Queering Country in Ellen van Neerven's Heat and Light
Critic Raelee Lancaster joins Rebecca to discuss the final title in the series, Ellen van Neerven's extraordinary debut book. A collection of interlinking stories that dissolve boundaries and binaries with its depictions of blak queer lives, Heat and Light encourages readers to question their sense of belonging and identity, and has carved out lasting space in the queer literary canon.
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The Enduring Power of Holding the Man by Timothy Conigrave
Critic Nigel Featherstone joins Rebecca to discuss the iconic gay memoir, Holding the Man. It is the love story of Tim and John, who first met as teenagers at their all-boys Catholic school in Melbourne, and whose lives are torn apart by the AIDS crisis. First published in 1994, the book continues to have a profound impact on countless readers.
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Elizabeth Jolley, lesbian longing and the Australian Gothic
Critic Dzenana Vucic joins Rebecca to discuss The Well, which won Elizabeth Jolley the Miles Franklin Award in 1986, and established her reputation as one of Australia's most celebrated writers. When ageing spinster Hester brings home orphaned teenager Kathy to her remote farm in WA, she develops powerful, obsessive and possessive feelings. One night they accidentally hit and kill a man on the road and hide his body in a well—an event that haunts both of them and threatens to destroy Hester.
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“We are the Dream”: Sumner Locke Elliott’s coming out novel, Fairyland
Critic Sam Twyford-Moore joins Rebecca to discuss Fairyland. This book is perhaps the most old-fashioned on the list, exploring not only queer awakening but also other social issues. It was Locke Elliott’s final book, where he openly and publicly discussed his queer identity and the loneliness he experienced. The story is primarily set in Sydney from the late 1920s to the 1950s, after which the protagonist, a writer, moves to the US.
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AFL, Secrets and Living Authentically: Danielle Laidley’s groundbreaking 'Don’t Look Away'
Critic and memoirist Sam Elkin joins Rebecca to discuss Danielle Laidley’s unflinching autobiography, Don’t Look Away. A powerful account of a compartmentalised life, this book follows Laidley as she reckons with her gender identity over many decades inside the deeply masculine and heteronormative institution of the AFL.
Read Sam Elkin's essay, "This Secret Valley", here. Get the best of KYD by joining as a member.
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