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Events description

LIVE FROM THE PIANO – 11 NOV 2021

Unionist Helen Kelly left a huge impact on New Zealand’s political and industrial landscapes, with some commentators hypothesising after her death that she might have been Prime Minister one day. Helen’s biographer Rebecca Macfie (Tragedy at Pike River Mine) speaks with journalist turned lecturer Jo Malcolm about the life, times and legacy of a woman who ‘never shirked a fight’, whether it was with the Ports of Auckland or with hobbits, and who earned the humour and respect even of those she so vehemently opposed.

HOW TO WRITE A KILLER PLOT

We bring together two masters of the art of the killer plot to help you write your own. Newcomer Jacqueline Bublitz’s debut Before You Knew My Name has been praised by Marian Keyes and Clementine Ford as a new take on the ‘woman in peril’ trope that forms the backbone of the genre. Veteran Paul Cleave’s latest, A Quiet People, is a clever, dark and entertaining journey through the minds of those who write the killer plots. Both writers talk about their books, and share tips for creating memorable stories and keeping readers turning the pages, with Jo Malcolm.

BEING PĀKEHĀ: ALISON JONES

What does it mean to be Pākehā in 21st-century Aotearoa? What anxieties and opportunities flow from the increased visibility and assertiveness of tangata whenua? How have Treaty settlements, legal challenges and growing use of te reo Māori affected the Pākehā sense of belonging and legitimacy? In conversation with the University of Canterbury’s Jeanette King, leading Pākehā thinker Alison Jones shares personal stories and political insights from her life spent working at the intersection between two worlds.

CHARLOTTE GRIMSHAW: THE MIRROR BOOK

Few recent books have caused a stir as great as Charlotte Grimshaw’s incendiary memoir The Mirror Book, which tore the lid off one of New Zealand’s most well-known literary families: that of poet, novelist and memoirist C. K. Stead. ‘It’s material. Go and make a story out of it,’ was a mantra in the Stead house, and finally Grimshaw came out from behind the fictional veil to tell the truth as she saw it. The book has been praised by reviewers and readers, even as they squirm in discomfort at the inevitable fallout the book has caused. Grimshaw appears in conversation with WORD’s Rachael King.

WORD GALA: THIS PLACE YOU RETURN TO IS HOME

The idea of home has been at the forefront of global consciousness in recent times: staying home, coming home, struggling to get home, finding a new home when the old one is no longer safe. Taking our title from ex-pat New Zealand author Kirsty Gunn, resident in Scotland, we ask five of our festival stars to tell us about their place to return to, their tūrangawaewae, or how our homes have shaped us. Audiences who have attended previous galas will know this is a night of new and original storytelling not to be missed. Featuring Patricia GraceSue KedgleyTayi Tibble and Kate Camp and hosted by WORD Christchurch Festival programme co-directors Rachael King and Nic Low.

SUE KEDGLEY: FIFTY YEARS A FEMINIST

Ever since 1971, when she and other students carried a coffin through Albert Park to lament the state of women’s rights, Sue Kedgley’s name has been synonymous with Second Wave feminism in this country. An activist was born that day, and her new memoir, Fifty Years a Feminist, tracks a dynamic life through journalism and politics, fobbing off men along the way, because ‘if we succumbed or capitulated to sex, that could ruin our marriage prospects’. How far does she think the women’s movement has come? Are men still standing in the way? She swaps stories from the frontlines and discusses the state of feminism with Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel.

MARK SOLOMON: MANA WHAKATIPU

In 1998, on the eve of Ngāi Tahu reaching settlement with the Crown, former foundryman Mark Solomon stepped into the role of kaiwhakahaere (Chair) of the iwi’s governing council, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. In this session, Tā Mark speaks about his memoir, Mana Whakatipu (co-authored with Mark Revington), detailing his years at the helm of the tribe, his thoughts on leadership and life, the people who influenced him, and his vision for the future of Māoridom, and Aotearoa.

A CLEAR DAWN: NEW ASIAN VOICES FROM AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND

A Clear Dawn, edited by Paula Morris and Alison Wong, is the first ever anthology of Asian-New Zealand creative writing. It gathers together the brilliant work of a new wave of writers with roots in soils from Indonesia to China, India to Thailand, and of course Aotearoa as well. Join a rich selection of contributors including E Wen WongNod GhoshRussell Boey, Melanie Kwang and host Neema Singh, for readings and discussion, with special guest Jeffrey Zhao on the erhu (Chinese classical ‘violin’).

RICK GEKOSKI: RARE BOOKS AND RARE PEOPLE

Rick Gekoski has been hunting for rare books for over fifty years, and writing about the experience in several volumes of engaging, witty memoir. In his new book Guarded by Dragons: Encounters with rare books and rare people, he likens the hunt to a mythical quest. In conversation with the University of Canterbury’s Paul Millar, Gekoski, a stellar storyteller and raconteur, discusses a life shaped by books: bought, sold and written. Along the way he has met, traded with, lunched with, annoyed and played ping-pong with such legendary figures as William Golding, Salman Rushdie, Graham Greene and Ted Hughes.

MATT AND SARAH BROWN: SHE IS NOT YOUR REHAB

Renowned barber Mataio (Matt) Brown has cut the hair of everyone from the All Blacks to members of the Wu Tang Clan. But he’s best known for his legendary local shop My Father’s Barber, where men come to get a haircut, and be heard without judgement, and to heal. Matt and his wife Sarah Brown (Ngāpuhi/Te Rarawa) speak with UC’s Phil Borell about their new book, She Is Not Your Rehab, based on the global anti-violence movement he inspired, his own journey of healing, and what it might take for a generation of men to break cycles of abuse.

LIVE FROM THE TOWN HALL

It is twenty years since a Norwegian cargo ship rescued a sinking fishing boat crammed with more than 400 asylum seekers, only to be turned away from Australia, sparking an international incident. Eventually, New Zealand offered to take 150 of those refugees, including Abbas Nazari and his family.

A child at the time, Abbas now tells his story in After the Tampa, from the Taliban’s brutal rule in Afghanistan, and his family’s desperate search for safety, to Georgetown University in Washington, where he is currently a Fulbright Scholar. He is joined by Helen Clark, Prime Minister at the time, who will discuss the political circumstances around the incident, and whether or not anything has changed. Chaired by University of Canterbury’s Ekant Veer.

PATRICIA GRACE: FROM THE CENTRE

Patricia Grace (Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Atiawa) has published seven novels and seven short story collections, raised seven children, won landmark literary prizes and land rights cases, and been invited to share her work worldwide. Finally, she has written a memoir covering all of this and more. Patricia joins Nic Low (Ngāi Tahu) for a candid conversation about her extraordinary life, the people and places that have shaped her, and the ways that stories, lives and land intersect.

HELEN CLARK: THE BIG ISSUES

Helen Clark‘s work has brought her close to the two most urgent issues of our time: climate change and the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, Clark took on the task of co-chairing the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, an impartial and comprehensive review of the internationally co-ordinated response to COVID-19.

As editor of the new anthology Climate Aotearoa Clark brings together New Zealand experts to examine the climate situation as it is now, as it will be in the years to come, and what we can do about it.

In this essential hour, she discusses the findings of the COVID report, published in May, and the book, and what needs to happen to avert future catastrophe for both the planet and its occupants. In conversation with the University of Canterbury’s Bronwyn Hayward.

ADVENTUROUS WOMEN

Once again, WORD takes you on an adventurous night of storytelling with five incredible women who take risks in their personal and professional lives, hosted by journalism teacher and compulsive reader Jo Malcolm. Kyle Mewburn’s memoir Faking It is an account of growing up and outwardly becoming the woman she always was; Julie Zarifeh countered unimaginable tragedy with travel and an adventurous spirit; Anjum Rahman stands up for the voices of Muslim women to be heard; Emily Writes is a bold voice for mothers and children online and in books; and Dr Hinemoa Elder’s bestselling book Aroha shows us how we can live with love, compassion and empathy. Book early for a night like no other!

IAN RANKIN: LIVE FROM EDINBURGH

Ian Rankin, the master of crime fiction, will appear in conversation with New Zealand crime writer Vanda Symon, live from his home in Rebus’s Edinburgh, discussing his new book, Dark Remains. Vanda will be on the stage at The Piano, giving the audience a chance to converse with Rankin face to (digital) face.
Something dark is afoot in Scotland. Ian Rankin’s Rebus is facing a crisis in A Song For The Dark Times. In his brand new book, Rankin joins forces with iconic Scottish crime writer, the late William McIlvanney, completing the manuscript he left behind. The result is The Dark Remains, which brings to life the criminal world of 1970s Glasgow with McIlvanney’s DI Laidlaw, the detective that inspired a gritty genre.

MARGARET MAHY MEMORIAL LECTURE: BEN BROWN

Local Lyttelton hero Ben Brown (Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Koroki, Ngāti Paoa) is the inaugural Te Awhi Rito Reading Ambassador, travelling the nation to nurture young readers. In this Margaret Mahy Memorial Lecture, Ben draws on the metaphor of kā awhi rito, the mature leaves around the young shoot of a harakeke plant, and his life as a poet and educator, to talk about building children’s imagination and confidence through storytelling in all its forms. If you caught Ben’s widely-acclaimed 2020 Read NZ lecture, on youth justice and the power of words, you know to expect an address that is direct, funny and devastating by turns.

THE LIVING MOUNTAINS

Kā Huru Manu is Ngāi Tahu’s satellite atlas. It details thousands of placenames, rivers and histories, and a network of historic trails. Over a dozen of those trails cross Kā Tiritiri-o-te-moana, the Southern Alps. Ngāi Tahu leader and scholar Tā Tipene O’Regan is one of the driving forces behind Kā Huru Manu. Nic Low (Ngāi Tahu) set out to walk the old mountain trails contained in Kā Huru Manu for his new book, Uprising, in an attempt to understand the stories contained in the land. They talk about Ngāi Tahu history in the mountains and high country, and the power of place names and maps.

KĀ WAI O TAHU: NGĀI TAHU’S LEGAL ACTION OVER WATER

Water has long defined the landscapes of Te Waipounamu, and in recent years has begun to define political life as well. Why has Ngāi Tahu taken the Crown to court over freshwater? Join Dr Te Maire Tau (Upoko of Ngāi Tūahuriri) and freshwater specialist Dr Mike Joy for an in-depth discussion of Ngāi Tahu’s legal action, and the history, tikanga and science of the Wai in Te Waipounamu.

NOT CALM BEFORE THE STORM: CLIMATE CHANGE NOW

For decades we’ve talked about climate change as an imminent threat. But how are rising temperatures affecting us right now, and how are people responding at home and world-wide? In this wide-ranging discussion Kim Hill speaks with journalist Tom Doig (author of gripping climate disaster narrative Hazelwood, and editor of Living with the Climate Crisis: Voices from Aotearoa) and veteran scientist Dave Lowe (lead author on the IPCC 4th Report, and author of The Alarmist, a memoir of life at the forefront of climate science).

CONFLUENCE

Curated and hosted by the one and only Daisy Speaks, Confluence is a celebration of the vā: a bringing together of the musical brilliance of Judah Band and The Byllie Jean Project with words from Ben BrownJuanita HepiDietrich Soakai and Tusiata Avia; and of the tuakana/teina relationship between Māori and Pasifika peoples, both ancient and new. Expect soulful and joyous explorations of mana wahine, freedom, and stories shared across oceans.

A CABINET OF CURIOSITIES: TINY LECTURES ON THE WEIRD AND WONDERFUL

WORD’s sellout lecture series is back! Famous for introducing the fascinating, the bizarre and the irreverent, this event asks writers to explore their innermost obsessions. What will you find when the cabinet of curiosities is opened? Featuring journalist Tom Doig, Antarctic historian Joanna Grochowicz, writer and illustrator Gavin Bishop, historian Madi Williams, and doctor bard Glenn Colquhoun, hosted by Naomi van den Broek.

TAUTITOTITO WHENUA: RECIPROCAL SONGS OF THE LAND

What languages do the mountains of Te Waipounamu speak? What tongue would we use to address the fields of Ireland’s Aran Islands? How will we tell the places we love what the future holds? Developed in partnership with Cúirt International Festival of Literature, Galway, Tautitotito Whenua explores parallel Irish and Māori histories of grief and revitalisation with regard to language and land.

Explore these relationships with Irish authors Micheál Ó Conghaile and Máire Uí Dhufaigh, beaming in to read new work and discuss the changing Irish landscapes that formed them. They are joined by Ngāi Tahu authors and composers Hana O’Regan and Charisma Rangipunga with a brand new apakura (lament) exploring climate change’s impact on ancestral places. Immerse yourself in the stunning vistas and sounds of te reo and Gaeilge, with discussion and translations in English.

ELIOT HIGGINS: WE ARE BELLINGCAT

Who identified the men who poisoned Sergei Skripel in Salisbury, and Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny? Who figured out who shot down Flight MH17 over Ukraine? Who uncovered Assad’s use of chemical weapons in Syria? Not the CIA or GCSB, but Bellingcat, an open-source intelligence agency made up of citizen investigators armed with laptops and phones. Join founder Eliot Higgins for a candid conversation about his journey from school drop-out to thought-leader. He discusses Bellingcat’s latest work with our own investigative genius Nicky Hager, including the hunt for QAnon, the future of journalism, and whether the internet can actually be used for good.

 


THE FARAWAY NEAR SESSIONS

What is it?

THE FARAWAY NEAR: HELEN MACDONALD

Helen Macdonald arrived in the global literary consciousness several years ago with H is for Hawk, the exquisite account of training her goshawk, Mabel, while grieving her beloved father. Compassionate and sublime, it won awards and hearts around the world. Her latest book, Vesper Flights, gathers together essays of observation, fascination, time, memory, love and loss, and how we make the world around us. Moving and frank, personal and political, it confirms the author as one of this century’s greatest nature writers. She talks from her home in England with Naomi van den Broek.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: HARI KUNZRU

Step into The Faraway Near with London-born novelist and podcaster Hari Kunzru, live from New York, for a journey down the alt-right rabbit hole in his sixth novel, Red Pill. Written as the culmination of twenty years spent following online conspiracy theories, Red Pill explores a writer’s mid-life crisis and torrid affair, not with a lover, but with the wit, mysterious symbolism and paranoid certainty of the internet itself. In conversation with Philip Matthews, and funny, fiercely intelligent and absolutely contemporary in his thinking, Hari is not to be missed.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: AVA HOMA & BEHROUZ BOOCHANI

Join two Kurdish writers who have harnessed language as a vehicle for freedom, and literature as a weapon against oppression. Ava Homa was raised on Rumi and Emily Dickinson at the border between Iran and Iraq, and is now in exile in North America. Her debut novel Daughters of Smoke and Fire, the first novel published by a female Kurdish writer in English, illuminates the brutal and extraordinary lives of the Kurds in Iran. It is a haunting homage to the strength of women in the face of great pain. Live at the Faraway Near, Homa speaks with New Zealand’s own great Kurdish writer-in-exile, Behrouz Boochani.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: RUTH OZEKI

Novelist, filmmaker and Zen Buddhist priest Ruth Ozeki, best known for My Year of Meats and the Booker short-listed A Tale for the Time Being, beams in from Connecticut to talk about her latest novel, The Book of Form and Emptiness, with Liz Grant. Touching on the importance of reading, the strangeness of consumer culture, and resilience and grief, it was described by David Mitchell as a ‘compassionate novel of life, love and loss [which] glows in the dark. Its strange, beautiful pages turn themselves’.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: A. C. GRAYLING

A. C. Grayling has written more than thirty books of philosophy, biography, and history of ideas, and judged the Booker Prize—twice. Live from London, he joins Kim Hill to discuss the paradox of knowledge outlined in his new book, The Frontiers of Knowledge: we once thought that enquiry diminishes ignorance, but the opposite is true. Spectacular advances in science, history and psychology have vastly extended our understanding of time, space, and the human brain. Yet each new step simply raises new questions that were previously impossible to ask: the more we know, the greater our ignorance. Erudite and engaging, A. C. Grayling explores just how much we know about the past, the world and ourselves.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: HELEN GARNER

‘I may be an old woman,’ she wrote in the Guardian last year, ‘but I’m not done for yet.’ At 79, Helen Garner has been a formidable voice in Australian literature for decades, with novels including Monkey Grip and The Spare Room, and hard-hitting non-fiction such as This House of Grief and 1995’s controversial The First Stone, about a sexual-harassment scandal in a university college. Now she has started breaking open her diaries – including the latest volume, How to End a Story – which vividly record a life of hard work and tumultuous relationships, and which explore professional and personal earthquakes. She discusses her life and work, live from her home in Melbourne, with broadcaster and former festival director Morrin Rout.

 

 

THE FARAWAY NEAR: TOMMY ORANGE

Tommy Orange (Cheyenne, Arapaho) is the author of There There, an electrifying, multi-layered story about a version of America that few of us have seen: the lives of urban Native Americans. Winner of numerous prizes and named a book of the year by everyone from The New York Times to O: The Oprah MagazineThere There follows twelve characters grappling with violence and tenderness, dislocation and communion, and the ways we break and remake tradition in the modern world. Live from California, and frank and generous in his conversation, Tommy speaks with Jessica Maclean about his work and craft, Native American history and culture, and how the pandemic is affecting his communities today.

A SELECTION OF LIVESTREAMED EVENTS FROM WORD CHRISTCHURCH 2021

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