The Greek-Australian Writers Festival is set for a huge fourth edition as it continues its mission of showcasing the quality literary work in the Greek Australian sphere.
The all-day literary celebration, organised as part of the Greek Festival of Sydney, returns on 27 April and will be held at the Prince Henry Centre at Little Bay, New South Wales.
The event promises to be bigger than ever as it highlights numerous works from talented writers that cover a whole range of topics and ideas.
There will be parallel sessions throughout the day featuring fiction, memoir, essays, non-fiction and photography exploring concepts of identity, migration, culture, history, and the complexity of interconnecting yet disparate cultures.
The festival will notably host the launch of UNSW Professor George Kouvaros’ “Patrimonies: Essays on Generational Thinking”, a deeply personal and profound examination of how those who came before us have left their mark on us.
Professor Nikos Papastergiadis will also feature in the event with his memoir “John Berger and Me”, which serves as a reflection on his family, his father and their peasant roots as well as the influence of his mentor, the esteemed British writer and critic John Berger.
Another work that will be showcased is Shelley Dark’s “Hydra in Winter”, which tells a remarkable tale about the first Greek convicts sent to the colonies (of which her husband John is descended from).
The festival will also put a spotlight on Koraly Dimitriadis’ short story collection “The Mother Must Die” and Emily Tsokos Purtill’s “Matia”, a matrilineal novel of love in four generations.
In addition to that, Will Kostakis will discuss his award-winning Young Adult Fiction book “We Could Be Something” that tells the story of a young man coming out to his Greek parents.
Alongside all that, the event will examine the neurotransmitter of pleasure and dopamine with Dr Anastasia Hronis, explore the genre of Greek Mythology and focus on some high-quality photography books.
“We are so pleased to showcase the Australian literary community engaging in Greek ideas,” said Dr Helen Vatsikopoulos, Founder and Director of the Greek-Australian Writers’ Festival, in an official media release.
“This is an opportunity for people to come to Sydney to connect and reflect upon the stories that continue to shape our shared community.”
Finally Karen Martin will be presenting the third book of the thematic Women Unveiled series. Delphi is the sequel to Dancing the Labyrinth, but can be enjoyed as a stand-alone novel.
Martin will be in conversation with Phil Kafcaloudes at 10am about her novel which was recently awarded the prestigious International/Greek Eyelands Book Award.
The book revolves around appearance of an unknown aunt spirals Cressida into chaos. Childhood wounds resurface, compelling her toward a crucial decision. Will she sacrifice her newfound life for love and security? Inspired by dreams, she travels to Delphi seeking counsel from the Oracle, unaware of her pivotal role to save humanity from catastrophic misery.
Read Dean Kalimniou’s Neos Kosmos diatribe on this tale of Greek gods, serpents, prophesy and a young woman’s struggle to understand herself that illuminates profound truths about the misrepresentations inscribed in our records of the past.
Books will be on sale throughout the day with authors available for signings.
