In 1976 a young dyslexic boy makes a book for Book Week to be displayed in his primary school classroom. He calls it ‘The Pink Book’. It is a collection of softly painted pink pages with no words, no sentences, yet with a very strong story to tell. Forty years later, Henry von Doussa has written into those pink pages to free the waiting story.
Hardback, clothbound | ISBN: 978-0-9874037-8-0 | 183p, 23cm x 28cm | RRP $75.00
The Pink Book is a memoir about family, sexuality, class, and fear and grief through the HIV/AIDS epidemic, highlighting life’s juxtaposing forces: beauty and suffering, freedom and constraint.
‘This is a book with stories of youthful suffering. But it shows how the struggle for creativity and originality can contribute to healing.’
The Hon. Michael Kirby AC CMG
The Pink Book contains Henry von Doussa’s art, writing, and precious objects (including old family letters and photographs) to tell a story of growing up through the 80s and 90s, asking: What gives a family lift? What drags a family down? The Pink Book explores the power of creativity to understand and ease the mental ill-health that hangs as an ever-present spectre over multiple generations of an Australian family.
The Pink Book is an exceptionally crafted, beautifully presented publication designed by award-winning book designer Sean Hogan.
We wish to acknowledge that the photographs depicting a male model used in the ‘Religious Icon’ artworks (pages 18-21, 34-37 of The Pink Book) are by Melbourne photographer Drew Martyn. We apologise for not including an acknowledgement in the printed work.
Available now:
Bookshops and libraries – contact John Reed Book Distribution
buy online:
henryvondoussa.com
hares & hyenas
Clouds of Magellan Press 