Borderland Launch with Graham Akhurst

Jono, a city-born Indigenous teenager is trying to figure out who he really is. Life in Brisbane hasn’t exactly made him feel connected to his Country or community. Luckily, he’s got his best friend, Jenny, who has been by his side through their hectic days at St Lucia Private.

After graduating, Jono and Jenny score gigs at the Aboriginal Performing Arts Centre and an incredible opportunity comes knocking — interning with a documentary crew. Their mission? To promote a big government mining project in the wild western Queensland desert. The catch? The details are sketchy, and the land is rumoured to be sacred. But who cares? Jono is stoked just to be part of something meaningful. Plus, he gets to be the lead presenter!

Life takes a turn when they land in Gambari, a tiny rural town far from the hustle and bustle of the city. Suddenly, Jono’s intuition becomes his best guide. He’s haunted by an eerie omen of death, battling suffocating panic attacks, and even experiencing visions of Wudun — a malevolent spirit from the Dreaming. What’s the real story behind the gas mining venture? Are the documentary crew hiding something from Jono? And could Wudun be a messenger from the land, fighting back against the invasion?

Borderland is a heart-pounding horror gothic that follows Jono on an epic quest to find himself in the face of unbelievable challenges. Graham Akhurst, the brilliant mind behind this coming-of-age gem, is a Fulbright scholar from the Kokomini of Northern Queensland. Brace yourself for a fresh, mind-bending tale exploring Indigenous identity, the impact of colonization, and what happens when you take a stand.

Our event space is wheelchair accessible via a stair lift. Please contact events@betterread.com.au with any additional access requirements and/or questions.

Graham Akhurst is an Aboriginal writer and academic hailing from the Kokomini of Northern Queensland. He is currently a Lecturer of Indigenous Australian Studies and Creative Writing at The University of Technology Sydney. He is a contributing editor at Kweli Journal, New York City. Graham was named the first Indigenous recipient of the Fulbright W.G Walker award as the highest-ranked postgraduate Australian applicant. His Fulbright award funded the completion of an MFA in Fiction from Hunter College (CUNY). Graham also completed an MPhil and a firstclass honours degree both in Creative Writing from The University of Queensland. He currently lives and works on Gadigal Country in Sydney. Borderland is his first novel. Graham Akhurst is represented by Danielle Binks and the Jacinta di Mase Agency.

Delia Falconer is the award-winning author of two novels, The Service of Clouds, The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers, and Sydney, a personal history of her hometown, where she still lives. Her fourth book, Signs and Wonders: Dispatches from a time of beauty and loss, was published by Scribner Australia in 2021.