Authors, publishers recognised in Queen’s Birthday Honours
Australian authors and members of the publishing industry were among those recognised in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours.
Peter Coleman has been made an Officer (AO) in the General Division of the Order of Australia ‘for distinguished service to the print media industry as a noted editor, journalist, biographer and author’. Coleman was the editor of Quadrant from 1967-1990, and wrote or co-wrote a number of books, including The Last Intellectuals: Essays on Writers and Politics (Quadrant Books); The Costello Memoirs (with Peter Costello, MUP), The Real Barry Humphries (Robson) and The Liberal Conspiracy: The Congress for Cultural Freedom and the Struggle for the Mind of Postwar Europe (Macmillan).
Among the authors to be made Member (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia is Valerie Parv, who was recognised for ‘significant service to the arts as a prolific author, and as a role model and mentor to young emerging writers’. A founding member of Romance Writers of Australia, Parv is the author of 85 books, with total sales of more than 29 million copies worldwide. The Romance Writers of Australia’s Valerie Parv Award was established in her honour.
Patrick Lindsay was also made AM in the General Division for ‘significant service to literature as an author’. Lindsay is the author of 13 books, including military history titles The Spirit of Kokoda (Hardie Grant) and The Spirit of Gallipoli (Hardie Grant).
Other recipients of the AM in the General Division were Morris Schwartz, ‘for significant service to the print media industry as a publisher’, who was recognised for his work as director of Black Inc. since 2001, director of Bookman Press from the 1990s to 2001, and as co-founder and director of Outback Press from 1972-1980, among other work; Lesley Anne Reece, ‘for significant service to children through improving literacy skills and promoting Australian authors and illustrators’, recognised for her work as founding director of the Literature Centre in WA and convenor of the Youth Literature Program; Dennis Haskell, ‘for significant service to literature, particularly poetry, as an academic, author, editor and critic’, recognised for his work as a former chair of the Australia Council Literature Board and co-editor of Westerly from 1985-2009, as well as his academic work in Australian literature; and John Hamilton, for ‘significant service to the print media as a leading journalist and editor, as an author and educator’, recognised for a body of work that includes a number of military history titles, including Gallipoli Sniper: The Life of Billy Sling (Pan Macmillan) and Goodbye Cobber, God Bless You: The Fatal Charge of the Light Horse (Pan Macmillan).
Medals of the Order of Australia (OAM) and AMs were also awarded to a number of people who have authored books in their fields, including educators, historians and researchers. Among the recipients were Vecihi Basarin, Steve Biddulph, Reginald Butler, John Falzon, David Hollands, Patricia Kotai-Ewers, William Peasley, Diane Perkins, Eva Slonim and Babette Smith.
To see the library professionals recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, click here.
View the full Queen’s Birthday Honours list here.
Category: Local news
