2004_in_Australian_literature
2004 in Australian literature
Literature-related events in Australia during the year of 2004
This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 2004.
- John Hay, Peter Porter, Elizabeth Webby, W. H. Wilde, and Barbara Ker Wilson are all recognised in the 2004 Australia Day Honours.[1]
- Peter Craven is sacked as editor of Quarterly Essay and the annual The Best Australian... anthologies after a dispute with Black Inc. publisher Morry Schwartz.[1]
- Kenneth Dutton, Nick Enright, Morag Fraser, David Myers, and Brenda Niall are recognised in the Queen's Birthday honours list.[2]
- Independent book publishers Text (Australia) and Canongate (UK) form a joint venture. The Text Media Group, purchased by John Fairfax earlier this year, sells Text Publishing to the joint venture partners.[2]
- Sydney Morning Herald Literary Editor, Malcolm Knox exposes Norma Khouri and her 'factual' account of honour killings in Jordan as a fabrication.[3]
- Mark Rubbo, David Marr and Kerryn Goldsworthy resign as Miles Franklin Award judges in protest at changes to the charter governing the award's administration.[4]
- Inaugural Chief Minister's Northern Territory Book History Awards held[5]
Literary fiction
- Sarah Armstrong – Salt Rain
- Larissa Behrendt – Home
- Carmel Bird – Cape Grimm
- Steven Carroll – The Gift of Speed
- John Charalambous – Furies
- Bryce Courtenay – Brother Fish
- Sophie Cunningham – Geography
- Jack Dann – The Rebel: An Imagined Life of James Dean
- Nick Earls – The Thompson Gunner
- Susan Johnson – The Broken Book
- Gail Jones – Sixty Lights
- Stefan Laszczuk – The Goddamn Bus of Happiness
- Amanda Lohrey – The Philosopher's Doll
- Colleen McCullough – Angel Puss
- Andrew McGahan – The White Earth
- Monica McInerney – The Alphabet Sisters
- Emily Maguire – Taming the Beast
- Steven Orr – Hill of Grace
- Eva Sallis – Fire Fire
- Nicholas Shakespeare – Snowleg
- Celestine Hitiura Vaite – Frangipani
- Gerard Windsor – I Have Kissed Your Lips
- Charlotte Wood – The Submerged Cathedral
- Arnold Zable – Scraps of Heaven
Children's and Young Adult fiction
- Joanna Baker – Devastation Road
- Michael Gerard Bauer – The Running Man
- Sherryl Clark – Farm Kid
- Joanne Crawford and Grace Fielding – A Home for Bilby
- Anthony Eaton – Fireshadow
- Sonya Hartnett – The Silver Donkey
- Steven Herrick – By the River
- Joanne Horniman – Secret Scribbled Notebooks
- Prue Mason – Camel Rider
- Garth Nix – Grim Tuesday
- Scott Westerfeld – So Yesterday
Crime
- Peter Corris – The Coast Road[6]
- Colin Cotterill – The Coroner's Lunch[7]
- Kathryn Fox – Malicious Intent
- Jane Goodall – The Walker[8]
- Kerry Greenwood
- Malcolm Knox – A Private Man
- Barry Maitland – No Trace[11]
- Tara Moss – Covet [12]
- Tony Park – Far Horizon[13]
- Steve J. Spears – Murder by Manuscript[14]
Romance
- Christine Balint – Ophelia's Fan
- Catherine Jinks – Spinning Around
- Stephanie Laurens – The Ideal Bride
- Rachael Treasure – The Stockmen
- Lynne Wilding – Outback Sunset
Science Fiction and Fantasy
- John Brosnan – Mothership
- Jack Dann – The Rebel
- Marianne de Pierres – Nylon Angel
- Rob Gerrand — The Best Australian Science Fiction Writing : A Fifty Year Collection (edited)
- Richard Harland – The Black Crusade
- Simon Haynes – Hal Spacejock: Just Desserts
- Liam Hearn – Brilliance of the Moon
- Margo Lanagan – Black Juice
- Glenda Larke – The Tainted
- Maxine McArthur – Less than Human
- Fiona McIntosh – Bridge of Souls
- Sophie Masson – Snow, Fire, Sword
- Josephine Pennicott – A Fire in the Shell
- Cherry Wilder – The Wanderer
- Kim Wilkins – Brilliance of the Moon
- Sean Williams – The Crooked Letter
Drama
- Martin Flanagan – The Call
- Michael Gurr – Julia Three
- Debra Oswald – Mr Bailey's Minder
- Abe Pogos – Toby
- Alana Valentine – Run Rabbit Run!
- David Williamson – Amigos
Poetry
- M. T. C. Cronin – <More or Less Than> 1–100
- Luke Davies – Totem
- Sarah Day – The Ship
- Noel Rowe – Next to Nothing
- Dipti Saravanamuttu – The Colosseum
- Samuel Wagan Watson – Smoke Encrypted Whispers
Non-fiction
- Peter Carey – Wrong About Japan: A Father's Journey with His Son
- Graeme Davison with Sheryl Yelland – Car Wars: How the Car Won Our Hearts and Conquered Our Cities
- Sally Neighbour – In the Shadow of Swords: on the Trail of Terrorism from Afghanistan to Australia
Biographies
- Michael Ackland – Henry Handel Richardson: A Life
- Phillip Adams – Adam's Ark
- Gay Bilson – Plenty: Digressions on Food
- Max Brown – Charmian and George: The Marriage of George Johnston and Charmian Clift
- Don Chipp – Keep the Bastards Honest
- Michael Duffy – Latham and Abbott
- Carolly Erikson – The Girl from Botany Bay: The True Story of Mary Broad and Her Extraordinary Escape
- Peter FitzSimons – Steve Waugh
- Tim Flannery – Country
- John Hughes – The Idea of Home: Autobiographical Essays
- John Marsden – I Am What I Am: My Life and Curious Times
- Siobhan O'Brien – A Life by Design: The Art and Lives of Florence Broadhurst
- Sue Pieters-Hawke and Hazel Flynn – Hazel's Journey: A Personal Experience of Alzheimer's
- Peter Roebuck – Sometimes I Forgot to Laugh
- Charles Tingwell – Bud: A Life
- Stevie Wright and Glenn Goldsmith – Hard Road: The Life and Times of Stevie Wright
Note: these awards were presented in the year in question.
Lifetime achievement
More information Award, Author ...
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Literary
More information Award, Author ...
| Award | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Age Book of the Year Award[17] | Luke Davies | Totem | Allen & Unwin |
| ALS Gold Medal[18] | Laurie Duggan | Mangroves | University of Queensland Press |
| Colin Roderick Award[19] | Alan Wearne | The Lovemakers | ABC Books |
| Tim Winton | The Turning | Picador | |
| Nita Kibble Literary Award[20] | Fiona Capp | That Oceanic Feeling | Allen & Unwin |
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Fiction
International
More information Award, Category ...
| Award | Category | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commonwealth Writers' Prize[21] | Best Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region | Michelle de Kretser | The Hamilton Case | Knopf |
| Best First Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region | Nada Awar Jarrar | Somewhere, Home | Heineman | |
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National
More information Award, Author ...
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Children and Young Adult
National
More information Award, Category ...
| Award | Category | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children's Book of the Year Award | Older Readers | Melina Marchetta | Saving Francesca | Viking Books |
| Younger Readers | Carole Wilkinson | Dragon Keeper | Black Dog Books | |
| Picture Book | Joan Grant, illus. Neil Curtis | Cat and Fish | Lothian | |
| Early Childhood | Pamela Allen | Grandpa and Thomas | Viking Books | |
| New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards | Children's | Kierin Meehan | Night Singing | Puffin Books |
| Young People's | David Metzenthen | Boys of Blood and Bone | Penguin Books | |
| Queensland Premier's Literary Awards | Children's | Carole Wilkinson | Dragonkeeper | Black Dog Books |
| Young Adult | Martine Murray | How to Make a Bird | Allen & Unwin | |
| Victorian Premier's Literary Award | Young Adult Fiction | Margo Lanagan | Black Juice | Allen & Unwin |
| Western Australian Premier's Book Awards | Writing for Young Adults | Colin Bowles | Nights in the Sun | Penguin Books |
| Children's | Mark Greenwood | The Legend of Lasseter's Reef | Cygnet | |
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Crime and Mystery
National
More information Award, Category ...
| Award | Category | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davitt Award[25] | Novel | Janette Turner Hospital | Due Preparations for the Plague | HarperCollins |
| Readers' Choice | Lindy Cameron | Thicker Than Water | HarperCollins | |
| Young Adult Novel | Ruth Starke | Muck-Up Day | Lothian | |
| Ned Kelly Award[26] | Novel | Jon Cleary | Degrees of Connection | HarperCollins |
| First novel | Jane R. Goodall | The Walker | Hodder Headline | |
| Wayne Grogan | Junkie Pilgrim | Brandl and Schlesinger | ||
| True crime | Peter Rees | Killing Juanita | Allen & Unwin | |
| Lifetime achievement | Bob Bottom | |||
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Science fiction
More information Award, Category ...
| Award | Category | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurealis Award | Novel | K. A. Bedford | Eclipse | Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy |
| Short Story | Trent Jamieson | "Slow and Ache" | Aurealis | |
| Fantasy Novel | Juliet Marillier | Blade of Fortriu | Pan Macmillan | |
| Fantasy Short Story | Richard Harland | "The Greater Death of Saito Saku" | Agog! (Daikaiju! Giant Monster Tales) | |
| Rosaleen Love | "Once Giants Roamed the Earth" | Aqueduct Press (The Traveling Tide); Agog! (Daikaiju! Giant Monster Tales) | ||
| Horror Novel | No award. | |||
| Horror Short Story | Lee Battersby | "Pater Familias" | Shadowed Realms | |
| Young Adult Novel | Isobelle Carmody | Alyzon Whitestarr | Penguin Books | |
| Ditmar Award | Novel | K. J. Bishop | The Etched City | Prime Books |
| Novella/Novelette | Lucy Sussex | "La Sentinelle" | Southern Blood: New Australian Tales of the Supernatural | |
| Short Story | Trudi Canavan | "Room for Improvement" | Forever Shores | |
| Collected Work | Cat Sparks ed. | Agog! Terrific Tales | Agog! Press | |
| Peter McNamara and Margaret Winch eds. | Forever Shores | Wakefield Press | ||
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Non-Fiction
More information Award, Category ...
| Award | Category | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Age Book of the Year | Non-Fiction | Peter Robb | A Death in Brazil | Duffy and Snellgrove |
| National Biography Award | Barry Hill | Broken Song: T.G.H. Strehlow and Aboriginal Possession | Knopf | |
| New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards | Non-Fiction | Inga Clendinnen | Dancing with Strangers | Text Publishing |
| New South Wales Premier's History Awards | Australian History | Stuart Macintyre and Anna Clark | The History Wars | Melbourne University Press |
| Community and Regional History | Patricia Crawford and Ian Crawford | Contested Country: A History of the Northcliffe Area | University of Western Australia Press | |
| General History | Edward Duyker | Citizen Labillardiere: A Naturalist's Life in Revolution and Exploration (1755–1834) | Melbourne University Press | |
| Young People's | David Hollinsworth | They Took the Children | Working Title Press | |
| Nita Kibble Literary Award | Fiona Capp | That Oceanic Feeling | Allen and Unwin | |
| Queensland Premier's Literary Awards | Non-fiction | Peter Robb | A Death in Brazil | Duffy and Snellgrove |
| History | Inga Clendinnen | Dancing with Strangers | Text Publishing | |
| Victorian Premier's Literary Award | Non-fiction | Graeme Davison | Car Wars: How the Car Won Our Hearts and Conquered Our Cities | Allen and Unwin |
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Poetry
More information Award, Author ...
| Award | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Age Book of the Year | Dipti Saravanamuttu | The Colosseum | Five Islands Press |
| Anne Elder Award[27] | Lidija Cvetkovic | War is not the Season for Figs | University of Queensland Press |
| Grace Leven Prize for Poetry[28] | Luke Davies | Totem | Allen & Unwin |
| Mary Gilmore Prize[29] | Michael Brennan | The Imageless World | Salt Publishing |
| New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards | Pam Brown | Dear Deliria: New & Selected Poems | Salt Publishing |
| Queensland Premier's Literary Awards | Judith Beveridge | Wolf Notes | Giramondo Publishing |
| Victorian Premier's Literary Award | Judith Beveridge | Wolf Notes | Giramondo Publishing |
| Western Australian Premier's Book Awards | John Kinsella | Peripheral Light | Fremantle Arts Centre Press |
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Drama
More information Award, Author ...
| Award | Author | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick White Playwrights' Award | Stephen Carleton | Constance Drinkwater and the Final Days of Somerset | Playlab |
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- 3 January –
- 8 January – Norman Talbot, poet (born 1936)
- 17 February – Bruce Beaver, poet (born 1928)[32]
- 11 April – Wilbur G. Howcroft, writer for children (born 1917)[33]
- 7 July – Elisabeth MacIntyre, writer for children (born 1916)[34]
- 17 August – Thea Astley, novelist (born 1925)[35]
- 8 November – Peter Mathers, novelist and short story writer (born 1931 in Fulham, England)[36]
- "Book prize controversy". The Age. Melbourne. 23 December 2004. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
- "Chief Minister's Northern Territory History Book Award | Northern Territory Library". ntl.nt.gov.au. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
- "The Coast Road by Peter Corris". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "The Walker by Jane Goodall". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Earthly Delights by Kerry Greenwood". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Heavenly Pleasures by Kerry Greenwood". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "No Trace by Barry Maitland". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Covet by Tara Moss". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Far Horizon by Tony Park". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Murder by Manuscript by Steven J. Spears". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "Austlit — FAW Christopher Brennan Award". Austlit. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
- "Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners". Austlit. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- "Austlit — The Age Book of the Year Award — 2004". Austlit. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- "ALS Gold Medal — Previous Winners". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
- "Colin Roderick Award — Other Winners". James Cook University. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
- "Kibble Literary Award". Australian National University. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- "Commonwealth Writers' Prize Regional Winners 1987-2007" (PDF). Commonwealth Foundation. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
- "Totem wins The Age Book of the Year". The Age. 21 August 2004. Archived from the original on 25 June 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
- ""Austlit – Australian/Vogel Award 2003-2005"". Austlit. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
- "Austlit — Miles Franklin Literary Award (1957-)". Austlit. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ""LibraryThing: Davitt Awards 2004"". LibraryThing. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
- "2004 Ned Kelly Award Winners". Australian Crime Writers. Archived from the original on 27 March 2016. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
- "Austlit — Anne Elder Award 2002-2004". Austlit. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
- "Austlit — Grace Leven Poetry Prize 2002-2004". Austlit. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
- "Mary Gilmore Award". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
- "Barbara Jefferis". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- "Bruce Beaver". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
- "Wilbur G. Howcroft". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- "Elisabeth MacIntyre". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- "Thea Astley". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
- "Peter Mathers". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
Note: all references relating to awards can, or should be, found on the relevant award's page.