Claire Nichols
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
David Maloof was a giant of Australian writing, known and loved for his iconic debut novel, Jono, about a young man in Brisbane during the Second World War, a book partly inspired by his own life.
In a career spanning more than 50 years, David wrote plays, poetry, libretto and more novels, including The Great World, and his Booker Prize shortlisted Remembering Babylon.
And today on this special episode of the book show, we're remembering David, who has died this week at the age of 92.
Now, I had the very, very great pleasure of speaking to David just last year.
He had just re-released some collections of his poetry, but we talked about all sorts of things, his early life, sharing books with his mum, that first novel, and the benefits of a daily walk on the beach.
I started by asking David if writing was still a daily practice for him, and his answer, as you'll hear, was bittersweet.
And you were saying, if you get the beginnings of a poem, I'm interested to know what that moment is like, David.
When you say misapprehension, you mean like a line that rubs you up the wrong way?
And you never made the move to writing on a computer, I believe.