The Equal Heart and Mind

The Equal Heart and Mind is an intimate portrait of poet Judith Wright and philosopher Jack McKinney. Set in Brisbane and at Mt Tamborine, where they lived for almost twenty years, these letters vividly recreate their intertwined lives and also paint an unforgettable picture of postwar Brisbane with its lively cabals of writers, artists and intellectuals.For decades, Judith Wright kept secret this cache of letters, giving them late in life to her daughter Meredith McKinney. Meredith and Patricia Clarke have edited the letters, interspersing them with poems, a selection of family album photographs and facsimiles of some of the handwritten and typescript letters. Meredith also contributes a special memoir of her parents, and the book concludes with Judith’s moving account of Jack’s death in 1966.These letters, poems and commentaries – along with the illustrations – together make an exquisite addition to the field of Australian literary biography.