Talking Aussie Books with Valerie Miller

Valerie Miller is a Brisbane-based writer who teaches high school by day and writes stories at night. In late 2024, Valerie decided to self-publish her debut novel 'There's Something About You Olivia Bennett'. A dual-time line historical novel which flips between Sydney of the 1960s and late 1980s. This is a book that Valerie has coloured with her experiences as a child of Italian migrants. A book that explores amongst other things, post-war proxy brides, the difficulties faced by migrants as they tried to assimilate into the Australian way of life, the importance and value of female friendships and the different types of family bonds forged in the absence of biological ones. A heart-warming, nostalgic story that took me back to my own childhood in many ways. I loved this chat with Valerie and hope you will too.