‘Great Grandmother Arrabrilya’ is a beautifully crafted story. Adam Brannigan weaves First Nations language and culture seamlessly as he takes his readers on a lyric journey into a world that rises above western compartmentalisations of time, and hierarchies of life to the deep spiritual heart of place. ‘Great Grandmother Arrabrilya’ defies linearity and the finality of death with its cyclic rhythms that rise and fall in ancient sequential motions that honour both Country and ancestors. This is a story that speaks strongly to the strength, hope, resilience, continuance of First Nations cultures and peoples.

‘The grief tourist’ is a remarkable poem that is arresting from its first line, and stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it. It is a poem that is defiant yet gentle, and palpable in texture and imagery. It is consistent in its lucid and assured voice.

With courage and a commitment to radical speaking and action,’ Me, the (failed) revolutionary’ reflects upon the difficult intersections of the personal and the political. With a keen eye for revelatory details and unexpected insights, the prose sustains its lucidity and power throughout.

Read the rest of Overland 243

If you enjoyed this piece, buy the issue

Or subscribe and receive
four brilliant issues for a year