Join us on Saturday 8 August (2pm) for a special in-conversation event with Sarah Cochrane Ridout and Melissa Ashley discussing Sisters in Arms: Oodgeroo Noonuccal, Kathie Cochrane and the battle for the 1967 Referendum (AndAlso Books).

The powerful story of a friendship that changed history...

The 1967 Referendum was the most successful in Australia’s history. Sisters in Arms is a powerful work of creative non-fiction about the friendship between Oodgeroo Noonuccal and Kathie Cochrane, and their part in this pivotal campaign.

Working side by side – while raising families, attending rallies and door knocking whole communities – Oodgeroo and Kathie confronted hidden alliances, clashing agendas and government surveillance. Spies in parked cars watched them day and night. Oodgeroo’s home was broken into. Kathie was branded a Communist, and her children were shunned.

Drawing on archival research, declassified ASIO files and family memories, Kathie Cochrane’s granddaughter, Sarah Cochrane Ridout, tells the story of two remarkable women whose friendship, shared struggle and refusal to yield helped build the momentum for one of the great turning points in Australian history: the landslide YES vote.

Sisters in Arms reveals how this crucible of change also birthed Oodgeroo’s ground-breaking literary career. The story was written with close support and permissions of both families, and includes extracts from Vivian (Kabul) Walker’s unpublished biography of his mother.

Sarah Cochrane Ridout holds a Masters in Creative Writing (First Class Honours), from University College Dublin (UCD). Her first novel Le Chateau, was published after selection for the QWC/Hachette Australia Manuscript Development Program. A Katherine Susannah Prichard Fellow, Sarah has a First-Class Honours Masters in Creative Writing from University College Dublin (UCD). Her Creative Australia grant for Sisters in Arms included First Nations Cultural Sensitivity Report and editing by Barkindji woman Dr Allanah Hunt. Sarah has been writing throughout her public relations career, before commencing memoir and novel writing. She always wanted to write about her grandmother’s activism in the 1967 Referendum and lifelong friendship with Oodgeroo Noonuccal (Kath Walker). The complexities of the role of women interests her as do identity and place as signifiers, and the multiple effects of displacement on identity. Sarah loves travel and the immersion into other cultures provided by her twelve years living in Europe. She enjoys reading, film, music (especially David Bowie), and is an artist and collector. Find out more at sarahridout.com.au

Melissa Ashley is an award-winning and bestselling author of historical novels, The Naturalist of Amsterdam, The Bee and the Orange Tree and The Birdman's Wife, as well as one collection of poetry, The Hospital for Dolls. She has published articles and reviews in a variety of media and appeared in a range of literary festivals and conferences. She works to develop other writers’ skills and confidence through teaching writing and poetry, mentoring, manuscript appraisal, editing and all-round support. She is passionate about uncovering women’s forgotten lives, particularly in art and science. Melissa lives in Brisbane with her family.

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All our events are free to attend, but bookings are required as seats are limited.

Contact the host of Books@Stones event: Sisters in Arms by Sarah Cochrane Ridout