EDITORIAL
GINA MERCER
In this issue I have eschewed themes and simply let Serendipity send me what she willed. In the time-honoured way of Serendipity, she has been generous with her resonant offerings. An essay by Suzanne Rumney about her experiences as a teacher of English in post-Independence East Timor provides disquieting insights into the complexities and dangers faced by all who work in that restless country.
An essay by Eleanor Hogan about her experiences as a white bureaucrat working in the indigenous ‘industry’ in Alice Springs gives a self-critical analysis of working in that terrain of complexity.
An essay by Elisabeth Hanscombe on the ethical dilemmas facing nonfiction writers in their search for ‘truth’, in all its multiplicities, provides a personal and provocative exploration of that territory.
An extract from Michelle Hamadache’s memoir maps the contours of emotion experienced when an Australian woman marries an Algerian man and they return to Algeria to visit his family. I think most people would have felt cautious about the gift of ‘hand-sewn sheep stomachs stuffed with rice’ which had travelled, unrefrigerated, on a plane.
Our five reviewers provide thoughtful perspectives on a range of books covering topics as diverse as: the internecine squabblings of sporting bodies in Tasmania; academics who steal their students’ work; female convicts in Tasmania; wordsmiths at war with themselves; and the unsuspected politicking between mothers involved in a weekly playgroup.
As always, Serendipity and a whole armada of eager poets and short-story writers provide a selection of fresh poetry and fiction. Of course the poetry offerings must pass through the acute eye of poetry editor, our inimitable James Charlton, who dedicates so much intellectual energy to his selection.
May you enjoy revelling in the connections and complexities of this assemblage brought to you by the grace of Serendipity.
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