Stonnington Libraries

Presented as part of the Stonnington Libraries Literary Festival, [untitled]: our writers, readers and stories

Location: Toorak/South Yarra Library, 340 Toorak Road, South Yarra VIC
Time: 2pm - 3.15pm
Cost: Free event, bookings required

Corey White was a golden child. He knew this because his father would hit his mother and sisters but not him. And his mother adored him so much she let him drop out of primary school.

Joanne Brookfield talks to Corey White about his darkly funny debut, ‘The Prettiest Horse in the Glue Factory’, his memoir of trauma and survival that is equal parts horrifying and hilarious.

There are few voices in comedy as unique and potent as Corey White. In 2014 Corey performed his debut stand up show ‘The Cane Toad Effect’ – a staggeringly personal story of his experience growing up in foster care, surviving domestic violence, recovering from drug addiction and dealing with mental illness. The show won Best Show at the 2014 Sydney Fringe and Best Newcomer Award at the 2015 Melbourne International Comedy Festival and Sydney Comedy Festival. ‘The Prettiest Horse in the Glue Factory’ is his first book.

Joanne Brookfield is a journalist and comedy writer. A graduate of RMIT's BA in Journalism, she works as a freelance print journalist, writing mainly for Fairfax (The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and the Canberra Times). She has also contributed to The Guardian UK, The Sunday Herald Sun, The Mercury, The Courier Mail plus a variety of magazines. A lifelong comedy fan, she has always reported on the world of comedy, having covered the three biggest festivals in the world - Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Montreal Just For Laughs - plus other comedy and fringe festivals. She's also been a stand up herself, having performed multiple seasons of her shows around Australia and New Zealand.