Melanie Jansen at Paperchain

Join us at Paperchain Bookstore to hear Melanie Jansen, author of All That Could Be Lost, in conversation with Joo-Inn Chew.

Dr Melanie Jansen is a paediatric intensive care specialist and ethicist. Many of the poems in her book record her efforts to make sense of her challenging but profoundly rewarding work, telling stories of the miraculous, of heart-breaking tragedy, and of moments of hope and wonder in the middle of crisis; and probe, through these experiences, profound philosophical questions. But there is also a life to be lived beyond the hospital.

All That Could Be Lost examines this life, too, with honesty, intelligence and rigour, reaching into into the depths of her personal pain and loss, tracing how the close company she keeps with the crises and griefs of others affects her own experiences of grief; and celebrating, with an unabashed joy, the experience of found love, and of motherhood.

Dr Joo-Inn Chew is a GP specialising in mental health. She writes first-person stories and poems. She has been published in anthologies including Grieve, and Black Inc's Growing Up Asian in Australia, Growing Up Queer in Australia and Growing Up in Country Australia. She edited the collection Heart Murmurs: Stories by Canberra GPs.

This event is free but as space is limited please book to secure your place.