Last month in Canberra, at the National Library of Australia, Professor Ian Donaldson delivered the 2006 ABR/La Trobe University Annual Lecture, his subject being ‘the return of biography’. It proved to be one of the most popular and impressive orations that ABR has presented. Victorians and South Australians won’t want to miss the lecture when Professor Donaldson repeats it on September 20 and October 8, respectively. Full details appear on page 16.

Rembrandt in Australia

The authenticity of works in Rembrandt collections has often been questioned, but there is no doubting the bona fides of Professor Ronald de Leeuw, director of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, who will deliver a lecture titled ‘Rembrandt and the Rijksmuseum’ at 5.30 p.m. on Monday, October 30, at the Art Gallery of South Australia. ABR is delighted to be able to present this lecture in association with the AGSA and with Flinders University. The arrangements are being finalised now and will follow via e-mail later this month. We urge ABR subscribers to book early, as demand for this event is high.

Intimate gestures

No, we don’t mean the kind that makes driving on our roads such a colourful experience these days. Later this month, the National Library of Australia will become quite romantic when it hosts ‘Love and Desire: Literature and the Intimate’, described as ‘an exhilarating conference of ideas for writers, readers and anyone who’s been in love’. One highlight is the Kenneth Binns Lecture by David Malouf, on ‘Love and Literature’. Others sessions include ‘The Body in Writing’, ‘The intimate Gesture’, ‘Love and Obsession’ and ‘Writing Desire’, with speakers such as Brian Castro, Gail Jones, Dorothy Porter and Brenda Walker. The conference dates are September 23–24. Bookings: (02) 6262 1271 or e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Pandanus update

Further to our item in last month’s Advances concerning the virtual disappearance of Pandanus Books (‘Electronic Windchimes’), we now learn that Pandanus and UNIREPS have finalised arrangements to ensure continued availability of Pandanus titles. Pandanus will cease publishing new titles ‘after early 2007’. Reprints and new editions will be managed by UNSW Press. Elsewhere in this issue David McCooey echoes our note of regret in his review of the poetry anthology Windchimes: Asia in Australian Poetry (page 34).

Bring back White

ABR blog visitors will be aware of a novel response to The Australian/Patrick White imbroglio. Members of the online literary community Sarsaparilla (named after Patrick White’s fictional suburb in Sydney) have formed the Patrick White Reader’s Group, starting on September 1. The democratically chosen first title is The Vivisector. Membership is open to all comers. Visit http://patrickwhite.ozewriters.com for more details.

Survey winners

As mentioned last month, ABR couldn’t have hoped for a more helpful or discerning response to our reader survey. To date we have received about 400 surveys, far more than we expected. The data, still being patiently keyed in, will inform changes to the magazine over the next few years. We’d like to be able to reward everyone who responded, but that isn’t possible. The recipient of the complimentary ten-year subscription is William Riedel (SA). The following ABR readers will each receive a copy of Kate Grenville’s novel The Secret River, courtesy of Text Publishing: Kabita Dhara (Vic.), John Hay (NSW), Peter Kennedy (ACT), Janice Knight (SA) and Lesley McKay (Vic.).