José Ramos-Horta
Writes of passage
16 August 2004
With lively discussions, in depth interviews, international affairs and plenty of laughs this year's Age Melbourne Writers' Festival is poised to eclipse all previous efforts.
Some of the literary names appearing at the event are Lynne Truss, the author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves; celebrated Irish novelist, Colm Toibin; crime writer Michael Connelly; and publishing guru Carlos Ruis Zafon. The multi-lingual Zafon will present an additional session in Spanish.
Another very special event at this year’s festival is the appearance of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and East Timorese Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, José Ramos-Horta. For his keynote address Horta tackles all the big issues - War and Peace, The Middle East and Iraq Cauldrons, Islamic Fundamentalism and Terrorism.
For those needing a dose of fiction, the ever popular crime genre gets a solid workout with appearances from Henning Mankell from Sweden; Americans Karin Slaughter and Harlan Coben; David Hewson, Michael Robotham and Mark Billingham from the UK and local crime writers Shane Maloney and Gabrielle Lord.
Among the Australian writers who are heading to Melbourne are Helen Garner, Robert Dessaix, Peter Singer, Frank Moorhouse, Sophie Cunningham, Amanda Lohrey and Peter Robb.
Over three nights, Beyond the Storm spotlights the literary traditions of various African nations. On Tuesday 24 August the event focuses on Ethiopian writers such as Shantam Shubisa, who is also an internationally recognised singer from the Oromo tribe in Ethiopia. He has toured with his band within Africa as well Europe and the USA. A songwriter and poet, Shantam was forced to leave Ethiopia, and now lives in Melbourne.
The following night features writers from Somalia such as Amina Hussein, who arrived in Australia in 1994. Hussein is currently writing an autobiography while working as a Community Case Worker at Banyule Community Health Service. She has completed a Bachelor of Science in Veterinary Medicine and her Masters in Medical Micro-biology at the University of Georgia, USA.
The final night looks at Sudan, with speakers such as Rachael Williams, who left the troubled nation with her six children in 2003. Before arriving in Australia Rachael spent 10 years in a refugee camp in Kenya. She is an elder of her tribe in Sudan and currently works as a full time mother to her six children.
More Information
Age Melbourne Writers' Festival
20 - 29 August
CUB Malthouse, Melbourne Town Hall and other venues around Melbourne.
Details: (03) 9645 9244
Website: http://www.mwf.com.au/
