This Thursday will see the announcement of the winner of this year's Miles Franklin Literary Award. It's one of the more important days on the Australian literary calendar, but it has inspired another of those articles about the value of literary awards. Now, we have discussed awards here before. Back in 2012, I wrote about … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Talking literary awards
Literary awards
Colin Roderick Award longlist 2021
I wrote about this award in a Monday Musings back in 2012, but haven't mentioned it much since. Roderick, as I explained in that post, is a somewhat controversial character in Australian literature. However, the award is worth $20,000 and encompasses a wide range of forms and genres, both fiction and nonfiction, so, I thought … Continue reading Colin Roderick Award longlist 2021
Miles Franklin Award 2021 shortlist
I haven't posted on the Miles Franklin Award since 2019, and I didn't post this year's longlist when it came out last month, but, despite my woeful record - I've yet to read any on the longlist - I felt it was about time I returned to Australia's best known literary award. Unfortunately, I was … Continue reading Miles Franklin Award 2021 shortlist
Monday musings on Australian literature: Return of The Age Book of the Year
Early in my retirement, I spent quite a bit of time creating and editing articles on Australian literature in Wikipedia. I focused on a couple of subject areas in particular, Australian women writers and Australian literary awards. One of the awards I worked on was the well-regarded The Age Book of the Year Awards. They … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Return of The Age Book of the Year
Monday musings on Australian literature: Best Young Australian Novelists (3)
I've posted twice on The Sydney Morning Herald's Best Young Australian Novelists, last year, and back in 2013. Bill, in fact, chose that 2013 post in his Bill Curates series on this blog. The award was established in 1997 by the newspaper's then literary editor, Susan Wyndham, making this year its 25th year. An emerging … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Best Young Australian Novelists (3)
Stella Prize 2021 Winner announced
Unfortunately - though not really - I was not able to "attend" the online announcement as I did last year, as I'm spending a few days in the Snowy Mountains with Mr Gums and two friends. Before I announce the winner, which most of you will have heard by now anyhow, here is a quick … Continue reading Stella Prize 2021 Winner announced
Bernadine Evaristo, Girl, woman, other (#BookReview)
If ever there was a "zeitgeist" book, Bernadine Evaristo's 2019 Booker Prize winning novel, Girl, woman, other is it. It might be an English-set novel about black British women, "the embodiment of Otherness", but its concerns, ranging from ingrained inequality, racism and sexism to newer issues such as globalisation, are contemporary - and relevant far … Continue reading Bernadine Evaristo, Girl, woman, other (#BookReview)
Stella Prize and Christina Stead Prize for Fiction 2021 Shortlists announced
With two shortlists being announced on the heels of each other, I thought I would combine them into one post, so here goes ... Stella Prize Shortlist The Stella Prize shortlist was announced this morning and is, I suppose, a bit of a surprise for me - though I haven't read the books so I … Continue reading Stella Prize and Christina Stead Prize for Fiction 2021 Shortlists announced
Monday musings on Australian literature: Commonwealth Writers Prize (now defunct)
March 8 this year is a packed one. Of course, it is always International Women's Day, but the second Monday in March is also Canberra Day here in the ACT, Labour Day in Victoria, and Commonwealth Day in, yes, the Commonwealth. It is not a public holiday in most places, but I decided it could … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Commonwealth Writers Prize (now defunct)
Stella Prize 2021 Longlist announced
Unfortunately, because I'm on the road, I wasn't able to "attend" the announcement earlier this evening, but at least I have been able to get my post out on the night, as it were. As I say every year, I think, I don't do well at having read the Stella Prize longlist at the time … Continue reading Stella Prize 2021 Longlist announced
