‘True Friends is at once a visceral and tender exploration of friendship’s consolations and risks, the mysteries of connection and the creative life. In its raw depth and honesty, the story reveals as much about Miller as it does about relationships and the creative life — and the tensions that spark between them.’
Kristina Olssen
Friendships are among the most important relationships in our lives, often outlasting love affairs, marriages, even, at times, family connections. The loss of a friend can be one of life’s most disturbing events, yet these ‘friend break-ups’ are little acknowledged in our culture.
In True Friends, acclaimed author Patti Miller recounts the joyful making and then painful ending of a long, close friendship. It is a deep and influential relationship in her life, but when it inexplicably unravels, Patti is left searching for answers. As she tries to make sense of this ending, Patti considers other important friendships throughout her life, questioning who we are drawn to, what we really know of each other and why some friendships endure while others end.
Evocative and intimate, this engaging book brings together the personal and the universal and reminds us of the centrality of friendships in our lives.
Meet Patti in conversation with Karen Viggers.
Tickets: $10 (General Admission) // $40 (entry + a copy of the book RRP $32.99)
Patti Miller was raised on Wiradjuri land in central western NSW and now lives in Sydney. She is the author of Writing Your Life; The Last One Who Remembers; Child; Whatever the Gods Do; The Memoir Book; the award-winning The Mind of a Thief; Ransacking Paris; Writing True Stories; and The Joy of High Places. She has taught memoir and creative non-fiction for many years around Australia and in Fiji, Bali, Paris and London.
Karen Viggers is the author of four novels: The Stranding, The Lightkeeper’s Wife, The Grass Castle and The Orchardist’s Daughter. She is a wildlife veterinarian who has worked and traveled in many remote parts of Australia, from Antarctica to the Kimberley. Her novels are known for their evocative portrayal of Australian people and landscapes.
Karen's books have been translated into multiple languages including French, Italian, and Norwegian. Her work has enjoyed great success in France, selling more than 800,000 copies to date. The Lightkeeper's Wife (‘La Memoire de embruns’) was on the French National Bestseller list for more than 42 weeks, going as high as No. 3, and in 2016 this book won the Les Petits Mots des Libraires Prix Litteraire and was also short-listed for the Livre de Poche Readers Prize.