At a time when our society is growing increasingly divided, world champion debater Bo Seo argues that we shouldn’t be aiming for fewer disagreements. Instead, he tells Lucy Clark that we’re better off using the principles of competitive debate to disagree well and, in doing so, to get along with our co-workers, friends and family despite our differences
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41:29
Rachel Franks on colonial Australia’s noseless hangman
Robert ‘Nosey Bob’ Howard sparked both fear and fascination as the longest-serving executioner in New South Wales. Paul Daley speaks with Rachel Franks, the author of An Uncommon Hangman: The Life and Deaths of Robert ‘Nosey Bob’ Howard, about his 62 hangings and why Indigenous people and women were disproportionately sentenced to death
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39:28
Jennifer Down on why we need to read about trauma
The winner of the 2022 Miles Franklin Award, Jennifer Down, had only one rule when she set out to write about a fictional survivor of child sexual abuse: do no harm. But she tells Jane Lee she still worries about the ethical questions involved in publishing and winning the prestigious award for her novel Bodies of Light
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51:09
Jilda Andrews and John Carty on Aboriginal art and what it means to belong
People who devote their lives to preserving Aboriginal culture and heritage are often caught between local communities and the legacies of museums. Yuwaalaraay woman Jilda Andrews and John Carty, author of Balgo, chat to Paul Daley about the meaning of Country, anthropology and art in the Western Desert
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56:35
Evelyn Araluen on the dark side of Blinky Bill
For many Australians, classic children’s book characters like Blinky Bill and Snugglepot and Cuddlepie represent innocent adventures in the bush. But Stella prize winning author Evelyn Araluen argues you can also find the story of Aboriginal peoples’ displacement at the heart of these beloved tales
What do books tell us about the world we live in? Join Lucy Clark, Paul Daley and Zoya Patel for conversations with top authors about the ideas that shape their work. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or Spotify
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