Angel Down, Bondi Literary Salon Book Club

Join the Bondi Literary Salon for our next book club hosted by Anna O'Grady. In our gathering, we will discuss the 2026 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Angel Down, by Daniel Kraus.

WHEN: Wednesday, 12th of August 2026, at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore; please arrive at 6.45 pm for a prompt 7 pm start.

TICKETS: Admission: $25.00 (excluding external fees). Your ticket includes a drink on arrival and nibbles during the evening.

A stylistically bold and innovative, cinematic horror novel about greed and paranoia, set amongst the grit and mud of the trenches in WW1. Perfect for fans of Stephen Graham Jones and Alma Katsu.

The Book:

Private Cyril Bagger has managed to survive the unspeakable horrors of the Great War through his wits and deception, swindling fellow soldiers at every opportunity. But his survival instincts are put to the ultimate test when he and four other grunts are given a deadly mission: venture into the perilous No Man’s Land to euthanize a wounded comrade.

What they find amid the ruined battlefield, however, is not a man in need of mercy but a fallen angel, seemingly struck down by artillery fire. This celestial being may hold the key to ending the brutal conflict, but only if the soldiers can suppress their individual desires and work together. As jealousy, greed, and paranoia take hold, the group is torn apart by their inner demons, threatening to turn their angelic encounter into a descent into hell.

The Author:

DANIEL KRAUS is a New York Times bestselling author. With Guillermo del Toro, he co-authored The Shape of Water, based on the same idea the two created for the Oscar-winning film. Also with del Toro, Kraus co-authored Trollhunters, which was adapted into the Emmy-winning Netflix series. Kraus’s The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch was named one of Entertainment Weekly‘s Top 10 Books of the Year, and he has won two Odyssey Awards (for Rotters and Scowler) and has been a Library Guild selection, YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults, Bram Stoker finalist, and more. Kraus’s current project is The Living Dead, a posthumous collaboration with legendary filmmaker George A. Romero. Kraus’s work has been translated into over 25 languages. His feature films as director include Musician (New York Times Critics’ Pick) and Sheriff (PBS’s Independent Lens). He lives in Chicago.

The Guest Host: Anna O'Grady

Anna is a publicity director at Simon and Schuster Australia and she comes from the third generation of a family of booksellers and publishers. She has over 25 years of experience in book trade in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA, Switzerland, England and Poland. She can’t remember the time she started reading and continues reading across languages and genres. She has a very special corner of her heart reserved for the Moomins and Tove Jansson and she equally loves classics and contemporary fiction. Some of her favorites include Ann Patchett, Maggie O’Farrell, George Saunders, Margaret Atwood, Michael Ondaatje, Richard Flanagan, Charlotte Wood, Olga Tokarczuk, Margurete Duras, Margueritte Yourcenar and Svetlana Alexievich. She has a very strong interest in books in translation and hosted a series of programs for ABC radio on books from different countries.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Whalefall, and the co-author of The Shape of Water alongside Guillermo del Toro. 

About The Bondi Literary Salon

Bondi Literary Salon was established in 2018, it is the in-house book club of beloved Bondi institution, Gertrude & Alice. The group endeavours to explore the vast world of literature each month, with a selection that reflects a focus on diverse writers and stories; delving into both classic and contemporary fiction, as well as non-fiction. 

Our philosophy has always been to use language and literature not only as a tool for connection and community, but as an insight into worlds we have not had the pleasure of visiting ourselves. We welcome all - young and old, those with a life-long love of literature, or whose relationship may be only beginning. Join us in the unmatched comfort of an after-hours bookstore, accompanied by wine and cheese, for an evening spent discussing books and building community.

About Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore:

Rated as one of the top 10 bookstores in the world by National Geographic, Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore is an oasis for writers, readers, and coffee lovers. Books overflow from the shelves of their store, featuring a mix of new, second-hand, antiquarian and rare books. Stay a while & enjoy some home made chai, and amazing coffee, and unearth a book treasure or two. Read more about the bookstore's story here, and about the real Gertrude & Alice here.

Angel Down plunges you into the heart of World War I and weaves a polyphonic tale of survival, supernatural wonder, and moral conflict.