New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 6 (1984) Winner
Mem Fox
メム・フォックス
Memu Fokkusu
Aliases:
Merrion Frances Fox / Merrion Frances Partridge
Pen Names:
Mem Fox（Pen name）
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1946-03-05 （Melbourne, Victoria, Australia）
- Nationality
- Australian
- Languages
- English
- Religion
- Christianity
- Residence History
- Melbourne, Australia → Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) → Geneva, Switzerland → Rwanda → England → Adelaide, Australia
Career
- Occupations
- Children's book author, Educationalist, Literacy specialist
- Active Years
- 1983-2024
- Affiliations
- Flinders University
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rose Bruford College | — | Drama | Teaching diploma | 1965-1968 | United Kingdom |
| Flinders University | — | Education, Literacy Studies | — | 1981頃-1996 | Australia |
Rose Bruford College
Drama
Degree:
Teaching diploma
Period:
1965-1968
Year of Graduation:
1968
Country:
United Kingdom
Drama school including compulsory teaching degree
Flinders University
Education, Literacy Studies
Period:
1981頃-1996
Year of Graduation:
1996
Country:
Australia
Associate Professor of Literacy Studies; took children's literature course
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize | Possum Magic | young people's literature | Government of New South Wales | winner |
| 1990 | Dromkeen Medal | — | — | Scholastic Australia | winner |
| 1993 | Member of the Order of Australia (AM) | — | services to children's literature | Australian Government | awarded |
| 2001 | Centenary Medal | — | — | Australian Government | awarded |
| 2017 | Nan Chauncy Award | — | — | — | winner |
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize
1984
Work:
Possum Magic
Category:
young people's literature
Organization:
Government of New South Wales
Result:
winner
Dromkeen Medal
1990
Organization:
Scholastic Australia
Result:
winner
Member of the Order of Australia (AM)
1993
Category:
services to children's literature
Organization:
Australian Government
Result:
awarded
Centenary Medal
2001
Organization:
Australian Government
Result:
awarded
Nan Chauncy Award
2017
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Possum Magic
1983 Children's literature 32 pagesGrandma Poss turns her grandchild Hush invisible to protect her from the bush; Hush must eat Australian foods to become visible again. Australia's bestselling children's book.
familyAustralian culturemagicprotection
Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge
1984 Children's literatureA boy helps his elderly neighbor with lost memory by finding what memory means through gifts.
memoryfriendshipelderly
Guess What?
1988 Children's literaturePicture book about daily activities; has been challenged and banned in some places.
daily lifeimagination
Where is the Green Sheep?
2004 Children's literatureRhythmic picture book searching for a green sheep.
explorationrhyme
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- lyricalrhythmicsimple rhyming verserepetition
- Recurring Motifs
- family bondscultural diversityliteracypeace
Legacy
Prominent Australian children's author whose Possum Magic is the country's bestselling children's book. Major contributor to literacy education, with worldwide seminars. Semi-retired since 1996 but continues writing.
Archives
- Lu Rees Archives (National Centre for Australian Children's Literature)
In Popular Culture
- Possum Magic widely used in schools and iconic in Australian culture.
Trivia
- Possum Magic is Australia's bestselling children's book.
- Has used the nickname 'Mem' since around age 13.
- Grew up as the only white child at a mission school in Rhodesia.
- Her book Guess What? has been banned in some US places as 'pornographic'.
- Refuses to visit the US after a traumatic immigration interrogation in 2017.