Have you ever thought about who gets the real dirty work in our messy society?
I’m talking about cleaning up after suicides who have lain unmourned or missed for weeks, or hoarders who can’t control their desire to keep their whole live’s possessions. The industrial accidents, the crime scenes- there are some places you just don’t want to go but specially trained cleaners are often the second on the scene after other services and authorities and they have to have the knowledge ( and the stomach) to get places habitable or safe again.
Sarah Krasnostein followed one such person for several years and what she learned is detailed in this fascinating book. As you can imagine, the person who does this job has to have a well developed philosophy to cope with what they witness and have to deal with.
Ben Hobson still finds the success of his first novel a ‘bit surreal’. By day an English teacher on Bribie Island, he is challenged by the idea of how to get young boys interested in reading. He may just have solved the problem with this deep and sensitive book about a young boy’s path to manhood.
‘Hey Brother‘ is a beautifully written book that charts a difficult year in a young man’s life.
His brother goes to war, his father is estranged from his mother who drowns her anxiety in alcohol, and he finds first love.
It’s a lot to take on, but Jarrah’s protagonist, Trysten, rises to the occasion . Then his brother Shaun returns from the war, and Trysten thinks everything will be okay , but the family’s troubles are just beginning.This novel was written with the assistance of the Byron Writers Centre mentor ship program.
Author Jarrah Dundler
Jarrah Dundler reads from his novel ‘Hey Brother’
Recorded on Arts Canvass at Bay FM 99.9 2018
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