Fairfax Corporation, Two men shaking hands in front of a schoolboy holding two trophies and another with three books at Sydney Boys' High School, Sydney, 28 December 1931, nla.obj-161791200
How do you find Australian literature awards?
- select the Browse alphabetically tab
- choose subjects from the drop-down list
- Type your keywords in the search bar
- Australian literary awards & fellowships : with winners of Australian & overseas awards (1991 - 2006)
- The PETA guide to the Children's Book Council awards shortlist (2002 - 2008)
Where can you find information in our online databases?
AustLit: the resource for Australian literature is a key resource for information about Australian writers and writing. The latest awards news is given on the AustLit home page, and author information includes a list of awards given.
If you are a registered member of the National Library you can access AustLit from home.
Case Study
The Nobel Prize
Is The Solid Mandala Patrick White's Nobel Prize Book?
1. We can look into the awards won by Patrick White, both the Nobel Prize in Literature and the other literature awards, using AustLit and internet searches.
2. Patrick White won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1973. This award isn't given for an individual book, but rather for an entire body of work created over a number of years. Information about the Nobel prize won by Patrick White can be found on the official Nobel Prize website. The site notes that the Nobel Prize was awarded to White 'for an epic and psychological narrative art which has introduced a new continent into literature'.
3. Other awards listed in AustLit for Patrick White include:
- The Miles Franklin Literary Award: 1957 for Voss and 1961 for Riders in the Chariot. A list of past winners can be seen at the Miles Franklin Literary Award website.
- Australian of the Year in 1973.
5. According to Patrick White: letters by David Marr, The Solid Mandala was first published in 1966. It was short-listed for the 1967 Miles Franklin Literary award, until White personally intervened and withdrew it from consideration so that other writers might stand a chance of winning.