They say that the opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference. We’ve all encountered books we cast aside a few pages in, then promptly forgot about. But what of the books we read cover to cover despite growing rage and judgement? What does it mean to ‘hate-read’ a book, and what impact can art we loathe have on us, politically, intellectually or creatively? Why do we need literary criticism and, in Australia’s small and connected industry, has our criticism gotten too soft?
Join authors Christos Tsiolkas and Vivian Blaxell, with the Sydney Review of Books editor James Jiang and literary critic Beejay Silcox for this feisty and furious dissection of art we hate – and why we need it for a robust artistic landscape to thrive.
Christos Tsiolkas is the author of eight novels, Loaded, The Jesus Man, Dead Europe, The Slap, Barracuda, Damascus, 7 1/2, and The In-Between, as well as the short story collection, Merciless Gods. Christos is also a playwright, scriptwriter and film reviewer. He is a patron of Writers Victoria and a past winner of the Melbourne Prize for Literature.
Vivian Blaxell’s essay Nuclear Cats was a finalist for the 2021 Melbourne Prize for Literature. In 2025, she published Worthy of the Event: An Essay at LittlePuss Press (NYC). She lives in Naarm/Melbourne.
Dr James Jiang edits the Sydney Review of Books, based in the Writing and Society Research Centre at Western Sydney University. He has previously worked as an editor at Griffith Review and Australian Book Review. Before becoming an editor, James was an academic in literary studies, teaching at the University of Melbourne. He received his BA from Yale and his PhD from Cambridge.
Beejay Silcox is a writer and book critic. Her work appears in high-profile publications across three continents and is renowned for its resolute (some might say, foolhardy) honesty. She has been described as “the most significant new Australian critic in decades”.
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This event is part of the Main Program and included as part of Platinum, Gold, Silver and Saturday Bronze Passes.
Subject to availability, a limited number of single tickets may become available 9 September.
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This venue is wheelchair accessible. Please visit our Accessibility page or email hello@bluemountainswritersfestival.com.au if you have any other accessibility requirements.