Two regular Overland contributors are holding book launches this coming Monday 8 August.

Launch: The Stars Askew

6.30pm Mon 8 Aug
Readings Carlton (309 Lygon St, Carlton)

Adam Bandt MP and Jacinda Woodhead (editor of Overland) will launch Rjurik Davidson’s The Stars Askew, the sequel to his critically acclaimed and politically charged fantasy debut Unwrapped Sky.

Free, no booking required.

Launch: When the Goal Posts Move

6pm Mon 8 August
Collingwood arts precinct (35 Johnston Street, Collingwood)

Panel: Michelle Bennett (Chair), Ben Eltham and David Pledger

In this wide-ranging overview of the now notorious ‘Excellence Raid’ of Budget night 2015, when substantial public funding was ripped from the arts sector and awarded to the federal Ministry, Ben Eltham examines the purposes of power, the extent of the damage done and the future of the crippled Australia Council. He shows how its foundational pursuit of ‘excellence’ has been diverted from an aspiration to a commodity, counts the culling of artists and long-established service organisations, questions the silence that grasped the major players, records the scattered shrapnel; and reports signs of growing unity of purpose across the sector. Now in the shadow of the 2016 federal election, Eltham views the shattered structure and the Opposition’s restorative promises; and concludes that, when called upon, Australians still do recognise cultural value. They can – and do – still rejoice in sharing the idea of the public good.

Event is free but bookings are essential.