Our Common Life

Synopsis

Our Common Life is a biographical novel that tells the story of Victor Leo — Graham's father — from his boyhood in Depression-era Ipswich, Queensland, through his service in WWII, and into the decades that followed as he struggled to rebuild a life shattered by war. Blending memoir with literary fiction, Graham traces the arc of a man whose silences, sacrifices, and unspoken wounds shaped his son's understanding of family, forgiveness, and grace. The novel explores how trauma passes between generations, how ordinary Australian families carry extraordinary burdens, and how love persists even when it cannot find words. It is a story about what it means to share a common life — the mess, the beauty, and the quiet redemption found in simply staying together. The audiobook is narrated by Graham himself, bringing a deeply personal dimension to the telling.

Key Themes

• •Intergenerational trauma and family bonds
• •Australian wartime experience and its aftermath
• •Grace, forgiveness, and redemption in ordinary life
• •The relationship between fathers and sons
• •Memory, silence, and the stories families carry
• •Queensland history from the 1920s to 1970s

Selected Quotes

About the Author

Dr. Graham Leo is a writer, speaker, and educator based on the Gold Coast, Australia. He holds a Doctor of Ministry from the Adelaide College of Divinity and trained at the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics under Alister McGrath. For 25 years he served as Principal of two independent Christian schools in Queensland, including Emmanuel College — a multi-denominational K-12 school of over 1,700 students. He is the author of eight books spanning theology, fiction, poetry, education, and pastoral care. Graham describes himself as an “organic theologian” — someone homegrown in faith communities who studies Scripture carefully and communicates its truth to others. He is a Fellow of ISCAST, a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and an international conference speaker with engagements across the USA, UK, South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines.