New Orleans, Moccasins and Migrants #SWF2010
Author: Elena Gomez
A dilemma of sorts. Conversations with Richard Fidler (interviewing graphic novelist Josh Neufeld and comic book author/novelist Richard Van Camp) was my first Sydney Writers Festival of 2010. Why, you ask? Well, between Josh’s sobering account of Hurricane Katrina, and Richard Van Camp’s talent for storytelling, this particular session was so packed with awesome that I’m not sure how the rest of the festival will really live up. I’m not gushing. Honest. You can listen to the session and judge for yourself.
Josh Neufeld, author of A.D: New Orleans After the Deluge, spoke about the characters in his story: real people who experienced the hurricane in various situations, the frustration and anger, stories that are perhaps difficult for people to hear, particularly those who don’t actually want to hear it. He spoke about the reactions people have towards graphic novels, with some taking the ‘comic’ from ‘comic books’ literally. In fact, he says, once many of his interviewees realised that he was simply telling their stories in a visual form. It’s an important aspect to take away from this particular session. Graphic novels have always been considered as a lesser form of art, compared to say, literature. But stories such as Josh’s, and of course the graphic novel “Palestine” by Joe Sacco, who wrote, and drew, about his experiences in the West Bank, show that graphic novels can reach places literature cannot. Someone could have gone and interviewed the same people, and written the stories as a series of vignettes, but it would be a completely different result, and I wonder if it would have had the same impact as Josh’s book.
Richard Van Camp barely spoke about his book, instead sharing stories he grew up with, and stories about his life as part of the Dogrib Nation, the indigenous population of northwest Canada. I hesitate to recap the stories he shared, from his people’s creation story about a woman who gave birth to six dogs, to the time his grandmother ended up making a giant pair of moccasins as a result of not-so-great camping spot choice (there were bush people involved — sasquatch. It’s a cool story).
One thing Richard said that really stuck with me was his idea about the future of books and technology. It’s not about that, he says. People are drawn to storytelling. He mentioned a blackout one Thanksgiving that brought his entire family closer together, sitting around and sharing stories. People, he says, crave that community aspect, and while he speaks as someone part of an indigenous culture that places heavy significance on oral stories, it’s something we can all relate to. I could go on forever about this session, but really, listen to it and you’ll see what I mean when I say that there’s something incredibly comforting and warming about being told a story out loud.
I had a couple of spare hours before my next session, but still managed to run in a couple of minutes late. Changing Places, about the migrant experience and how it influences one’s writing, was not at all what I expected. Sure, it was insightful and entertaining, but, well, only one of the authors was actually a migrant, who had written about his experience. Kim Cheng Boey lived in Singapore, travelled to India and Morocco, and finally settled in Australia. His series of essays, which he read from, highlighted that sense of being caught in-between two places, where you have said goodbye to your home, but are yet to find your place in your new home. It’s a dilemma that many Australians can relate to, whether immigrants themselves, or first generation Australians. He overcame what seemed to be incredible shyness, to share the most vulnerable aspects of his book, including the impact of the death of his father.
Alison Booth, author of Stillwater Creek, is Australian, but living in the UK for twenty years only to return and find Australia a completely new place, spoke about feeling like “an immigrant in her own country.” While certainly interesting to listen to, I wondered at the inclusion of the UK in a panel about migrant experiences. Call me cynical but I’m not convinced that the exchanges between Australians and Britons really captures the struggle and cultural clashes that occur for other migrants.
Natasha Solomons’ novel, Mr Rosenblum’s List, was based on her grandparents’ evacuation from Berlin to the UK in the late 1930s. The list refers to a document created by Jews already living in Britain, for the refugees, detailing all the ways in which they could successfuly assimilate into British culture. Things like not talking too much with your hands, and never speaking German in public. Awful, sad and terrible things that are easy to click your tongue at without giving a second thought to those current refugees. But this isn’t about the politics of refugees. Natasha shared the history of her family and how this shaped her story but again, I felt a little cheated that the session did not really spark any of the discussion I was looking forward to.
Maybe I was looking for direction so I could write my own story about my family’s migrant experience. Or maybe I need to broaden my mind as to what actually constitutes a “migrant experience.”
But overall, my first day of Sydney Writers Fest has opened my mind, my ears, and my wallet. (So if you’re planning on not spending too much, I suggest staying away from the onsite bookshops). At least I stole received a free copy of Richard Van Camp’s novel, The Lesser Blessed. And got it signed. Thursday sessions = win.
Tags: alison booth, graphic novels, indigenous stories, josh neufeld, kim cheng boey, migrant stories, natasha solomon, richard van camp, sydney writers festival
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