Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction
Encyclopedia
The Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction is a component of the annual Victorian Premier's Literary Award
and is valued at A$
30,000. Most Australian state premiers present annual Australia
n literary awards to promote Australian writing in all its forms. The award is named after Vance Palmer. See Australian Literature for more information about Australian authors and their works.
As a leading literary critic Palmer wrote reviews and presented a program called Current Books Worth Reading on ABC Radio. He also wrote books about Australian cultural life, including National Portraits (1940) A.G. Stephens: His Life and Work, (1941) Frank Wilmot (1942), Old Australian bush ballads (co-authored with Margaret Sutherland
) (1951) and The Legend of the Nineties (1954). He was appointed in Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Literary Fund in 1947.
Victorian Premier's Literary Award
The Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Governmentwith the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry....
and is valued at A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
30,000. Most Australian state premiers present annual Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n literary awards to promote Australian writing in all its forms. The award is named after Vance Palmer. See Australian Literature for more information about Australian authors and their works.
As a leading literary critic Palmer wrote reviews and presented a program called Current Books Worth Reading on ABC Radio. He also wrote books about Australian cultural life, including National Portraits (1940) A.G. Stephens: His Life and Work, (1941) Frank Wilmot (1942), Old Australian bush ballads (co-authored with Margaret Sutherland
Margaret Sutherland
Margaret Sutherland was an Australian composer, probably the best-known female composer her country has produced....
) (1951) and The Legend of the Nineties (1954). He was appointed in Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Literary Fund in 1947.
Winners by year
- 20092009 in Australian literatureThe year 2009 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2009 in literature.See also:2008 in Australian literature,2009 in Australia,...
The Slap by Christos TsiolkasChristos Tsiolkas-Biography:He was born and grew up in Melbourne and was educated at Blackburn High School and the University of Melbourne where he completed an Arts Degree in 1987. www.austlit.edu.au. Retrieved 2007-07-22. He edited the student newspaper Farrago in 1988.... - 20082008 in Australian literatureThe year 2008 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2008 in literature.See also:2007 in Australian literature,2008 in Australia,...
The Spare RoomThe Spare RoomThe Spare Room is a novel by Australian writer Helen Garner, set over the course of three weeks while the narrator, Helen, cares for a friend dying of bowel cancer. The Spare Room was published in 2008.- Plot summary:...
by Helen GarnerHelen GarnerHelen Garner is an award-winning Australian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist.-Life:Garner was born in Geelong, Victoria, the eldest of six children. She attended Manifold Heights State School, Ocean Grove State School and then The Hermitage in Geelong... - 20072007 in Australian literatureThe year 2007 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2007 in literature.See also:2006 in Australian literature,2007 in Australia,...
CarpentariaCarpentaria (novel)Carpentaria is the second novel by the Indigenous Australian author Alexis Wright. It met with widespread critical acclaim when it was published in mid-2006, and went on to win Australia's premier literary prize, the Miles Franklin Award, in mid-2007....
by Alexis WrightAlexis WrightAlexis Wright is an Indigenous Australian writer best known for winning the Miles Franklin Award for her 2006 novel Carpentaria....
(Giramondo) - 20062006 in Australian literatureThe year 2006 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2006 in literature.See also:2005 in Australian literature,2006 in Australia,...
Theft: A Love StoryTheft: A Love StoryTheft: A Love Story is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey. It won the 2006 Vance Palmer Prize, the Victorian Premier's Literary Award prize for fiction.-Awards and nominations:...
by Peter Carey (Knopf/Random House) - 20052005 in Australian literatureThe year 2005 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2005 in literature.See also:2004 in Australian literature,2005 in Australia,...
SurrenderSurrender (novel)Surrender is a novel written by the award-winning Australian novelist, Sonya Hartnett. It was first published in 2005 in Australia by Walker Books...
by Sonya HartnettSonya HartnettSonya Hartnett is an Australian author.Hartnett writes fiction variously for children, young adults and adults and has won numerous prizes and awards, having been described as "the finest Australian writer of her generation". She wrote her first novel, Trouble All the Way, at the age of thirteen...
(Viking/Penguin) - 20042004 in Australian literatureThe year 2004 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2004 in literature.See also:2003 in Australian literature,2004 in Australia,...
Slow WaterSlow Water-Awards:*Miles Franklin Literary Award, 2004: shortlisted*Victorian Premier's Literary Award, The Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction, 2004: winner*Montana New Zealand Book Awards, Deutz Medal For Fiction, 2004: winner-Reviews:*...
by Annamarie JagoseAnnamarie JagoseAnnamarie Jagose is a queer writer of academic and fictional works. She gained her PhD in 1992, and worked in the Department of English with Cultural Studies at the University of Melbourne before returning to New Zealand in 2003, where she is currently Professor in the Department of Film,...
(Vintage/Random House) - 20032003 in Australian literatureThe year 2003 in Australian literature involves some significant new books, drama, poetry and events.For an overview of world literature see 2003 in literature.See also:2002 in literature,2003 in Australia,2004 in Australian literature....
Shanghai Dancing by Brian CastroBrian CastroBrian Albert Castro is an Australian novelist and essayist.-Biography:Castro was born in Hong Kong and has lived in Australia since 1961. He is of Portuguese, Chinese, and English descent. Currently he is Chair of Creative Writing at the University of Adelaide....
(Giramondo) - 20022002 in literatureThe year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
Gould's Book of Fish: A Novel in Twelve FishGould's Book of FishGould's Book of Fish: A Novel in Twelve Fish is a 2001 novel by Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan. Gould's Book of Fish was Flanagan's third novel.-Plot summary:...
by Richard FlanaganRichard FlanaganRichard Flanagan is a novelist from Tasmania, Australia.-Early life:Flanagan was born in Longford, Tasmania, in 1961, the fifth of six children. He is descended from Irish convicts transported to Van Diemen's Land in the 1840s. His father is a survivor of the Burma Death Railway. One of his three...
(Picador/Pan Macmillan Australia) - 20012001 in literatureThe year 2001 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic book, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is released to movie theaters...
True History of the Kelly GangTrue History of the Kelly GangTrue History of the Kelly Gang is an historical novel by Australian writer Peter Carey. It was first published in Brisbane by the University of Queensland Press in 2000. It won the 2001 Man Booker Prize and the Commonwealth Writers Prize in the same year. Despite its title, the book is fiction and...
by Peter Carey (Knopf) - 20002000 in literatureThe year 2000 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* February 13 - Final original Peanuts comic strip is published...
Out of Ireland by Christopher KochChristopher KochChristopher John Koch, AO, Australian novelist, was born in Hobart in 1932. He has twice won the Miles Franklin Award. In 1995 he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for contribution to Australian literature....
(Doubleday/Random House Australia - 19991999 in literatureThe year 1999 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*June 19 - Stephen King is hit by a Dodge van while taking a walk. He spends the next three weeks hospitalized...
Mr Darwin's ShooterMr Darwin's ShooterMr Darwin's Shooter is a 1998 novel by Roger McDonald. It describes the life of Syms Covington, manservant to Charles Darwin on the voyage of the Beagle....
by Roger McDonaldRoger McDonaldRoger McDonald is the author of seven novels, two works of non-fiction, and a number of other works....
(Random House Australia) - 19981998 in literatureThe year 1998 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 5 - Tennessee Williams' 1938 play, Not About Nightingales, receives its stage première....
The Sound of One Hand ClappingThe Sound of One Hand ClappingThe Sound of One Hand Clapping is a 1997 novel by Australian author Richard Flanagan. The title is adapted from the famous Zen kōan of Hakuin Ekaku. The Sound of One Hand Clapping was Flanagan's second novel.-Plot summary:...
by Richard FlanaganRichard FlanaganRichard Flanagan is a novelist from Tasmania, Australia.-Early life:Flanagan was born in Longford, Tasmania, in 1961, the fifth of six children. He is descended from Irish convicts transported to Van Diemen's Land in the 1840s. His father is a survivor of the Burma Death Railway. One of his three...
(Pan Macmillan) - 19971997 in literatureThe year 1997 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Tom Clancy signs a book deal with Pearson Custom Publishing and Penguin Putnam Inc. , giving him US$50 million for the world-English rights to two new books . A second agreement gives him another US$25 million for a...
The Drowner by Robert DreweRobert DreweRobert Duncan Drewe is an Australian journalist, novelist and short story writer.-Biography:Drewe was born in Melbourne, but moved with his family to Perth, Western Australia at the age of six. He was educated at Hale School, and in his final year was appointed School Captain...
(Pan Macmillan) - 19961996 in literatureThe year 1996 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Harper Lee's novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is removed from an advanced placement English reading list in Lindale, Texas because it "conflicted with the values of the community."* In the United Kingdom, the first...
Camille's Bread by Amanda LohreyAmanda LohreyAmanda Francis Lillian Lohrey, , in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia) is a writer, and novelist. She completed her education at the University of Tasmania before taking up a scholarship at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom. From 1988 to 1994 she lectured in writing and textual studies at the...
(Harper Collins) - 19951995 in literatureThe year 1995 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*The Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea is opened by Jimmy Carter....
Dark PlacesDark PlacesDark Places is a 1973 British horror film directed by Don Sharp and starring Christopher Lee, Joan Collins and Herbert Lom.-Plot:Dr. Mandeville and his wife Sarah try to locate two suitcases of money hidden on a large estate of one of his former patients by posing as a potential heir...
by Kate GrenvilleKate GrenvilleKate Grenville is one of Australia's best-known authors. She's published nine novels, a collection of short stories, and four books about the writing process....
(Pan Macmillan) - 19941994 in literatureThe year 1994 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Kevin J. Anderson - Champions of the Force, Dark Apprentice and Jedi Search*Reed Arvin - The Wind in the Wheat*Greg Bear - Songs of Earth and Power...
What I Have Written by John A. ScottJohn A. ScottJohn Alan Scott is an English-Australian poet, novelist and academic....
(McPhee GribbleMcPhee GribbleMcPhee Gribble was a Carlton-based Australian publisher. Founded in 1975 by Diana Gribble and Hilary McPhee, McPhee Gribble was the initial publisher of works by significant Australian writers including Tim Winton, Helen Garner, Rod Jones, Brian Matthews, Murray Bail, Kaz Cooke, Martin Flanagan,...
) - 19931993 in literatureThe year 1993 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Professor Stephen Hawking's book, A Brief History of Time, becomes the longest running book on the bestseller list of The Sunday Times....
After China by Brian CastroBrian CastroBrian Albert Castro is an Australian novelist and essayist.-Biography:Castro was born in Hong Kong and has lived in Australia since 1961. He is of Portuguese, Chinese, and English descent. Currently he is Chair of Creative Writing at the University of Adelaide....
(Allen & Unwin) - 19921992 in literatureThe year 1992 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Ben Aaronovitch - Transit*Julia Álvarez - How the García Girls Lost Their Accents*Paul Auster - Leviathan*Iain Banks - The Crow Road...
Double Wolf by Brian CastroBrian CastroBrian Albert Castro is an Australian novelist and essayist.-Biography:Castro was born in Hong Kong and has lived in Australia since 1961. He is of Portuguese, Chinese, and English descent. Currently he is Chair of Creative Writing at the University of Adelaide....
(Allen & Unwin) - 19911991 in literatureThe year 1991 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Douglas Coupland publishes the novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, popularizing the term Generation X as the name of the generation....
Still Murder by Finola Moorhead (Penguin Books) - 19901990 in literatureThe year 1990 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*J. K. Rowling gets the idea for Harry Potter while on a train ride from Manchester to London. She says "I was staring out the window, and the idea for Harry just came. He appeared in my mind's eye, very fully formed...
Oceana FineOceana FineOceana Fine is a 1989 Miles Franklin literary award winning novel by the Australian author Tom Flood.-Awards:*Miles Franklin Literary Award, 1990: winner*Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction, 1990: winner...
by Tom FloodTom FloodTom Flood is an Australian novelist, editor, manuscript assessor, songwriter and musician. Tom Flood was born in Sydney in New South Wales, the son of writer Dorothy Hewett and grew up in Western Australia....
(Allen & Unwin) - 19891989 in literatureThe year 1989 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* February 24 - Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini places a US$3 million bounty for the death of The Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie.-Literature:...
Captivity Captive by Rodney HallRodney Hall-Biography:Born in Solihull, Warwickshire, England, Hall came to Australia as a child after World War II and studied at the University of Queensland . In the 1960s Hall began working as a freelance writer, and a book and film reviewer. He also worked as an actor, and was often engaged by the...
(McPhee GribbleMcPhee GribbleMcPhee Gribble was a Carlton-based Australian publisher. Founded in 1975 by Diana Gribble and Hilary McPhee, McPhee Gribble was the initial publisher of works by significant Australian writers including Tim Winton, Helen Garner, Rod Jones, Brian Matthews, Murray Bail, Kaz Cooke, Martin Flanagan,...
) - 19881988 in literatureThe year 1988 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Margaret Atwood - Cat's Eye*J.G. Ballard - Memories of the Space Age*Iain M...
Holden's Performance by Murray BailMurray BailMurray Bail is an Australian writer of novels, short stories and non-fiction.He was born in Adelaide, South Australia. He has lived most of his life in Australia except for sojourns in India and England and Europe...
(Penguin Books) - 19871987 in literatureThe year 1987 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Tom Wolfe was paid $5 million for the film rights to his novel, The Bonfire of the Vanities, the most ever earned by an author, at the time.-Fiction:...
Second Sight by Janine BurkeJanine BurkeJanine Burke, is an author, art historian, biographer and novelist. She has also curated exhibitions of historical and contemporary art. Currently, Dr Burke holds a research fellowship at Monash University....
(Greenhouse) - 19861986 in literatureThe year 1986 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Michael Grade. Controller of BBC One, axes plans to televise Ian Curteis's The Falklands Play.-New books:*Kingsley Amis - The Old Devils...
IllywhackerIllywhackerIllywhacker is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey. It was published in 1985, short-listed for the 1985 Booker Prize, and won the Victorian Premier's Literary Award and The Age Book of the Year Award...
by Peter Carey (University of Queensland Press) - 19851985 in literatureThe year 1985 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Isaac Asimov - Robots and Empire*Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale*Jean M. Auel - The Mammoth Hunters*Iain Banks - Walking on Glass...
Antipodes by David MaloufDavid MaloufDavid George Joseph Malouf is an acclaimed Australian writer. He was awarded the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2000, his 1993 novel Remembering Babylon won the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, he won the inaugural Australia-Asia Literary Award in 2008, and he was...
(Chatto & Windus)