Dry on reading? Check out our favourites.

The 17th to the 23rd of August marks International Children's Book Week, a global initiative to promote reading in primary school students and donate to less fortunate readers across the globe. The Burne's avid readers took a moment to reflect on their favourites.

Schools across Australia celebrate Book Week this week, a special time of year where primary school students compete to read the most books, dress up as their favorite characters, and raise funds for other children across the globe.

To celebrate literary works and play our part, here are our favourite reads.

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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell - Sarah Rose

Drarry shippers step aside. These are actual gay wizards… well, one of them is bi-sexual, and one of them is a gay wizard-vampire.

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell is one of the only books I’ve read more than once. I’m currently re-reading it, so if you are pressed to choose a favourite, I will gladly recommend Simon and Baz to anyone. The first installment of what would become a trilogy spawned from one of Rowell’s previous novels, Fangirl, where the main character writes fanfiction for a beloved book series (that is very ‘boy-wizard’-esque). It’s that kind of meta-ness that I am a big fan of. Yay for intertextuality. This may not be considered a super-serious read by some, but I know it’s a comfort read for many, myself included, and I feel it tackles important themes like identity and power seamlessly.

Mystery, magic, and mayhem, Carry On is a raucously fun time full of found family, witty British banter, sumptuous enemies to lover’s romance, and pop-culture references any media lover is bound to eat up. 

Mythos by Stephan Fry - Brie Smith

You probably think about the Ancient Roman Empire every day, but how often do you think about Ancient Greece?

As someone who has always had a hyper-fixation on Ancient Greece and Mythology, Mythos by Stephen Fry is a must-read. His retelling of Ancient Greek myths with modern, witty and insightful commentary is incredible!

Exploring Greek mythology from the Beginnings of the Greek Pantheon to legends even avid mythology nerds have never heard of, this book has everything.

The book even begins with maps and family trees to assist the more visual learners.

This is the first book of a trilogy on Ancient Greek mythology and although I have only read this one, I am super excited to read more of Stephan Fry's work.

Daisy Jone & The Six by Taylor Jenkins - Anna Solome

If you’re looking for a story of love, feuds, and struggles reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac, Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reed is the book for you. We follow the lives of singer Daisy Jones and her combined success with the rock band, The Six, in the 70s. Their story is told through a series of interviews decades later as they discuss their past. The unique interview style allows for characters to share their perspective of events, not always being reliable narrators. What struck me while reading Daisy Jones & The Six was how charismatic all the characters are and how interesting their individual stories are as they come together. The book also features songs that the band has written, the tunes coming to life in the TV adaption. I can’t wait to give it an overdue re-read to catch some of the details I missed the first time.

Watchmen by Alan Moore - Max Hutson

Breaking the rules a bit but if there is one graphic novel that you HAVE to read before you die, it's Watchmen.

Written by Rasputin lookalike Alan Moore in 1986, Watchmen shows a world where superheroes are real. The story follows a disbanded group of superheroes forced to reunite after retired heroes are mysteriously killed off one by one. The world-building in the comic is very interesting with superheroes either being owned by the US government or banned outright, as well as the capitalism that consumes superheroes with once-hero Adrian Veidt running an enterprise selling merchandise for his hero alter ego--Ozymandias. Other characters such as the paranoid hobo detective Rorschach or the heartless god Dr Manhattan also provide a very fascinating look into the superhero genre that was never really explored before, which sparked countless imitators that couldn’t get it quite right (even Watchmen’s sequel comics and adapted films). Watchmen is an integral part of pop culture, and there’s no wonder that it’s in Time's List of the 100 Best Novels. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad - Matthew Parkhill

Heart of Darkness was a book that changed how I looked for my next read. Set in the Congo during the prolific exploitation of Africa by the European colonies, Heart of Darkness is loosely inspired by the Author's travels as a sailor and has all the heart of a true nautical tale.

Used to sailing the seas trading spice in the Orient, Captain Marlow instead takes on a mission aboard a steamer vessel to check in on an infamous ivory trader, Kurtz. Kurtz's name strikes fear within the local population along the West African coast, and his horde of ivory flowing from the Congo River (which it is not explicitly named so, but heavily implied to be based on the geography) is enormous to the envy of his colonial peers. Intrigue, speculation, and mysticism hang in the thick, humid air of Heart of Darkness which at first glance appears as an adventure novella with crude depictions of the exploitation of Africa, but once scratched a little reveals the hubris and malevolence of European imperialist thinking.

Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now was a famous adaption of Heart of Darkness and directly parallels the original plot. For me, it was the first time a novel explored real-world themes and ideas in a refreshing way, filled with adventure, intrigue, and exciting commentary. It's a must-read for any book lover worth their salt. All of the listed books are available for purchase on either Amazon or Dymocks.