Charlotte McConaghy - The Last Migration

The Last Migration by Charlotte McConaghy is destined to become one of the books of the year. 

From the west coast of Ireland to Australia and remote Greenland, through crashing Atlantic swells to the bottom of the world, this is a gripping and deeply moving novel, an ode to the wild places and creatures now threatened, and an epic story of the possibility of hope against all odds. It's so good, we made it our Book of the Month for August! 

“An extraordinary novel… as beautiful and as wrenching as anything I’ve ever read.”  - Emily St John Mandel, author of Station Eleven and The Glass Hotel. 

Charlotte appears in-conversation with James Bradley, author of the bestselling novel Ghost Species. 

Event tickets are $5. Or you can select an Event+Book combo ticket for $32.99 - a saving of $5. This event will take place on Zoom. The Zoom meeting details form part of your ticket, emailed to you after registration. 

About the Book

A dark past. An impossible journey. The will to survive.

How far would you go for love? Franny Stone is determined to go to the end of the earth, following the last of the Arctic terns on what may be their final migration to Antarctica.

As animal populations plummet and commercial fishing faces prohibition on, Franny talks her way onto one of the few remaining boats heading south. But as she and the eccentric crew travel further from shore and safety, the dark secrets of Franny’s life begin to unspool. A daughter’s yearning search for her mother. An impulsive, passionate marriage. A shocking crime. Haunted by love and violence, Franny must confront what she is really running towards - and from.

The Last Migration on is a wild, gripping and deeply novel from a brilliant young local writer. From the west coast of Ireland to Australia and remote Greenland, through crashing Atlantic swells to the bottom of the world, this is an ode to the wild places and creatures now threatened, and an epic story of the possibility of hope against all odds.

Praise

“This novel is enchanting, but not in some safe, fairytale sense. Charlotte McConaghy has harnessed the rough magic that sears our souls. I recommend The Last Migration with my whole heart.” - Geraldine Brooks. 

“A lovely, haunting novel about a troubled woman’s quest to follow the last surviving Arctic terns on their southerly migration. As she tries to make peace with the ghosts of her painful past, she must choose whether she herself wants – or deserves – to survive, in spite of everything she, and all humans, have destroyed and lost.”  - Ceridwen Dovey, author of Only the Animals and In the Garden of the Fugitives. 

About the Author

Charlotte McConaghy has been writing from a young age. She has both a Graduate Degree in Screenwriting and a Masters Degree in Screen Arts, and has worked in script development for film and television for several years. She has written a number of speculative fiction novels. The Last Migration is her first literary novel. She lives in Sydney.

About the Moderator

James Bradley is the author of the novels Wrack, The Deep Field, The Resurrectionist, Clade, and a book of poetry, Paper Nautilus. His books have won or been shortlisted for a number of major Australian and international literary awards and have been widely translated. His latest novel is Ghost Species.