Viv Walker has a long list of life admin tasks to get through and not much time to do it, because she is dying. With a four-month prognosis, she knows she should be spending what time she has left in loving moments with husband, Clint, and son, Ethan. Instead, she is overwhelmed by housework and other practical tasks she wants to complete before she is gone. She makes lists – for herself, for Clint (tasks to do now; instructions for the future) – and she tries to hide her pain and tiredness so she can play handball and Pokemon with Ethan.
The very Last List of Vivian Walker is heartbreaking and humorous. Viv is a cranky and refreshingly honest woman, whose sarcasm and sharp wit hide unresolved trauma from her childhood. One day she is using her cancer diagnosis to get random freebies; another she is organising her will and penning a heartbreaking letter for Ethan to read after she dies. She loves Ethan unconditionally but her relationship with Clint seems more fraught – or is it just the honest portrayal of the ups and downs of an ordinary long-term relationship?
Death can be a difficult topic to read about, especially when it’s a younger person, but don’t be put off. This moving story follows Viv to the end – have some tissues handy.
Reviewed by Melinda Woledge
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Whether she is song writing or writing fiction, Megan loves to bring humour and joy to the creative process and believes everyone has a story to tell.
She has spent over 25 years working as a journalist, editor, scriptwriter, songwriter and composer and has had the privilege of collaborating with some of the best in the business.
Megan is currently studying her PHD in Creative Writing at QUT, has a Masters in Creative Writing and has been a journalist with the Koori Mail, the Guardian Newspaper in the UK, the Metro Newspaper in Ireland, the Irish Echo and the Illawarra Mercury. She was a writer and editor for the leading First Nations magazine, Deadly Vibe and was the founding editor of InVibe magazine – a magazine for Indigenous youth in custody.
Megan was the researcher for the SBS Documentary into the Juvenile Justice System, ‘Can It Hurt Less’ and was the scriptwriter for five years for the ‘Deadlys’, the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music, Sport, Arts and Community Awards which screened on SBS TV. Megan was one of the founding writers for the NITV health show, Living Strong and was a concept developer for Move It Mob Style.
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