Commended by judges of the prestigious Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, The Current is the story of a man's obsession with overcoming the forces of nature at all costs.

When the president of a sinking tropical island calls on the world's most ingenious entrepreneurs to help save his people, Peter Van Dooren answers the call.

Van Dooren's wealth and prestige mean that his family wants for nothing - except a husband and a father. As an engineer, he believes his idea can not only save the island and its people's way of life. It could also change the idea of nations and borders. After all, changing the world is what Van Dooren really wants. But playing God may cost him his fortune and his own family.

While Van Dooren plots a world away, his wife, son and daughter sink deeper into their own personal abyss of retail therapy, amateur pornography and religious extremism. Everyone is adrift on the same tide of greed, lust and fear. This is the current that shapes the world. It always has; it always will. Is anyone strong enough to resist it?

Ironic and slyly, bleakly humorous, The Current shows us how our modern affluence buys us material comfort at the expense of a sense of purpose in our lives. It is a hopeful story about finding meaning in our relationships and strength through our community. It asks us to rekindle our relationship with nature.

The style of writing is literary (thoughtful but humorous), and will appeal to readers of Jonathan Franzen (particularly Freedom) and Michel Houellebecq (particularly Platform). Stylistically, The Current offers readers a back and forth split storyline and portent of danger comparable to Paul Thomas Anderson's film, Magnolia (1999). The Current is international in scope, the subject and themes are globally topical, encompassing climate change, family drama and political satire.

About the Author

Yannick Thoraval is a professional communications adviser and university lecturer.

He formally studied film, philosophy and American political history, attaining a master's degree from the University of Melbourne before leaving academia to pursue commercial writing interests. He worked as a copywriter in marketing and communications and as a speechwriter for the Victorian State Government.

Thoraval's fiction has received critical acclaim. His first screenplay, Kleftiko, was a finalist in the International Showcase Screenwriting Awards. Judges of the prestigious Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, Australia, highly commended his first novel, The Current.

The novel draws from Thoraval's personal and professional experiences of working in government, particularly his work in international development, including with the nation of Timor-Leste.

He is a career migrant and has lived in the Netherlands, France, Cyprus, Canada and Australia. Moving internationally from a young age has left him feeling culturally stateless, despite holding three passports.

Thoraval is a quiet advocate for refugees and asylum seekers. He is a founding member of the World Writings Group, which helps refugees write about their experiences of forced migration.

He has pledged to donate 10% of the proceeds of his book to assist the settlement of asylum seekers and refugees.

He currently lives in Melbourne, Australia, where he teaches professional writing and editing at RMIT University. He is working on his second novel.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

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