First Chapter: Edition Six
Happy spring to our friends in the Southern Hemisphere.
A big thank you to everyone who joined us last week for our first-ever all-ages day party. It was such a treat to listen to The Beatles’ Revolver and enjoy a special performance by Melbourne band The Messy Checkers. Ultra Culture was packed, the weather was sublime, and the whole day felt very special. Huge thanks to Arlo, Ukoo Skincare, and Ultra Culture for helping make it such a success.
Over at First Chapter, we hosted our first-ever Book Bar, where we swapped books and listened to readings. Thanks again to everyone who came along! Keep an eye on your inbox for the announcement of our giveaway winner.
Jamil read from a work in progress, and Nadisha read a chapter from Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower.
With a new month come new events. We’re delighted to welcome our September guest curator — and one of my favourite people — Erik Jensen to First Chapter.
Erik Jensen is the founding editor of The Saturday Paper and editor-in-chief and chief executive of Schwartz Media. He is the author of five books, most recently the poetry collection A Lick of Fireweed. Erik has selected Jamaica Kincaid’s 1985 novel Annie John for us to read together!
As ever, the event runs from 6:30 pm on the last Monday of the month at Hope St Radio. Tickets are available via this link — use the discount code FIRSTCHAPTER10.
The blurb from the publisher describes the book as follows:
An adored only child, Annie has until recently lived a peaceful and content life. She is inseparable from her beautiful mother, a powerful and influential presence, who sits at the very centre of the little girl's existence. Loved and cherished, Annie grows and thrives within her mother's shadow.
When she turns twelve, however, Annie's life changes, in ways that are often mysterious to her. She begins to question the cultural assumptions of her island world; at school she makes rebellious friends and frequently challenges authority; and most frighteningly, her mother, seeing Annie as a 'young lady', ceases to be the source of unconditional adoration and takes on the new and unfamiliar guise of adversary.
A haunting and tragicomic tale of the end of childhood, Annie John is told with Jamaica Kincaid's trademark candour and complexity, and is a true coming-of-age classic.
We can't wait to read it together!
And if you missed the news in our last newsletter, No Skips is growing! We now have a second home at High Note in Northcote. We’ll still be at The Moat in the CBD on the first Monday of the month, and now at High Note on the third Tuesday of the month. We’re so excited to spotlight more local musicians, and to keep listening deeply to great records together.
To celebrate this partnership with High Note, we're welcoming guest selector, and local musician, Nkechi Anele, in September. Nkechi, who is also the lead vocalist for Melbourne-based band Owelu Dreamhouse, has selected Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti's 1973 afrobeat album, Gentleman, for us to listen to together. For bookings, follow this link.
Sydney and London friends, we have a few events in the works and can’t wait to share more in the coming weeks.
I hope September is kind to you.
See you soon,
Santilla