Three to see at Adelaide Writers’ Week
There’s plenty of opportunity to enjoy cosy literature love-ins, but Writers’ Week is also full of hard-hitting events that aim to help audiences explore the important topics of our times from contemporary, historical and fictitious viewpoints
Sir Simon Schama On Antisemitism
Sir Simon Schama On Antisemitism (Adelaide Town Hall, 2 March) sees the famous academic and historian bring his laser-like focus to Jewish history as well as analysing antisemitism today. As he said in his book The Story Of The Jews: Finding The Words: ‘Whatever the cost in breaking it, silence is not a historian’s option.’ This oration, introduced by Peter Malinauskas, Premier of South Australia, is sure to be informative and powerful.
Islamophobia: What’s the Problem?
Writers’ Week continues to place itself at the forefront of political and current affairs. Islamophobia: What’s the Problem? (Adelaide Town Hall, 2 March) sees Waleed Aly and Susan Carland come together to lead a discussion on Australia’s fragmenting social landscape, evidenced by a recent spike in Islamophobia.
The Book Thief: 20th Anniversary
Turning to fiction, The Book Thief turns 20 this year. The novel draws on stories from Sydney-based author Markus Zusak’s German mother and Austrian father and quickly became a modern classic. In The Book Thief: 20th Anniversary (Adelaide Town Hall, 3 March), Zusak reflects on its extraordinary success and why it still resonates today.
Main picture: Andrew Beveridge.