Sacred Secular
ABOUT THE SHOW
Susan Orlean, Adam Liaw, Debra Dank & Mariana Enriquez in conversation with Amber Gwynne
Archives, kitchens, libraries, cemeteries: these hallowed spaces of loss and discovery are where we excavate buried histories, build community, uncover new narratives and pay our respects to the dead. Join these four magnificent writers as they reveal the storied places that underpin their masterful new works of non-fiction.
PART OF BRISBANE WRITERS FESTIVAL
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Susan Orlean is the bestselling author of eight books including Joyride, The Library Book, and The Orchid Thief, which was made into the Oscar-winning film Adaptation. She has been a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine since 1992. She lives in Los Angeles.
Adam Liaw has been cooking Asian cuisines his whole life. Born in Penang, Malaysia to a Singaporean mother and a Hainanese Chinese father, he has mixed Chinese, English, French and Indonesian heritage. He migrated to Australia as a child with his family in the 1980s and grew up in Adelaide, South Australia with his seven brothers and sisters. Through his early years, he spent his time between Australia, Malaysia and his mother’s home in Beijing, China. In his twenties, he moved to Tokyo, Japan, where he lived and worked for seven years. He has presented and produced multiple award-winning television programs, including The Cook Up with Adam Liaw, Recipe of the Year, the multiple AACTA award-winning Destination Flavour, and the Audible Original series How Taste Changed the World. He is the food editor of Sunday Life magazine, a columnist for Good Food, and the author of eleven cookbooks, including Two Asian Kitchens, Asian After Work, Adam Liaw’s Asian Cookery School, Tonight’s Dinner and 7 Days of Dinner. Adam is UNICEF Australia’s National Ambassador for Nutrition, and in 2016 was appointed an official Goodwill Ambassador for Japanese Cuisine by the Japanese government. He holds university degrees in science and law, and with more than 2 million followers across his social media platforms, Adam is one of the most prominent voices in Asian cuisines. He lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife Asami, and their children, Christopher, Anna and Benji.
Dr Debra Dank – Gudanji/Wakaja and Kalkadoon writer, Dr Debra Dank’s first book, We Come with This Place, was awarded a record four out of fourteen NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, the Australian Literature Society (ALS) Gold Medal as well as several other awards in 2023. She published Terraglossia and Ankami in 2025.
Mariana Enríquez was born in Argentina in 1973. She is the author of the novel Our Share of Night and the collections of short fiction, Things We Lost in Fire, A Sunny Place for Shady People and The Dangers of Smoking in Bed. Her most recent book is the travelogue Somebody Is Walking on Your Grave.
PERFORMANCE DATES & TIMES
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Suitable for All ages
18 months and under free on the knee; all other ages must hold a valid ticket
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Susan Orlean is the bestselling author of eight books including Joyride, The Library Book, and The Orchid Thief, which was made into the Oscar-winning film Adaptation. She has been a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine since 1992. She lives in Los Angeles.
Adam Liaw has been cooking Asian cuisines his whole life. Born in Penang, Malaysia to a Singaporean mother and a Hainanese Chinese father, he has mixed Chinese, English, French and Indonesian heritage. He migrated to Australia as a child with his family in the 1980s and grew up in Adelaide, South Australia with his seven brothers and sisters. Through his early years, he spent his time between Australia, Malaysia and his mother’s home in Beijing, China. In his twenties, he moved to Tokyo, Japan, where he lived and worked for seven years. He has presented and produced multiple award-winning television programs, including The Cook Up with Adam Liaw, Recipe of the Year, the multiple AACTA award-winning Destination Flavour, and the Audible Original series How Taste Changed the World. He is the food editor of Sunday Life magazine, a columnist for Good Food, and the author of eleven cookbooks, including Two Asian Kitchens, Asian After Work, Adam Liaw’s Asian Cookery School, Tonight’s Dinner and 7 Days of Dinner. Adam is UNICEF Australia’s National Ambassador for Nutrition, and in 2016 was appointed an official Goodwill Ambassador for Japanese Cuisine by the Japanese government. He holds university degrees in science and law, and with more than 2 million followers across his social media platforms, Adam is one of the most prominent voices in Asian cuisines. He lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife Asami, and their children, Christopher, Anna and Benji.
Dr Debra Dank – Gudanji/Wakaja and Kalkadoon writer, Dr Debra Dank’s first book, We Come with This Place, was awarded a record four out of fourteen NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, the Australian Literature Society (ALS) Gold Medal as well as several other awards in 2023. She published Terraglossia and Ankami in 2025.
Mariana Enríquez was born in Argentina in 1973. She is the author of the novel Our Share of Night and the collections of short fiction, Things We Lost in Fire, A Sunny Place for Shady People and The Dangers of Smoking in Bed. Her most recent book is the travelogue Somebody Is Walking on Your Grave.
