Welcome to issue 17 of Kill Your Darlings. In this issue we will take you around the globe with contributions from Indonesia to Myanmar and South Africa to Syria.
In this issue’s feature Jim Della-Giacoma provides an insightful and timely look into the state of Australian-Indonesian relations. Jim has lived in Indonesia intermittently for twenty years and has an invaluable understanding of the challenges that threaten our ties to Indonesia. Edward Snowden’s revelations of the Australian government spying on Indonesian conversations, Australia breaching Indonesian waters and Operation Sovereign Borders all promise to strain our relationship with our neighbour to the north. As our government commits to continuing to ‘turn back the boats’ Jim considers what affect this will have on our relationship with Indonesia, and what repercussions we might face.
Elsewhere in Commentary Michael Richardson investigates the pitfalls of urban renewal in a post-Mandela Durban; Belinda Lopez explores her motives as a political tourist in Myanmar and Wendy Bruere, an aid worker, shows us the devastating reality of life inside a Syrian refugee camp.
Closer to home Michael Davison examines how the rise of Tinder is affecting not only the way we think about dating but the way our brains are wired; Alice Robinson writes insightfully about the transition from individual to mother; Kate Larsen illuminates the pleasures of rereading and Koren Helbig contemplates the connections between music, love and memory.
In Fiction, we have new work from Chris Somerville, author of We Are Not the Same Anymore. In his story ‘Out in the Wild’ Chris examines family dynamics against the backdrop of a Queensland casino, while Ben Walter tackles a father and son relationship in his story, ‘The Lake’.
In Reviews, Rebecca Howden revisits the power of Kurt Cobain’s feminist message on the twentieth anniversary of his death, and – in light of the critical success of movies such as Amour and 12 Years a Slave – Justin Wolfers looks at the power of harrowing cinema.
In Interviews, our new interviews editor Bethanie Blanchard had the privilege of an extended conversation with Booker Prize-winning author Eleanor Catton. Much like her novel The Luminaries this interview is fascinating (and lengthy) and we are thrilled to bring it to you here in full.
We’re also excited to welcome Veronica Sullivan to the KYD team. Veronica is our new Online Assistant and will be running our new KYD Book Club. Stay tuned for more details and, in the meantime, happy reading!
