The Present

At the Byron Writers festival in August I was on author panels with Trent Dalton (Boy Swallows Universe), Jarrah Dundler (Hey Brother) and Elise Valmorbida (The Madonna Of The Mountains). I read their books for professional reasons, figuring that if I were going to be on a panel where the discussion would centre on their books then it was only fair that I read them. I enjoyed all three books very much, but had a particular soft spot for Elise’s book which is set in northern Italy through the Fascist period and the war. It’s a part of the world I am fond of and a period covered by my own book, The Fireflies Of Autumn. If I read fiction it is usually because the subject matter interests me.