read it?
I read Peter Carey’s novel while I was working in publishing in Sydney, prior to it winning the 2001 Booker Prize. I now work at UQP and am fortunate enough to have published Edenglassie, so I first read it as a partial manuscript
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer?
Peter Carey and Melissa Lucashenko both stand as titans in our nation’s literary history and present. Carey challenged the way we thought of ourselves and our fiction, while Lucashenko continues to challenge our view of history and to consider what a reconciled Australian future might look like.
When’s the perfect time to read this book?
Any time. Both essential reading to understand where we’ve been and who we are now. Both told with breathtaking originality.
Dr Sarah Ogilvie
Bachelor of Science '90
Senior Research Fellow in the Faculty of Linguistics, Philology, and Phonetics and of Campion Hall at the University of Oxford
We have 3 copies of Sarah's most recent book, The Dictionary People: the unsung heroes of the Oxford English Dictionary, to giveaway as part of the 'Best Book Ever: Summer Reads' competition.
The best book I ever read was: Language by Edward Sapir (1921).
What’s it about? It reveals how language is the key to culture.
Why do you love it? Where were you in your life when you first read it? It was late at night in the Duchesne College library, when I was studying for my final exams in maths. On the shelf in front of me, I noticed a small dusty book called Language by Edward Sapir. When I picked it up, I had no idea that it had been published in 1921 and was a foundational text in the field of Linguistics. Sapir had lived with Indigenous communities in North America, such as Yana, Nootka and Paiute, and the book draws on those languages for insights into the sound, meaning, and structure of language. To my younger mathematician-self, it was fascinating to read about the science of language for the first time. I couldn't put it down, and, as the sun came up over the purple jacarandas on College Road, I realised that I had to study Linguistics!
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer? Despite the complexity of many of the observations in this book, Edward Sapir writes in a simple style. Some of his theories have since been disproved, but there is still plenty to captivate the reader.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? I re-read this book when I need to be reminded of the importance of orienting myself towards the other, rather than the self. Nothing matches the exhilaration of seeing the world in a new way through someone else's language.
Sharlene Allsopp
Bachelor of Arts '22
Poet and writer
What book did you choose, and what’s it about? After a furious inner debate with my various reading selves, I choose Kindred (1979) by Octavia E. Butler.
Why do you love it? It was my first Octavia E. Butler book and my first realisation that Speculative Fiction/Science Fiction can read as realism. The themes gripped my heart as I was writing a book deeply entangled with my own Blak family.
Where were you in your life when you first read it? I didn’t know it at the time but I was at a major crossroad in my life. The choices I was making would change my entire life’s trajectory and what a book to encounter at a time like that.
Who wrote it, and why are they a great writer? Octavia E. Butler was an African American female writer from the USA who published across the 1970s through to the early 2000s, a strategic time in literature.
There are so many reasons that she is a great writer, but my favourite is the way that she fuses elements of science fiction with realism to tell stories that are not far-fetched, yet we wish they were. And she fiddles with time to question certain ideologies that helped me understand my own worldview about the past, present and future.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? Read this book when you feel like the world is going to hell in a hand basket, or when you feel hopeless or powerless in the face of overwhelming horror. Caveat: You might feel worse momentarily but you will soon remember that you belong to a long line of strong creative empathetic humans who do have the power to change the world around them.
Dr Terri Irwin AM
Doctor of Science honoris causa ‘15
Conservationist, television personality, author and zookeeper
The best book I ever read was: Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World (2010) by Charles III, Ian Skelly, and Tony Juniper.
What’s it about: Harmony gives us strategies for creating a more balanced world in order to survive and thrive during these times of rapid change from climate change.
Why do you love it? This is a thought-provoking book that explores the history of humanity, as well as considerations for ensuring a bright and positive future.
Where were you in your life when you first read it? After meeting then Prince Charles at a conservation event, I was impressed with his passion for protecting wildlife and wild places. When a friend sent me his book, I was eager to read more about his opinions for protecting our planet.
Who wrote it and why are they a great author? When Prince Charles co-authored Harmony with Tony Juniper and Ian Skelly, it was clear that this was a well-researched book with valuable information. Their ideas for conserving our planet can be applied to individual households, communities or even countries.
When’s the perfect time to read this book? This is a good book to read at a time of quiet contemplation. It is thought-provoking and inspiring, making the reader want to take notes.
The best book you've ever read
We asked and more than 200 of you answered! Here is the full list of our UQ community's favourite books of all time:
- 12 Edmondstone Street by David Malouf
- 1984 by George Orwell (x3 votes)
- A Court Of Thorns And Roses by Sarah J. Maas
- A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
- A Fortunate Life by A.B. Facey
- A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (x3 votes)
- A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (x7 votes)
- A Memory Of Light by Robert Jordan
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
- Aha!: 10 Ways to Free Your Creative Spirit and Find Your Great Ideas by Jordan E. Ayan
- All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
- An Equal Music by Vikram Seth
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
- Beartown by Fredrick Backman
- Behave by Robert Sapolsky
- Bhagavad Gita (Hindu scripture)
- Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
- Blindness by José Saramago
- Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan
- Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
- Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee by Dee Brown
- Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins
- Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens by Shankari Chandran
- Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
- Contact by Carl Sagan
- Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams
- Draft no. 4 by John McPhee
- Dream Of The Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin
- Dune by Frank Herbert (x2 votes)
- Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko
- Educated by Tara Westover
- Elinor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (x2 votes)
- Emotional Female by Yumiko Kadota
- Every Version of You by Grace Chan
- Exodus by Leon Uris
- Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
- For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
- Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn
- Future Shock by Alvin Toffler
- Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
- Graft by Maggie MacKellar
- Grant & I: Inside and Outside The Go-Betweens by Robert Forster
- Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
- Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
- Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone by J. K. Rowling
- Honeybee by Craig Silvey
- How To Stop Your Doctor Killing You by Dr Vernon Coleman
- Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
- In Search of Klingsor by Jorge Volpi
- In The Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje
- Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace (x2 votes)
- Innocents in Africa: An American Family's Story by Drury Pifer
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (x3 votes)
- Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel by Susanna Clarke
- Just Six Numbers by Martin Rees
- Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
- Looking For Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta
- Love Stories by Trent Dalton
- Lunch With The Station Master by Derek Hansen
- Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
- Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin
- Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (x2 votes)
- Memory of Fire, a trilogy by Eduardo Galeano
- Middlemarch by George Eliot
- Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
- Mila 18 by Leon Uris
- My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
- Not Without My Daughter by Betty Mahmoody
- One Day by David Nicholls
- One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
- Out of Africa by Karen Blixen
- Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (x2 votes)
- People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
- Persuasion by Jane Austen
- Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (x2 votes)
Win a book voucher valued at $200 or one of 3 copies of The Dictionary People: the unsung heroes of the Oxford English Dictionary
Add some 'bests' to your summer reading list and enter our competition to win a $200 book voucher from Avid Reader or one of 3 copies of Dr Sarah Ogilvie's latest book The Dictionary People: the unsung heroes of the Oxford English Dictionary. Terms and conditions apply. Entries close Monday 6 January 2025.
