Marina Warner, the British "novelist and mythographer", will be giving the Sir Douglas Robb Lectures at the University of Auckland in late March and early April.

Warner’s theme will be "Magic and transformation in contemporary literature and culture". According to the University:

She will be putting in context of past mythology and cross-cultural encounters some of the themes in contemporary fiction and art, especially with regard to changing ideas of personal integrity and cohesion. The lectures will extend the arguments in her book, Fantastic Metamorphoses, but will focus on different writers and artists with a more strongly contemporary emphasis.

There will be three evening lectures starting at 8pm:

• Tuesday 30 March — After The Arabian Nights: Daemons and alters
• Thursday 1 April — After Ovid: Flowers and monsters
• Tuesday 6 April — After Revelations: Angels and machines

Warner is the Visiting Professor at the University of York and the Queen Mary and Westfield College in London. Her most recent novel was The Leto Bundle, published in 2001. For more details on her University of Auckland lectures, call Bill Williams on (09) 373 7599 ext 87698 or email wrs.williams@auckland.ac.nz.