1999 in Australian literature

none December 2019 December 2019 This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1999. Events Murray Bail won the Miles Franklin Award for Eucalyptus Jan Fullerton was appointed Director General of the National Library of Australia, being the first woman and first internal appointee Major publications Novels Thea Astley — Drylands Lily Brett — Too Many Men Marshall Browne – The Burnt City The Burnt City by Marshall Browne National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1364955 15 July 2024 Kate Grenville — The Idea of Perfection Dorothy Hewett — Neap Tide Austlit — Neap Tide by Dorothy Hewett Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C1531 19 February 2024 Julia Leigh — The Hunter Michael Meehan — The Salt of Broken Tears Bruce Pascoe — Shark Austlit — Shark by Bruce Pascoe Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C103329 19 February 2024 Dorothy Porter — What a Piece of Work Matthew Reilly — Ice Station Heather Rose — White Heart Austlit — White Heart by Heather Rose Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C76699 19 February 2024 Kim Scott — Benang Amy Witting — Isobel on the Way to the Corner Shop Science fiction and fantasy James Bradley — The Deep Field Trudi Canavan – "Whispers of the Mist Children" Sara Douglass — Crusader Kate Forsyth – The Cursed Towers The Cursed Towers by Kate Forsyth ISFDB https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?20891 3 May 2024 Greg Egan "Border Guards" Teranesia Ian Irvine — Dark is the Moon Dark is the Moon by Ian Irvine ISFDB https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?23284 3 May 2024 Juliet Marillier – Daughter of the Forest Sean McMullen – Souls in the Great Machine Souls in the Great Machine by Sean McMullen ISFDB https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?20698 3 May 2024 George Turner – Down There in Darkness Down There in Darkness by George Turner ISFDB https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?20334 3 May 2024 Crime Marshall Browne — The Wooden Leg of Inspector Anders Garry Disher — The Dragon Man Kerry Greenwood – Death Before Wicket Death Before Wicket by Kerry Greenwood National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1378443 3 May 2024 Gabrielle Lord – Feeding the Demons Feeding the Demons by Gabrielle Lord National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1399536 3 May 2024 Barry Maitland – The Chalon Heads Tara Moss – Fetish Fetish by Tara Moss National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1455664 3 May 2024 Chris Nyst — Cop This! Peter Temple Black Tide Shooting Star Children's and young adult fiction Helen Barnes — Killing Aurora Graeme Base — The Worst Band in the Universe Damien Broderick, with Rory Barnes — Stuck in Fast Forward Kim Caraher — Goanna AnnaGoanna Anna by Kim Caraher National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1837049 19 February 2024 Nick Earls — 48 Shades of Brown Christine Harris — Foreign Devil Sonya Hartnett — Stripes of the Sidestep Wolf Victor Kelleher — The Ivory Trail Dave Luckett — A Dark Victory Markus Zusak — The Underdog Poetry Kevin Hart — Wicked Heat Wicked Heat by Kevin Hart National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1614991 3 May 2024 John Kinsella — Visitants Visitants by John Kinsella National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/359766 3 May 2024 Jennifer Maiden — Mines Les Murray — Conscious and Verbal Conscious and Verbal by Les Murray National Library of Australia https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1613909 3 May 2024 Drama Van Badham — The Wilderness of Mirrors Austlit — The Wilderness of Mirrors by Van Badham Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C536768 19 February 2024 Non-fiction Ian McFarlane — Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop Drusilla Modjeska — Stravinsky's Lunch Les Murray — The Quality of Sprawl: Thoughts about Australia Austlit — The Quality of Sprawl: Thoughts about Australia by Les Murray Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C273647 19 February 2024 Anne Summers — Ducks on the Pond: An Autobiography 1945–1976 Austlit — Ducks on the Pond: An Autobiography 1945–1976 by Anne Summers Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C597686 19 February 2024 David Walker— Anxious Nation: Australia and the Rise of Asia 1850–1939 Awards and honours Michael Fitzgerald Page AUS AM "for service to the book publishing industry and to literature as a writer, and through the encouragement and support of upcoming Australian authors"https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870012 Michael Fitzgerald Page honours.pmc.gov.au live https://web.archive.org/web/20191227204422/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870012 27 December 2019 2019-12-27 Frank John Ford AUS AM "for service to the development of the performing arts in South Australia as a director, playwright, administrator and educator"https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/869721 Frank John Ford honours.pmc.gov.au live https://web.archive.org/web/20191003044848/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/869721 3 October 2019 2019-12-27 Kay Saunders AUS AM "for service to Australian history as a scholar, author and commentator on social issues"https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/872268 Dr Kay Elizabeth Bass Saunders honours.pmc.gov.au live https://web.archive.org/web/20191014125658/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/872268 14 October 2019 2019-12-27 John Antill Millett AUS OAM "for service to literature as editor of Poetry Australia"https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870407 John Antill Millett honours.pmc.gov.au live https://web.archive.org/web/20190526075437/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870407 26 May 2019 2019-12-27 Lifetime achievement Award Author Christopher Brennan Award Austlit — FAW Christopher Brennan Award Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v539?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents&from=9&count=3 12 September 2023 Kevin Hart Patrick White Award Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v617?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents 8 September 2023 22 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230822040912/https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v617?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents dead Gerald Murnane Literary Award Author Title Publisher The Age Book of the Year Award"Age Book of the Year" The Age, 27 August 1999, p99 https://www.proquest.com/docview/2521759779 16 June 2024 2521759779 K. S. Inglis Sacred Places: War Memorials in the Australian Landscape Miegunyah Press ALS Gold Medal ALS Gold Medal — Previous Winners Association for the Study of Australian Literature https://www.asal.org.au/awards/als-gold-medal/ 10 January 2024 Murray Bail Eucalyptus Random House Colin Roderick Award Colin Roderick Award - Other Winners James Cook University https://www.jcu.edu.au/foundation-for-australian-literary-studies/roderick-award/previous-winners2 16 January 2024 Christopher Koch Out of Ireland Doubleday Nita Kibble Literary AwardKibble Literary Award Australian National University https://history.cass.anu.edu.au/centres/ncb/kibble-literary-award 26 February 2024 Geraldine Brooks Foreign Correspondence: A Pen Pal's Journey From DownUnder to All Over Anchor Books Fiction International Award Category Author Title PublisherCommonwealth Writers' Prize Commonwealth Writers' Prize Regional Winners 1987-2007 Commonwealth Foundation http://www.commonwealthfoundation.com/uploads/documents/Regional%20Winners%201987-20071.pdf 17 January 2024 23 October 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20071023223729/http://www.commonwealthfoundation.com/uploads/documents/Regional%20Winners%201987-20071.pdf dead Best Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region Murray Bail Eucalyptus Harvill Press Best Overall Novel Murray Bail Eucalyptus Harvill Press National Award Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for LiteratureState Library of South Australia https://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/past-literary-award-winners Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature – Past Literary Award Winners 18 April 2024 9 March 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20260309180911/https://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/past-literary-award-winners dead Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Award James Bradley The Deep Field Sceptre The Australian/Vogel Literary Award Austlit — The Australian/Vogel National Literary Award 1999 Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v385?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents&from=21&count=3 16 February 2023 Hsu-Ming Teo Love and Vertigo Allen and Unwin Miles Franklin Award Austlit — Miles Franklin Literary Award : 1997-1999 Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v254?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents&from=24&count=3 15 September 2023 Murray Bail Eucalyptus Random House New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards"30-year Endeavour sails off with prize" Sydney Morning Herald, 18 May 1999 https://www.proquest.com/docview/2674374036 10 May 2024 2674374036 Roger McDonald Mr Darwin's Shooter Random House Queensland Premier's Literary Awards"Queensland Premier's Literary Awards - Previous Winners" Queensland Government http://www.qld.gov.au/about/events-awards-honours/awards/literary-awards/past-winners/ https://web.archive.org/web/20120717073830/http://www.qld.gov.au/about/events-awards-honours/awards/literary-awards/past-winners/ dead 2012-07-17 13 May 2025 Les Murray Fredy Neptune: A Novel in Verse Duffy & Snellgrove Victorian Premier's Literary Awards"Literary prizes sail under the bridge" The Age, 16 October 1999, p7 https://www.proquest.com/docview/363426003 18 January 2025 363426003 Roger McDonald Mr Darwin's Shooter Random House Western Australian Premier's Book Awards"Australian Literary Awards: Western Australian Premier's" University Libraries, University of Washington https://guides.lib.uw.edu/c.php?g=341672&p=2299464 19 March 2025 Kim Scott Benang : From the Heart Fremantle Arts Centre Press Crime and Mystery National Award Category Author Title PublisherNed Kelly Award1999 Ned Kelly Award Winners http://www.austcrimewriters.com/ned-kelly-award-winners/1 https://web.archive.org/web/20160327181222/http://www.austcrimewriters.com/ned-kelly-award-winners/5 2016-03-27 17 January 2024 Australian Crime Writers Novel Peter Doyle Amaze Your Friends Random House First novel Andrew Masterson The Last Days Picador Lifetime Achievement Peter Corris Children and Young Adult Award Category Author Title PublisherChildren's Book of the Year Award"CBCA - Previous Winners - 1946 Onwards" CBCA https://cbca.blob.core.windows.net/documents/National/CBCA%20Awards%201946%20on.pdf 25 August 2025 Older Readers Phillip Gwynne Deadly, Unna? Penguin Books Picture Book John Marsden & Shaun Tan The Rabbits LothianNew South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Children's Literature Odo Hirsch Antonio S and the Mystery of Theodore Guzman Allen & Unwin Young People's Literature Garry Disher The Divine Wind Hodder Headline Australia Victorian Premier's Prize for Young Adult Fiction Phillip GwynneDeadly, Unna? Penguin Poetry Award Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Not awarded The Age Book of the Year R. A. Simpson The Impossible, and Other Poems Five Islands Press Anne Elder Award Austlit — Anne Elder Award 1998-2000 Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v148?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents&from=21&count=3 12 February 2024 Not awarded Grace Leven Prize for Poetry Austlit — Grace Leven Poetry Prize 1994-2001 Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/v186?mainTabTemplate=awardWorksAndAgents&from=9&count=3 12 February 2024August 2026 InternetArchiveBot Not awarded Mary Gilmore AwardMary Gilmore Award Association for the Study of Australian Literature https://www.asal.org.au/awards/mary-gilmore-award/ 10 February 2024 Not awarded New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Lee Cataldi Race Against Time Penguin Books Australia Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Gig Ryan Pure and Applied Paper Bark Press Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Tracy Ryan The Willing Eye Fremantle Arts Centre Press Drama Award Category Author TitleNew South Wales Premier's Literary Awards FilmScript Heather Rose, Frederick Stahl and Rolf de Heer Dance Me to My Song Play Scott Rankin and Leah Purcell Box the Pony Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Drama Catherine Zimdahl Clark in Sarajevo Non-fiction Award Category Author Title Publisher Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature Non-Fiction Not awarded The Age Book of the Year Non-Fiction K. S. Inglis Sacred Places: War Memorials in the Australian Landscape AnchorNational Biography Award"National Biography Award – Past Winners" State Library of NSW https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/awards/national-biography-award?page=2 22 March 2024 Biography Not awarded New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Non-Fiction Ray Parkin H M Bark Endeavour Melbourne University Press Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Non-Fiction Peter Robb M: The Man Who Became Caravaggio Duffy and Snellgrove Deaths A list, ordered by date of death (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of deaths in 1999 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of birth. 15 February — Gordon Neil Stewart, writer (born 1912) Austlit — Gordon Neil Stewart (1912-1999) Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A27537 18 January 2024 1 March — Richard Beynon, playwright, actor and television producer (born 1925) Austlit — Richard Beynon (1925-1999) Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A30358 18 January 2024 20 April — Ric Throssell, diplomat and author whose writings included novels, plays, film and television scripts and memoirs (born 1922) Ric Prichard Throssell (1922–1999) by Nathan Hobby Australian Dictionary of Biography https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/throssell-ric-prichard-32379 18 January 2024 8 July — Mavis Thorpe Clark, novelist and writer for children (born 1909) Austlit — Mavis Thorpe Clark (1909-1999) Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A16927 16 November 2023 12 July — Mungo Ballardie MacCallum, journalist, broadcaster and poet (born 1913) Austlit — Mungo Ballardie MacCallum (1913-1999) Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A18934 1 December 2023 9 October — Morris West, novelist and playwright (born 1916)Austlit — Morris West (1916-1999) https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A8370 2023-09-16 AustLit: Discover Australian Stories The University of Queensland 16 November — Mal Morgan, poet (born 1936, London, England) Austlit — Mal Morgan (1936-1999) Austlit https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A34674 18 January 2024 See also 1999 in Australia 1999 in literature 1999 in poetry List of years in literature List of years in Australian literature References Category:1999 in Australia Category:Australian literature by year Category:20th-century Australian literature Category:1999 in literature