Find the answers in a new book of Explainers from The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

It has been quite the year, where for many there’s been a lot of time to think about some of life’s more puzzling questions. Have you ever wondered, what’s the point of table manners? Or what do sharks really want? Or how did breakdancing become an Olympic sport?

Well, luckily, you’ll discover the answers in a new book, Explain That, packed with 31 entertaining and fascinating explainer articles from The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age available now in bookstores and on Booktopia.

Following the success of last year’s What’s It Like To Be Chased By A Cassowary?, some of Australia’s finest writers from the two mastheads have undertaken research to find the answers to some of the world’s most perplexing questions.

Edited by Felicity Lewis, national explainer editor for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, and illustrated by The Sydney Morning Herald creative director Dionne Gain, this anthology has something for everyone: How do you win an Oscar? Is carbon-free flying possible? Is time travel possible?   

“Explain That is for curious readers to dip into over summer, with graphics and illustrations and entertaining writing,” says Lewis. “It’s lots of fun. We hope you’ll end up being fascinated by some unexpected twists and turns in all sorts of subjects!”

Since they were introduced in 2018, explainers have become popular among readers of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, bringing context to complex – and some not-so-complex but nonetheless compelling – issues. 

So, why do Russians have a habit of being poisoned? Hint: A carefully chosen poison has an element of theatre – but leaves no trace. 

Explain That is in bookstores now and online on Booktopia. Explain That is published by Penguin Books Australia and is also available as an ebook and audiobook.

For more information or an interview with book editor and national explainer editor Felicity Lewis or explainer reporter Sherryn Groch

please contact Adrian Motte,
Communications Manager, Nine
amotte@nine.com.au

Wednesday, November 3, 2021