Cirrus@Austlit

'Of Indian Origin is a dazzling collection of short stories and poetry by Australian writers of Indian origin. Cultures collide as children encounter racism in the playgrounds of Canberra, migrant women scrounge for a living nursing Melbourne's elderly, and a young author moves to a strange and unfamiliar country where she suffers from dreamlessness. These searing works bring new meaning to the field of ‘Asian-Australian writing’ and new perspectives on the Indian diasporic experience. Though the field of Indian-Australian writing is still small, this vibrant mix of emerging and established writers shows it is by no means a homogenous entity. Bold, experimental and wildly original, Of Indian Origin unapologetically tackles issues of home and provides a unique overview of how Indian-Australian literary writing has developed over half a century.'  (Publication summary)

'Of course not all great art has its genesis in pain, and not all pain – not even a fraction – leads to the partial consolations of art. But if lancing an abscess is the surest way to healing, can poetry offer that same cleansing of emotional wounds?

'Shaping the Fractured Self showcases twenty-eight of Australia’s finest poets who happen to live with chronic illness and pain. The autobiographical short essays, in conjunction with the three poems from each of the poets, capture the body in trauma in its many and varied moods. Because those who live with chronic illness and pain experience shifts in their relationship to it on a yearly, monthly or daily basis, so do the words they use to describe it.

'Shaping the Fractured Self gives voice to sufferers, carers, medical practitioners and researchers, building understanding in a community of caring.' (Publication summary)