Luke Devenish – The Conversation

Democracy is deeply defective but it’s all that we have. Justus Hayes

May 11, 2014

The case for The First Man in Rome by Colleen McCullough

Luke Devenish, The University of Melbourne

If you had to argue for the merits of one Australian book, one piece of writing, what would it be? Welcome back to our occasional series in which our authors make the case for a work of their choosing…

Valley of the Dolls is a novel about wanting. Characters want something badly. Marta Manso

May 5, 2014

Valley of the Dolls: 40 years since the death of Jacqueline Susann

Luke Devenish, The University of Melbourne

This year marks 40 years since the temple of airport fiction lost its Chief Vestal. Author Jacqueline Susann maxed out her mortal coil back in 1974, on September 21, felled by cancer. She was only 56…

Downton Abbey returns to Australian screens shortly. Expect writer/director Julian Fellowes to keep messing with the conventions of screenwriting. Channel Seven

January 29, 2014

How Downton Abbey gets away with breaking all the rules

Luke Devenish, The University of Melbourne

When Downton Abbey finally returns to our tellies for a fourth season (we hope it will be “soon” but Channel Seven is keeping its powder dry) it’ll be sans its scheming troublemaker. Australian fans are…

Writers such as Sheldon are easy to knock – if you haven’t read them. rocketlass

January 2, 2014

Other sides of midnight: what we can learn from Sidney Sheldon

Luke Devenish, The University of Melbourne

I was somewhere in the middle of Howard Jacobson’s 2010 Man Booker Prize winner The Finkler Question and finding it uncompelling. (Sorry, Howard.) I needed a potboiler pick-me-up stat. What better than…

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