National biography award 2012 calendar

National Biography Award

Australian literary award

The National Biography Award, established in Australia in , is awarded for the best published work of biographical or autobiographical writing by an Australian.

It aims "to encourage the highest standards of writing biography and autobiography and to promote public interest in those genres".[1] It was initially awarded every two years, but from it has been awarded annually.

Its administration was taken over by the State Library of New South Wales in

History of the Award

It was originally endowed by private benefactor, Dr. Geoffrey Cains, and the original prize money was $12, In , Cains said of endowing the award that "I wanted to give back to literature something, it had given me so much; besides, giving in this country is so overlooked and diminished".[2] In , the prize money was increased to $20, with the assist of Michael Crouch.[3]Belinda Hutchinson, former President of the Library Council of NSW, expressed gratitude for this increase to "an award that celebrates the Australian psyche through distinguished biography writing."[3]

In the prize money for the Award has been increased to $25, Since , each shortlisted creator receives $1,[4] The judging panel varies from year to year.

National Biography Award Winners - Goodreads: Congratulations to the Australian women writers whose books own been longlisted for the National Biography Awards. Robyn Arianrhod, Seduced by Logic: Emilie Du Chatelet, Mary Somerville and the Newtonian Revolution, University of QLD Press; Pamela Burton, From Moree to Mabo: The Mary Gaudron Story, UWA Publishing.

In the Michael Crouch Award was introduced for an Australian writer's first published biography.[5]

The shortlist is announced in early July each year, followed by the winner announcement in early August.

Winners

National Biography Award Lecture

In , the National Biography Award lecture was instituted.

It is associated with the award, and was also sponsored by Cains and Crouch. It is given annually, but takes place during the same week as the announcement of the winner.[1]

  • Unauthorised, by Tom D C Roberts[25]
  • A tale finds its teller: writing the biography of Thea Astley, by Karen Lamb[26]
  • For better or worse: The relationship between biographer and subject, by Philip Butterss[27]
  • Biography and me: notes on the wonders of others (and some on self), by Kim Williams AM[28]
  • Based on a true story, by Linda Jaivin[29]
  • A other perspective, a shared story, by John Elder Robison[30]
  • Looking for Eliza by Evelyn Juers[31]
  • Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM, by Don Watson
  • Biography: The Art of the Impossible, by Hilary McPhee AO
  • ‘Truth’ as applied to biography and autobiography, by Raimond Gaita
  • Biography, Autobiography and Memoir: Presidential Bests and Worsts, by Bob Carr[32]
  • Biography: The Impossible Art, by Inga Clendinnen[33]
  • Materials for Life: The Enduring Value of Biography, by Robyn Archer
  • Personal Drama: David Williamson on Self-depiction, by David Williamson
  • The Observed of all Observers: Biography in Poetry, by Peter Porter (poet)
  • Goethe's Two Left Feet: Reflections on the Hazards and Liberties of Biography, by Peter Rose (writer)

References

External links

  • Bennie, Angela () "Award draws people with a tale to tell" in The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 February
  • Bennie, Angela () "They're six of the best" in The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 March
  • "Inga Clendinnen on the impossibility of biography" (lecture), on ABC Radio National The Book Show, Accessed:
  • Knox, Malcolm () 'Dual winners in Biography Prize's latest chapter' in The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 Parade
  • State Library of New South Wales, National Biography Award Abode Page