Books Editor. An admirer of songs and reader of books. Simon has a PhD in English and Comparative Literature. All errant apostrophes are his own.
Today the curators of the 21st Biennale of Sydney have announced the first group of 21 artists who will take part in the 21st instalment of the leading contemporary art event in the Asia-Pacific region. The 21st Biennale of Sydney will be presented across 12 weeks in 2018, from Friday 16th March until Monday 11th…
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Earlier this year it was announced that The Copyright Agency was to team up with remote publishing house Magabala Books, and the Australian Literary Educators Association to devise a series of specially created teaching resources for 15 Indigenous stories; which would then be made available to teachers via the Reading Australia website. These resources have…
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With the post-Christmas lull out of the way, March has proven to be a great month for new releases. In fact it was pretty hard to whittle the list down to just five this month, with plenty of titles catching my eye. But here are our five picks for the books you absolutely must read…
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Canadian YouTube star, comedian, actress and writer Lilly Singh, a.k.a iiSuperwomanii, will be hitting up Australia in a matter of months on a book tour, supporting the release of her upcoming debut book – How To Be A Bawse: A Guide to Surviving Conquering Life. Taking in Perth, Sydney and Melbourne before heading across the ditch to…
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Tonight’s instalment of ABC’s Q&A will be a little different from normal. For a start, regular host Tony Jones has been given the week off. Taking on hosting responsibilities in his place will be comedian Tom Ballard. This weeks Q&A will also be coming to you direct from the Adelaide Festival of the Arts. With…
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Earlier this year it was announced that remote publishing house Magabala Books had teamed up with the Copyright Agency and the Australian Literacy Educators Association to devise a series of specially created teaching resources for 15 Indigenous stories, which will be made available to teachers via the Reading Australia website. The resources were devised and…
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In an announcement timed to coincide with International Women’s Day, the longlist for the 2017 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction has been unveiled. Now in its 22nd year, and fourth year in partnership with Baileys, the prize celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in writing by women, in English, from around the world. Set up in…
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International Women’s Day is the backdrop for yet another literary award announcement, with the shortlist for the 2017 Stella Prize being unveiled to the public. The Stella Prize, named for Stella Maria Sarah ‘Miles’ Franklin, is an annual prize dedicated to celebrating Australian women’s contribution to literature and is open to both fiction and non-fiction…
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Yesterday evening, I, and about 40 or so others, braved the heat and humidity and took part in Perth’s first ever Midnight Run – organised as part of the Perth International Arts Festival. What is a Midnight Run you ask? The Midnight Run is the brainchild of poet, performer and artist Inua Ellams. It’s a…
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The house lights dim, a backing track kicks into life. Inua Ellams – poet, playwright, and performer – appears dressed in what I presume is traditional garb parading through the assembled audience. He entreats us to clap in time (naturally we do), before breaking into self-deprecating laughter. Right from the start Ellams had us in…
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The list of participants for this year’s SXSW Comedy Festival has now been announced. Now into its tenth edition, the festival continues it’s tradition of celebrating some of the industries best comics; whilst also introducing the industry to some of the brightest up-and-coming talents. In cooperation with the Film, Interactive and Music Festivals, SXSW has…
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Broadway actor, American Idol finalist and YouTube star Todrick Hall has announced his musical Straight Outta Oz will be hitting Australian shores in June, following a run of shows in North America and Europe. Straight Outta Oz is a twisted take on L. Frank Baum’s classic creation – The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The show,…
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In what will be a rare solo appearance poet, writer and Rock n Roll Hall of Famer Patti Smith will take to the Joan Sutherland Theatre Stage at the Sydney Opera House on April 23rd to talk, read and sing from her acclaimed oeuvre. Over the course of the evening Smith will touch on the…
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Some of Britain’s most talented folk musicians took to the Perth Concert Hall on Friday for the first of two performances of Flit – a multifaceted and compelling production devised and conceived by Martin Green, the award winning accordionist and composer from experimental folk trio Lau. Thematically Flit explores ideas of human movement and migration,…
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Well somehow we’ve found ourselves in the middle of February with March fast approaching so it’s about time for another of our monthly features where we pick five books you need to be reading that month. Once again the five books have an international feel to them, with a handful of books from American writers,…
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In recent weeks, all across Australia, teachers and children have headed back into the classroom and jumped into the new school year. Classrooms have been organised and decorated. Lessons have been planned and resources printed and created. In 2017, however, there will be a new set of resources made available to primary school teachers across…
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With the 2017 Perth International Arts Festival kicking off in just a matter of days, we’ve run through the artsy smorgasbord that is this year’s program, and are bringing you our tips on what not to miss in the coming weeks. So these are 8 things we think you shouldn’t miss over the course of…
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Disco. That most oft maligned of genres is given the celebration it rightly deserves thanks to the gloriously kitsch and utterly entertaining Velvet, which is a part of this year’s Fringe World in Perth.
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If you live in Sydney and love contemporary art, block off March on your calendars now. Art Month Sydney, the annual month long city-wide celebration of contemporary art and artists returns in 2017, running from March 1st – 20th. In 2017 there will be a renewed focus on bringing Sydney’s exciting art precincts to life in…
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Happy New Year! Welcome back to a new instalment of our recommended reading monthly feature (now with fresh new artwork). Hopefully you all had a great break away from work and enjoyed some downtime over the festive period. As always we’re here to bring you five books we think you need to be reading this…
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Moogahlin Performing Arts‘ biennial celebration of local and international First Nations playwriting, the Yellamundie National First Peoples Playwriting Festival returns later this month. In partnership with Sydney Festival and presented at Carriageworks the festival provides a platform for playwrights, either emerging or established, from all across Australia. The festival has since its inception in 2013…
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It’s December! The Festive Season… The Silly Season… You get the point. Christmas or not, we’re back with another five books we think you need to be reading this month – or gifting – so if you’ve still got a few people left to buy for, keep reading. This month we’ve got a movie-set memoir…
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You might have noticed that the world has gone a little bit Star Wars crazy these last couple of months. There’s been novels, movies – just released – memoirs by stars, and now a biography of the creator, the man behind it all – George Lucas. George Lucas: A Life is the new biography from…
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If you’ve been to a public lecture in Australia over the last couple of years, there’s a good chance you’ve been to a Think Inc. event. Over the last couple of years the group have brought the likes of Dr Cornel West, Dr Neil deGrasse Tyson and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to Australian shores –…
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Mulga’s Magical Musical Creatures is the latest release from the Sydney-based artist, illustrator and poet Mulga (Joel Moore). Formerly a financial advisor, Mulga’s artwork can be found all over Australia, from cafes to shop fronts, from t-shirts to drink bottles and now once again on your bookshelves – or in this case your children’s bookshelves…
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Themes of migration, reconciliation, accessibility and empathy form the heart of Perth International Arts Festival’s 2017 programming. Over the course of 24 days, from Feb 10th to March 5th, Perth will play host to over 700 artists from around the world, to 11 Australian exclusives and to 5 World premieres, all to better understand and…
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Paul Beatty has taken home the 2016 Man Booker Prize for his novel The Sellout – becoming the first American to win the award. The Sellout is a searing and, incredibly topical, satire of race relations in contemporary America. The novel is narrated by African-American Bonbon, a resident of a run-down town in Los Angeles, which…
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November will see the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts (PICA) host the long-awaited homecoming exhibition of Perth artist Pip & Pop; and if early images are anything to go by When Happiness Ruled promises to be a wonderfully captivating, colour saturated, trippy experience. Set to take over PICA’s central gallery space, When Happiness Ruled represents…
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It’s been announced today that Bob Dylan has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for 2016 – marking the first time the prize has gone to a recipient who is primarily a musician. The Swedish Academy in awarding the prized cited that Dylan had “created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”….
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The organisers of the Perth International Arts Festival have teased details of their 2017 program, revealing a glimpse at what they have in store for the opening weekend, including details of next year’s opening event. In recent years the festival opening event has been a grand spectacle, from gigantic puppets walking the streets of the…
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