Ursula Dubosarsky (born ''Ursula Coleman''; 1961 in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia) is an Australian writer of fiction and non-fiction for children and young adults, whose work is characterised by a child's vision and comic voice of both clarity and ambiguity. She is the third child of

Peter Coleman William Peter Coleman (15 December 1928 – 31 March 2019) was an Australian writer and politician. A widely published journalist for over 60 years, he was editor of '' The Bulletin'' (1964–1967) and of '' Quadrant'' for 20 years, and publi ...

and Verna Susannah Coleman. She was named after the character of Ursula Brangwen in the 1915 novel ''

The Rainbow ''The Rainbow'' is a novel by British author D. H. Lawrence, first published by Methuen & Co. in 1915. It follows three generations of the Brangwen family living in Nottinghamshire, focusing particularly on the individual's struggle for growt ...

'' by

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, literary critic, travel writer, essayist, and painter. His modernist works reflect on modernity, social alienation ...

. She attended Lindfield, Hunter's Hill and Chatswood Primary Schools, SCEGGS Darlinghurst, then studied at

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

and later

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a Public university, public research university in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the Sydney metropolitan area. ...

. She is an Honorary Associate in the Department of English at

and has taught courses in children's literature at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

and the

University of Technology, Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a technical institution can be traced back t ...

. From 2016-2024 she was a member of the Library Council of New South Wales.

Writing career

Ursula is the author of over 60 illustrated books and novels, which have been translated into 14 languages. She has also written three non-fiction "Word Spy" books for children, illustrated by Tohby Riddle, about language, grammar and etymology. These books have won the New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, the

Children's Book Council of Australia A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...

Book of the Year Award and the Junior Judges' Award. In the United States and Canada ''The Word Spy'' is published under the title ''The Word Snoop.'' Her novel ''The Red Shoe'' is included in '' 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up'' and is one of 200 significant works of Australian literature in the Copyright Agency's Reading Australia program. In 2014, the annual

Christmas Window A Christmas window is a special window display prepared for the Christmas shopping season at department stores and other retailers. Some retailers around the world have become noted for their Christmas window displays, with some becoming tou ...

s of the department store David Jones were based on her story '' Reindeer's Christmas Surprise'', illustrated by Sue deGennaro and her book ''Too Many Elephants In this House'', illustrated by Andrew Joyner, was chosen for the National Simultaneous Storytime. In 2018 the

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

published ''Midnight at the Library'', illustrated by

Ron Brooks Ron Brooks (born October 16, 1988) is an American former professional football cornerback. He was selected by the Buffalo Bills in fourth round of the 2012 NFL draft. He played college football at LSU. He also played for the Philadelphia Eagles ...

, to celebrate the Library's 50-year anniversary. In 2019 a study room at

Marrickville Marrickville is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Marrickville is located south-west of the Sydney central business district and is the largest suburb in the Inner West Council local government ...

Library was named in honour of her novel ''The Blue Cat''. Three of her books have been adapted for theatre: ''The Red Shoe'', ''The Terrible Plop'' and ''Too Many Elephants in This House''. A theatrical work, "The Giant's Garden", based on a story by Ursula (in turn inspired by Oscar Wilde) was performed at the 2025

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 ...

Awards and honors

She has won nine national literary prizes, including five

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, th ...

, more than any other writer in the Awards' 30-year history. She was appointed the Australian Children's Laureate for 2020–2021.

International

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award () is an international children's literary award established by the Swedish government in 2002 to honour the Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren (1907–2002). The prize is five million SEK, making it ...

Nominee 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 2023, 2024, 2025. *

Hans Christian Andersen Award The Hans Christian Andersen Awards are two literary awards given by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), recognising one living author and one living illustrator for their "lasting contribution to children's literature". Th ...

Nominee * Luchs (Lynx ) Award for Children's Literature for ''The Golden Day'' (in German ''Nicht Jetz, niemals'') *

International Board on Books for Young People International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

(IBBY) Honour Book List for ''The Golden Day'' *

YALSA The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), established in 1957, is a division of the American Library Association. YALSA is a national association of librarians, library workers and advocates whose mission is to expand the capacity of l ...

(Division of the American Library Association) Excellence in Non-fiction for Young Adults Nominee for '' Word Snoop'' *

International Youth Library The International Youth Library (IYL) (, IJB) in Munich is a library that specializes in the collection of children and youth literature from around the world in order to make them available to the public, focusing on the international community. ...

White Ravens for ''The First Book of Samuel''; ''The Red Shoe''; and ''Midnight at the Library''.

Australian

* 2020–2021 – Australian Children's Laureate * 2013 – Inducted into Speech Pathology Australia's Hall of Fame for her contribution to children's literature * 2011 – Children's Book of the Year Award: Eve Pownall Award for Information Books for ''The Return of the Word Spy'' with illustrator Tohby Riddle * 2009 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Patricia Wrightson Prize for Young People's Literature for ''The Word Spy'' with illustrator Tohby Riddle * 2009 – Junior Judges Project, Children's Book Council of Australia, Winner for ''The Word Spy'' with illustrator Tohby Riddle * 2009 – Kids Own Australian Literature Award (KOALA), Picture Book Winner for ''Rex'' with illustrator David Mackintosh * 2007 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature for ''The Red Shoe'' * 2006 – Queensland Premier's Literary Award, Young Adult Book Award for ''The Red Shoe'' * 2006 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature for ''Theodora's Gift'' * 2006 –

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 ...

, Prize for Young Adult Literature for ''Theodora's Gift'' * 2001 –

Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature The South Australian Literary Awards, until 2024 known as the Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature, comprise a group of biennially-granted literary awards established in 1986 by the Government of South Australia. Formerly announced during A ...

, Award for Children's Literature for ''Abyssinia'' * 1995 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethnic Affairs Commission Award for ''The First Book of Samuel'' * 1994 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Children's literature for ''The White Guinea Pig'' * 1994 –

, Alan Garner Prize for Children's Literature for ''The White Guinea Pig''

Theatrical productions

* ''Too Many Elephants in This House'' at NIDA, the National Institute of Dramatic Art. * ''The Red Shoe'' at the Jigsaw Theatre. *''Plop!'', a musical version of ''The Terrible Plop'' at the

Windmill Theatre The Windmill Theatre in Great Windmill Street, London, was a variety and revue theatre best known for its nude ''tableaux vivants'', which began in 1932 and lasted until its reversion to a cinema in 1964. Many prominent British comedians of t ...

in Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra, Sydney, regional Victoria, Queensland and Darwin and the

New Victory Theater The New Victory Theater is a theatre (building), theater at 209 42nd Street (Manhattan), West 42nd Street in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, near Times Square. Built in 1900 as the Republ ...

in New York.

Bibliography

* ''Maisie and the Pinny Gig'' (1989) illustrated by Roberta Landers * ''High Hopes'' (1990) * ''Zizzy Zing'' (1991) * ''The Last Week in December'' (1993) * ''The White Guinea-Pig'' (1994) * ''The First Book of Samuel'' (1995) * ''Bruno and Crumhorn'' (1996) * ''Black Sails, White Sails'' (1997) * ''The Strange Adventures of Isador Brown'' (1998) illustrated by Paty Marshall-Stace * ''My Father Is Not a Comedian!'' (1999) * ''Honey and Bear'' (1999) illustrated by

* ''The Even Stranger Adventures of Isador Brown'' (2000) illustrated by Paty Marshall-Stace * ''The Game of the Goose'' (2000) illustrated by John Winch * ''The Two Gorillas'' (2000) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''Fairy Bread'' (2001) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''Abyssinia'' (2001) * ''The Magic Wand'' (2002) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''Special Days with Honey and Bear'' (2002) illustrated by

* ''Isador Brown's Strangest Adventures of All'' (2003) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''How To Be a Great Detective'' (2004) * ''Rex'' (2005) illustrated by David Mackintosh * ''Theodora's Gift'' (2005) * ''The Puppet Show'' (2006) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''The Red Shoe'' (2006) * ''The Word Spy'' (2008) illustrated by Tohby Riddle Published in the United States as ''The Word Snoop'' (2009) * ''Jerry'' (2008) illustrated by Patricia Mullins * ''Tibby's Leaf'' (2009) illustrated by Peter Bray * ''The Terrible Plop'' (2009) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''The Cubby House'' (2009) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''The Deep End'' (2010) illustrated by Mitch Vane * ''The Return of the Word Spy'' (2010) illustrated by Tohby Riddle * ''The Honey and Bear Stories'' (2010) illustrated by

* ''Free: Stories about Human Rights'' (2010) (contributor) Amnesty International/Walker Books UK * '' The Golden Day'' (2011) * ''The Carousel'' (2011) illustrated by Walter di Qual * ''The Word Spy Activity Book'' (2012) illustrated by Tohby Riddle * ''Too Many Elephants in This House'' (2012) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Perplexing Pineapple'' (2013) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Looming Lamplight'' (2013) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Missing Mongoose'' (2013) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''Violet Vanishes'' (2013) illustrated by Annie White * ''Rory Rides'' (2013) illustrated by Annie White * ''Ethan Eats'' (2013) illustrated by Annie White * ''Ava Adds'' (2013) illustrated by Annie White * Introduction to ''Lillypilly Hill'' (2013) Eleanor Spence Text Classics * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Dismal Daffodil'' (2014) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Quivering Quavers'' (2014) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''The Cryptic Casebook of Coco Carlomagno and Alberta: The Talkative Tombstone'' (2014) illustrated by Terry Denton * ''Two Tales of Twins from Ancient Greece and Rome'' (2014) illustrated by David Allan * ''The Great War: Stories inspired by objects from the First World War'' (2014) (contributor) Walker Books UK * ''Tim and Ed'' (2014) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Reindeer's Christmas Surprise'' (2014) illustrated by Sue de Gennaro * ''One Little Goat'' (2017) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''The Blue Cat'' (2017) * ''Brindabella'' (2018) novel illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Leaf Stone Beetle'' (2018) illustrated by Gaye Chapman * ''Midnight at the Library'' (2018) illustrated by

* ''The Boy Who Could Fly and other magical plays for children'' (2019) illustrated by Amy Golbach * ''Ask Hercules Quick'' (2019) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Pierre's Not There'' (2020) novel illustrated by Christopher Nielsen * ''The March of the Ants'' (2021) illustrated by Tohby Riddle * ''The Magnificent Hercules Quick'' (2021) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Mary and Marcus'' (2022) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Hercules Quick's Big Bag of Tricks'' (2023) illustrated by Andrew Joyner * ''Ethel the Penguin'' (2024) illustrated by Christopher Nielsen

Critical studies, reference books

* ''The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature'' (2015) edited by Daniel Hahn * ''1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up'' (2009) edited by Julia Eccleshore Cassell Illustrated * ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature'' (2006) edited by Jack Zipes * ''The Cambridge Guide to Children's Books in English'' (2001) edited by Victor Watson * ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Children's Literature'' (1993) edited by Stella Lees and Pam Macintyre * ''The Golden Day'' * Bradford, Clare (2014) "The Red Shoe" Copyright Agency Reading Australia https://readingaustralia.com.au/essays/the-red-shoe/ * Hale, Elizabeth (2021) "Mystery, Childhood, and Meaning in Ursula Dubosarsky's The Golden Day" in ''Our Mythical Hope: The Ancient Myths as Medicine for the Hardships of Life in Children's and Young Adults' Culture'' University of Warsaw Press pp. 451-469 https://rune.une.edu.au/web/handle/1959.11/54660 * Hateley, Erica (2009) "Puck vs. Hermia: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Gender, and Sexuality," in ''Shakespeare in Children's Literature: Gender and Cultural Capital'' New York: Routledge Chapter 4 (on ''How to Be a Great Detective'') * Holden, Kate (2021) "Ursula Dubosarsky" ''The Saturday Paper'' March 13-19 https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/culture/books/2021/03/13/ursula-dubosarsky/161555400011259#hrd *Lavi, Tali (2018) "Know the Author: Ursula Dubosarsky" ''Magpies'' vol 33 pp 4-6 * Pennell, Beverley (2003) "Leaving the Men to Drown?" in ''Fin de Siecle: Reconfigurations of Masculinity in Children's Fiction'' Roderick McGillis Praeger International Research Society for Children's Literature Chapter 19 (on ''Bruno and the Crumhorn'') * Stephens, John (2003) "Always Facing the Issues--Preoccupations in Australian Children's Literature" ''

The Lion and the Unicorn The Lion and the Unicorn are symbols of the United Kingdom. They are, properly speaking, heraldic supporters appearing in the full royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. The lion stands for England and the unicorn for Scotland. The combinat ...

'' 27(2) Johns Hopkins University Press

References

External links

Official Website
* Profile at publisher

Allen and Unwin George Allen & Unwin was a British publishing company formed in 1911 when Sir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It became one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and established an Australian ...

br>

Profile
at publisher Penguin Books Australia
The Golden Day
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dubosarsky, Ursula 1961 births Living people Australian women novelists Australian children's writers University of Sydney alumni 20th-century Australian novelists 20th-century Australian women writers People educated at Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School Writers from Sydney 21st-century Australian novelists 21st-century Australian women writers