01. It’s school holidays in Australia. We spent a few days with family in Kyneton (with some mountain-biking in Harcourt and a hike to the summit of Hanging Rock).
02. I attended the #atwoodlive event last week. The combination of documentary clips, readings from The Testaments, and the interview with Margaret was fantastic.
I was reminded that everything in Atwood’s stories has happened in real life, and that she finds the roots of her stories in history books and the Bible. She spoke extensively about how she wrote The Testaments, particularly about interviewing people who were part of the WWII resistance movement. She quoted one man who said, “Pray you’re not a hero…”, with Atwood adding, “You only need dragon-slayers if there’s a dragon.”
Margaret was asked why she connects climate change/natural disasters and the restriction of women’s rights. She said that they were clearly connected, “Any large tipping point crisis is a fulcrum allowing those with power to put people under the yoke in exchange for survival, and/or an opportunity to extirpate their foes.”
03. The 100 best books of the 21st century – thoughts? (I’ve read 17, own another seven, and intend to read a further seven). Agree with inclusion of Life After Life and A Little Life but the top ten wouldn’t be my choices. Check out this Twitter thread regarding the list.
04. I’ve been looking everywhere for some yellow shoes but I’m so reluctant to buy shoes online…
05. Counting down to S3 of The Crown.
06. Three movies I’m planning on seeing – The Goldfinch (yeah, not great reviews but I loved the book); Anne Frank Parallel Stories; and Animals (based on the book by Emma Jane Unsworth).
07. Like a 24 hour gym but way, way better.
08. One of the great joys of living in Melbourne is the Wheeler Centre (host to public talks on books, writing, and ideas, most of which are free). Last week, the Wheeler Centre announced a new event, Broadside, billed as ‘two days of an unapologetically feminist agenda’. The line up is INSANE – Monica Lewinsky, Zadie Smith, Helen Garner, Curtis Sittenfeld, Ariel Levy, Clare Wright, Sarah Krasnostein, Maria Tumarkin and many more. Needless to say, I’ve booked my tickets.
09. And just a reminder of Lewinsky’s TED talk about shame. It’s exceptional.
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