Six authors in search of Waverley Library award
It has become one of the key occasions of Australia’s literary calendar. Waverley Library, combined with its own supportive enthusiasts and the Copyright Agency (which ensures authors receive their due entitlement from book sales), held a glittering evening to announce the six shortlisted writers for the coveted Alex Buzo prize.
Now called The Nib, the CAL Waverley Library award for Literature has become Australia’s premier award acknowledging excellence in research by Australian authors. Nominations for the award reached 160 entries in this 8th year of the competition.
Brian Johns, former ABC chairman, now chairman of the Copyright Agency Ltd which allocates a part of its funds to cultural development, told the gathering that an important element of the evening was the celebration of Australian writing. He said the award was well worth supporting.
Emma Buzo, daughter of noted Australian playwright Alex Buzo who played a pivotal role in the award’s establishment, delighted those present with the news she had become a researcher, following in her late father’s footsteps.
The 2008 award winner Christopher Koch was the guest speaker, introduced by Lex Marinos. He prophesied that books, the entertainment of his childhood, would continue to delight future generations, despite videos and electronic books. But he appealed for continued support for printed books in the face of rival forms of entertainment.
Peter Quartley, president of FOWL (Friends of Waverley Library) presented the Alex Buzo prize, which included a $1000 cheque for the six writers on the short list:
Greg de Moore – Tom Wills, Allen & Unwin.
Robert Gray – The Land I Came Through Last, Giramondo Publishing.
David Levell – Tour to Hell, University of Queensland Press.
John McDonald – Art of Australia, Pan Macmillan.
David Kilcullen – The Accidental Guerrilla, Scribe Publications.
Marina Larsson – Shattered Anzacs, University of NSW Press.
The ABC’s Richard Glover will announce the overall winner on November 25.
– By Peter McCallum
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