In Conversation with Larissa Behrendt

Join Larissa Behrendt as she discusses her much-awaited third novel After Story.

About the book

Indigenous lawyer, Jasmine, decides to take her mother, Della, on a tour of England's most revered literary sites, hoping it will bring them closer together and help them reconcile the past.

Twenty five years earlier the disappearance of Jasmine's older sister devastated their tight-knit community, and this tragedy returns to haunt Jasmine and Della when another child mysteriously goes missing on Hampstead Heath. As Jasmine immerses herself in the world of literary idols — including Jane Austen, the Bronte Sisters and Virginia Wolf — Della is inspired to rediscover the wisdom of her own culture and storytelling. But sometimes the stories that are not told become too great to bear.

Ambitious and engrossing, After Story celebrates the extraordinary power of words and the quiet spaces in-between. We can be ready to listen, but are we ready to hear?

About the author

Larissa is the author of three novels, Home, Legacy and After Story. She has also published numerous books on Indigenous legal issues. She was awarded the 2009 NAIDOC Person of the Year Award and, in 2011, the NSW Australian of the Year Award. Larissa has written and directed feature films and produced several short films. In 2018 she won the Australian Guild Director Award for Best Director in a documentary feature and in 2020 won the AACTA for Best Director in non-fiction television. She is a host on Speaking Out on ABC radio, and a distinguished professor and director at the Jumbunna Institute of Technology Sydney.