Week beginning 20th March 2024

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Rosemary Hennessy In the Company of Radical Women Writers University of Minnesota Press, August 2023.

Thank you NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

Rosemary Hennessy’s stories from Black, Jewish, and white women who saw communism as an answer to the problems arising from the Great Depression is a riveting read. Perhaps most significant is Hennessey’s belief that these seven women’s stories provide a guide to dealing with similar problems in the current political environment where unfair labour practices, racial discrimination, and environmental concerns remain searing 2000s issues. Marvel Cooke, Louise Thompson Patterson, Claudia Jones, Alice Childress, Josephine Herbst, Meridel Le Sueur, and Muriel Rukeyser are women who were unknown to me before reading In the Company of Radical Women Writers. I am glad to have had this opportunity to become familiar with their work.

Hennessey’s writing is eminently accessible, and she generates a wonderful amalgam of the women’s stories, her speculations and research material. Chapter headings, I find, are an excellent pointer to the type of material as well as the ideas to be expressed in a text, and Hennessey’s are in this category. Titles that resonate are Centring Domestic Workers, Unsettling the Grass Roots, The Radical Ecology of Meridel La Suer, and Shadowing the Erotics of Race Work. Others open so well. For example, Life-Making Essentials, Life Writing Inventions, the first chapter title is such a broad statement. However, Muriel Rukeyser’s quote clarifies so beautifully – a clever device. The chapter in which Claudia Jones’ features opens with some of her poetry, later using material from Carole Boyce Davies’ biography to further contribute to knowledge of erstwhile hidden as aspects of Jones’ poetry. See Books: Reviews for the complete review.

Leah Mercer The Playgroup Bookouture, March 2024.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

The Playgroup begins with the familiar domestic drama/psychological suspense thriller themes: a mother who is coming to grips with a distressing past associated with her child and a caring concerned husband. However, soon the familiar red flags are replaced with much wider aspects of a thriller. Alice, Beth and Georgie and working at The Nest widen Lenore and Florence’s horizons.

Lenore has left James behind in their home in London in an attempt to demonstrate that she can care for Florence alone. She is determined to regain the independence and some aspects of her former life as a teacher, lost when she suffered severe ante natal depression after Florence’s birth. The Nest offers her a return to a modified career as a trained educator, and Florence a play group in a professional setting that Lenore believes is in both their interests. James’s concerns about childcare are mitigated by Lenore’s presence at The Nest. See Books: Reviews for the complete review.

After the Covid update: Secret London – Become a Penguin Keeper for a Morning; Literature Cambridge Courses; Canberra Times Meet the Author; Kathy Lette – comment on Meet the Author Talk; Kamala Harris; Emily Kam Kngwarray Exhibition; Penny Wong marriage.

Covid in Canberra

The reporting period of 3 March to 14 March 2024 shows 50 new cases, with 16 people in hospital with Covid. One person is in ICU, no-one is ventilated. One life was lost in this period.

You Can Become A Penguin Keeper For A Morning At London Zoo

Feeding them their fishy food, undertaking their daily health check, and of course cleaning up their after this poopy colony.

 FRANCHESCA VILLAR – STAFF WRITER • 28 FEBRUARY, 2024

London Zoo's penguin keeper experience
Credit: London Zoo

Calling all penguin lovers and aquatic bird aficionados alike! A new penguin keeper experience is launching in the London Zoo where you’ll be able to jump in the shoes of a penguin keeper for a morning and learn all about what it takes to care for our waddling animal friends.

Starting on March 8, penguin enthusiasts will have the opportunity to accompany London Zoo experts alongside over 70 Humboldt penguins on the zoo’s Penguin Beach for a morning to see if they have what it takes to look after the flightless favourites.

London Zoo's Penguin Keeper Experience
Credit: London Zoo

As an honorary keeper, you’ll be diving into morning responsibilities which include carefully preparing the waddle’s (the name for a group of penguins) food before having fun feeding them their fishy breakfast. As you get hands-on performing the daily health checks on the penguins, you’ll get to learn all sorts of fascinating facts about the animals whilst you get up close and personal with them for a zoo experience unlike any other.

It won’t all be fun and games though, being a zoo keeper is tough work and comes with some mucky responsibilities. One of which includes helping out with the monumental task of cleaning up after the notoriously poopy colony.

London Zoo's Penguin Keeper Experience
Credit: London Zoo

Whilst you’re getting stuck in with the nitty-gritty of penguin keeper life, you’ll be able to make the most out of the zoo’s walking fountains of knowledge, otherwise known as zoo keepers, and ask them any burning questions they have on their favourite bird, before spending the rest of the day exploring the zoo.

London Zoo’s Head of Commercial, Lee Duffy said: “If you’ve ever dreamt of mucking in (or mucking out) with a team of Zookeepers, now is your chance. Adding this extra special moment to your visit to London Zoo will make it a unique experience; families and friends can come behind-the-scenes of our conservation zoo, creating incredible memories amongst nature together.”

The 90-minute penguin keeper experience will take place on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from Friday 8 March. A personalised experience is guaranteed with just four people per group, per day. Tickets to the exclusive experience start from £115 per person, plus admission to London Zoo. Find out more here.

LITERATURE CAMBRIDGE – COURSES 2024–2025

Literature Cambridge Ltd is an independent educational organisation providing top-quality courses on the best of Classical literature and literature in English. Our courses are taught by leading academics and are open to all. Email us: info@literaturecambridge.co.uk

LITERATURE COURSES 2024

We offer a range of live online courses which run weekly or fortnightly. Each course focuses on a particular writer or theme. Each session lasts for two hours, with an hour-long lecture by a leading scholar, followed by a moderated seminar.

FOR THE ONLINE COURSES AND SEASONS SEE THESE PAGES:

LITERATURE COURSES 2025

Passion and Violence in Greek and Shakespearean Tragedy, seven weekly sessions, January-February 2025.
• Iris Murdoch and Art course, 5 sessions, March-May 2025
• Oscar Wilde course, 4 sessions, March-May 2025.
• Doris Lessing: Women and Destiny course 2025 September-October 2025.
• Elizabeth von Arnim: Women, Men and Dogs course, October-December 2025
• London in Literature II: 1950s-2023, autumn 2025

Live online lectures and seminars via zoom.

More courses for 2024-25 will be added in the coming months.

A list of past online lectures and seasons since May 2020 can be found here.

ANU/The Canberra Times Meet the Author series

The ANU Meet the Author Series has captivated the Canberra community for nearly three decades now, drawing some of the biggest names in literature, history and current affairs.  Talks are regularly podcasted and available through Soundcloud.

Kathy Lette book signing and talk at ANU as part of this series

Kathy Lette was a lively speaker, with a multitude of smart phrases which created bursts of laughter from many in the audience. There was some good material, although little to give an insight into her development of her work. This was a contrast with the time spent by Dervla McTiernan in her conversation last week. There was a good question and answer session, although I was disappointed with the somewhat superficial response to a man’s question about what he saw as the difficulties of dealing with a menopausal woman. In the same vein, a question about the American situation in relation to abortion laws was disappointing, although the point was made about the change to French abortion law to ensure women seeking abortions remained able to do so. Lette’s commentary on her former husbands and current partner was generous and worth thinking about – no friendships lost there, which is a positive. Her discussion of female friendships was informative and lively. It would be nice to be close by when they are having coffee! Although I wouldn’t want to do this too often. This is my takeaway from the presentation – a bit too much for me, and my sense of humour is nowhere near that of the woman seated beside me who obviously enjoyed every witty comment. However, I was pleased to have gone to the talk, and as is clear from my review (#TheRevengeClub#NetGalley) last week, I enjoyed the novel.

I have only recently become aware of this series but will be attending more in the future. Louise Milligan, author of Pheasant’s Nest (review on Goodreads and #Pheasant’sNest #NetGalley and in a future blog) will be a speaker in April.

20 Mar 2024, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Meet the author – Ronli Sifris and Carla Wilshire March 20, 2024

25 Mar 2024, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Meet the author – Julia Baird March 25, 2024.

27 Mar 2024, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Meet the author – David Lindenmayer 27 March 2024.

2 Apr 2024, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Meet the author – Louise Milligan 2 April 2024.
Location Tangney Rd Cinema, Cultural Centre Kambri (ANU Building 153) ACT Acton 2601

The vice president met with abortion providers and staff members in Minneapolis, a striking political move that shows how assertive Democrats have grown on the issue.

US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak during her visit to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on March 14, 2024. Harris toured an abortion clinic, highlighting a key election issue in what US media reported was the first such visit by a president or vice president.© STEPHEN MATUREN, AFP via Getty Images

“We have to be a nation that trusts women”

National Gallery of Australia visit to the Emily Kam Kngwarray Exhibition

“That’s why the old woman is famous.” Jedda Kngwarray Purvis and Josie Petyar Kunuth, June 2023

Penny Wong, veteran Labor senator and Australia’s Foreign Minister, has married her long-time partner Sophie Allouache in her home state of South Australia

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