FINAL DRAFT on 2SER

Food for your brain - a weekly half-hour of browsing and grazing in the world of books and writing from Radio 2SER FM, Sydney.

FD 2008/04/28: Lives and Stories: J M Coetzee, Najaf Mazari, Robert Hillman, and Luke Davies

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April 28, 2008 02:10 AM PDT

The lives of remarkable writers and the writing of remarkable lives are our subjects this week on Final Draft. We catch up with Luke Davies, and talk about his new novel, 'The God of Speed', in which an elderly Howard Hughes sits in a hotel room in London, unfolding his story of sex, money, speed and obsession. Najaf Mazari, an Afghan refugee and rugmaker, drops by with his friend, the Austalian writer, Robert Hillman, to talk about their new book, 'The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif', which tells Najaf's story of resilience and goodwill. And we learn how a very famous writer is at pains to have the last word on how his life's tales are remembered.

Luke Davies, 'The God of Speed', Allen and Unwin
J M Coetzee, 'Diary of a Bad Year', Text Publishing
Najaf Mazari and Robert Hillman, 'The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif', Insight Publications

Podcast Summary

Final Draft is a weekly stroll in the world of books, writing, ideas and language. It's also a space on the air where the big names of arts and culture sit cheek-by-jowl with those just beginning to make their mark. Produced in the hope of inspiring generous, open-minded reading and  conversation, the show has a distinct flavour of Sydney, as well as generous sprinkles of guests and goodies from around Australia and the world too.

Each week we serve up a mix of interviews with writers and industry figures, reviews of new, classic and cult titles, readings of original work, short features and documentaries, and news about literary events, trends, prizes and publishing opportunities.

Past guests include novelists, film-makers, journalists, historians, illustrators, scientists, publishers, critics, poets and producers. A few examples: Vikram Chandra, Tom Griffiths, Tristan Clark, Jennifer Mills, Ira Glass, Luke Davies, Richard J Frankland, Alice Pung, L K Holt, Max Barry, Bernadette Brennan, Don Watson, Jane Gleeson-White, Alan Parkinson, Maria Tumarkin, Susanna Lobez, Alex Miller, John Hirst, Naldo Rei, David Stratton, Tina Matthews, Samantha Faulkner, Ben Garcia, Joe Bageant, Lollie Barr, Jonathan Balcombe, Heather O'Neill, Jeanette Hoorn, Najaf Mazari, Robert Hillman, etc, etc.

The show is produced at the 2SER FM studios in Sydney by Benedict Taylor, Kimberley Forsyth, Shamin Fernando, Ben Falkenmire, Angela Welsh, Lesley Branagan and Paul Kildea.

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