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Curate Your Festival | Aussie Talents

We know that the Festival has a lot of events to choose from so we’ve curated a selection of events to help you decide what to see based on your interests.

We also have multipack discounting available for when you book 4 events, 5 events or 6 or more events. Book all or some of the events in this selection to receive your discount.

For the Aussie Talents curated events, we’re highlighting local favourites across fiction, memoir, poetry and kids’ fiction. Hear from familiar faces or try the work of someone entirely new to you in these Festival events.

Charlotte Wood: A Writing Life | Tuesday 20 May, 8.15pm

After her Booker Prize shortlisting for Stone Yard Devotional, the first Australian shortlisted in a decade, Charlotte Wood takes the time to reflect on her career so far and to consider her legacy to Australian literature.

Markus Zusak: Three Wild Dogs and the Truth | Thursday 22 May, 10am

Markus Zusak’s first non-fiction book is for the animal-lovers amongst us. When he and his family adopted three large, wild pound dogs, they didn’t know that the trio would change their lives. Sure, there was chaos, but there was also love.

Your Favourites’ Favourites: Benjamin Law and Melanie Cheng | Thursday 22 May, 11am

Beloved Festival guest Benjamin Law highlights one of his newest favourite Australian writers, Melanie Cheng, and her new book set in Melbourne during the pandemic lockdowns. In those troubling times, a family find comfort and hope in each other and their newest family member, a little rabbit.

Stan Grant: Murriyang, Song of Time | Thursday 22 May, 6pm

In response to the Voice referendum, Stan Grant eschews politics for love in his new book informed by the Wiradjuri spiritual practice of Yindyamarra, deep silence and respect. Weaving personal memories into philosophy and meditation, Murriyang, Song of Time inspires readers to think about the world in a new way.

The Moriarty Sisters | Friday 23 May, 10am

The Moriarity sisters, Jaclyn, Liane and Nicola are internationally acclaimed writers across adult and children’s fiction and a force to be reckoned with in the Australian industry. In this event they reflect on their childhoods, their writerly beginnings and the diverging paths of each of their careers.

Songstress Poetica | Friday 23 May, 11am

Poetry is a potent form for expressing powerful emotions and experiences. In this panel discussion, poets, songwriters and slam poetry performers Afra Atiq, Jazz Money and Kirli Saunders come together to discuss poetry and their poetic practices, particularly as women of colour and Blak women.

Suzanne and Gina Chick: Mother-Daughter Bonds | Friday 23 May, 12pm

For the first time, mother and daughter memoirists Suzanne and Gina Chick speak together on stage about their work and the role that mother-daughter relationships have shaped their lives. Gina recently entered an international spotlight when she won the inaugural season of Alone Australia but she and Suzanne share lifetimes worth of stories of adventure, creation and imagination.

Your Favourites’ Favourites: Hannah Kent and Charlotte McConaghy | Friday 23 May, 1pm

International bestselling author of Burial Rites and Devotion Hannah Kent welcomes Charlotte McConaghy to the stage to discuss her third novel, set in the icy isolation of Antarctica. Consider the depths of love with two Australian authors who craft unforgettable stories.

Your Favourites’ Favourites: Annabel Crabb and Jessie Tu | Sunday 25 May, 3.30pm

Annabel Crabb described Jessie as “everything [she] wants in a writer” and she shares the stage with her in this conversation event. After the wild success of her debut novel A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing, Jessie Tu’s second novel poses a similarly tense relationship, this time, between a mother and daughter in the prestigious world of academic translation.

We love championing local Australian talent at the Festival so be sure to prioritise some old or new-to-you favourites this year.