Society
The fabulist of Auschwitz
Heather Morris’s bestselling novels ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ and ‘Cilka’s Journey’, and the problem of truth in historical fiction
February 2020
February 2020 eBook
Society
Caught up in the chaos of the catastrophic bushfires on the NSW South Coast, the author experienced the terror of those whose homes and loved ones are threatened, as the failures of leadership became all too real
Federal politics
On John Cain, Scott Morrison and our curious inability to elect good people
Federal politics
Independent MP Zali Steggall hopes her private member’s bill will take the partisanship out of climate-change policy
Environment
Having survived Afghanistan as a counterintelligence officer, a traumatised vet and his family lost their farm in the Adelaide Hills bushfires
Law and order
Bernard Collaery eagerly awaits his national security trial, energised by the prospect of highlighting the government’s misdeeds
Trading the joys of a childhood spent in the sun for an adulthood under scrutiny on a skin clinic table
Art
Stopped in the street: ‘Keith Haring | Jean-Michel Basquiat: Crossing Lines’
Early death meant the work of these renowned artists never fully emerged from ’80s New York subcultures
![Image [detail] of Agency, by William Gibson](https://www.themonthly.com.au/sites/default/files/styles/frontpage_medium_2x/public/Lucy_1140x700.jpg?itok=05EB4SP8 "Image of Agency, by William Gibson")
Books
Days of future passed: William Gibson’s ‘Agency’
The cyberpunk pioneer’s latest novel continues his examination of the present from the perspective of a post-apocalyptic future
Film
Kills, frills and Kelly aches: Justin Kurzel’s ‘True History of the Kelly Gang’
The Australian director brings a welcome sense of style to the unusually malleable story
Music
The king in exile: Gordon Koang
The music of the South Sudanese star and former refugee offers solace and a plea for unity
![Image of L’Arlésienne [detail], by Pablo Picasso](https://www.themonthly.com.au/sites/default/files/styles/frontpage_medium_2x/public/Cosic_1140x700_1.jpg?itok=3rK9EbZy "Image of L’Arlésienne [detail], by Pablo Picasso")
Art
‘Matisse & Picasso’: National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
Hanging works by the two masters together highlights their artistic rivalry and mutual influence
Books
‘A Couple of Things Before the End’ by Sean O’Beirne
The Australian author’s debut story collection confidently converts the linguistic detritus of our era into something of lasting value
