Jean Catherine Watson (28 October 1933 – 28 December 2014) was a New Zealand novelist and humanitarian. She is notable for her first novel, ''Stand in the Rain'' (1966), and for her work with an orphanage in southern India, which is the subject of the documentary ''Aunty and the Star People''. ''Stand in the Rain'' is, in part, about her marriage to New Zealand author

Barry Crump John Barrie Crump (15 May 1935 – 3 July 1996) was a New Zealand author of semi-autobiographical comic novels based on his image as a rugged outdoors man. Taken together his novels have sold more than a million copies domestically. Crump's 19 ...

Early life

Watson was born in New Zealand in 1933 and lived on a farm at Mangapai, near

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

, during her childhood. She later became a freelance writer in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, where she also earned a degree in religious studies from

Victoria University Victoria University may refer to: * Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia * Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada * Victoria University of ...

. From 1962, Watson lived with

, and they were married for ten years.

India

In the 1980s, Watson took a trip to India, where she met a man named Subbiah who was trying to collect funds to open an orphanage. Watson returned home, sold her house, and then used most of the funds to support the creation of an orphanage in

Nilakottai Nilakkottai (also spelled as Nilakottai) is a town in the Dindigul district of the Indian States and territories of India, state of Tamil Nadu. The town was established in 1958, as 1st Grade Town Panchayat. In 1970, it was changed to Selection G ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

. Watson also supported the building of a school and

community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...

in the same area. This story, along with the conflicts she had with Subbiah over the ownership of the orphanage, was covered by the documentary ''Aunty and the Star People'' in 2014.

Writing

''Stand in the Rain'' (1966) and ''Three Sea Stories'' (1994) both received critical acclaim. However, her other novels, ''The Balloon Watchers'' (1975), ''The World is an Orange and the Sun'' (1978), ''Flowers for Happyever: A Prose Lyric'' (1980) and ''Address to a King'' (1986) were paid little attention. As her writing progressed, she included more elements of

Vedanta philosophy ''Vedanta'' (; , ), also known as ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six orthodox ( ''āstika'') traditions of Hindu philosophy and textual exegesis. The word ''Vedanta'' means 'conclusion of the Vedas', and encompasses the ideas that e ...

. She also wrote ''Karunai Illam: The Story of an Orphanage'' (1992), a non-fiction account of her time with the orphanage.

Later life

In the

2002 New Year Honours New Years' Honours are announced on or around the date of the New Year in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in supplements to the London G ...

, Watson was appointed

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have r ...

for services to literature and welfare work. Watson died in Wellington of a

brain aneurism An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a cerebral aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder characterized by a localized dilation or ballooning of a blood vessel in the brain due to a weakness in the vessel wall. These aneurysms can occur in an ...

in December 2014. Her son, Harry Watson, plans to publish three of her novels posthumously.

Notes

References

External links

Karunai Illam orphanage and school homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Jean 1933 births 2014 deaths 20th-century New Zealand novelists 20th-century New Zealand short story writers 20th-century New Zealand women writers New Zealand women novelists New Zealand women short story writers Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit People from the Northland Region