1962 in Australian literature

This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1962.

Major publications

Books

• James Aldridge – A Captive in the Land
• Thea Astley – The Well Dressed Explorer
• Martin Boyd – When Blackbirds Sing
• Gavin Casey - Amid the Plenty
• Nancy Cato - But Still the Stream
• Jon Cleary – The Country of Marriage
• Kenneth Cook - Chain of Darkness
• Dymphna Cusack – Picnic Races
• Catherine Gaskin – I Know My Love
• George Johnston – The Far Road
• Elizabeth Kata – Someone Will Conquer Them
• John Naish – The Cruel Field
• John O'Grady – Gone Fishin'
• Nancy Phelan – The River and the Brook
• E. V. Timms – The Big Country
• George Turner – The Cupboard Under the Stairs
• Arthur Upfield – The Will of the Tribe

Short stories

• Thea Astley – "The Scenery Never Changes"
• Peter Cowan – "The Island"
• John Morrison – Twenty-Three : Stories
• Hal Porter
  • A Bachelor's Children : Short Stories
  • "A Double Because It's Snowing"
  • "First Love"
  • "Francis Silver"
• Patrick White
  • "Be Kind to Titina"
  • "The Letters"
  • "Willy-Wagtails by Moonlight"
• Amy Witting – "The Weight of a Man"

Children's and Young Adult fiction

• Nan Chauncy – Half a World Away
• John Gunn – City in Danger
• Ruth Park
  • The Muddle-Headed Wombat
  • The Road Under the Sea
• Joan Phipson
  • The Boundary Riders
  • The Family Conspiracy
• Ivan Southall – Hills End
• P. L. Travers – Mary Poppins from A to Z
• Joan Woodberry – Rafferty Makes a Landfall
• Judith Wright – Range the Mountains High
• Patricia Wrightson – The Feather Star

Poetry

Main article: 1962 in poetry

• David Campbell – Poems
• Bruce Dawe – No Fixed Address : Poems
• Geoffrey Dutton – Flowers and Fury : Poems
• R. D. Fitzgerald – Southmost Twelve
• Rodney Hall – Penniless Till Doomsday
• Gwen Harwood – "The Wine is Drunk"
• Oodgeroo Noonuccal – "Colour Bar"
• Roland Robsinson – Deep Well
• Douglas Stewart – Rutherford and Other Poems
• Randolph Stow – Outrider : Poems, 1956-1962
• Francis Webb
  • "Harry"
  • "Pneumo-Encephalograph"
• Judith Wright – Birds : Poems

Biography

• Miles Franklin – Childhood at Brindabella : My First Ten Years
• Joan Lindsay – Time Without Clocks
• Douglas Lockwood – I, the Aboriginal
• Alan Marshall – This is the Grass

Non-fiction

• Manning Clark – The History of Australia (Vol. 1)

Drama

• Morris West – Daughter of Silence
• Patrick White – The Season at Sarsaparilla

Awards and honours

Literary

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
ALS Gold Medal [1]	Vincent Buckley	Masters in Israel	Angus and Robertson
Miles Franklin Award [2]	Thea Astley	The Well Dressed Explorer	Angus and Robertson
	George Turner	The Cupboard Under the Stairs	Cassell

Children and Young Adult

Award	Category	Author	Title	Publisher
Children's Book of the Year Award	Older Readers [3]	L. H. Evers	The Racketty Street Gang	Hodder & Stoughton
		Joan Woodberry	Rafferty Rides a Winner	M. Parrish, London
Picture Book	No award

Poetry

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Grace Leven Prize for Poetry [4]	R. D. Fitzgerald	Southmost Twelve	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 1962 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of death.

• 17 April — Joanna Murray-Smith, playwright ^[5]

Unknown date

• Matthew Condon, novelist ^[6]
• Alison Croggon, novelist ^[7]
• Luke Davies, novelist ^[8]
• Craig Sherborne, poet and playwright ^[9]

Deaths

A list, ordered by date of death (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of deaths in 1962 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of birth.

• 4 February — Nita Kibble, librarian (born 1879) ^[10]
• 8 March – Jean Devanny, novelist (born 1894) ^[11]
• 9 September – H. M. Green, poet and critic (born 1881) ^[12]
• 3 December – Mary Gilmore, poet (born 1865) ^[13]

Unknown date

• Margaret Fane, novelist and poet (born 1887) ^[14]

See also

• 1962 in Australia
• 1962 in literature
• 1962 in poetry
• List of years in Australian literature
• List of years in literature

References

1. Austlit - Masters in Israel by Vincent Buckley
2. "The Miles Franklin Award", The Canberra Times, 20 April 1963, p22
3. "Award Winners", The Canberra Times, 7 July 1962, p17
4. "Reading by Ipswich Poet" The Canberra Times, 7 June 1968, p14
5. "Austlit - Joanna Murray-Smith". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
6. "Austlit - Matthew Condon". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
7. "Austlit - Alison Croggon". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
8. "Austlit - Luke Davies". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
9. "Austlit - Craig Sherborne". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
10. "Kibble, Nita Bernice (1879–1962) by Jean F. Arnot". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
11. "Devanny, Jane (Jean) (1894–1962) by Ron Store". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
12. "Austlit - H. M. Green". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
13. "Gilmore, Dame Mary Jean (1865–1962) by W. H. Wilde". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
14. "Austlit - Margaret Fane". Austlit. Retrieved 11 July 2023.