A Woman's Place - Celebrating Loved Places

Name: A Woman's Place - Celebrating Loved Places
Start: 2026-03-08T15:30:00+11:00
End: 2026-03-08T15:30:00+11:00
Location: Upstairs at Gleebooks

About

3pm for 3.30pm Sunday 8th March

Catherine Cole - A French House: On the Love of Place
Cath McKinnon - To Sing of War
Deborah Pike - The Players

A French House: On the Love of Place
Un rêve. Une maison. Un village. Une vie en France.
In this richly-woven memoir of buying and restoring a village home in the Périgord, Catherine Cole explores the enduring allure of France, the dreams we project onto its verdant landscapes, and the literature, film and culture they continue to inspire. Cole is particularly interested in exploring the books that inspired her love of France, from Ludwig Bemelman’s Madeline series for children to contemporary French writers like Annie Ernaux.
At the heart of the story is the house itself; its rooms, garden, and history revealing a quiet narrative of place, memory, and longing. For anyone who's ever imagined a life elsewhere, this is a book about turning dreams into bricks and mortar.

To Sing of War is a rich, compelling and intricately woven novel of love, war and friendship, perfect for readers of Anthony Doerr, Richard Flanagan, Shirley Hazzard and Barbara Kingsolver. December 1944: In New Guinea, a young Australian nurse, Lotte Wyld, chances upon her first love, Virgil Nicholson, there to fight the Japanese. Against the backdrop of a hard-fought jungle campaign, the two negotiate their troubled past. Meanwhile, in Los Alamos, young physicist Miriam Carver joins Robert Oppenheimer in a collective dream to build a new secret weapon,while Kitty Oppenheimer struggles to adjust to wartime isolation. Far away, on the sacred island of Miyajima, Hiroko Narushima helps her husband's grandmother run a ryokan, however, when one of her daughters encounters danger, Hiroko must act to ensure her family's safety. To Sing of War, a novel of sacrifice and forgiveness, also celebrates the interconnectedness of life.

The Players
One hot summer, a group of university students gathers in an orchard to rehearse a play.
Veronika is born for a life on the stage while Felix seizes his last chance for creative freedom. Sebastian woos Veronika, and Cassie longs for Sebastian. Josh and Gloria each carry a secret they are unable to share.
Passion, rivalry and enduring connections will bind the Players across years and continents, long after the final curtain falls and they leave university behind. From Perth to Paris, Cambridge, London, Berlin and Dili the friends search for meaning in their careers and friendship, discover love and endure heartbreak.

Catherine Cole is an author and professor who taught creative writing in Australian and UK universities and is now Honorary Professor at UTS and University of Wollongong in Australia and Liverpool John Moores University in the UK. She has published 11 books in Australia and internationally including novels, short stories and nonfiction, most recently A French House (Valley Press, 2026). Her work has been shortlisted for the NSW Premiers Literary Awards, the Elizabeth Jolley and the Davitt Award and produced by BBC Radio 4 in the UK. She also was awarded writers’ residencies in Australia, France, Vietnam, China and the UK.

Catherine McKinnon is a Miles Franklin Literary Award shortlisted author. Her recent novel, To Sing of War (2024), published by Fourth Estate HarperCollins and released to critical acclaim, was Highly Commended in the HNSA ARA Historical Novel Award. Her novel Storyland (Fourth Estate, 2017) was shortlisted for the 2018 Miles Franklin Literary Award, the 2018 Barbara Jefferis Award, the 2018 Voss Literary Prize, and more. Storyland is being adapted into a play for Merrigong Theatre, Illawarra, for 2027, adapted by Catherine and Aunty Barb Nicholson. Catherine teaches creative writing at the University of Wollongong.

Deborah is a writer and academic based in Sydney. She is the author of The Subversive Art of Zelda Fitzgerald, which was shortlisted for the AUHE award in literary criticism. The Players is her first novel.