The Wheeler Centre

In André Aciman’s world, individuals discover new parts of themselves through wide-ranging romantic and sexual encounters across genders. Aciman’s exploration of queer sexuality and all-consuming desire played out in his first novel, 2007’s Call Me by Your Name. The book has enjoyed a resurgence of interest, thanks to the Oscar-winning film by Luca Guadagnino, released last year. His most recent book, Enigma Variations, explores the idea that character may be at once varied and enigmatic. At this event, Dennis Altman joins Aciman for a conversation about life, love, lust and his recent brush with Hollywood stardom.

How can we have constructive conversations about racism when everyone is so defensive? Are laws enough to tackle racism? And what’s the deal with identity politics? In this panel – the first in a series of four talks curated by Santilla Chingaipe – Beverley Wang, Luke Pearson, Helen Ngo and Oishee Alam explore definitions of racism, looking not just at overt examples but also implicit bias and systemic racism, with examples from Australian history.

Former Australian netball captain Liz Ellis has undertaken some pretty serious challenges in her life. She completed a law degree during the height of her career as an elite athlete. She overcame a career-threatening knee injury to lead Australia to World Cup victory. But her struggle with infertility is among the toughest obstacles she has ever faced. It is also, perhaps, the challenge over which she’s had the least control. At this event, Ellis joins Sarah Kanowski for a warm, intimate discussion of a subject that affects so many Australians.

To writer Jenny Zhang, candid and subversive humour is an important ingredient in writing about marginalised groups. Women and people of colour, she explains, must have the opportunity to tell stories that deal not only with struggle, but with absurdity and joy. In conversation with Brodie Lancaster, Zhang talks about physicality, forging a fresh path as a writer and woman of colour, and the complexity of autobiographical readings of her fiction.

Her Body and Other Parties is Carmen Maria Machado’s first book-length work of fiction, and has won her international acclaim, but the Philadelphia-based writer is also an essayist and critic who writes for the New Yorker, Granta, Paris Review, VICE and more. She talks fiction, fabulism and body language with host Angela Meyer.

At this event with Santilla Chingaipe, Glory Edim discusses the founding and future of the book club she founded, Well-Read Black Girl, and the next generation of black women writers. The pair is then joined by author Maxine Beneba Clarke for a real-life WRBG book club meeting, discussing Clarke’s memoir, 'The Hate Race'.

In conversation with Abigail Ulman, Ceridwen Dovey talks about our human connections and failings, ideas of guilt and shame, the role of art in coming to terms with the past – and who has a right to bear witness.

In this talk, we hear from freshly-announced 2018 Stella Prize winner Alexis Wright in conversation with past winners Emily Bitto and Clare Wright, and host Toni Jordan. They talk about the impact the award has had on their writing, their careers and Australian literary culture.

In this episode – from our 2018 Gala, Words on Fire – actor, director and writer Leah Purcell tells us about eight words and slogans that 'lit my fire, fired me up and almost smothered it out'.

On the opening night of the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, a group of Griffith Review writers from around the world join us to look into the role, relevance and legacies of the Commonwealth in 2018. Hosted by Julianne Schultz, Timmah Ball, Annie Zaidi and Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm discuss the Griffith Review’s Commonwealth Edition and talk legacy and law, history, health and human rights in the Commonwealth today.