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Launching THE SOUTHERN OSCILLATION INDEX by Cath Kenneally

At the first of our new afternoon event series, Saturday Soirees, the Wakefield Press laneway was filled with merry makers for the launch of The Southern Oscillation Index by Cath Kenneally. Launched by Linda Barwick, Emeritus Professor of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and Emceed by Wakefield Press' fearless leader Michael Bollen, the launch was a wonderful way to start the series. Find out about future editions of the Saturday Soirees series by subscribing to our newsletter here. We…

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Launching THE FEELING OF BIGNESS by Helen Parsons

When Adelaide's quasi-lockdown hit in mid-November, the launching of Helen Parsons' The Feeling of Bigness: Encountering Georgia O'Keeffe was momentarily put on hold. We were so thrilled to be able to have a rescheduled launch in early December. Launched by Jan Owen, and Emceed by Louise Nicholas, the launch was held on the beautiful grounds of St John's church on Halifax Street, on a balmy evening befitting Helen's gorgeous poems. We are delighted to be publishing Jan Owen's…

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WAKEFIELD NEW RELEASES: Latest books 2020

Through tough times, the most positive thing you can do is buy books and read them. And then tell your friends and family to do the same! Support Wakefield Press and our collection of beautiful new books! Discover our latest releases for yourself.

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Book Launch: The First Wave

Gillian Dooley is an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at Flinders University, South Australia. Gillian is also a journal editor and the author of books and articles on literary subjects from Jane Austen to J.M. Coetzee. In this guest post she writes about the launch of The First Wave: Exploring early coastal contact history in Australia, and the book's importance in our understanding of Australian history. On 20 June, The First Wave: Exploring Early Coastal Contact History in Australia,…

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The launch of SURROGATE by Tracy Crisp

  Last week we launched Tracy Crisp's new book Surrogate to a very full house at Imprints Booksellers. After an excellent speech by ABC Adelaide's Deb Tribe, here is what Tracy had to say.     Thank you, Deb. For being so open to the invitation and so generous with your time to prepare for tonight and to be here this evening. And thank you for giving Surrogate such a great send-off into the world.…

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Liz Williams: Body Language

In late September Wakefield Press had the honour of launching Liz Williams: Body Language, a beautifully photographed book dedicated to the works of the late South Australian ceramicist. Below is an excerpt from author Margot Osborne's speech at the launch. I was driven to do this book on Liz Williams to honour her lifetime of artistic achievement and to ensure that there is a record of her unique contribution to Australian ceramics. It struck me…

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A great big book about a great small city

Last Thursday marked the celebration and re-launch of City Streets, a chronicled answer to the past 75 years of Adelaide’s architecture. As author Lance Campbell says, it's a great big book about a great small city. We were hosted at the beautiful Living Choice Fullarton and joined by many of our Wakefield Press authors and friends, including the event's emcee, Keith Conlon. And to top it all off, we had some fantastic Coriole sparkling! The…

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Ministers and the Media

Launching this week is Never a True Word, the debut political thriller from Michael McGuire. The book follows Jack, a journalist who thinks he's met every shade of nutter, narcissist and bully, until he enters the bizarre world of politics as a spin doctor. Perhaps Jack might have benefitted from reading John Hill's how-to, On Being a Minister – here John discusses his experiences with Adelaide's 'best informed, most intelligent and, at times, most offensive interviewers', Matt and Dave.   My first Matt and Dave interview,…

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Another extract from Quiet City

With the upcoming launch of Quiet City by Carol Lefevre on Sunday at West Terrace Cemetery, we couldn't resist sharing another extract. This one comes from the chapter "Darkness in Daylight" and the illustration is by Anthony Nocera.   But there is, too, a long and more troubling list of activities that eventually became the focus of a government investigation. They involved the appropriation of bodies for dissection, especially from public institutions such as the gaol, the lunatic…

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More from Quiet City

Carol Lefevre will be launching Quiet City at the West Terrace Cemetery this Sunday May 15. To celebrate, here is another extract with an illustration by Anthony Nocera. This extract comes from the chapter "In Deep Water". The names of people who drowned in the River Torrens would fill a book. Many of them were children, and although few could swim they found their way towards the water. On a Sunday afternoon in November, Henry Charles Etheridge, aged nine, and his brother…

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