The essential analysis of the 'mushroom murder' trial that gripped the world, from three award-winning authors – this is the book that will outlast the news cycle.

From three award-winning authors - the book that will outlast the news cycle. 'Categorically a must-read, diary-clearing kind of book...I couldn't stop reading.' READINGS 'so readable, so moreish, I got through it in one day.' THE SHAMELESS BOOK CLUB In July 2023, in the quiet Gippsland town of Leongatha, Erin Patterson-stay-at-home mother and true-crime devotee-invited her husband's devoutly Christian family to lunch. Within days, three of her guests were dead and the fourth was in a coma. They had all been poisoned by death cap mushrooms. Two years later, Patterson stood trial, accused of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. The court case gripped the nation and fascinated people all over the world. Among those drawn into the drama were three renowned writers- Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper and Sarah Krasnostein. Together, they joined the daily media scrum at the Latrobe Valley Law Courts and spent long days immersed in the case's sinister and complex themes- love, hate, jealousy, revenge, marriage, money, mycology and murder. The Mushroom Tapes is a true-crime book like no other-a unique study of Erin Patterson and our collective obsession with her strange and terrible crime. PRAISE- 'Pick up this book and you'll find it hard to put down.' The Australian 'Sensitive and insightful.' Age 'Insightful, humane and self-questioning' The Times 'I can't stop thinking about it. It's like being in a conversation with your most blisteringly intelligent, imaginative mates.' Holly Wainright, Mamamia 'Garner, Hooper and Krasnostein are an acute trio of conversational partners. Their precise, wry observations compel the reader's attention.' Guardian 'I was utterly captivated...a dense and deeply engaging weaving of voices, narratives and ideas.' Conversation 'An utterly absorbing exploration of how these writers think- questioning, rationalising and reflecting on female criminality, morality and the ethics of storytelling.' Books+Publishing 'Allows us to imagine what the mealtime conversations many of us have been having about this case would be like if three of Australia's best writers were guests.' Inside Story

Details

ISBN13: 9781923058750
Format: Paperback / softback
Number of Pages: 256
Edition:
Publication Date: 11 Nov 2025
Publisher: Text Publishing
Publication City, Country: Melbourne, Australia
Dimensions (cm): 23.3(H)x15.4(L)x2.4(W)321
Weight (gm): 321

Author Biography

Helen Garner (Author) Helen Garner writes novels, stories, screenplays and works of non-fiction. She is the winner of the Melbourne Prize for Literature, the Windham Campbell Prize for Non-Fiction, the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature and the Australian Society of Authors Medal. Her books include Monkey Grip, The Children's Bach, The First Stone, Joe Cinque's Consolation, The Spare Room, This House of Grief, The Season, How to End a Story- Collected Diaries, which won the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, and The Mushroom Tapes, with Chloe Hooper and Sarah Krasnostein. Chloe Hooper (Author) Chloe Hooper is the author of The Tall Man and The Arsonist, along with two acclaimed novels. Her most recent book is Bedtime Story. Sarah Krasnostein (Author) Sarah Krasnostein is a multi-award winning writer and critic. She is the best-selling author of The Trauma Cleaner, The Believer, the Quarterly Essay, Not Waving, Drowning, and On Peter Carey. The Trauma Cleaner is available in various translations. The Believer was named by The New Yorker as a Best Book of 2022. She has won Walkley Awards for long form feature writing and arts criticism, and been awarded the Victorian Prize for Literature, the Australian Book Industry Award for General Non-Fiction, the Victorian Premier's Prize for Non-Fiction, the Prize for Non-Fiction at the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards and the Dobbie Literary Award. She was a finalist for the Wellcome Book Prize (UK), the National Biography Award, the Melbourne Prize for Literature, the Walkley Book Award and the Nib Literary Award. She holds a doctorate in criminal law and is admitted to legal practice in New York and Victoria.

Reviews

‘Insightful, humane and self-questioning.’ * The Times *
'Extremely readable...Garner, Hooper and Krasnostein are an acute trio of conversational partners. Their precise, wry observations compel the reader’s attention.’ * Guardian *
'Sensitive and insightful.' * Age *
‘Pick up this book and you’ll find it hard to put down.’ * Australian *
'I was utterly captivated...a dense and deeply engaging weaving of voices, narratives and ideas.’ * Conversation *
‘Allows us to imagine what the mealtime conversations many of us have been having about this case would be like if three of Australia’s best writers were guests.’ * Inside Story *
‘An utterly absorbing exploration of how these writers think: questioning, rationalising and reflecting on female criminality, morality and the ethics of storytelling.’ * Books+Publishing *
‘Categorically a must-read, diary-clearing kind of book…I couldn’t stop reading.’ * Readings *
‘So readable, so moreish, I got through it in one day.’ * The Shameless Book Club *
‘The Mushroom Tapes is in a league of its own.’ * Avenue Bookstore *
‘A monster of a true-crime book—and, odd as it might seem, also a bloody good time.’ * Declan Fry, ABC *
‘I can’t stop thinking about it. It’s like being in a conversation with your most blisteringly intelligent, imaginative mates.’ * Holly Wainright, Mamamia *
‘Riveting.’ * Irish Times *
‘An illuminating read.’ * Donna Lu, Guardian (Best Australian Books of 2025) *
‘Illuminating’ * SA Weekend *
‘Unusual and compelling…a thoughtful meditation on justice, storytelling and the human impulse to make meaning from tragedy.’ * NZ Book Lovers *