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The Prize for Indigenous Writing: Winner and Shortlist 2008
Judges: Philip Morrissey (Convenor), Jane Harrison and Bruce Sims
Winner
The winner of the 2008 Prize for Indigenous Writing is:
Shortlist
| Anonymous Premonition - WINNERYvette Holt
(University of Queensland Press)
This splendid first collection of poetry combines lyric talent and political punch. Yvette Holt ranges across wide experience from the suburban setting of Inala, through travels and emotional journeys. She presents the journey of an Indigenous woman but with a universal empathy. The poetry ranges from the deeply and personally felt, through social commentary and political analysis. But it is in her adept use of words and observation of situation that Holt shows her mastery. |
| Me, Antman & FleabagGayle Kennedy
(University of Queensland Press)
Gayle Kennedy’s collection of stories takes us on a hilarious journey through family and friends. While written as a series of yarns, this book goes much further than humour. Like all good yarns, the stories tend to point up human foibles, but Kennedy also demonstrates the pathos as well as the funny side of everyday life and has a fine sense of morality. In one story, she evokes the strong feelings of an old woman who wants to return to her country one last time. She portrays the centrality to human experience of warmth, friendship and a wicked sense of humour. |
| Fight for Liberty and Freedom: The Origins of Australian Aboriginal ActivismJohn Maynard
(Aboriginal Studies Press)
This well-researched and original book covers a little-known period of Aboriginal activism. It is partly a biography of Fred Maynard, but ranges widely to international movements for racial equality in the 1920s. It is also a history of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association and the many people who joined Fred Maynard in fighting for justice. Particularly poignant are the accounts of appropriation of land developed, fenced and farmed by Aboriginal families and the battles to prevent removal of children. This story of a well-organised and dogged band of activists is inspiring. | |
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