The Asher Award was a biennial Australian literary award administered by the

Australian Society of Authors The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) was formed in 1963 as the organisation to promote and protect the rights of Australia's authors and illustrators. The Fellowship of Australian Writers played a key role it its establishment. The organisati ...

between 2005 and 2017. It was established by the

Australia Council Creative Australia, formerly known as the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announ ...

after a bequest from the late author

Helen Asher Helen Asher (also known as Helen Ulrich, 1927 – 19 October 2001) was an Australian novelist and short story writer. Biography Born Waltraud Helene Rosalie Ulrich, Asher migrated to Australia from Germany as a post-World War II refugee. Asher ...

. It was disestablished in 2017 when the bequest had been fully expended. The amount of $12,000 was awarded to “a female author whose work carries an anti-war theme”.

Asher Award winners

* 2005: ''The Marsh Birds'' by

Eva Sallis Eva Katerina Sallis (also Eva Hornung

(Allen & Unwin) *2007: ''The Wing of Night'' by Brenda Walker (Viking) *2009: ''The Orphan Gunner'' by Sara Knox (Giramondo) and ''The Ghost at the Wedding'' by Shirley Walker (Viking) *2011: ''Ruin'' by Roberta Lowing (Interactive Press) and ''The Old School'' by P. M. Newton (Viking) *2013: ''Hannah and Emil'' by Belinda Castles (Allen & Unwin) *2015: ''Broken Nation'' by

Joan Beaumont Joan Errington Beaumont, (born 25 October 1948) is an Australian historian and academic, who specialises in foreign policy and the Australian experience of war. She is professor emerita in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Austral ...

(Allen & Unwin) * 2017: ''Enemy'' by Ruth Clare (Viking) and ''A Soldier, a Dog and a Boy'' by

Libby Hathorn Elizabeth Helen Hathorn (born 1943) is an Australian writer for children, and a poet who works with schools, institutions and communities. She has received many awards for her books, some of which have been translated into several languages. In ...

and illustrated by Phil Lesnie (Lothian)

References

Australian literary awards Awards established in 2005 Awards disestablished in 2017 Australian literature-related lists {{lit-award-stub