Young, New South Wales
Young is a town in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia and the largest town in the Hilltops Region. The "Lambing Flat" Post Office opened on 1 March 1861 and was renamed "Young" in 1863.
Young is marketed as the Cherry Ca ...
) is an Australian award-winning author of several novels and a number of non-fiction works. He is also an accomplished poet and TV scriptwriter.
Life and career
The middle son of a Presbyterian minister, Hugh Fraser McDonald, 1909–81, and the Central Queensland historian, Dr Lorna McDonald, 1916–2017, his childhood was spent in the NSW country towns of Bribbaree, Temora, and Bourke, before the family moved to Sydney. He attended
The Scots College
, motto_translation = O that we may be worthy of our forefathers
, location = Bellevue Hill, Eastern Suburbs, Sydney
, country = Australia
, type = Independent single-sex primary ...
and the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's ...
.
He was briefly a teacher, ABC producer, and publisher's editor in NSW, Tasmania, and Queensland, before moving to Canberra and taking up writing full-time in 1976, in order to complete his first novel, ''
1915
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction".
* January ...
''. McDonald has since 1980 lived near Braidwood, NSW, apart from periods in Sydney and New Zealand.
His novels are ''1915'', ''Slipstream'', ''Rough Wallaby'', ''Water Man'', ''The Slap'', ''Mr Darwin's Shooter'', ''The Ballad of Desmond Kale'', ''When Colts Ran'', ''The Following'' and ''A Sea-Chase''. Non-fiction: ''Shearers' Motel'' and ''The Tree In Changing Light''.
''1915'' won
The Age Book of the Year
''The Age'' Book of the Year Awards were annual literary awards presented by Melbourne's ''The Age'' newspaper. The awards were first presented in 1974. After 1998, they were presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival. Initially, two awa ...
in 1979 and the South Australian Biennial Literature Prize in 1980. In 1982 it was made into a seven-part ABC-TV television series. (Scripting: Peter Yeldham)
''Shearers' Motel'' won the 1993 Banjo National Book Council Banjo Award for non-fiction. It was filmed as "Cross Turning Over" for ABC-TV in 1996 (Director: Robert Klenner)
McDonald was nominated for the Miles Franklin Award in 1994 for ''Water Man'', and in 1999 for '' Mr Darwin's Shooter'', which in that year won the
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, also known as the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, were first awarded in 1979. They are among the richest literary awards in Australia. Notable prizes include the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction, t ...
, the
Victorian Premier's Literary Award
The Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Government with the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry. As of 2013, it is reportedly Australia's richest literary p ...
, the
South Australian Premier's Awards
The Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature comprise a group of biennially-granted literary awards established in 1986 by the Government of South Australia, announced during Adelaide Writers' Week, as part of the Adelaide Festival. The awards i ...
, and the
Adelaide Festival
The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...
Book of the Year.
''The Ballad of Desmond Kale'' won the Miles Franklin Award in 2006 and the Adelaide Festival Prize for Fiction in 2008. McDonald won the
O. Henry Award
The O. Henry Award is an annual American award given to short stories of exceptional merit. The award is named after the American short-story writer O. Henry.
The ''PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories'' is an annual collection of the year's twenty best ...
in 2008 for "The Bullock Run" (USA). This story forms the basis of chapters 15 and 16 of ''When Colts Ran''.
McDonald's eighth novel, ''When Colts Ran'', 2010, was shortlisted for the 2011 Miles Franklin Award, the 2011
Victorian Premier's Prize for Fiction The Victorian Premier's Prize for Fiction, formerly known as the Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction, is a prize category in the annual Victorian Premier's Literary Award. As of 2011 it has an remuneration of 25,000. The winner of this category prize vi ...
, and the 2011
Prime Minister's Literary Award
The Australian Prime Minister's Literary Awards (PMLA) were announced at the end of 2007 by the incoming First Rudd ministry following the 2007 election. They are administered by the Minister for the Arts.Sydney Morning Herald'' reviewer Daniel Herborn wrote: The Following'' is just as interested in the sweep of history as in those who are caught up in, and occasionally influence, the great social changes it surveys. Its themes of destiny, sectarianism and political patronage echo across generations as the influence of Friendly rises and wanes.'
His tenth novel, ''A Sea-Chase'' was published in October 2017. The book follows the fortunes of young teacher Judy Compton. After fleeing a rioting classroom one dismal Friday, she gets drunk and wakes up on a boat. Overnight her life changes; she is in love with being on the water and in love with Wes Bannister. But then events at sea challenge everything she holds dearest...
Bibliography
Novels
* ''
1915
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction".
* January ...
* ''Mike Willesee's Australians'' (1988)
* ''Reflecting Labour: Images of Myth and Origin Over 100 Years'' (1991)
* ''Shearers' Motel'' (1992)
* ''Australia's Flying Doctors'' (1994) (text for Richard Woldendorp photographs)
* ''The Tree in Changing Light'' (2001)
* ''Wool: The Australian Story'' (2003) (text for Richard Woldendorp photographs)
* ' (2009). Canberra: National Library of Australia
Poetry
* ''Citizens of Mist'' (1969)
* ''Airship'' (1975)