The Kiama Readers’ Festival line-up features a who’s who of literary royalty; Jane Caro, Chris Hammer, Hugh Mackay, Michael Brissenden, Joanna Nell, Sue Williams, David Hardaker. The list of talent, both local and national, goes on. 

Organiser Perrie Croshaw admits her first foray into organising the Festival, as President of Friends of Kiama Library, was “a baptism by fire”. Thankfully Kiama is a community of book lovers and talented novelists, so when Croshaw and a dedicated team of committee members and community volunteers tapped into their networks they were able to curate a stellar line up of authors for the biennial event.

Supported by Kiama Council, Destination Kiama and a plethora of local businesses and community members, the festival will launch on Friday, July 19 with a sold-out event at Burnetts on Barney. Guest speakers Fiona Weir, a cookbook author and owner of Gerringong’s Buena Vista Farm, Kirsten Bradley from Milkwood in Tasmania, and Victoria-based gardening guru Craig Castree will discuss permaculture, kitchen gardens, self-sufficiency and cooking from scratch during the morning session which kicks off the festival.

“Anyone who got tickets to this is really lucky,” says Croshaw. “It sold-out so quickly. But there are many more amazing author talks to choose from, we've got something for everyone, with really talented writers coming down, and a bunch of local talent as well.” 

Fred Smith - songwriter, author and former diplomat - will officially launch the festival at Kiama Library on Friday night and punters can expect something “a little bit different”.

“Rather than just an author getting up and doing a bit of a talk about their book, Fred will bring his guitar and tell his wonderful life story through song and a multimedia presentation,” explains Croshaw. “He will discuss his fabulous book, The Sparrows of Kabul, which has been shortlisted for the ACT Literary Awards. He will also talk about his travels around the world as a diplomat. That's going to be a really fabulous event and is being catered by Saltwater in Kiama.”

Another special guest is social researcher Hugh Mackay, possibly doing his last author circuit before retirement. “But who knows because he’s addicted to research,” laughs Croshaw. 

Crime writers Chris Hammer and Michael Brissenden will discuss their most recent work, dubbed Cli-Fi, a term coined when crime fiction meets environmental and political corruption. It is a genre in which the former political journalists are well-schooled. They will be joined by Sydney Morning Herald book reviewer, author and crime fiction aficionado Professor Sue Turnbull, who will moderate the author discussion. The session is a partnership with BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival.  

“Chris Hammer is always well supported when he comes to Kiama,” says Croshaw. “He has been a guest speaker at Kiama Library before, and was a hit with readers. We expect the same response this time around too.”

Journalist David Hardaker, of Four Corners and 7.30 fame, will talk to former Illawarra Mercury editor Nick Hartgerink about politics, power and friends in high places. Karen Viggers, internationally bestselling author, vet and soccer mum will discuss her latest book Sidelines. And award-winning journalist and columnist Sue Williams will share insights into Run For Your Life, her book about a family who fled to the Australian outback to escape Putin’s Kremlin. 

“Some people might criticise me for asking too many journalists along, but they seem to be the people that are writing at the moment,” says Croshaw. “We're also really lucky to have non-fiction writer Andra Putnis discuss her debut novel, Stories my Grandmothers Didn’t Tell Me. The book is about her two Latvian grandmothers who lived through World War II and survived to immigrate to Australia. Sometimes you might think that you can't pick books like these up, because you know they're going to be sad. And yet, Andra’s book is so moving and beautifully written. I hope she goes on to write more.”

Then there’s GP and author Joanna Nell, who has rewritten the narrative on ageing by featuring older characters who refuse to be defined by their years. “I have to admit, I’d never read any Joanna Nell books but when I did I just laughed myself silly,” says Croshaw. “I mean, it's a little bit close to home, because it's about a retirement village and I’m in my late 60s and staring down that barrel. But it was just so funny.”

The festival will wrap up with a Gala dinner on Saturday night hosted by Walkley Award winning columnist, author, novelist and social commentator Jane Caro. “We are so excited to have Jane join the festival,” says Croshaw. “We know she will be very popular with the Kiama community.

“We're definitely punching above our weight here in Kiama, with such a wealth of talented authors and avid readers. We have been really lucky to get the authors that we’ve lined up for this event. It's a very diverse lot and we did that deliberately to cater to everyone’s taste, but also to encourage people to step outside of their comfort zone and read something they might not have picked up otherwise.”

A life-long book lover and former journalist, including for the Kiama Bugle, Perrie stepped into the role as president of Friends of Kiama Library late last year. 

“I thought I would just be doing four author events in 2024,” says Croshaw. “Then Michelle (Hudson) from Kiama Library said to me ‘oh, don't forget there’s the festival this year! Even though we're a small committee, we do have an awful lot of friends who've come along to help us with this venture. It has really been a community effort, with all the hard work from the committee and assorted volunteers who just love books. People in Kiama will really go the distance to read a good book and support writers. It's just wonderful to see so many people giving back to the community.”

The book is definitely not dead, at least not in Kiama. Tickets to festival events are available at Kiama Readers' Festival 2024 Kiama Library (nsw.gov.au)