The AISN Book Club is a key feature of the AISN and the firm’s commitment to deepening community engagement with and celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and histories. To date this year, the AISN has held four sessions of Book Club, each discussing texts or media by Indigenous authors.
This year, the AISN Book Club read, watched and discussed:
This year the AISN Book Club looked at a variety of genres and media types.
Firelight is a debut collection of short shorties exploring themes of disconnection and alienation.
The Moogai is a short horror film that tells the story of a family terrorised by a child-stealing spirit.
Dear Son: Letters and Reflections by First Nations Fathers and Sons is a non-fiction work of choice for the book club and contained moving letters penned by 12 First Nations fathers and sons, reflecting on masculinity, love and identity.
The Last Daughter is a documentary about Brenda’s journey to unearth the truth about her past, and to reconcile the two sides of her family.
The AISN Book Club has retained two key changes it made in 2022:
- sourcing snacks and beverages from Indigenous-owned businesses (snacks from Mabu Mabu and Bunji Catering, craft beers from Henry Street Brewhouse, wines from Mt Yengo wines, and non-alcoholic beer from Sobah); and
- sourcing copies of the books from Indigenous-owned book sellers where possible.
On average, 20 people expressed interest and 10-12 people attended each Book Club over the course of the year. Both AISN members and non-members have attended.
Zoe Sakell provided the following reflection on the second meeting of Book Club:
“The AISN Book Club has been a fantastic way to engage with colleagues across the firm, through discussion of thought-provoking pieces of literature, film or other media created by Indigenous authors. A highlight for me was the screening of the short film The Moogai, shared by AISN co-chair Stephanie Parsons. The Moogai is a critically acclaimed short film, written and directed by Indigenous filmmaker Jon Bell, which engages with historic and perpetual challenges facing Indigenous Australians in a creative thriller allegory. The screening of The Moogai promoted thoughtful discussion of the medium of film for storytelling and our personal interpretations of the film’s themes. As a graduate at ABL, the AISN’s quarterly Book Club sessions have been a rewarding opportunity to develop connections across the firm and grow my understanding of the stories, experiences and creative talents of Indigenous Australians.”
Zoe Sakell, Law Graduate