Hearing Maud

*Shortlisted for the Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2020: Non-Fiction*Hearing Maud: A Journey for a Voice is a work of creative non-fiction that details the author'sexperiences of deafness after losing most of her hearing at age four. It charts how, as shegrew up, she was estranged from people and turned to reading and writing for solace,eventually establishing a career as a writer. Central to her narrative is the story of Maud Praed, the deaf daughter of 19th centuryQueensland expatriate novelist Rosa Praed. Although Maud was deaf from infancy, she waseducated at a school which taught her to speak rather than sign, a mode difficult for someonewith little hearing. The breakup of Maud's family destabilised her mental health and at agetwenty-eight she was admitted to an asylum, where she stayed until she died almost fortyyears later. It was through uncovering Maud's story that the author began to understandher own experiences of deafness and how they contributed to her emotional landscape,relationships and career.