Readers everywhere fell in love with Sarah Winman's characters in Still Life — characters whose lives and minds open up after they visit Europe.
After two years of COVID fatigue and uncertainty, it was one of those books that arrived at the perfect time. But where did it come from?
This weekend, Winman joins
ABC RN's Big Weekend of Books to explain the story behind her "love letter to Italy".
"I needed something to recharge the batteries, and I needed something that was joyous, and sort of entertaining," she tells us.
"And that was like, OK, well, that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to give people a moment to pause, a moment of joyful solidarity, a breath of entertainment …
"I want to give them a little bit of energy, a little bit of belief, to then go out and face what they have to face, whatever that is in daily life."
Winman's just one of the special guests joining you this weekend for
our on-air writers' festival. She's speaking with Cassie McCullagh at 10am today, on your radio or the
ABC listen app. Keep listening over the weekend and you'll hear Hannah Gadsby, Evelyn Araluen, Colum McCann, Johann Hari, Mykaela Saunders, Tim Winton, Sarah Krasnostein, Hannah Kent, Warren Ellis – and many more.
Make sure you check the schedule to plan your weekend of listening. I hope it – like Winman's book – brings you a moment of joyful solidarity.
And don't forget to
join the conversation in the ABC Book Club on Facebook. Then,
tune in on your airwaves, on TV, online and on social media to see stories celebrating Arts Week, from our teams across film, visual art, music, TV and theatre.
Until next time,
Rosie Ryan, digital editor
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