Jack Ellis
Home and Other Hiding Places
When eight-year-old Fin and his mum, Lindy, travel to spend Christmas with his Gran in Sydney, Fin assumes they’ll return to their isolated country property – the only home he’s ever known. But he soon discovers that this large and crumbling riverside house, surrounded by bush and unwelcoming neighbours, is his home now. As Lindy’s fragile emotions fracture under the weight of Gran’s disapproval and the pressure of old memories, Fin holds onto a tenderness of spirit and the simple clarity he has learnt from his isolation on the farm – an insight that hasn’t yet been clouded by the secret codes of adulthood. But as the life he has known crumbles around him, Fin learns that no-one is coming to his rescue, and he sets off on a journey to find his way home.
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Bio
Jack is a writer and musician based in Sydney. His first novel, The Best Feeling of All, was published by Arcadia in 2014. Jack studied classical composition at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and the Royal Conservatorium in the Hague. He later studied dispute resolution and law at the University of Technology, Sydney. For the past 15 years, he has worked as a Mediator. This work has given him an insight into the complexities of relationships which has helped to shape his recent writing. His latest novel, Home and Other Hiding Places, is published by Ultimo Press.
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​Jack records and performs his original music under the name BayShaper. The name is inspired by Jack's memories of his childhood on Sydney's northern beaches, and his realisation as a young man that, rather than the earthquakes, floods and storms, it's the ripples that shape the bay - the little things we do each day.
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Jack's new EP of original songs - BayShaper - will be released through Noisy Music in October 2024.