Father of the Lost Boys author and former child soldier Yuot A. Alaak says lived experiences have a lot to teach us. He says giving students the opportunity to enter the lives of refugee children in a war, but from a safe distance, can help build empathy and understanding. In this very special blog post, Yuot and is joined by his father, Mecak A. Alaak, an inspirational teacher working in the most difficult circumstances imaginable.
For Yuot A. Alaak, stories were a way of distracting himself from the fear of enemy attack, starvation and hardship, and to keep hope alive. In this episode, Yuot discusses his City of Fremantle Hungerford Award shortlisted memoir, Father of the Lost Boys, which tells the story of his family, especially his father, Mecak Ajang Alaak who, on a four-year journey, led 20,000 lost boys to safety during the Second Sudanese Civil War.
What happens when you conference call with four talented Western Australian writers who are equally committed to short fiction as to long? Loads! Hosted by Susan Midalia, this episode of Love to Read Local Radio will give you a wonderful insight into where the urge to write comes from – those turning points in life which compel writers to put words on the page.
Sara Foster and Alexander Thorpe have never met, but this podcast feels like the meeting of kindred spirits. From the classic mysteries of Agatha Christie and Josephine Tey to the police procedurals of Val McDermid and the atmospheric psychological thrillers of Nicci French, their discussion of their favourite books is a masterclass in international crime reads.
Just days before COVID-19 sent us all home, Josephine Taylor and Catherine Noske jumped into the studio with Fremantle Press for an episode of Love To Read Local Radio. The two friends are best known in Western Australia’s literary community as editors of the journal Westerly and as academics and mentors, but this episode provided an opportunity to celebrate the release of Catherine’s debut book The Salt Madonna and to foreground Josephine’s forthcoming novel Eye of a Rook.
