Culture
Books
Jane Austen family link to abolition movement comes to light
While Jane Austen admirers savour her enduring novels, scholars ferret out details of Austen’s life and times, including a family link to slavery that surfaced 50 years ago.
- by Lynn Elber
Latest
How to create joy at the end of the world: Emerging Writers’ Festival
It’s a writers’ festival but not as you know it: speed pitching, performances and music are all part of this year’s Emerging Writers’ Festival.
- by Kerrie O'Brien
The Night Watchman, Malcolm X biography win arts Pulitzers
Stories of race, racism and colonialism in the US swept the Pulitzer Prizes for the arts.
- by HILLEL ITALIE and MARK KENNEDY
Metafictional work rewrites history to shed new light on the present
In this perfectly believable yet totally made-up story, French author Laurent Binet looks at how the world would look if Columbus had met steelier opposition in the Americas.
- by Jack Cameron Stanton
Monica Dux blows figurative raspberries at the Catholic Church
Now a cynical atheist, the author remains appreciative of what religion gave her as a child.
- by Jessie Tu
Fiction reviews: Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray and other titles
Anita Heiss’ new novel reimagines colonial Australia from an Aboriginal perspective.
- by Cameron Woodhead
Non-fiction reviews: Mother & I and other titles
Ianto Ware’s memoir is written with tender detachment and sharp detail.
- by Fiona Capp
Quiet realism and questions of identity in new short story collections
Two new short story collections both come from Tasmanian writers, but tackle very different themes.
- by Owen Richardson
A fractured fairytale about love and control
Alice Pung’s new novel is a portrait of a young woman struggling for personal agency
- by Thuy On
PR buzz and a Hulu adaptation: is this the next big novel?
Zakiya Dalila Harris’ debut novel offers a sly social commentary.
- by Declan Fry
A fictional take on Australia’s greatest literary hoax
Culture wars, even old ones, raise blood pressure. Stephen Orr answers ‘what if’ questions that give the infamous Ern Malley hoax new life.
- by Michael McGirr