The Colin Roderick Award is presented annually by the Foundation for

Australian Literary Studies ''Australian Literary Studies'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal of literary studies, specialising in historical, critical, and theoretical studies of Australian literature. It was established in 1963 by Laurie Hergenhan (University of Quee ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

James Cook University James Cook University (JCU) is a public university in North Queensland, Australia. The second oldest university in Queensland, JCU is a teaching and research institution. The university's main campuses are located in the tropical cities of Cairn ...

for "the best book published in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

which deals with any aspect of Australian life". It was first presented in 1967 and has a prize of A$20,000. Starting in 1980, the H. T. Priestley Memorial Medal has also been bestowed upon the award winner. The Award was founded by

Colin Roderick Colin Arthur Roderick (27 July 1911 – 16 June 2000) was an Australian writer, editor, academic and educator. Early life and education Colin Roderick was born in Mount Morgan, Queensland on 27 July 1911. He attended Bundaberg State School an ...

, an Australian "writer, editor, academic and educator".

Award winners

* 2022:

Emily Bitto Emily Bitto is an Australian writer. Her debut novel ''The Strays'' won the 2015 Stella Prize for Australian women's writing. Biography Bitto was shortlisted for the Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript for an emerging Victorian Writer at the 2 ...

, ''Wild Abandon'' * 2021:

Sofie Laguna Sofie Laguna (born 1968) is an Australian writer. She was born in Sydney and studied law before deciding that being a lawyer was not for her. She has worked as an actor and is now a writer and playwright. She now lives in Melbourne. Awards * ...

, ''Infinite Splendours'' *2020: Sally Young, ''Paper Emperors: The rise of Australia’s newspaper empires'' * 2019:

Robert Drewe Robert Duncan Drewe (born 9 January 1943) is an Australian novelist, non-fiction and short story writer. Biography Robert Drewe was born on 9 January 1943 in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria. At the age of six, he moved with his family ...

, ''The True Colour of the Sea'' * 2018: Jock Serong, ''On the Java Ridge'' * 2016:

Josephine Wilson Josephine Wilson, Baroness Miles (5 July 1904 – 7 November 1990) was a British stage and film actress. She was the wife of Bernard Miles andHare p.195 creator of the Molecule Club, which staged scientific shows for children at the Mermaid The ...

, ''Extinctions'' * 2015: Gail Jones, ''A Guide to Berlin'' * 2014:

Michael Wilding Michael Charles Gauntlet Wilding (23 July 1912 – 8 July 1979) was an English stage, television, and film actor. He is best known for a series of films he made with Anna Neagle; he also made two films with Alfred Hitchcock, '' Under Capric ...

, ''Wild Bleak Bohemia : Marcus Clarke, Adam Lindsay Gordon and Henry Kendall - A Documentary'' *

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

Ashley Hay Ashley Hay (born 1971) is an Australian writer. She has won awards for both her nonfiction science writing and her novels. she is editor of the Griffith Review. Career Hay is the author of three novels, including ''The Railwayman's Wife'', ...

, ''The Railwayman's Wife'' & Stephen Edgar, ''Eldershaw'' *

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Thomas Keneally Thomas Michael Keneally, AO (born 7 October 1935) is an Australian novelist, playwright, essayist, and actor. He is best known for his non-fiction novel ''Schindler's Ark'', the story of Oskar Schindler's rescue of Jews during the Holocaust, wh ...

, ''The Daughters of Mars'' *

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

Gillian Mears Gillian Mears (21 July 1964 – 16 May 2016) was an Australian short story writer and novelist. Her books ''Ride a Cock Horse'' and ''The Grass Sister'' won a Commonwealth Writers' Prize, shortlist, in 1989 and 1996, respectively. ''The Mint La ...

, ''

Foal's Bread ''Foal's Bread'' is a 2011 novel by Australian author Gillian Mears. It was the winner of the 2012 ALS Gold Medal, the Age Book of the Year for Fiction, the Prime Minister's Literary Award for Fiction, and the Victorian Premier's Literary Award f ...

'' *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Karen Kissane
''Worst of Days: Inside the Black Saturday Firestorm'' *

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

: Michael Cathcart,
The Water Dreamers
' *

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

: Graham Freudenberg, ''Churchill and Australia'' & James Boyce, ''Van Diemen's Land'' * 2007:

Malcolm Knox Sir Thomas Malcolm Knox (28 November 1900 – 6 April 1980) was a British philosopher who served as Principal of St Andrews University from 1953–1966 and Vice-president of the Royal Society of Edinburgh from 1975–1978. Biography Knox ...

, ''

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

'' *

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

: Deborah Robertson, '' Careless'' *

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

Peter Temple Peter Temple (10 March 1946 – 8 March 2018) was an Australian crime fiction writer, mainly known for his ''Jack Irish'' novel series. He won several awards for his writing, including the Gold Dagger in 2007, the first for an Australian. He w ...

, ''

The Broken Shore ''The Broken Shore'' (2005) is a Duncan Lawrie Dagger award-winning novel by Australian author Peter Temple. Synopsis The novel's central character is Joe Cashin, a Melbourne homicide detective. Following serious physical injuries he is posted ...

'' * 2004:

Alan Wearne Alan Wearne (born 23 July 1948) is an Australian poet. Early life and education Alan Wearne was born on 23 July 1948 and grew up in Melbourne. He studied history at Monash University, where he met the poets Laurie Duggan and John A. Scott. H ...

, ''The Lovemakers'' &

Tim Winton Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. He has written novels, children's books, non-fiction books, and short stories. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Miles Fr ...

, '' The Turning'' *

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

, ''

The Tyrant's Novel ''The Tyrant's Novel'' is a 2003 novel by Australian novelist Tom Keneally. Plot summary An unnamed country's tyrannical ruler, Great Uncle, commands author Alan Sheriff to ghost-write a novel that will have the literary circles of the wester ...

'' *

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

Don Watson Don Watson (born 1949) is an Australian author, screenwriter, former political adviser, and speechwriter. Early life Watson was born in 1949 at Warragul in the Gippsland region of Victoria, and grew up on a farm in nearby Korumburra. Academi ...

, ''Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of

Paul Keating Paul John Keating (born 18 January 1944) is an Australian former politician and unionist who served as the 24th prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He previously serv ...

PM'' *

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

: Peter Rose, ''Rose Boys'' * 2000: Peter Carey, ''

True History of the Kelly Gang ''True History of the Kelly Gang'' is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey, based loosely on the history of the Kelly Gang. It was first published in Brisbane by the University of Queensland Press in 2000. It won the 2001 Booker Prize an ...

'' * 1999:

Christopher Koch Christopher John Koch AO (16 July 1932 – 23 September 2013) was an Australian novelist, known for his 1978 novel '' The Year of Living Dangerously'', which was adapted into an award-winning film. He twice won the Miles Franklin Award (for ' ...

, '' Out of Ireland'' * 1998:

Robert Dessaix Robert Dessaix (born 17 February 1944) is an Australian novelist, essayist and journalist. Biography Robert Dessaix was born in Sydney and adopted at an early age by Tom and Jean Jones, after which he was known as Robert Jones. Tom Jones, a ...

, ''(And So Forth)'' * 1997: Peter Edwards, ''A Nation at War'' * 1996:

Tim Flannery Timothy Fridtjof Flannery (born 28 January 1956) is an Australian mammalogist, palaeontologist, environmentalist, Conservation biology, conservationist, Exploration, explorer, author, Science communication, science communicator, activist and p ...

, Roger Martin and Alexandra Szalay, Illustrator Peter Schouten, ''Tree Kangaroos'' * 1995: Judy Cassab, ''Diaries'' * 1994: Patrick Buckridge, ''The Scandalous Penton: A Biography of

Brian Penton Brian Con Penton (21 August 1904 – 24 August 1951) was an Australian journalist and novelist. He was born at Ascot, a suburb of Brisbane, and educated at Brisbane Grammar School. Writing career In 1921 Penton found employment as a copy-boy on ...

'' * 1993: Cassandra Pybus, ''Gross Moral Turpitude: The Orr Case Reconsidered'' * 1992:

Ruth Park Rosina Ruth Lucia Park AM (24 August 191714 December 2010) was a New Zealand–born Australian author. Her best known works are the novels '' The Harp in the South'' (1948) and ''Playing Beatie Bow'' (1980), and the children's radio serial '' ...

, ''A Fence Around the Cuckoo'' * 1991:

Joan Dugdale Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine *Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multipl ...

, ''Struggle of Memory'' * 1990:

Roland Griffiths-Marsh Roland Griffiths-Marsh, (22 April 1923 – 29 December 2012) was an Australian soldier and author. Early life Griffiths-Marsh was born in Penang, then part of the British Straits Settlements, on 22 April 1923 and grew up in Hai Phong, Indoch ...

, ''Sixpenny Soldier'' * 1989: Chris Symons, ''

John Bishop John Marcus Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former footballer. Bishop formerly played football as a midfielder for Winsford United F.C., Crewe Alexandra F.C., Runcorn F.C., Rhyl F.C., Witton Al ...

: A Life for Music'' * 1988: Peter Carey, ''

Oscar and Lucinda ''Oscar and Lucinda'' is a novel by Australian author Peter Carey which won the 1988 Booker Prize and the 1989 Miles Franklin Award. It was shortlisted for The Best of the Booker. Plot introduction It tells the story of Oscar Hopkins, th ...

'' * 1987: Nancy Phelan, ''Home Is the Sailor and the Best of Intentions'' * 1986: Fr Tom Boland, ''

James Duhig Sir James Duhig KCMG (2 September 187110 April 1965) was an Irish-born Australian Roman Catholic religious leader. He was the Archbishop of Brisbane for 48 years from 1917 until his death in 1965. At the time of his death he was the longest-ser ...

'' * 1985: John Gunn, ''The Defeat of Distance:

Qantas Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...

1919-1939'' * 1984:

Alan Gould Alan Gould (born 22 March 1949) is a contemporary Australian novelist, essayist and poet. Life and career Gould was born in London to an English father and an Icelandic mother. His family lived in Northern Ireland, Germany and Singapore before ...

, ''The Man Who Stayed Below'' * 1983: Dudley McCarthy, ''

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

to the Somme'' * 1982:

Geoffrey Serle Alan Geoffrey Serle (10 March 1922 – 27 April 1998), known as Geoff, was an Australian historian, who is best known for his books on the colony of Victoria; ''The Golden Age'' (1963) and ''The Rush to be Rich'' (1971) and his biographies of J ...

, ''

John Monash General Sir John Monash, (; 27 June 1865 – 8 October 1931) was an Australian civil engineer and military commander of the First World War. He commanded the 13th Infantry Brigade before the war and then, shortly after its outbreak, became co ...

: A Biography'' * 1981:

Gavin Souter Gavin Geoffrey Souter AO (born 2 May 1929) is an Australian journalist and historian. He was born in Sydney, the son of a bank manager, Archibald Souter and Roma Souter, wasPhilip O'Brien, "Spinning words of gold", ''The Canberra Times'', 26 ...

, ''A Company of Heralds'' * 1980: Allan Grocott, ''Convicts, Clergymen and Churches'' * 1979:

Thea Astley Thea Beatrice May Astley (25 August 1925 – 17 August 2004) was an Australian novelist and short story writer. She was a prolific writer who was published for over 40 years from 1958. At the time of her death, she had won more Miles Franklin ...

, ''Hunting the Wild Pineapple'' * 1978: Leslie Rees, ''History of Australian Drama'' * 1977: Alan Marshall, ''The Complete Stories of Alan Marshall'' * 1976:

, ''Lion and Kangaroo'' * 1975: Denis Murphy, '' TJ Ryan'' *

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

David Malouf David George Joseph Malouf AO (; born 20 March 1934) is an Australian poet, novelist, short story writer, playwright and librettist. Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2008, Malouf has lectured at both the University of Quee ...

, '' Neighbours in a Thicket : Poems'' * 1973: Dorothy Green, ''Ulysses Bound:

Henry Handel Richardson Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson (3 January 187020 March 1946), known by her pen name Henry Handel Richardson, was an Australian author. Life Born in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, into a prosperous family that later fell on hard tim ...

and Her Fiction'' *

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

: Sir Keith Hancock, ''Discovering Monaro'' *

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

, ''The Rush to Be Rich'' *

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

Margaret Lawrie Margaret Lawrie (1917–2003) was famous for capturing and retelling many of the myths and Legends of the Torres Strait Islander people. The Margaret Lawrie Collection is included in UNESCO's Australian Memory of the World Register. Biography ...

, ''Myths and Legends of

Torres Strait The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost extremity of the Australian mai ...

'' * 1969: Francis Webb, ''Collected Poems'' * 1968:

, ''A Peculiar People'' * 1967:

Douglas Stewart Douglas Stewart may refer to: *Douglas Stewart (poet) (1913–1985), Australian poet *Edward Askew Sothern (1826–1881), English actor who was sometimes known as Douglas Stewart * Douglas Stewart (equestrian) (1913–1991), British Olympic equestri ...

, ''Collected Poems, 1936-1967''

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://www.jcu.edu.au/foundation-for-australian-literary-studies/colin-roderick-award Australian literary awards Awards established in 1967