The life of St Francis was one of the great plot twists in cultural history
Pope Francis lived in a period, not unlike our own, when image and power walked hand-in-hand and trod the poor underfoot. He didn’t want any of that.
Books
My wife died in Mexico. Then the real nightmare began.
The sudden death of an Australian Mum while she was in Mexico brought out the worst in some … and the best in others.
New Trump book reads like it was written for a left-wing dinner party
Bruce Wolpe is too keen to call the US President a racist; he is silent on how his own party’s stale identity politics made Donald Trump’s historic second term possible.
Diana Reid’s third novel is a steamy take on summer noir
An idyllic holiday in the south of France gone wrong, past and present colliding, love, grief, and friendship all tangled up. It seems like a formula for a page-turning book – and it is.
Now is not the time to turn our backs on writers’ festival debate
Thousands of people will this week converge on Adelaide for the annual writers’ festival. Attendees will be keen to meet the writers, hear their stories, and celebrate in the sunshine. But some people won’t go.
Inspired by serial slayings
Mandy Beaumont’s first novel tries to put the victims at the centre of a true-crime story.
Why unrequited love can be its own reward
I have enjoyed an unspoken love of more than 30 years duration, a passion that ripples with many kinds of desire. This man is a similar age to me. For the purposes of this piece, I’ll call him P.
Eureka! The real gold story
This splendid evisceration of a low-life bounder Edward Hammond Hargraves is a masterclass in the noble art of historical skewering.
Invite for barrister who took on Israel
A barrister who represented Palestine in a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice has been invited to the Sydney Writers Festival.
Sydney Writers Festival chief quits over line-up of anti-Israel poets, writers on program
Esteemed Australian businesswoman Kathy Shand has resigned as chair of the high-profile festival telling the board she wanted a variety of opinions on the Middle East conflict, and not a one-sided, anti-Israel show.
Inside Abbey Lea, Australia’s magnificent home in Ireland
Pippa McIntosh lived in Abbey Lea from 2020 to 2024, while her husband served as ambassador to Ireland. Fascinated by the building, she plunged into the archives and discovered its remarkable history.
Dementia: the thief of memories
Dementia takes a person away, leaving an incomplete picture, a puzzle with missing parts. Memories are splintered, recollections are in the wrong place. The loss is gradual – and confusing.
The simple words that may change your life
The financier had ticked off all the markers of success in his full life – until one statement changed everything.
Author leaves final testament
Victoria Amelina was bravely documenting the Russian war against Ukraine when a missile ended her life, but her story lives on in her posthumously released book
Sunk before it could swim
French or American? A new book examines the long road toward a new Australian submarine program.
Pope on faith, hope … and girls
Pope Francis is the first Pope to publish a memoir during his lifetimes, writes former priest, Michael Costigan
Where have all the big books gone?
The demise of reading has gone hand in hand with society’s demand for instant gratification.
No poetic justice in battle of bush v city
Why eminent poets Les Murray and John Tranter were at loggerheads.
How a boy genius conquered the world
Bill Gates’ memoir Source Code delves deeply into his childhood with an undiagnosed gift, as he seeks to explain (and perhaps understand) his own, unique operating system.
‘Excruciating’: the Kevin Rudd book we really didn’t need
His new book On Xi Jinping begs one obvious question: Why on earth did Kevin Rudd think this was a good idea?
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/books