Launch

Over drinks from Bibliotheque Wines and delicious food from Simmone Logue, a happy crowd escaped to Woollahra Library to hear from Suzanne Leal, Simmone Logue, Ailsa Piper what they enjoyed about last year’s festival and to explore what is coming up this year. Under the broad theme Escape and Explore the festival opens with Tony Jones exploring the heart of Australia in Q&A. He joins Michael Brissenden on Saturday to talk about writing thrillers. Personal life is examined in memoirs from Caroline Baum, Nikki Gemmell and others. We will hear from novelists, both well-known (Tom Keneally, Kathyn Heyman), unexpected in the shape of social researcher Hugh Mackay, and new (Meredith Jaffé, Alice Campion, Melanie Joosten). Fiona McFarlane, winner of the Dylan Thomas Prize-winning for The High Places is joined by Roanna Gonsalves and Isabelle LI to talk about short stories and to read them by the camp fire. Find out about our history from Tom Griffiths, Rachel Landers, Mark Tedeschi and Gil Jones, about indigenous lives, past and present from Stan Grant and Paul Irish. Art is explored by Sebastian Smee and George Gittoes, Sport by David Hill. The Griffith Review present The Perils of Populism You can take part in a fiction-writing workshop with Kathryn Heyman, hear Tom Keneally launch Rachel Leary’s first book over a glass of champagne, hear George Miller introduce Mad Max: Fury Road, enjoy Simmone Logue’s delicious food all weekend and much more.