Randa Abdel-Fattah: Discipline

Hailed as ‘blistering and brilliant’, Randa Abdel-Fattah's new work of fiction confronts uncomfortable realities of what’s at stake when we speak truth to power.

An unflinching dive into the ruptures of our social fabric, Randa Abdel-Fattah’s Discipline explores the ugly truths about the sacrifices we’re willing to make in pursuit of what is right.

Through the intertwined stories of Ashraf, an academic whose career and personal life are in freefall, and Hannah, a young journalist struggling to honour the voices of her community, Abdel-Fattah shines a light on the compromised inner workings of two of today's most contested fields – academia and the media. Grappling with racism, moral courage and the failings of liberal institutions, this is a work that considers the choices people make to change unjust systems – or allow unjust systems to change them.

Abdel-Fattah sits down with Micaela Sahhar to discuss writing this bold novel that asks: who pays the price when those who are privileged choose to remain silent?

You may also like the following events from The Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas:

• Next month, 6th September, 04:00 am, Luke Patterson: A Savage Turn in Melbourne
• Next month, 22nd September, 04:30 am, Nova Weetman: Kids' Writing Workshop [Warrnambool] in Warrnambool
• This October, 9th October, 09:00 am, Callie Hart on Quicksilver and Brimstone in Melbourne