Shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2009

Shortlisted for the Queensland Premier’s Literary Awards 2009

Longlisted for the Golden Inky Award 2009

‘beautifully crafted…a truly engaging read.’ - The Age

Seventeen-year-old Will is in turmoil after the sudden death of his mother. His father drifts and his older brother, Adam, stays away from home. Isolated and angry, Will begins a search for the answers he craves. He uses his mum’s old camera to document the experience and scrambles to find an idea for which he can live and die. And as if things weren’t complicated enough, he falls for sixteen-year-old Taryn. His final exams are looming, but how will he get through the tangle of grief and philosophy, sex and love?

The Beginner’s Guide to Living is a book about grief, ideas and experience, about those moments in your life that change you forever.

Reviews of The Beginner’s Guide to Living:

‘…this impressive debut…transcends its demographic restrictions entirely – even well balanced adults should swallow their pride and take a look.’ – Dominion Post (NZ)

‘…this novel has the substance and integrity to find its way by stealth into the canon of classic Australian grief and sorrow literature…’ – MC Reviews

‘Hills endows her character with a poetic sensibility.’ – Australian Book Review

‘I was deeply moved by Wills story. The Beginner's Guide to Living is an unflinching and utterly convincing exploration of grief. Lia Hills is a strong new voice and I, for one, will be looking out for her next book.’ – James Moloney, author of The Book of Lies.

To order copies of The Beginner’s Guide to Living see: www.textpublishing.com.au