Dr Julieanne Lamond launched the "Australian Common Reader" database last week. The database, which Lamond manages, tracks  "the borrowing habits of mostly working-class Australians between 1861 and 1928, and contains circulation records from six mechanics institute libraries, pre-dating most Australian public libraries. The project was first established by Curtin University professor Tim Dolin in 2008 before being acquired by ANU in 2013."

You can read more about the database and its findings, in a brilliant write up by The Guardian, HERE.