This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1989.
Events
Peter Carey won the Miles Franklin Award for Oscar and Lucinda
Major publications
Novels Jessica Anderson — Taking Shelter Mena Calthorpe — The Plain of Ala Bryce Courtenay — The Power of One Tom Flood — Oceana Fine Peter Goldsworthy — Maestro Elizabeth Jolley — My Father's Moon Nicholas Jose — Avenue of Eternal Peace Tom Keneally — Towards Asmara Alex Miller — The Tivington Nott Amy Witting — I for Isobel
Short story anthologies Liam Davison — The Shipwreck Party Brian Matthews — Quickening and Other Stories
Crime and mystery Kerry Greenwood — Cocaine Blues, the first in the Phryne Fisher series. Jennifer Rowe — Murder by the Book
Science fiction and fantasy Judith Clarke — The Boy on the Lake : Stories Greg Egan – "The Cutie" Rosaleen Love — The Total Devotion Machine and Other Stories
Children's and young adult fiction Graeme Base — The Eleventh Hour Morris Gleitzman — Two Weeks with the Queen
Poetry Robert Adamson — The Clean Dark Dorothy Hewett — A Tremendous World in Her Head: Selected Poems Dorothy Porter — Driving Too Fast Peter Porter — Possible Worlds John Scott — Singles: Shorter Poems, 1982-1986 Peter Skrzynecki — "Night Swim"
Drama Nick Enright — Daylight Saving Jenny Kemp — Call of the Wild Peta Murray Spitting Chips Wallflowering David Williamson — Top Silk
Non-fiction Jill Ker Conway — The Road from Coorain Adam Shoemaker — Black Words, White Page: Aboriginal Literature 1929-1988 Elisabeth Wynhausen — Manly Girls
Awards and honours Mary Durack , for "service to the community and literature" Les Murray (poet) , for "service to Australian literature" Thomas Shapcott , for "service to Australian literature and to arts administration" Gwen Harwood , for "service to literature, particularly as a poet and librettist" Max Harris (poet) , for "service to literature" Clement Semmler , for "service to Australian literature" John Morrison (writer) , for "service to literature"
Lifetime achievement Award Author Christopher Brennan Award Chris Wallace-Crabbe Patrick White Award Thea Astley
Literary Award Author Title Publisher The Age Book of the Year Award Marsden Hordern Mariners are Warned!: John Lort Stokes and HMS Beagle in Australia 1837-1843 Melbourne University Press ALS Gold Medal Frank Moorhouse Forty-Seventeen Viking Books Colin Roderick Award Chris Symons John Bishop : A Life for Music
Fiction
International
Award Category Author Title Publisher Commonwealth Writers' Prize Best First Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region Gillian Mears Ride a Cock Horse Pascoe Publishing
National Award Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Award Elizabeth Jolley My Father's Moon Viking The Australian/Vogel Literary Award Mandy Sayer Mood Indigo Allen and Unwin Miles Franklin Award Peter Carey Oscar and Lucinda University of Queensland Press New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Helen Hodgman Broken Words Penguin Books Australia Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Rodney Hall Captivity Captive Farrar Straus and Giroux Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Marion Campbell Not Being Miriam Fremantle Arts Centre Press
Children and Young Adult Award Category Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Children's Not awarded Children's Book of the Year Award Older Readers Gillian Rubinstein Beyond the Labyrinth Hyland HousePicture Book Graeme Base The Eleventh Hour Viking Kestrel Allan Baillie & Jane Tanner Drac and the Gremlin Viking Kestrel New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Young People's Literature Mary Pershall You Take the High Road Penguin Victorian Premier's Prize for Young Adult Fiction Caroline MacDonald The Lake at the End of the World Hodder & Stoughton
Science fiction and fantasy Award Category Author Title Publisher Australian SF Achievement Award Best Australian Long Fiction Damien Broderick Striped Holes Avon Best Australian Short Fiction Lucy Sussex "My Lady Tongue" Matilda at the Speed of Light
Poetry
Award Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded Anne Elder Award Mark Miller Conversing with Stones Five Islands Press Grace Leven Prize for Poetry Dorothy Hewett A Tremendous World in Her Head Dangaroo Press Mary Gilmore Award Alex Skovron The Rearrangement Melbourne University Press New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards John Tranter Under Berlin University of Queensland Press Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Gwen Harwood Bone Scan Angus and Robertson
Drama
Award Category Author TitleNew South Wales Premier's Literary Awards FilmScript Not awarded Radio Script Alana Valentine The Story of Anger Lee Bredenza Television Script Bob Ellis and Stephen Ramsay The True Believers Play Stephen Sewell Hate Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Drama Daniel Keene Silent Partner
Non-fiction Award Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Award Marsden C. Hordern Mariners are Warned!: John Lort Stokes and HMS Beagle in Australia 1837-1843 Melbourne University Press New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Maslyn Williams His Mother's Country Melbourne University Press Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Oskar Spate Paradise Found and Lost ANU Press
Births A list, ordered by date of birth (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of births in 1989 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of death. 2 June — Will Kostakis, author and journalist Unknown date
Robbie Arnott, author
Deaths A list, ordered by date of death (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of deaths in 1989 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of birth. 3 June – Connie Christie, children's writer/illustrator, photographer and commercial artist (born 1908 in England) 16 August – Donald Friend, artist and diarist (born 1914)
See also 1989 in Australia 1989 in literature 1989 in poetry List of years in literature List of years in Australian literature
References