Anita Heiss, Celeste Liddle, Zachary Penrith-Puchalski and Sharon Payne — Photo: Scott Limbrick

In her introduction to Growing up Aboriginal in Australia, editor Anita Heiss writes: ‘[These] stories cover country from Nukunu to Noongar, Wiradjuri to Western Arrernte, Ku Ku Yalinji to Kunibidji, Gunditjamara to Gumbaynggirr and many places in between.’

It’s a collection of truly diverse stories – sometimes surprising and funny, often confronting and always illuminating – that paint a rich and detailed picture of what it means to come of age as an Aboriginal Australian. How do the formative experiences of Aboriginal Australians shape their sense of self and their sense of community? And what experiences do Aboriginal kids across the country have in common – whether they’re in the city or the suburbs or in the most remote corners of the continent?

With contributors Celeste Liddle, Zachary Penrith-Puchalski and Sharon Payne, Heiss hosts a frank, funny and forthright discussion of formative years and life lessons.

Geoffrey Robertson at the Athenaeum Theatre — Photo: Jon Tjhia

He’s sparred with General Pinochet and Princess Diana. He’s stepped out with Nigella Lawson and, of course, Kathy Lette. He’s defended Salman Rushdie and worked alongside Amal Clooney. Geoffrey Robertson is a figure of uncommon energy, glamour and intellect.

Alongside his distinguished career as a human rights lawyer in London, Robertson has, for more than 30 years, enjoyed a parallel career as an author and broadcaster. His books on war crimes, free speech and the Vatican have shaped public debates. His famous TV series, Geoffrey Robertson's Hypotheticals, schooled generations in the discipline of Socratic questioning.

His latest book, Rather His Own Man, tells the colourful story of his life – from his days at Epping Boys High School to his Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford to the epic legal battles that have taken him to the UK Supreme Court, the European Court of Human Rights and appeal courts in Trinidad, Mauritius and more. Throughout famous trials and the ups and downs of family life, Robertson has held onto his irreverence, his principles and his commitment to human rights.

At the Athenaeum Theatre, this formidable Australian intellectual talks life, career, hypotheticals and humanity.