Michael Kutin is a member of the right faction of the NSW Labor Party who will stop at nothing to succeed. His
wife, family, mistress, political friends and foes – all are pawns the ruthless Kutin is willing to sacrifice as he claws his
way to the top. The Right charts the rise of Kutin through the ALP ranks, from pre-selection to cabinet, while also
telling the story of those who are closest to him and those unfortunate enough to stand in his way. This is a frightening
portrait of political power with a cast of figures all too familiar to the reader: self-serving career politicians,
kingmakers, traitors and the betrayed, the corrupt and the innocent, the power-hungry, the good and the bad.
The Right is a complex and intriguing novel that explores the modern family, its intersection with the machinery of
political parties and their ruthless processes, and the compromises required of the individuals within each in order
to survive. This is a novel about the kind of person and people who are behind the power culture that operates dayto-
day in Australia. It is an attempt to understand Australians as political animals and their lives behind the faction
curtain.

As well as being an exposé on the roller coaster ride of state politics, The Right also takes us on an inward journey
into our fascination with public lives: the way we disseminate and devour news and current affairs and the manner
in which we judge our political leaders or outcasts are interwoven with the private lives of each of its characters. The
Right is written in an unexpectedly poetic style which evokes magnificently the tensions between internal sentiment
and outward public life. Beautifully written with a cleverly articulated emotional pull, The Right is essential reading
for anyone interested in the political process and contemporary Australian literature.

Matthew Karpin was born in Sydney and is the author numerous works of fiction, including In Our Own Day (1995) and The Thesis
(2004). He holds a MA in English Literature from The University of Sydney where he was a founding editor of its literary magazine
Hermes. He currently lives in Brisbane with his partner and his two children.