Five Great Reads: Siri Hustvedt looks into death’s abyss, Melissa Lucashenko on ‘white man’s fantasy’, and why w

Guardian Australia’s weekend wrap of essential reads from the past seven days, selected by Imogen Dewey Get this in your inbox every weekend. Sign up for Five Great Reads here Good morning. I’m back with a wrap of great writing from around the Guardian this week – I hope you find something here you like. I’d love to know what else you’ve been reading, too – drop us a line: australia.newsletters@theguardian.com “Australia does have a serious problem with social cohesion, but it’s no good pretending it’s recent,” the award-winning writer observed on Monday. “Koori civilisation has been torn asunder ever since the convict ships dropped anchor just south of Bondi, and the stealing of Blak land and lives and rights began.” So how do we fix it? Lucashenko argues that the modern Australian nation needs to acknowledge its original rift: the failure of the British crown to negotiate treaty. “Or to put it in simpler terms – no justice, no peace.” How long will it take to read: four minutes or so Writer Siri Hustvedt’s reflection on the death of her novelist husband, Paul Auster, is beautiful. This extract from her memoir has shards of light and dark: family gr

Apr 24, 2026 → Apr 24, 2026