The Near and the Far: New stories from the Asia-Pacific region

(Paperback)

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From 21 of the best writers in the Asia-Pacific region comes a collection about finding connections where you least expect them. It's a sweltering night in Kuala Lumpur, and a journalist is protesting in a city on the edge of meltdown. It's post-9/11 San Francisco, and a woman meets her foster child, who provokes painful reminders of her past. It's contemporary Bangkok, and a writer's encounter with ladyboy culture prompts him to explore gender boundaries. And high in Queensland's Border Ranges, a boy prone to getting lost is having six tiny silver bells pinned to his chest ...The Near and The Far is what results when award-winning writers from Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Hong Kong share places, spaces, and ideas. Emerging from the Writers Immersion and Cultural Exchange program - a unique series of residencies, workshops, and dialogues between writers - this collection is a map of art and adventure, ideas and influences. Featuring fiction and nonfiction from Cate Kennedy, Melissa Lucashenko, Maxine Beneba Clarke, Omar Musa, and many more, this collection bridges the distances between Asia, Australia, and the world. Every day is a border crossing, every story a threshold. Grab your passport and step beyond.

Author Bio

David Carlin is an associate professor and co-director of the nonfictionLab at RMIT University, and co-director of the international NonfictionNow conference. His books, Our Father Who Wasn't There and The Abyssinian Contortionist, have both received critical acclaim. Francesca Rendle-Short is a novelist, memoirist, and essayist. Her most recent book is the acclaimed novel-cum-memoir Bite Your Tongue. Her work has appeared in publications including Best Australian Science Writing, Overland, and Iowa's The Essay Review.