1990 in Australian literature explained

This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1990.

Events

• Tom Flood won the Miles Franklin Award for Oceana Fine

Major publications

Novels

• Glenda Adams — Longleg
• Thea Astley — Reaching Tin River
• Sumner Locke Elliott — Fairyland^[1]
• Sonya Hartnett — The Glass House
• Susan Johnson – Flying Lessons^[2]
• Elizabeth Jolley — Cabin Fever
• Nigel Krauth – JF Was Here^[3]
• David Malouf — The Great World
• Colleen McCullough — The First Man in Rome
• Mandy Sayer — Mood Indigo^[4]
• Sam Watson – The Kadaitcha Sung^[5]
• Morris West — Lazarus

Crime and mystery

• Jon Cleary — Murder Song
• Kerry Greenwood — Flying Too High^[6]
• Alex Juniper — A Very Proper Death^[7]
• Finola Moorhead – Still Murder^[8]
• Kel Richards — The Case of the Vanishing Corpse^[9]

Science fiction and fantasy

• A. Bertram Chandler — From Sea to Shining Star^[10]
• Greg Egan
  • "Axiomatic"
  • "Learning to Be Me"
  • "The Moral Virologist"
• Lucy Sussex — "Red Ochre"^[11]
• George Turner — A Pursuit of Miracles: Eight Stories^[12]

Children's and young adult fiction

• Isobelle Carmody — The Farseekers
• Gary Crew — Strange Objects
• Garth Nix — The Ragwitch
• Emily Rodda — Finders Keepers
• Tim Winton — Lockie Leonard, Human Torpedo

Poetry

• Lee Cataldi — Women Who Live on the Ground: Poems, 1978-1988^[13]
• Jean Kent — Verandahs^[14]
• Jennifer Maiden — The Winter Baby^[15]
• Les Murray — Dog Fox Field^[16]
• Jan Owen — Fingerprints on Light^[17]

Drama

• Hannie Rayson — Hotel Sorrento^[18]
• David Williamson — Siren^[19]

Non-fiction

• Beverley Farmer — A Body of Water^[20]
• Gwen Harwood — Blessed City: The Letters of Gwen Harwood to Thomas Riddell, January to September 1943^[21]
• Dorothy Hewett — Wild Card^[22]

Awards and honours

• Yasmine Gooneratne, for "service to literature and to education"^[23]
• Harry Payne Heseltine, for "service to education, particularly in the field of Australian literature"^[24]
• Rodney Hall (writer), for "service to the arts, particularly in the field of Australian literature"^[25]
• Andrew Taylor (poet), for "service to the arts, particularly in the field of Australian literature"^[26]
• Elyne Mitchell, for "service to children's literature"^[27]

Lifetime achievement

Award	Author
Christopher Brennan Award^[28]	Not awarded
Patrick White Award^[29]	Robert Gray

Literary

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
The Age Book of the Year Award^[30]	Gwen Harwood	Blessed City	Angus and Robertson
ALS Gold Medal^[31]	Peter Porter	Possible Worlds	Oxford University Press
Colin Roderick Award^[32]	Roland Griffiths-Marsh	The Sixpenny Soldier	Angus and Robertson

Fiction

National

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature^[34]		Oscar and Lucinda	University of Queensland Press
The Age Book of the Year Award	Glenda Adams	Longleg	Angus & Robertson
The Australian/Vogel Literary Award^[35]	Gillian Mears	The Mint Law	Allen and Unwin
	Michael Stephens	Sibling Mischief	Allen and Unwin
Miles Franklin Award^[36]	Tom Flood	Oceana Fine	Allen & Unwin
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards^[37]	Thea Astley	Reaching Tin River	William Heinemann Australia
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards^[38]	Tom Flood	Oceana Fine	Allen & Unwin

Poetry

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature	Gwen Harwood	Bone Scan	Angus & Robertson
Anne Elder Award^[39]	Jean Kent	Vernadahs	Hale & Iremonger
	Barry Hill	Raft: Poems 1983-1990	Penguin
Grace Leven Prize for Poetry^[40]	Not awarded
Mary Gilmore Award^[41]	Kristopher Rassemussen	In the Name of the Father	False Frontiers

Non-fiction

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature	John Bray	Satura	Wakefield Press
The Age Book of the Year Award	Gwen Harwood	Blessed City	Angus and Robertson

Births

A list, ordered by date of birth (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of births in 1990 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of death.

Unknown date

• Ellen van Neerven, Indigenous Australian writer and poet^[42]

Deaths

A list, ordered by date of death (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of deaths in 1990 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of birth.

• 8 March — Jack Lindsay, novelist, biographer, historian and literary critic (born 1900)^[43]
• 15 April — William Hart-Smith, poet (born 1911)^[44]
• 21 June — Martin Johnston, poet and novelist (born 1947)^[45]
• 30 September — Patrick White, novelist, playwright and short story writer (born 1912)^[46]

See also

• 1990 in Australia
• 1990 in literature
• 1990 in poetry
• List of years in literature
• List of years in Australian literature

Notes and References

1. Web site: Fairyland by Sumner Locke Elliott. National Library of Australia. 26 April 2024.
2. Web site: Flying Lessons by Susan Johnson . National Library of Australia. 26 April 2024.
3. Web site: JF Was Here by Nigel Krauth. National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
4. Web site: Mood Indigo by Mandy Sayer. National Library of Australia. 26 April 2024.
5. Web site: The Kadaitcha Sung by Sam Watson. National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
6. Web site: Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood. National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
7. Web site: A Very Proper Death by Alex Juniper . National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
8. Web site: Still Murder by Finola Moorhead. National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
9. Web site: The Case of the Vanishing Corpse by Kel Richards . National Library of Australia. 27 April 2024.
10. Web site: From Sea to Shining Star by A. Bertram Chandler. ISFDB. 24 December 2023.
11. Web site: "Red Ochre" by Lucy Sussex . ISFDB. 24 December 2023.
12. Web site: A Pursuit of Miracles by George Turner. ISFDB. 24 December 2023.
13. Web site: Austlit — Women Who Live on the Ground: Poems, 1978-1988 by Lee Cataldi . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
14. Web site: Austlit — Verandahs by Jean Kent . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
15. Web site: Austlit — The Winter Baby by Jennifer Maiden . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
16. Web site: Austlit — Dog Fox Field by Les Murray . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
17. Web site: Austlit — Fingerprints on Light by Jan Owen . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
18. Web site: Austlit — Hotel Sorrento by Hannie Rayson . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
19. Web site: Austlit — Siren by David Williamson . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
20. Web site: Austlit — A Body of Water by Beverley Farmer . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
21. Web site: Austlit — Blessed City: The Letters of Gwen Harwood to Thomas Riddell, January to September 1943 by Gwen Harwood . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
22. Web site: Austlit — Wild Card by Dorothy Hewett . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
23. Web site: Associate Professor Yasmine Gooneratne. honours.pmc.gov.au. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20171107014740/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870275 . 7 November 2017 . 2019-12-24.
24. Web site: Professor Harry Payne Heseltine. honours.pmc.gov.au. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191224183251/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/881456 . 24 December 2019 . 2019-12-24.
25. Web site: Rodney Hall. honours.pmc.gov.au. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191211205732/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870358 . 11 December 2019 . 2019-12-24.
26. Web site: Andrew McDonald Taylor. honours.pmc.gov.au. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191211205727/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/869712 . 11 December 2019 . 2019-12-24.
27. Web site: Sibyl Elyne Keith Mitchell. honours.pmc.gov.au. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191224183245/https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870431 . 24 December 2019 . 2019-12-24.
28. Web site: Austlit — FAW Christopher Brennan Award. Austlit. 13 September 2023.
29. Web site: Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners . Austlit. 8 September 2023.
30. Web site: "A poet's collection of letters wins 'Age' Book of the Year prize" . The Age, 1 December 1990, p12. 28 May 2024. .
31. Web site: ALS Gold Medal - Previous Winners . Association for the Study of Australian Literature. 31 December 2023.
32. Web site: Colin Roderick Award - Other Winners . James Cook University. 31 December 2023.
33. Web site: Commonwealth Writers' Prize Regional Winners 1987-2007 . Commonwealth Foundation. 17 January 2024.
34. Web site: State Library of South Australia. Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature – Past Literary Award Winners. 18 April 2024.
35. Web site: Austlit — The Australian/Vogel National Literary Award 1990. Austlit. 16 February 2023.
36. Web site: "Second major prize for book". The Canberra Times, 22 June 1990, p16. 14 September 2023.
37. Web site: Siobhan's Snowy stories are winners. Sydney Morning Herald, 7 September 1990, p3. 3 May 2024. .
38. Web site: Another Premier's literary award goes to flood for 'Oceana Fine' . The Age, 13 September 1990, p14. 26 April 2024. .
39. Web site: Austlit — Anne Elder Award 1989-91 . Austlit. 11 February 2024.
40. Web site: Austlit — Grace Leven Poetry Prize 1991-93 . Austlit. 11 February 2024.
41. Web site: Mary Gilmore Award . . 10 February 2024.
42. Web site: Austlit — Ellen van Neerven . Austlit. 31 December 2023.
43. Web site: John (Jack) Lindsay (1900–1990) by Paul Gillen . Australian Dictionary of Biography. 31 December 2023.
44. Web site: William (Bill) Hart-Smith (1911–1990) by Brian Dibble . Australian Dictionary of Biography. 23 November 2023.
45. Web site: Martin Johnston (1947-1990) . 2023-09-23 . AustLit: Discover Australian Stories . The University of Queensland.
46. Web site: Patrick Victor (Paddy) White (1912–1990) by Elizabeth Webby . Australian Dictionary of Biography. 25 November 2023.