December 9, 2025 • 28 mins
We kick off the show with a library update from Vision Australia Library manager Sarah Bloedorn, who gives us a sneak preview of what the library has in store for members in 2026.
You'll also hear from singer and songwriter Summer Giddings, who has recently released a single for Christmas entitled Paper Hats and Mistletoe, alongside her new album Christmas with Summer.
Then finally to wrap up we get the latest on the Telelink January interest groups from Telelink programs coordinator Maria Markou, and Frances joins the show with a Reader Recommended.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:21):
From Vision Australia. This is talking vision. And now here's
your host Sam Colley.
S2 (00:31):
Hello, everyone. It's great to be here with you. And
for the next half hour, we talk matters of blindness
and low vision.
S3 (00:38):
One of my main influences has actually been Delta Goodrem.
I've been fortunate enough to work with one of her producers,
music directors, on my other singles, but I think paper
had some mistletoe. There's a song on my album called
That's Christmas to Me by Pentatonix. It's a very different
version to obviously they sing a cappella in the original
and yeah, I think my original song Paper Hats and
(01:02):
Mistletoe has been closely joined to that song.
S2 (01:04):
Welcome to the program. This week we've got an action
packed show for you, starting off with a library update
from manager of the Vision Australia Library, Sarah Bloedorn. And
following on from that, I catch up with a singer
and songwriter with low vision. Her name is Summer Giddings,
(01:26):
and she's released some Christmas music just in time for
the festive season. We'll be catching up with her to
have a chat about that. And then finally we catch
up with Telelink coordinator Maria marku to hear about the
latest January Telelink special interest series coming up very shortly.
(01:50):
And then we finish up with a reader recommended from
Francis Kelland. I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of
Talking Vision. Even though 2025 is almost wrapped up, 2026
is just around the corner and the Vision Australia Library
(02:11):
has an action packed calendar in store for members in
the New year, and to have a chat with us
all about that and so much more. It's my great
pleasure to welcome back Vision Australia library manager Sarah Bloedorn. Sarah,
welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for
(02:31):
your time.
S4 (02:32):
Thanks for having me. It's been a little while.
S2 (02:34):
It has been. We've got a lot to talk about.
So let's jump into a bit of a preview of
2026 for our listeners out there.
S4 (02:44):
Absolutely. Well, we had such a massive year in 2025,
so we're certainly looking forward to a short break over,
which we hope everybody's reading lots of books over the summer.
But I thought I would talk about a few programs
that are coming up kind of early on in 2026. Um,
they're open for registration. So if anybody's thinking 2026 might
be the year to start your writing journey, maybe you're
(03:07):
looking to read more or just interested in meeting interesting people.
Hopefully these will tickle your fancy. Our first event of
the year kicks off on February 18th and it's Meet
your Vision Australia. Narrator. Now, this is something we work
with our radio team, actually, and our production team, because
we know so many people are interested in what happens
(03:27):
behind the scenes of their audiobooks. And we all have
lots of opinions about kind of what makes a good
narrator and who our favorite narrators are. So we're looking
forward to welcoming Victoria Howell as our first guest in 2026.
She's been one of our narrators who has narrated a
lot of library books for many years, so she's a
real treasure, an absolute gem in our volunteering space. And
(03:50):
what this will be is we invite our narrators to
bring along their favorite piece of literature to do a
special in-person reading for us, and then also have a
chat and a little bit more of a behind the
scenes of what happens behind the microphone at Vision Australia.
S2 (04:05):
Okay.
S4 (04:06):
So that one's February 18th. Feel free to register. I
should always also reiterate that all of our events are free. Um,
so please feel free to register for one or all
of them, but there's no cost for them, which is wonderful.
S2 (04:19):
That's fantastic. Yeah. Very exciting.
S4 (04:22):
And then our first writing course kicks off February 25th.
So this is memoir writing. We haven't done memoir writing
for a couple of years, but whenever we do, we
get so many people join. So if you're interested in
having a author work along with you and a small
group of people to start crafting your memoir, my biggest
encouragement would be sign up now because it will fill up. Um,
(04:44):
so we work with the amazing Victorian Writers Centre, um,
and they source amazing authors for us who will come
along and teach you everything from how to craft your story,
how to put it into words, how to organize your thoughts, etc.
and it will be a five week course. So over
five weeks when you'll come along to weekly sessions, you'll
hopefully be on the way to writing your memoir, whether
(05:06):
it's for yourself, whether it's to share with your family
or we've also had some people go on and have
their memoirs published. So lots of opportunity there. Please join.
As I mentioned, they fill up really quick. And then
the next one you get to meet some of my
team of of our librarians. So that's March 16th. So
on March 16th we have meet our librarians and discover
(05:27):
new titles. So what we often get asked by people
is I just don't know what to read next. Can
you recommend me something? Librarians love to recommend things. So
this is an opportunity to come along and spend an
hour with our librarians and hear about some of the
amazing new books that we've got coming up. Hopefully 1
or 2 will tickle your fancy. We also like to
invite everyone that comes along to tell us what they're reading,
(05:49):
and maybe do some book recommending of their own. So
these are always really fun sessions. I love doing these
because I get to learn about new books that I
haven't read, but I also get to talk about books,
which everybody loves. Um, so that's March 16th. So that's
just the first three events. We're looking forward to a
huge program throughout the year. What I would encourage you
if you are interested, our Vision Australia Library newsletter comes
(06:12):
out every two months, so keep an eye on their
new programs will be dropped into their first and register
as quickly as you can because they will fill up.
S2 (06:20):
And um, Sarah, I understand you've been following some book
reviews and overviews and looking back from the A, B, C,
they've got a pretty exciting program that they've put together.
S4 (06:34):
Yeah. So, um, we are always adding new books to
the library. Um, we have over 2000 titles added each
and every year. Sometimes. Well, lots more than that. Um,
but we want to always add things that people are
interested in reading and to be able to recommend them
to you. And you may have heard recently that ABC
Radio National's published a top 100 books of I believe
(06:57):
It's the 21st century. And guess how many of those
100 books we have in our library.
S2 (07:01):
Sam 100.
S4 (07:03):
Correct? Yes. So we're very proud to be able to
say that you can access these stories in the ways
that you like to read from our library. I'll just
take you through the top five just to let you
know what they are and how you can access them.
So coming in at number five with Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus, and we have that one in DC audio.
(07:23):
We have all the Light You Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.
Now that's available in Braille and audio. A Gentleman in
Moscow by Amor Towles is Daisy audio number two, and
probably one of my favorites on this list. The Book
Thief by Markus Zusak. We have that one in audio
and Braille. And then the number one winner, which is
(07:45):
very worthy. Winner was Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton.
It's a real modern classic, I guess. And we have
that in braille and audio. So all of the titles,
the 100 that we have, we have in audio and
some we also have in Braille. Please inquire or borrow them.
Inquire if we don't have it in braille, for example.
We can make sure we get that for you. So
(08:07):
love everybody to experience all of these amazing books.
S2 (08:10):
Perfect. And Sarah, what were the most borrowed books out
there for 2025? It's always quite interesting.
S4 (08:19):
Yeah, I was so interested to have a look and
see what's kind of trending. We always find lots of
crime books are borrowed. People enjoy a bit of romance,
but the one that's topped our list has been Dewey's
Nine Lives. And I had to look this up. But
I have read this book. It's gorgeous. It's by an
author called Vicki Myron, and it is about a little
ginger cat. It's the true story. Um, who is pushed
(08:41):
through the return chute in a local library when he's
just a tiny little kitten. Um, and then he lives
out his days working, I suppose. Working? Don't know if
they consider it working. Living in the little library that
he becomes part of. That's why his name is Dewey.
I remember reading, It's gorgeous. Really lovely actually. Holiday book
to read, I would say. So that's Dewey's Nine Lives,
(09:02):
if anybody hasn't read that yet. And then after that,
we've got Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. So I
guess we love a classic. Yes.
S2 (09:10):
Um, it's a good starting point.
S4 (09:12):
Yeah, absolutely. And look, I'm just running my eye down,
but it looks like lots of mystery. Um, so, yeah,
very much on trend. Lots of crime and mystery. So
all popular stuff. It's great to see. I wonder what
next years will be.
S2 (09:24):
Well, we'll have to find out. Now, speaking of next year, we're, um,
heading along to the holiday break, and Vision Australia Library
is also going on their own holiday break. So give
us a bit of info about the closure. When will
the library be off and when will they be coming back?
S4 (09:44):
Yeah, yeah. So we're having a small break. We won't
be gone for too long, but we do like to
remind people at this time of the year, especially before
we head off on the break, that if you're wanting
extra Braille loans, please let us know. Braille Library at
Vision Australia is our email address. The wonderful Bree and
our team will make sure you get some extra books
put in the post so you don't run out over Christmas.
(10:06):
We do have an office closure. Vision Australia office will
close from Tuesday the 23rd of December and will re-open
on Monday the 5th of January. So this does mean
if there's inquiries regarding your library service, we will get
back to you on or after the 5th of January
when we return. And we also do send a lot
(10:27):
of our envoy players out with lots of content for
our clients. If you would like yours to be refreshed
before the break, please send it back in. And then
we please just ask for everyone's patience when we come
back on board January 5th, and we will get back
to you as quickly as possible. We don't want anyone
to be without their books, so we will be back
on board and ready to assist from then.
S2 (10:48):
And um, if people would love to get in touch
with the Vision Australia Laura. Perry. Sarah. What's the best
way for them to do that?
S4 (10:58):
Yeah. So our phone number is 1300Â 654Â 656. I'll give you
that one again. 130654656. You can also email us at
library at Vision Australia. And now if you're a member
of the library, or maybe you're not yet a member
of the library, but are interested in becoming one, I
(11:18):
always like to send people first of all to our website.
So that's Vision Australia and the library page is Vision Australia. Library.
Now from there you can read all about kind of
what I've talked about. Our programs are listed there. We
have lots of book lists. If you're not sure what
to read next, information about different devices or ways to
(11:38):
access the library. And if you're very new to the library, um,
there's a page there with a form for you to
apply to be a library member. As I mentioned, we're
a completely free service. Um, we welcome everybody to kind
of use our a library as much as you would
like to, whether it's accessing stories and also accessing our programs.
S2 (11:57):
And it's really not that difficult to become a member. Sarah.
It's a very easy process. And the library team can,
of course, help you to do that. So people get
in touch with you through either the phone number or
the email if they are interested. And I'm sure you'd
be more than happy to help. Always great to have
(12:19):
more members, and definitely check out the Vision Australia library
and have a chat to our friendly team. Sarah, thank
you so much. It's been a pleasure to catch up
with you again and have a chat about the library.
S4 (12:32):
Thanks for having me.
S2 (12:33):
That was Sarah Bloedorn, their manager of library services at
Vision Australia, having a chat to me about the upcoming events,
coming to the Vision Australia library And some books that
people can look forward to if they're looking for something
(12:54):
new to borrow. I'm Sam Kelly and you're listening to
Talking Vision on Vision Australia Radio, Associated Stations of Radio
Reading Network and the Community Radio Network. I hope you
enjoyed that conversation there with Sarah from the library. If
(13:19):
you missed any part of that chat or you'd love
to hear it again, Talking Vision is available on the
podcast app of your choice, or yes, through the Vision
Australia library, or you can find it on the Vision
Australia Radio website. Simply head to VA radio Dot. Our
(13:40):
next guest has just released a Christmas song just in
time for Christmas, entitled Paper hats and mistletoe, but you'll
also find an album from her. Christmas with Summer. Her
name is Summer Giddings, and it's my great pleasure to
be chatting to her right now. Summer, welcome to Talking Vision.
(14:05):
Thank you very much for your time.
S3 (14:07):
Thank you very much.
S2 (14:08):
Now, Summer, I just thought I'd start off by giving
you an opportunity to introduce yourself. Tell us a bit
about yourself and how long you've been singing for.
S3 (14:19):
Um, so my name is Summer Giddings. I'm 23 years
old and I have low vision. I've been singing probably
since since I started high school about ten years ago.
S2 (14:29):
And, um, of course, this week your latest single, Paper
Hats and Mistletoes just come out. So tell us a
bit about the song there and how that, um, the
idea came about there.
S3 (14:43):
So my main idea for the song is that it
doesn't really snow in Australia at Christmas, and there's a
lot of Christmas songs out there about snow and winter time,
and I set out to write a Christmas song that
wasn't about snow.
S2 (14:57):
That's fair enough. And this sort of thing is you
sort of write what you know. And how much did
you draw on your experiences at, you know, family Christmases
and spending time with family and friends and the memories
you've had of Christmases in the past and putting that
into the song. What sort of been your favorite memories
(15:20):
that you wanted to make sure to include in a
song like this?
S3 (15:25):
I haven't really had any big family gatherings during Christmas.
My family have been like all over the world, all
over Australia. So, um, I guess it's kind of it's
just kind of on the general family experience, familiar moments
that we share at Christmas time.
S2 (15:41):
That's understandable, and I think everyone can relate to the
whole paper hat thing. That's a universal experience for anybody
in Australia, for sure. Now, with regards to the album itself,
what can people expect there if they've been following quite
a few of your songs over the past few years?
(16:03):
This isn't your first single or your first album by
any stretch. You've been quite active with songs like Fantasia
and things like that a few years ago, so what
sort of things can people expect there if they check
out the latest album from you?
S3 (16:19):
It's a bit different to my two original songs that
I've already put out. It's more acoustic voice and piano performance. Yeah,
the album is mostly voice and piano. I was going
to try release Paper Hats and Mistletoe with a fuller track. Um,
so more instrumentation, but unfortunately due to time constraints, I
wasn't able to. So hopefully that will be released next Christmas?
S2 (16:43):
No, but the version that did come out is fantastic.
And I have had a listen and there's some influences
there from, um, I heard a bit of, you know,
the sort of things you'd hear from Benson Byrne. Has
he been a kind of influence for you with your
music and some of the things that he's released in
(17:03):
sort of the more acoustic tracks that he's done? What
have been your influences there, do you think?
S3 (17:09):
I don't know about Benson Byrne, but um, one of
my main influences has actually been Delta Goodrem. I've been
fortunate enough to work with one of her producers, music directors,
on my other singles, but, um, I think Pepper had
some mistletoe. There's a song on my album called That's
Christmas to Me by Pentatonix. It's a very different version
to obviously they sing a cappella in the original and yeah,
(17:31):
I think my original song Paper Hats and Mistletoe has
been closely joined to that song.
S2 (17:36):
Well, that was really fantastic to hear. You've had the
opportunity to work with one of Delta Goodrem's producers. That's
a huge claim to fame. That's really exciting. What was
that like to work with them?
S3 (17:50):
It was good. We didn't have much personal contact. It
was all over email and stuff, but my other two
original songs were part of university projects production and mixing projects.
So I kind of did the bass for my assignment
and decided to finish the song. Release it. So I
sent them to him and yeah, what he produced based
(18:12):
on my demo instrumental. My demo track was really good.
S2 (18:16):
That's really fantastic to hear. Now, Summer, with regards to
the single and the album. So the singles out already
for people out there, you can go and check it
out already, but the album that's coming out on the
4th of December, and there's quite a few ways that
(18:36):
people can listen to it. There's quite a few music
apps as I understand it, so I'm just going to
grab them now to let people know that they can
check out summer's single and her album. So that's Paper
Hats and Mistletoe, the single, as well as Christmas With
(18:58):
Summer the album, by heading to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube music,
Amazon Music, tidal and so any of those apps of
your choice that are your favorite, you can check out
summer's work there. Now, Summer, if people would love to
(19:18):
follow you on socials or find out a bit more
about you, what's the best way for people to perhaps
do that and give you a follow and things like that?
S3 (19:30):
So I'm on Facebook and Instagram. My handles are at
summer beginnings. Official.
S2 (19:36):
Perfect. Okay, well, I've been speaking today with Summer Giddings,
who's just released her latest single, Paper Hats and Mistletoe.
And her album Christmas With Summer is very shortly coming out,
so make sure to check out those ones. Summer, thank
(19:57):
you so much for your time today. It was great
to catch up with you and chat about your music.
S3 (20:04):
Thank you Sam.
S2 (20:05):
That was Summer Giddings, the singer and songwriter who's just
released her new single Paper Hats and Mistletoe, as well
as Christmas With Summer, her new Christmas album. If you're
a regular follower of the Vision Australia Telelink program, you'll
(20:27):
know that January is one of the special interest months
where Telelink hosts a series of webinars for people to join,
covering a wide range of topics and to have a
chat with us about those webinars. It's my great pleasure
to welcome Maria Marco, Talent Manager, back to Talking Vision. Maria,
(20:52):
welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for
your time.
S5 (20:56):
Thanks, Sam, for having me again.
S2 (20:58):
Now I understand, Maria, there's a few special interest groups
coming up in January. There's three in particular. Tell us
a bit about those.
S5 (21:07):
That's right. We're running our again, our three week January
special interest Telelink programme for 2026, where we offer different
types of groups for people to try, or for people
who are taking a break from the regular programme to
try something a little bit different. So there are more
one off programmes in particular. We're running some zoom sessions
(21:30):
on the 12th of January, Monday at 2 p.m. we'll
be having some of the Vision Australia library team talking
about all the different things you need to know about
the library service. Very general information to more specific type
of requests. How to request a book. Um, what sort
of magazines are on offer? Newspapers, all sorts of things
(21:50):
that people have just general questions about. Maureen and Placid
will be able to answer them. And on the 19th
of January, the Monday 2 p.m.. These are all Melbourne time,
Eastern Standard Time. Um, we'll be offering a program or
a session rather called Cyber Safety Awareness. And we have
Kent Walsdorf presenting that program, and he'll be able to
(22:11):
answer any questions or any concerns. So it's a great
time of the year, I suppose, to have a cyber
safety awareness, given all the Christmas sales of Black Friday,
all the different things that are going on on the web.
So that should be another great program. And on Friday
we'll have a three week group. Uh, Again. The library
(22:31):
team are running another one of their great programs, and
this one is called Australia Through the Ages. So Maureen
and Bree will take us through three weeks of different
topics around Australia in literature, different authors, different times in
Australian history and how that reflects in books and literature.
So that's another exciting group from the library team. So
(22:54):
we really, really appreciate our collaboration that we have all
over throughout the times with the library team.
S2 (23:00):
Well, if people would love to find out a bit
more about any of those groups or just get involved
in telling more broadly in the coming months when they
do run the usual groups in 2026, you can get
in touch with Vision Australia by heading to Vision Australia,
(23:24):
the website Vision Australia or give us a ring on 1300Â 847Â 466,
and our contact centre can fill you in on the
latest details around telelink. Maria, thank you so much for
your time today. It was great to hear about the
(23:44):
groups and look forward to hearing how they all go.
S5 (23:48):
Thank you Sam. Appreciate it.
S2 (23:50):
That was Maria Marco, their coordinator of Telelink programs at
Vision Australia, having a chat to us about the upcoming
January special interest series on Telelink. And now here's Francis
(24:16):
Callan with a reader recommended.
S6 (24:18):
Thank you Sam. It has been 60 years since Mary
Poppins first hit our cinemas, so I thought it'd be
good to have a sample of Julie Andrews book home,
her memoir. Over the years, Julie Andrews has been much
interviewed in the press and on television, but she has
never before revealed the true story of her childhood and
upbringing in home. She vividly recreates the years before the movies.
(24:42):
An idyllic early childhood in Surrey was cut short when
her parents divorced and her mother remarried. The family moved
to London and there are vivid scenes of life during
the Blitz. Her mother went into musical theatre with her stepfather,
who encouraged Julie to have singing lessons, which led to
the discovery that her voice had phenomenal range and strength
(25:02):
for someone her age. Before long, she was appearing on
stage with her parents. She soon realised how much she
enjoyed looking out into the black auditorium with the spotlights
on her. By the time she was a teenager, she
was supporting her whole family with her singing. A London
Palladium pantomime led to a leading role in The Boyfriend
on Broadway at 19 parts in My Fair Lady, opposite
(25:25):
Rex Harrison and Camelot with Richard Burton soon followed, and
there are wonderful anecdotes about the actors and actresses of
her day. But this is far more than a collection
of short stories. Home is an honest, touching and revealing
memoir of the early life of a true icon. Let's
hear a sample of Home by Julie Andrews, narrated by
(25:45):
Julie Andrews.
S7 (25:47):
I am told that the first comprehensible word I uttered
as a child was home. My father was driving his
second hand. Austin seven. My mother was in the passenger
seat beside him, holding me on her lap. As we
approached our modest house, dad braked the car to turn
on to the pocket handkerchief square of concrete by the gate,
(26:10):
and apparently I quietly, tentatively said the word home. My
mother told me there was a slight upward inflection in
my voice. Not a question so much as a trying
of the word on the tongue with perhaps the delicious
discovery of connection. The word to the place. My parents
(26:31):
wanted to be sure they had heard me correctly. So
dad drove around the lanes once again, and as we returned,
it seems I repeated the word. My mother must have
said it more than once upon arrival at our house.
Perhaps with satisfaction or relief, or maybe to instill in
her young daughter a sense of comfort and safety. The
(26:53):
word has carried enormous resonance for me ever since home.
S6 (26:59):
So that was home by Julie Andrews. If you would
like to borrow that book, or if you would like
to find out more about Vision Australia Library, just give
them a call on 130654656. That's 130654656. Or you can
email library at Vision Australia. That's library Vision Australia.
S2 (27:23):
And that's all the time we have for today. You've
been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a Vision
Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting the
show together every week. And remember, we love hearing from you.
So please get in touch anytime on our email at
Talking Australia. That's talking vision all one word at Vision
(27:48):
Australia dot. But until next week it's Sam Coley saying
bye for now.
S1 (27:57):
You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during
business hours on one 384 746. That's one 384 74
six or by visiting Vision Australia. That's Vision Australia.
From Vision Australia. This is talking vision. And now here's
your host Sam Colley.
S2 (00:31):
Hello, everyone. It's great to be here with you. And
for the next half hour, we talk matters of blindness
and low vision.
S3 (00:38):
One of my main influences has actually been Delta Goodrem.
I've been fortunate enough to work with one of her producers,
music directors, on my other singles, but I think paper
had some mistletoe. There's a song on my album called
That's Christmas to Me by Pentatonix. It's a very different
version to obviously they sing a cappella in the original
and yeah, I think my original song Paper Hats and
(01:02):
Mistletoe has been closely joined to that song.
S2 (01:04):
Welcome to the program. This week we've got an action
packed show for you, starting off with a library update
from manager of the Vision Australia Library, Sarah Bloedorn. And
following on from that, I catch up with a singer
and songwriter with low vision. Her name is Summer Giddings,
(01:26):
and she's released some Christmas music just in time for
the festive season. We'll be catching up with her to
have a chat about that. And then finally we catch
up with Telelink coordinator Maria marku to hear about the
latest January Telelink special interest series coming up very shortly.
(01:50):
And then we finish up with a reader recommended from
Francis Kelland. I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of
Talking Vision. Even though 2025 is almost wrapped up, 2026
is just around the corner and the Vision Australia Library
(02:11):
has an action packed calendar in store for members in
the New year, and to have a chat with us
all about that and so much more. It's my great
pleasure to welcome back Vision Australia library manager Sarah Bloedorn. Sarah,
welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for
(02:31):
your time.
S4 (02:32):
Thanks for having me. It's been a little while.
S2 (02:34):
It has been. We've got a lot to talk about.
So let's jump into a bit of a preview of
2026 for our listeners out there.
S4 (02:44):
Absolutely. Well, we had such a massive year in 2025,
so we're certainly looking forward to a short break over,
which we hope everybody's reading lots of books over the summer.
But I thought I would talk about a few programs
that are coming up kind of early on in 2026. Um,
they're open for registration. So if anybody's thinking 2026 might
be the year to start your writing journey, maybe you're
(03:07):
looking to read more or just interested in meeting interesting people.
Hopefully these will tickle your fancy. Our first event of
the year kicks off on February 18th and it's Meet
your Vision Australia. Narrator. Now, this is something we work
with our radio team, actually, and our production team, because
we know so many people are interested in what happens
(03:27):
behind the scenes of their audiobooks. And we all have
lots of opinions about kind of what makes a good
narrator and who our favorite narrators are. So we're looking
forward to welcoming Victoria Howell as our first guest in 2026.
She's been one of our narrators who has narrated a
lot of library books for many years, so she's a
real treasure, an absolute gem in our volunteering space. And
(03:50):
what this will be is we invite our narrators to
bring along their favorite piece of literature to do a
special in-person reading for us, and then also have a
chat and a little bit more of a behind the
scenes of what happens behind the microphone at Vision Australia.
S2 (04:05):
Okay.
S4 (04:06):
So that one's February 18th. Feel free to register. I
should always also reiterate that all of our events are free. Um,
so please feel free to register for one or all
of them, but there's no cost for them, which is wonderful.
S2 (04:19):
That's fantastic. Yeah. Very exciting.
S4 (04:22):
And then our first writing course kicks off February 25th.
So this is memoir writing. We haven't done memoir writing
for a couple of years, but whenever we do, we
get so many people join. So if you're interested in
having a author work along with you and a small
group of people to start crafting your memoir, my biggest
encouragement would be sign up now because it will fill up. Um,
(04:44):
so we work with the amazing Victorian Writers Centre, um,
and they source amazing authors for us who will come
along and teach you everything from how to craft your story,
how to put it into words, how to organize your thoughts, etc.
and it will be a five week course. So over
five weeks when you'll come along to weekly sessions, you'll
hopefully be on the way to writing your memoir, whether
(05:06):
it's for yourself, whether it's to share with your family
or we've also had some people go on and have
their memoirs published. So lots of opportunity there. Please join.
As I mentioned, they fill up really quick. And then
the next one you get to meet some of my
team of of our librarians. So that's March 16th. So
on March 16th we have meet our librarians and discover
(05:27):
new titles. So what we often get asked by people
is I just don't know what to read next. Can
you recommend me something? Librarians love to recommend things. So
this is an opportunity to come along and spend an
hour with our librarians and hear about some of the
amazing new books that we've got coming up. Hopefully 1
or 2 will tickle your fancy. We also like to
invite everyone that comes along to tell us what they're reading,
(05:49):
and maybe do some book recommending of their own. So
these are always really fun sessions. I love doing these
because I get to learn about new books that I
haven't read, but I also get to talk about books,
which everybody loves. Um, so that's March 16th. So that's
just the first three events. We're looking forward to a
huge program throughout the year. What I would encourage you
if you are interested, our Vision Australia Library newsletter comes
(06:12):
out every two months, so keep an eye on their
new programs will be dropped into their first and register
as quickly as you can because they will fill up.
S2 (06:20):
And um, Sarah, I understand you've been following some book
reviews and overviews and looking back from the A, B, C,
they've got a pretty exciting program that they've put together.
S4 (06:34):
Yeah. So, um, we are always adding new books to
the library. Um, we have over 2000 titles added each
and every year. Sometimes. Well, lots more than that. Um,
but we want to always add things that people are
interested in reading and to be able to recommend them
to you. And you may have heard recently that ABC
Radio National's published a top 100 books of I believe
(06:57):
It's the 21st century. And guess how many of those
100 books we have in our library.
S2 (07:01):
Sam 100.
S4 (07:03):
Correct? Yes. So we're very proud to be able to
say that you can access these stories in the ways
that you like to read from our library. I'll just
take you through the top five just to let you
know what they are and how you can access them.
So coming in at number five with Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus, and we have that one in DC audio.
(07:23):
We have all the Light You Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.
Now that's available in Braille and audio. A Gentleman in
Moscow by Amor Towles is Daisy audio number two, and
probably one of my favorites on this list. The Book
Thief by Markus Zusak. We have that one in audio
and Braille. And then the number one winner, which is
(07:45):
very worthy. Winner was Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton.
It's a real modern classic, I guess. And we have
that in braille and audio. So all of the titles,
the 100 that we have, we have in audio and
some we also have in Braille. Please inquire or borrow them.
Inquire if we don't have it in braille, for example.
We can make sure we get that for you. So
(08:07):
love everybody to experience all of these amazing books.
S2 (08:10):
Perfect. And Sarah, what were the most borrowed books out
there for 2025? It's always quite interesting.
S4 (08:19):
Yeah, I was so interested to have a look and
see what's kind of trending. We always find lots of
crime books are borrowed. People enjoy a bit of romance,
but the one that's topped our list has been Dewey's
Nine Lives. And I had to look this up. But
I have read this book. It's gorgeous. It's by an
author called Vicki Myron, and it is about a little
ginger cat. It's the true story. Um, who is pushed
(08:41):
through the return chute in a local library when he's
just a tiny little kitten. Um, and then he lives
out his days working, I suppose. Working? Don't know if
they consider it working. Living in the little library that
he becomes part of. That's why his name is Dewey.
I remember reading, It's gorgeous. Really lovely actually. Holiday book
to read, I would say. So that's Dewey's Nine Lives,
(09:02):
if anybody hasn't read that yet. And then after that,
we've got Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. So I
guess we love a classic. Yes.
S2 (09:10):
Um, it's a good starting point.
S4 (09:12):
Yeah, absolutely. And look, I'm just running my eye down,
but it looks like lots of mystery. Um, so, yeah,
very much on trend. Lots of crime and mystery. So
all popular stuff. It's great to see. I wonder what
next years will be.
S2 (09:24):
Well, we'll have to find out. Now, speaking of next year, we're, um,
heading along to the holiday break, and Vision Australia Library
is also going on their own holiday break. So give
us a bit of info about the closure. When will
the library be off and when will they be coming back?
S4 (09:44):
Yeah, yeah. So we're having a small break. We won't
be gone for too long, but we do like to
remind people at this time of the year, especially before
we head off on the break, that if you're wanting
extra Braille loans, please let us know. Braille Library at
Vision Australia is our email address. The wonderful Bree and
our team will make sure you get some extra books
put in the post so you don't run out over Christmas.
(10:06):
We do have an office closure. Vision Australia office will
close from Tuesday the 23rd of December and will re-open
on Monday the 5th of January. So this does mean
if there's inquiries regarding your library service, we will get
back to you on or after the 5th of January
when we return. And we also do send a lot
(10:27):
of our envoy players out with lots of content for
our clients. If you would like yours to be refreshed
before the break, please send it back in. And then
we please just ask for everyone's patience when we come
back on board January 5th, and we will get back
to you as quickly as possible. We don't want anyone
to be without their books, so we will be back
on board and ready to assist from then.
S2 (10:48):
And um, if people would love to get in touch
with the Vision Australia Laura. Perry. Sarah. What's the best
way for them to do that?
S4 (10:58):
Yeah. So our phone number is 1300Â 654Â 656. I'll give you
that one again. 130654656. You can also email us at
library at Vision Australia. And now if you're a member
of the library, or maybe you're not yet a member
of the library, but are interested in becoming one, I
(11:18):
always like to send people first of all to our website.
So that's Vision Australia and the library page is Vision Australia. Library.
Now from there you can read all about kind of
what I've talked about. Our programs are listed there. We
have lots of book lists. If you're not sure what
to read next, information about different devices or ways to
(11:38):
access the library. And if you're very new to the library, um,
there's a page there with a form for you to
apply to be a library member. As I mentioned, we're
a completely free service. Um, we welcome everybody to kind
of use our a library as much as you would
like to, whether it's accessing stories and also accessing our programs.
S2 (11:57):
And it's really not that difficult to become a member. Sarah.
It's a very easy process. And the library team can,
of course, help you to do that. So people get
in touch with you through either the phone number or
the email if they are interested. And I'm sure you'd
be more than happy to help. Always great to have
(12:19):
more members, and definitely check out the Vision Australia library
and have a chat to our friendly team. Sarah, thank
you so much. It's been a pleasure to catch up
with you again and have a chat about the library.
S4 (12:32):
Thanks for having me.
S2 (12:33):
That was Sarah Bloedorn, their manager of library services at
Vision Australia, having a chat to me about the upcoming events,
coming to the Vision Australia library And some books that
people can look forward to if they're looking for something
(12:54):
new to borrow. I'm Sam Kelly and you're listening to
Talking Vision on Vision Australia Radio, Associated Stations of Radio
Reading Network and the Community Radio Network. I hope you
enjoyed that conversation there with Sarah from the library. If
(13:19):
you missed any part of that chat or you'd love
to hear it again, Talking Vision is available on the
podcast app of your choice, or yes, through the Vision
Australia library, or you can find it on the Vision
Australia Radio website. Simply head to VA radio Dot. Our
(13:40):
next guest has just released a Christmas song just in
time for Christmas, entitled Paper hats and mistletoe, but you'll
also find an album from her. Christmas with Summer. Her
name is Summer Giddings, and it's my great pleasure to
be chatting to her right now. Summer, welcome to Talking Vision.
(14:05):
Thank you very much for your time.
S3 (14:07):
Thank you very much.
S2 (14:08):
Now, Summer, I just thought I'd start off by giving
you an opportunity to introduce yourself. Tell us a bit
about yourself and how long you've been singing for.
S3 (14:19):
Um, so my name is Summer Giddings. I'm 23 years
old and I have low vision. I've been singing probably
since since I started high school about ten years ago.
S2 (14:29):
And, um, of course, this week your latest single, Paper
Hats and Mistletoes just come out. So tell us a
bit about the song there and how that, um, the
idea came about there.
S3 (14:43):
So my main idea for the song is that it
doesn't really snow in Australia at Christmas, and there's a
lot of Christmas songs out there about snow and winter time,
and I set out to write a Christmas song that
wasn't about snow.
S2 (14:57):
That's fair enough. And this sort of thing is you
sort of write what you know. And how much did
you draw on your experiences at, you know, family Christmases
and spending time with family and friends and the memories
you've had of Christmases in the past and putting that
into the song. What sort of been your favorite memories
(15:20):
that you wanted to make sure to include in a
song like this?
S3 (15:25):
I haven't really had any big family gatherings during Christmas.
My family have been like all over the world, all
over Australia. So, um, I guess it's kind of it's
just kind of on the general family experience, familiar moments
that we share at Christmas time.
S2 (15:41):
That's understandable, and I think everyone can relate to the
whole paper hat thing. That's a universal experience for anybody
in Australia, for sure. Now, with regards to the album itself,
what can people expect there if they've been following quite
a few of your songs over the past few years?
(16:03):
This isn't your first single or your first album by
any stretch. You've been quite active with songs like Fantasia
and things like that a few years ago, so what
sort of things can people expect there if they check
out the latest album from you?
S3 (16:19):
It's a bit different to my two original songs that
I've already put out. It's more acoustic voice and piano performance. Yeah,
the album is mostly voice and piano. I was going
to try release Paper Hats and Mistletoe with a fuller track. Um,
so more instrumentation, but unfortunately due to time constraints, I
wasn't able to. So hopefully that will be released next Christmas?
S2 (16:43):
No, but the version that did come out is fantastic.
And I have had a listen and there's some influences
there from, um, I heard a bit of, you know,
the sort of things you'd hear from Benson Byrne. Has
he been a kind of influence for you with your
music and some of the things that he's released in
(17:03):
sort of the more acoustic tracks that he's done? What
have been your influences there, do you think?
S3 (17:09):
I don't know about Benson Byrne, but um, one of
my main influences has actually been Delta Goodrem. I've been
fortunate enough to work with one of her producers, music directors,
on my other singles, but, um, I think Pepper had
some mistletoe. There's a song on my album called That's
Christmas to Me by Pentatonix. It's a very different version
to obviously they sing a cappella in the original and yeah,
(17:31):
I think my original song Paper Hats and Mistletoe has
been closely joined to that song.
S2 (17:36):
Well, that was really fantastic to hear. You've had the
opportunity to work with one of Delta Goodrem's producers. That's
a huge claim to fame. That's really exciting. What was
that like to work with them?
S3 (17:50):
It was good. We didn't have much personal contact. It
was all over email and stuff, but my other two
original songs were part of university projects production and mixing projects.
So I kind of did the bass for my assignment
and decided to finish the song. Release it. So I
sent them to him and yeah, what he produced based
(18:12):
on my demo instrumental. My demo track was really good.
S2 (18:16):
That's really fantastic to hear. Now, Summer, with regards to
the single and the album. So the singles out already
for people out there, you can go and check it
out already, but the album that's coming out on the
4th of December, and there's quite a few ways that
(18:36):
people can listen to it. There's quite a few music
apps as I understand it, so I'm just going to
grab them now to let people know that they can
check out summer's single and her album. So that's Paper
Hats and Mistletoe, the single, as well as Christmas With
(18:58):
Summer the album, by heading to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube music,
Amazon Music, tidal and so any of those apps of
your choice that are your favorite, you can check out
summer's work there. Now, Summer, if people would love to
(19:18):
follow you on socials or find out a bit more
about you, what's the best way for people to perhaps
do that and give you a follow and things like that?
S3 (19:30):
So I'm on Facebook and Instagram. My handles are at
summer beginnings. Official.
S2 (19:36):
Perfect. Okay, well, I've been speaking today with Summer Giddings,
who's just released her latest single, Paper Hats and Mistletoe.
And her album Christmas With Summer is very shortly coming out,
so make sure to check out those ones. Summer, thank
(19:57):
you so much for your time today. It was great
to catch up with you and chat about your music.
S3 (20:04):
Thank you Sam.
S2 (20:05):
That was Summer Giddings, the singer and songwriter who's just
released her new single Paper Hats and Mistletoe, as well
as Christmas With Summer, her new Christmas album. If you're
a regular follower of the Vision Australia Telelink program, you'll
(20:27):
know that January is one of the special interest months
where Telelink hosts a series of webinars for people to join,
covering a wide range of topics and to have a
chat with us about those webinars. It's my great pleasure
to welcome Maria Marco, Talent Manager, back to Talking Vision. Maria,
(20:52):
welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for
your time.
S5 (20:56):
Thanks, Sam, for having me again.
S2 (20:58):
Now I understand, Maria, there's a few special interest groups
coming up in January. There's three in particular. Tell us
a bit about those.
S5 (21:07):
That's right. We're running our again, our three week January
special interest Telelink programme for 2026, where we offer different
types of groups for people to try, or for people
who are taking a break from the regular programme to
try something a little bit different. So there are more
one off programmes in particular. We're running some zoom sessions
(21:30):
on the 12th of January, Monday at 2 p.m. we'll
be having some of the Vision Australia library team talking
about all the different things you need to know about
the library service. Very general information to more specific type
of requests. How to request a book. Um, what sort
of magazines are on offer? Newspapers, all sorts of things
(21:50):
that people have just general questions about. Maureen and Placid
will be able to answer them. And on the 19th
of January, the Monday 2 p.m.. These are all Melbourne time,
Eastern Standard Time. Um, we'll be offering a program or
a session rather called Cyber Safety Awareness. And we have
Kent Walsdorf presenting that program, and he'll be able to
(22:11):
answer any questions or any concerns. So it's a great
time of the year, I suppose, to have a cyber
safety awareness, given all the Christmas sales of Black Friday,
all the different things that are going on on the web.
So that should be another great program. And on Friday
we'll have a three week group. Uh, Again. The library
(22:31):
team are running another one of their great programs, and
this one is called Australia Through the Ages. So Maureen
and Bree will take us through three weeks of different
topics around Australia in literature, different authors, different times in
Australian history and how that reflects in books and literature.
So that's another exciting group from the library team. So
(22:54):
we really, really appreciate our collaboration that we have all
over throughout the times with the library team.
S2 (23:00):
Well, if people would love to find out a bit
more about any of those groups or just get involved
in telling more broadly in the coming months when they
do run the usual groups in 2026, you can get
in touch with Vision Australia by heading to Vision Australia,
(23:24):
the website Vision Australia or give us a ring on 1300Â 847Â 466,
and our contact centre can fill you in on the
latest details around telelink. Maria, thank you so much for
your time today. It was great to hear about the
(23:44):
groups and look forward to hearing how they all go.
S5 (23:48):
Thank you Sam. Appreciate it.
S2 (23:50):
That was Maria Marco, their coordinator of Telelink programs at
Vision Australia, having a chat to us about the upcoming
January special interest series on Telelink. And now here's Francis
(24:16):
Callan with a reader recommended.
S6 (24:18):
Thank you Sam. It has been 60 years since Mary
Poppins first hit our cinemas, so I thought it'd be
good to have a sample of Julie Andrews book home,
her memoir. Over the years, Julie Andrews has been much
interviewed in the press and on television, but she has
never before revealed the true story of her childhood and
upbringing in home. She vividly recreates the years before the movies.
(24:42):
An idyllic early childhood in Surrey was cut short when
her parents divorced and her mother remarried. The family moved
to London and there are vivid scenes of life during
the Blitz. Her mother went into musical theatre with her stepfather,
who encouraged Julie to have singing lessons, which led to
the discovery that her voice had phenomenal range and strength
(25:02):
for someone her age. Before long, she was appearing on
stage with her parents. She soon realised how much she
enjoyed looking out into the black auditorium with the spotlights
on her. By the time she was a teenager, she
was supporting her whole family with her singing. A London
Palladium pantomime led to a leading role in The Boyfriend
on Broadway at 19 parts in My Fair Lady, opposite
(25:25):
Rex Harrison and Camelot with Richard Burton soon followed, and
there are wonderful anecdotes about the actors and actresses of
her day. But this is far more than a collection
of short stories. Home is an honest, touching and revealing
memoir of the early life of a true icon. Let's
hear a sample of Home by Julie Andrews, narrated by
(25:45):
Julie Andrews.
S7 (25:47):
I am told that the first comprehensible word I uttered
as a child was home. My father was driving his
second hand. Austin seven. My mother was in the passenger
seat beside him, holding me on her lap. As we
approached our modest house, dad braked the car to turn
on to the pocket handkerchief square of concrete by the gate,
(26:10):
and apparently I quietly, tentatively said the word home. My
mother told me there was a slight upward inflection in
my voice. Not a question so much as a trying
of the word on the tongue with perhaps the delicious
discovery of connection. The word to the place. My parents
(26:31):
wanted to be sure they had heard me correctly. So
dad drove around the lanes once again, and as we returned,
it seems I repeated the word. My mother must have
said it more than once upon arrival at our house.
Perhaps with satisfaction or relief, or maybe to instill in
her young daughter a sense of comfort and safety. The
(26:53):
word has carried enormous resonance for me ever since home.
S6 (26:59):
So that was home by Julie Andrews. If you would
like to borrow that book, or if you would like
to find out more about Vision Australia Library, just give
them a call on 130654656. That's 130654656. Or you can
email library at Vision Australia. That's library Vision Australia.
S2 (27:23):
And that's all the time we have for today. You've
been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a Vision
Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting the
show together every week. And remember, we love hearing from you.
So please get in touch anytime on our email at
Talking Australia. That's talking vision all one word at Vision
(27:48):
Australia dot. But until next week it's Sam Coley saying
bye for now.
S1 (27:57):
You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during
business hours on one 384 746. That's one 384 74
six or by visiting Vision Australia. That's Vision Australia.
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