2023 in Australian literature

This is a list of historical events and publications of Australian literature during 2023.

Events

July: Publisher Hachette Australia withdraws from publication the book titled Special Operations Group by Christophe Glasl after Victoria Police expressed concerns about the accuracy of the book December: Yumna Kassab is announced as inaugural Parramatta Laureate of Literature for 2024

Major publications

Literary fiction

Hossein Asgari – Only Sound Remains Tony Birch – Women & Children Katherine Brabon – Body Friend Jen Craig – Wall Lauren Aimee Curtis – Strangers in the Port Trent Dalton – Lola in the Mirror André Dao – Anam Gregory Day – The Bell of the World Ali Cobby Eckermann – She Is the Earth (verse novel) Lexi Freiman – The Book of Ayn Madeleine Gray – Green Dot Kate Grenville – Restless Dolly Maunder John Kinsella – Cellnight: A verse novel Melissa Lucashenko – Edenglassie Kate Morton – Homecoming Genevieve Novak – Crushing Emily O'Grady – Feast Angela O'Keeffe – The Sitter Mirandi Riwoe – Sunbirds Sanya Rushdi – Hospital Kate Scott – Compulsion Tracy Sorensen – The Vitals Lucy Treloar – Days of Innocence and Wonder Christos Tsiolkas – The In-Between Pip Williams – The Bookbinder of Jericho Charlotte Wood – Stone Yard Devotional Alexis Wright – Praiseworthy

Children's and Young Adult fiction

Melissa Kang & Yumi Stynes – Welcome to Sex, illustrated by Jenny Latham Will Kostakis – We Could Be Something Alice Pung – Millie Mak the Maker, illustrated by Sher Rill Ng Lili Wilkinson – A Hunger of Thorns Dianne Wolfer – Scout and the Rescue Dogs

Short story collections

J. M. Coetzee – The Pole and Other Stories Laura Jean McKay – Gunflower Graeme Simsion – Creative Differences: And Other Stories

Crime and mystery

Tim Ayliffe – Killer Traitor Spy Ashley Kalagian Blunt – Dark Mode Shelley Burr – Ripper Candice Fox – Fire With Fire Megan Goldin – Dark Corners Chris Hammer – The Seven Amanda Hampson – The Tea Ladies Sally Hepworth – Darling Girls Fiona McIntosh – Dead Tide Benjamin Stevenson – Everyone on this train is a suspect Chris Womersley – Ordinary Gods and Monsters

Science fiction and fantasy

Greg Egan "Didicosm" Scale James Islington – The Will of the Many Shelley Parker-Chan – He Who Drowned the World

Poetry

Stuart Barnes – Like to the Lark Amy Crutchfield – The Cyprian Dan Hogan – Secret Third Thing John Kinsella – Harsh Hakea: Collected Poems Volume Two (2005–2014) David McCooey – The Book of Falling Jennifer Maiden – Golden Bridge: New Poems Pi O – The Tour Sara M. Saleh – The Flirtation of Girls Tais Rose Wae – Riverbed Sky Songs Grace Yee – Chinese Fish

Non-Fiction Katie Ariel – The Swift Dark Tide Chanel Contos – Consent Laid Bare Robyn Davidson – Unfinished Woman Marele Day – Reckless Martin Flanagan – The Empty Honour Board Clementine Ford – I Don't Anna Funder – Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life Michael Gawenda – My Life as a Jew Stan Grant – The Queen is Dead: The Time has Come for a Reckoning Susan Johnson – Aphrodite's Breath Christine Kenneally – Ghosts of the Orphanage Sarah Krasnostein – On Peter Carey David Marr – Killing for Country: A Family Story Ross McMullin – Life So Full of Promise Alex Miller – A Kind of Confession: The Writer's Private World Matt Preston – Big Mouth Alecia Simmonds – Courting: An Intimate History of Love and the Law Margaret Simons – Tanya Plibersek: On Her Own Terms Christine Wallace – Political Lives: Australian Prime Ministers and Their Biographers

Drama Nicholas Brown – Sex Magick Joanna Murray-Smith – Julia

Awards and honours Note: these awards were presented in the year in question.

Lifetime achievement AwardAuthorPatrick White AwardAlex Skovron

Literary

Award Author Title Publisher ALS Gold Medal Debra Dank We Come With This Place Echo PublishingColin Roderick Award Sarah Holland-Batt The Jaguar University of Queensland Press Indie Book Awards Book of the Year Craig Silvey Runt Allen & Unwin New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Debra Dank We Come With This Place Echo PublishingStella Prize Sarah Holland-Batt The Jaguar University of Queensland Press Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Jessica Au Cold Enough for Snow Giramondo Publishing

Fiction

AwardAuthorTitlePublisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Robbie Arnott Limberlost Text Publishing ARA Historical Novel Prize Gail Jones Salonika Burning Text Publishing The Australian/Vogel Literary Award Anna McGahan Immaculate Allen & Unwin Barbara Jefferis Award Not awarded Indie Book Awards Book of the Year – Fiction Geraldine Brooks Horse Viking Books Indie Book Awards Book of the Year – Debut Fiction Tracey Lien All That's Left Unsaid HQ FictionMiles Franklin Award Shankari Chandran Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens Ultimo Press Prime Minister's Literary Awards Jessica Au Cold Enough for Snow GiramondoNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsKaterina GIbsonWomen I KnowScribnerQueensland Literary Awards Alexis Wright Praiseworthy Giramondo Victorian Premier's Literary AwardsJessica AuCold Enough for SnowGiramondo Voss Literary Prize Robbie Arnott Limberlost Text Publishing

Children and Young Adult AwardCategoryAuthorTitlePublisher ARA Historical Novel Prize Children and Young Adult Amelia Mellor The Bookseller’s Apprentice Affirm PressChildren's Book of the Year AwardOlder ReadersTom TaylorNeverlandersPenguin Random HouseYounger ReadersCraig SilveyRuntAllen & UnwinPicture BookZeno SworderMy Strange Shrinking ParentsThames & HudsonEarly ChildhoodVikki Conley, illus. Max HamiltonWhere the Lyrebird LivesWindy HollowEve Pownall Award for Information BooksJess McGeachinDEEP: Delve into hidden wordsWelbeck PublishingIndie Book Awards Book of the Year Children's Craig Silvey Runt Allen & Unwin Young Adult Holden Shepherd The Brink Text PublishingPrime Minister's Literary AwardsChildren'sJasmine SeymourOpen Your Heart to CountryMagabala BooksYoung AdultSarah Winifred SearleThe Greatest ThingAllen & UnwinNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsChildren'sCorey Tutt and Blak DouglasThe First ScientistsHardie GrantYoung People'sLystra RoseThe UpwellingHachetteQueensland Literary AwardsChildren'sKatrina NannestadWaiting for the StorksABC BooksYoung AdultBiffy JamesCompletely Normal (and Other Lies)Hardie GrantVictorian Premier's Literary AwardsYoung Adult FictionKate MurrayWe Who Hunt the HollowHardie Grant

Crime and Mystery

National

Award Category Author Title PublisherDavitt Award Novel Tracey Lien All That’s Left Unsaid HQ Fiction Young adult novel Fleur Ferris Seven Days Puffin Children's novel Charlie Archbold The Sugarcane Kids and the Red-Bottomed Boat Text Publishing Non-fiction Megan Norris Out of the Ashes Simon and Schuster Australia Debut Hayley ScrivenorDirt Town Pan Macmillan Readers' choice Vikki Petraitis The Unbelieved Allen & UnwinNed Kelly Award Novel Jane Harper Exiles Pan Macmillan First novel Shelley Burr Wake Hachette Australia True crime Sandi Logan Betrayed Hachette Australia

Poetry AwardAuthorTitlePublisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded Anne Elder Award(joint winners)Harry ReidLeave Me AloneCorditeTheodore EllBeginning In SightRWPMary Gilmore Award Harry Reid Leave Me Alone CorditePrime Minister's Literary AwardsGavin Yuan GaoAt the Altar of TouchUQPNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsKim Cheng BoeyThe Singer and Other PoemsCorditeJudith Wright Calanthe Award for a Poetry CollectionLionel FogartyHarvest LingoGiramondoVictorian Premier's Literary AwardsGavin Yuan GaoAt the Altar of TouchUQP

Drama AwardCategoryAuthorTitlePublisherNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsScriptDel Kathryn Barton and Huna AmweeroBlazeCauseway Films Play Dylan Van Den Berg Whitefella Yella Tree Griffin Theatre Company & Currency PressVictorian Premier's Literary Awards John Harvey The Return Malthouse TheatrePatrick White Playwrights' Award Award Wendy Mocke Realish Melbourne Theatre Company Fellowship Wesley Enoch

Non-Fiction AwardCategoryAuthorTitlePublisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Non-Fiction Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Non-Fiction Kim Mahood Wandering With Intent ScribeIndie Book Awards Book of the Year Non-Fiction Richard Fidler The Book of Roads And Kingdoms ABC Books Illustrated Non-Fiction Damien Coulthard and Rebecca Sullivan First Nations Food Companion Murdoch BooksNational Biography AwardBiographyAnn-Marie PriestMy Tongue Is My Own: A Life of Gwen HarwoodLa Trobe University Press / Black Inc.Prime Minister's Literary AwardsNon-FictionSam VincentMy Father and Other AnimalsBlack Inc. New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Non-Fiction Debra Dank We Come With This Place Echo PublishingNew South Wales Premier's History AwardsAustralian HistoryAlan AtkinsonElizabeth and John: The Macarthurs of Elizabeth FarmNewSouthCommunity and Regional HistoryIan HodgesHe Belonged to Wagga: The Great War, the AIF and returned soldiers in an Australian country townASPGeneral HistoryMichael LaffanUnder Empire: Muslim lives and loyalties across the Indian Ocean world, 1775–1945Columbia UniversityQueensland Literary AwardsNon-FictionDebra DankWe Come With This PlaceEcho PublishingVictorian Premier's Literary AwardsNon-FictionEda GunaydinRoot & Branch: Essays on inheritanceNewSouth

Deaths

21 January – Gabrielle Williams, author of young adult fiction (born 1963) 3 February – Portia Robinson, historian (born 1926) 19 April – Lee Harding, novelist (born 1937) 21 April – John Tranter, poet, publisher and editor (born 1943) 22 April – Barry Humphries, comedian, author, actor and satirist (born 1934) 2 May – Gabrielle Carey, novelist (born 1959) 22 May – Andrew Burke, poet (born 1944) 30 June – Ron Pretty, poet (born 1940) 6 August – Elizabeth Webby, scholar of Australian literature (born 1942) 18 November – Nan Witcomb, poet and radio broadcaster (born 1927/1928)Adelaide former talkback host and poet Nan Witcomb dies aged 95 21 November – Dale Spender, feminist writer (born 1943) 10 December – Michael Blakemore, actor, writer and theatre director (born 1928) 12 December – Shirley Barber, children's author and illustrator (born 1935 in the Channel Islands) 30 December – John Pilger, journalist and filmmaker (born 1939) (died in the United Kingdom)

See also

2023 in Australia 2023 in literature 2023 in poetry List of years in Australian literature List of years in literature

References