2007 in Australian literature

This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 2007.

Events

  • Surrender by Sonya Hartnett, and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak are named as Honor Books in the 2007 American Library Association's Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature.[1]
  • "The Guardian" newspaper from the UK reports that Borders plans to sell its Australian stores.[2]
  • The small township of Clunes, about 20 kilometres north of Ballarat in Victoria, decides to try to set up Australia's first dedicated booktown. The first weekend event takes place on 20 May.[3]
  • AustLit (www.austlit.edu.au), the major Australian literature resource for research and teaching housed at the University of Queensland, announces the commencement of "Black Words", a literary website specialising in Australian Indigenous writers and storytellers and their works.[4]
  • Federal Education minister, Julie Bishop, announces that the Australian Government will allocate funds to A$1.5m to create a Chair of Australian Literature in an Australian university.[5]
  • Charlie Rimmer, Group Commercial Manager for Angus and Robertson bookshops, writes to a number of Australian independent publishers indicating that the bookshop chain will refuse to stock their books without compensation.[6]
  • Lonely Planet, the iconic Australian publisher of travel guides, is sold to the commercial division of the BBC in a deal reportedly worth A$200 million.[7]
  • Australia's new Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, announces a major new literary prize of $100,000 in both fiction and non-fiction categories.[8]
  • Australia-Asia Literary Award established.

Major publications

Literary fiction

Children's and Young Adult fiction

Crime and Mystery

Romance

  • Anna Campbell – Claiming the Courtesan
  • Emma Darcy – The Billionaire's Scandalous Marriage
  • Lilian Darcy – Cafe du Jour
  • Kimberley FreemanDuet
  • Anna JacobsTomorrow's Princess
  • Melanie La'Brooy – Serendipity
  • Tamara McKinleyLands Beyond the Sea

Science Fiction and Fantasy

Drama

Poetry

  • Judith BishopEvent
  • David BrooksUrban Elegies, Sydney: Island Press (Australia)
  • Lisa GortonPress Release
  • Kathryn LomerTwo Kinds of Silence, University of Queensland Press, ISBN 978-0-7022-3612-9
  • David MaloufTypewriter Music, winner of the 2008 Arts Queensland Judith Wright Calanthe Award
  • Dorothy PorterEl Dorado
  • Peter RoseThe Best Australian Poems 2007, Black Inc., ISBN 978-1-86395-417-4
  • Peter SkrzyneckiOld/New World, University of Queensland Press, ISBN 978-0-7022-3586-3
  • Petra WhiteThe Incoming Tide

Non-fiction

Biographies

  • Philip Dwyer – Napoleon: The Path To Power 1769–1799
  • Kim Huynh – Where the Sea Takes Us
  • Mark Kurzem – The Mascot
  • Brenda NiallLife Class: The Education of a Biographer
  • Craig SherborneMuck
  • Jeff SparrowCommunism: A Love Story

Awards and honours

Lifetime achievement

Award Author
Christopher Brennan Award[19] John Kinsella
Patrick White Award[20] David Rowbotham

Literary

Award Author Title Publisher
The Age Book of the Year[21] Peter Cochrane Colonial Ambition: Foundations of Australian Democracy Melbourne University Press
ALS Gold Medal[22] Alexis Wright Carpentaria Giramondo
Colin Roderick Award[23] Deborah Robertson Careless Vintage
Nita Kibble Literary Award[24] Deborah Robertson Careless Vintage

Fiction

International

Award Region Category Author Title Publisher
Commonwealth Writers' Prize[25] SE Asia and South Pacific Best First Novel Andrew O'Connor Tuvalu Allen and Unwin

National

Award Author Title Publisher
ABC Fiction Award[26] Damian McDonald Luck in the Greater West ABC Books
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature[27] Not awarded
The Age Book of the Year Award[21] David Malouf Every Move You Make Chatto & Windus
The Australian/Vogel Literary Award[28] Stefan Laszczuk I Dream of Magda Allen and Unwin
Miles Franklin Award[29] Alexis Wright Carpentaria Giramondo
Nita Kibble Literary Award Deborah Robertson Careless Vintage Books
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Peter Carey Theft: A Love Story Alfred A. Knopf
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards Alexis Wright Carpentaria Giramondo
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Alexis Wright Carpentaria Giramondo
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Simone Lazaroo The Travel Writer Macmillan

Children and Young Adult

International

Award Author Title Publisher
Andre Norton Award Justine Larbalestier Magic or Madness Penguin Books

National

Award Category Author Title Publisher
Children's Book of the Year Award Older Readers Margo Lanagan Red Spikes Allen & Unwin
Younger Readers Catherine Bateson Being Bee University of Queensland Press
Picture Book Shaun Tan The Arrival Lothian
Early Childhood Libby Gleeson, illus. Freya Blackwood Amy and Louis Scholastic Press
Davitt Award Young Adult Jaclyn Moriarty The Betrayal of Bindy Mackenzie Pan Books
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Children's Narelle Oliver Home Omnibus Books
Young People's Ursula Dubosarsky The Red Shoe Allen & Unwin
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards Children's Glenda Millard Layla Queen of Hearts ABC Books
Young Adult Judith Clarke One Whole and Perfect Day Allen & Unwin
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Young Adult Fiction Simmone Howell Notes from the Teenage Underground Macmillan
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Writing for Young Adults Kate McCaffrey Destroying Avalon Fremantle Arts Centre Press
Children's Shaun Tan The Arrival Lothian

Crime and Mystery

International

Award Category Author Title Publisher
Duncan Lawrie Dagger[30] Peter Temple The Broken Shore Text Publishing

National

Award Category Author Title Publisher
Davitt Award[31] Novel Sydney Bauer Undertow Macmillan
Young Adult Novel Jaclyn Moriarty The Betrayal of Bindy Mackenzie Macmillan
True Crime Karen Kissane Silent Death: The Killing of Julie Ramage Hodder
Readers' Choice Kerry Greenwood Devil's Food Allen & Unwin
Karen Kissane Silent Death: The Killing of Julie Ramage Hodder
Ned Kelly Awards[32] Novel Garry Disher Chain of Evidence Soho Press
First novel Adrian Hyland Diamond Dove Text Publishing
True crime Liz Porter Written on the Skin Pan Macmillan
Debi Marshall Killing For Pleasure: The Definitive Story of the Snowtown Murders Random House
Lifetime Achievement Sandra Harvey and Lindsay Simpson

Science fiction

Award Category Author Title Publisher
Aurealis Award Novel Will Elliott The Pilo Family Circus ABC Books
Short Story Shaun Tan The Arrival Lothian
Ditmar Award Novel Will Elliott The Pilo Family Circus ABC Books
Novella/Novelette Paul Haines "The Devil in Mr Pussy (Or How I Found God Inside My Wife)" Coeur de Lion Publishing
Short Story Rjurik Davidson "The Fear of White" Borderlands #7
Collected Work edited by Bill Congreve & Michelle Marquardt The Year's Best Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy Vol. 2 Mirrordanse Books
Australian Shadows Award Will Elliott The Pilo Family Circus ABC Books

Poetry

Award Author Title Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature[27] Not awarded
The Age Book of the Year[21] Robert Adamson The Goldfinches of Baghdad Flood Editions
Anne Elder Award[33] Judith Bishop Event Salt Publishing
Grace Leven Prize for Poetry[34] Robert Adamson The Goldfinches of Baghdad Flood Editions
Mary Gilmore Prize[35] Not awarded
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards John Tranter Urban Myths: 210 Poems University of Queensland Press
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards Laurie Duggan The Passenger University of Queensland Press
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Judy Johnson Jack Pandanus Press
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Dennis Haskell All the Time in the World Salt Publishing

Drama

Award Author Title Publisher
Patrick White Playwrights' Award (joint winners) Angus Cerini Wretch
Timothy Daly The Man in the Attic

Non-Fiction

Award Category Author Title Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature[27] Non-Fiction Not awarded
The Age Book of the Year[21] Non-fiction Peter Cochrane Colonial Ambition: Foundations of Australian Democracy Melbourne University Press
Davitt Award True crime Karen Kissane Silent Death: The Killing of Julie Ramage Hachette Australia
National Biography Award[36] Biography Jacob Rosenberg East of Time Brandl & Schlesinger
Prime Minister's Prize for Australian History Les Carlyon The Great War Macmillan
Peter Cochrane Colonial Ambition: Foundations of Australian Democracy Melbourne University Press
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Non-fiction Robert Hughes Things I Didn't Know: A Memoir Alfred A. Knopf
New South Wales Premier's History Awards Australian History Libby Robin How a Continent Created a Nation University of NSW Press
Community and Regional History Regina Ganter Mixed Relations: Asian Aboriginal Contact in North Australia University of Western Australia Press
General History Christopher Clark Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600–1947 Harvard University Press
Young People's John Nicholson Songlines and Stone Axes Allen & Unwin
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards Non-fiction Tom Griffith Slicing the Silence: Voyaging to Antarctica University of NSW Press
History Christopher Clark Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600–1947 Harvard University Press
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Non-fiction Danielle Clode Voyages to the South Seas: In Search of Terres Australes Melbourne University Press

Deaths

See also

References

  1. ^ The Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
  2. ^ "The Guardian" 22.03.2007
  3. ^ Clunes to do it by the book
  4. ^ New website brings Black Words into focus
  5. ^ Bishop creates Aust literature position
  6. ^ Bookshop chain puts bite on small publishers
  7. ^ Payday for travellers who forged an empire
  8. ^ "Rudd to reward Aussie writers". Archived from the original on 8 December 2007. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
  9. ^ "The Serpent Bride by Sara Douglass". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  10. ^ "Remote Control by Jack Heath". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  11. ^ "The Company of the Dead by David Kowalski". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  12. ^ "The Darkness Within by Jason Nahrung & Mil Clayton". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  13. ^ "Black Sheep: A Dystopian Novel by Ben Peek". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  14. ^ "Saturn Returns by Sean Williams". ISFDB. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  15. ^ "The Narcissist by Stephen Carleton". Austlit. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  16. ^ "Toy Symphony by Michael Gow". Austlit. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Beyond the Neck by Tom Holloway". Austlit. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  18. ^ "King Tide by Katherine Thomson". Austlit. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  19. ^ ""PM's Literary Awards-Winners and shortlists-Armour"". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  20. ^ "Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners". Austlit. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
  21. ^ a b c d "Entitled to tell a story". The Age. 25 August 2007. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  22. ^ "ALS Gold Medal — Previous Winners". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  23. ^ "Colin Roderick Award — Other Winners". James Cook University. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  24. ^ "Kibble Literary Award". Australian National University. 9 June 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  25. ^ "Commonwealth Writers' Prize Regional Winners 1987-2007" (PDF). Commonwealth Foundation. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  26. ^ ""Debut novel wins ABC award"". ABC News, 7 March 2007. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  27. ^ a b c "Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature – Past Literary Award Winners". State Library of South Australia. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  28. ^ ""Austlit – Australian/Vogel Award 2006-2008"". Austlit. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  29. ^ "Austlit — Miles Franklin Literary Award (1957-)". Austlit. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  30. ^ ""CWA Gold Dagger – Past Winners"". The Crime Writers' Association. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  31. ^ ""LibraryThing: Davitt Awards 2007"". LibraryThing. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  32. ^ "2007 Ned Kelly Award Winners". Australian Crime Writers. Archived from the original on 27 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  33. ^ 2007 National Literary Awards Archived 20 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  34. ^ "Austlit — Grace Leven Poetry Prize 2005-2007". Austlit. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  35. ^ "Mary Gilmore Award". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  36. ^ ""National Biography Award – Past Winners"". State Library of NSW. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  37. ^ "Elizabeth Jolley (1923-2007)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  38. ^ "Austlit — Joyce Lee (1913-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  39. ^ "Austlit — David A. Myers (1942-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  40. ^ "Austlit — John Croyston (1933-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  41. ^ "Glenda Adams (1939-2007)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  42. ^ "Austlit — Noel Rowe (1951-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  43. ^ "Mona Brand (1915-2007)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  44. ^ "Austlit — Philip Grundy (1932-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  45. ^ "Steve J. Spears (1951-2007)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  46. ^ "Eric Rolls (1923-2007)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  47. ^ "Austlit — Jan McKemmish (1950-2007)". Austlit. Retrieved 22 May 2024.

Note: all references relating to awards can, or should be, found on the relevant award's page.