Overland #209

For Christmas, my mum bought me subscriptions to Overland, Meanjin and Island journals, and given my subscriptions already to The Lifted Brow and Voiceworks, it makes for a pretty great suite of subs. All that aside, this year I wanted to start reviewing more generally, and figure churning out some reviews to these subscriptions could be a great way to go. SO, to start us off, Overland.

Overland #209: Summer 2012

In the editorial to this issue, Jeff Sparrow talks about themes, saying that whilst it’s been a long time since Overland has had them, one sort of rose organically with this edition. This theme of writing and the role of it in Australia today emerges firmly as a common thread between what is, really, a pretty diverse selection of essays. From theatre collectives, human trafficking, copyright, Cyclone Tracy and espionage, this issue opens a really compelling and frank conversation about the responsibilities of a writer. Whether this is in reporting the underside of refugee camps, in telling the stories of the subjected, being a voice of the modern woman in a conservative, sexist Russia, in protecting your own writing or in sharing it freely. It's a conversation that takes so many forms, and one that is becoming more poignant in the modern, digital world, where stories have transitioned from print and local broadcasts to mass, international narratives and news. It's an interesting concept to brace, and now more than ever the storyteller is emerging as a force to be reckoned with. 

The non-fiction covers this sentiment broadly and openly, making for some pretty strong and compelling reads. I especially liked Me and Pussy Riot by Everett True, a love song to the band, but also a reflection on the movers and shakers in modern riot girl feminism and women in punk rock. Other highlights are David Carlin's Scenes from a Radical Theatre, a creative retelling the life of Melbourne's Red Shed Company and Isabelle Skaburskis' Overlooking Tragedy, which discusses and observes the victims of human trafficking. 

This issue also features the Overland/Victoria University Short Story Prize winners. All three are strong pieces but the winner is, well, the winner. Tara Cartland’s Frank O’Hara’s Animals is pretty great, and man, does it speak to my magical realism heart. The short focuses on Dimity, a girl who finds out she can stop time. It is really, really, wonderful, and the whole issue is worth picking up for that alone. 

Non-fiction and short aside, none of the poetry is really notable for me in this issue. That said, I'm pretty fussy with my poetry, so would be interested to see what people more attune to the form think.

All in all though, it's a strong issue and one that opens an important dialogue about the responsibilities of not only journalists but writers as a whole. You can pick up Overland at your local, independent bookstore or at their website.