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Dominic Amerena Finds Happiness in the Act of Writing
Australian author Dominic Amerena has been a writer for years. Now, finally, comes his dazzling debut novel I Want Everything. The story follows an ambitious young writer who tells a white lie to land a scoop, and explores desire, deception, authenticity, and the costs of creative ambition. This we…
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John Rebus Will Outlive Ian Rankin
Ian Rankin introduced Detective John Rebus in his 1987 novel Knots and Crosses. Since then, Rankin has published another two dozen books in the series and has sold almost 40 million books to date. Unsurprisingly, he’s now Sir Ian Rankin. This week, Michael sits down with Ian at Sydney Writers’ Fest…
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Hoot and Holler for Kaliane Bradley
On the surface, Kaliane Bradley’s debut is a time-travel novel; it’s speculative fiction meets romance and espionage. But underneath? It's a sharp, satirical exploration of institutional control—of what happens when government red tape meets the impossible. This week, Michael sits down for a conver…
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Torrey Peters’ Never-Ending Transition
Torrey Peters’ debut novel, Detransition, Baby, was an instant sensation. Longlisted for the Women’s Prize in the UK and named one of the New York Times’ best books of the 21st century so far, the book catapulted Torrey into the limelight. Her second and latest book, Stag Dance, is a collection of …
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Kevin Wilson Is Wonderfully Weird
Kevin Wilson writes weird books about weird people — in the best possible way. In 2019’s Nothing to See Here, two children have a condition that means they spontaneously combust. In Now Is Not the Time to Panic, two lonely young artists wreak havoc on their small town, prompting fears of Satanism. …
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What’s On Jessica Stanley’s Bookshelves?
London-based Australian author Jessica Stanley’s second novel, Consider Yourself Kissed, opens with all the beats of a classic romantic comedy – a meet-cute, a grand gesture, instant attraction – but what follows is a book about the next bit, the day to day reality of just living. But Jessica write…
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Josephine Rowe Isn’t Interested In Efficiency
Josephine Rowe’s writing has been described by the New York Times as “gorgeous” and “precise”. This is particularly evident in her latest novel, Little World, a slender book that offers a deeper, denser exploration of ideas than its modest page count might suggest. This week on the show, Michael si…
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James Bradley Thinks Kindness is a Superpower
In addition to being an established novelist, James Bradley is also a journalist and writer of non-fiction, much of it concerned with the natural world and the myriad threats it faces. Set in the near future, in a world that is in the grips of climate catastrophe, his latest novel, Landfall, is a c…
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Chris Flynn’s New Book Arrived in a Dream
The opening scene of Chris Flynn’s fourth and latest novel, Orpheus Nine, came to him in a dream. Not long after, he had the whole story down from start to finish. This week, Chris and Michael sit down for a conversation about the falsity of certitude, how trauma can re-shape a community, and what …
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The Imaginary Village of Niall Williams
Over four decades Niall Williams has made a name for himself as one of Ireland’s leading novelists. In his latest novel, Time of the Child, Niall returns to the fictional village of Faha, in west Ireland, the setting of his previous book, This Is Happiness. Time of the Child centres on the notion o…
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