This year the U3A Friday Creative Writing Group at Hurstbridge has seen a number of works come to fruition and we are very proud of what our group has achieved.
Sabi Buehler’s memoir about her mother’s life and arrival in Australia, A Life in Two Suitcases: Gundel’s Story, has recently been translated into German and, in April, Sabi travelled to Germany for the official launch. Whilst there, she sold enough copies to pay for her short holiday in Croatia. The original version of Sabi’s book in English is available online through Amazon, Booktopia, The Book Depository and major book stores.
In November, the group hosted the launch of The Fraught Ambitions of a Man, Rebecca Hayman’s latest novel. Thank you to the U3A members who were part of the 40+ crowd at Eltham Library. Rebecca’s friend Luba Gong, who grew up in China, spoke of how accurately Rebecca has captured Chinese village life. Rebecca then spoke about the special man that she and her family met while living in China and on whose life the novel is loosely based. She read to us some enticing passages about her main character Fui Lai, while being careful not to give away the story. It was such a friendly gathering chatting over nibbles that library staff needed to move us on at the end of the night. If you would like to obtain a copy of Rebecca’s book, contact her by email (becca_mike@yahoo.com).
Also in November, Chris Winkett published and launched a beautiful memoir, A Long Way from Where I Started, about her young life in England and her family’s migration story. Chris’s family, her friends and our writing group celebrated this significant achievement at St Margaret’s church hall. Instead of selling her memoir, Chris gave books away but offered people the opportunity to donate to the Asylum Resource Centre and this raised nearly $1,000 for the cause.