Andy Griffiths (author)

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Andy Griffiths
Andy Griffiths 2019 Texas Book Festival.jpg
Griffiths at the 2019 Texas Book Festival
BornAndrew Noel Griffiths
(1961-09-03) 3 September 1961 (age 62)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
OccupationAuthor
GenreHumour, children’s fiction
SpouseJill Griffiths
Website
www.andygriffiths.com.au

Andrew Noel Griffiths (born 3 September 1961) is an Australian children's and comedy writer. He was educated at Yarra Valley Grammar School. He is most notable for his Just! series, which was adapted into an animated television series called What's with Andy? , his novel The Day My Bum Went Psycho , which was also adapted into a television series, [1] and the Treehouse series, which has been adapted into several stage plays. [2] [3] Previously a vocalist with alternative rock bands Gothic Farmyard [4] and Ivory Coast, [5] in 1992 he turned to writing. He is well known for working with Terry Denton. [6]

Contents

Early life

An event cited by Griffiths as instrumental in developing his literary style was when, as a child, he read the 1845 German children's book Struwwelpeter , which featured children being maimed and killed as a consequence for bad behaviour. [7]

Career

Literary style

Griffiths places an emphasis on toilet and gross out humour in his books, and aims to balance levels of what he deems "anarchy" and "nice" within his series; he notes that his Just! series was more anarchic while his Treehouse series was more nice. [7]

Personal life

Griffiths is noted as a supporter of children against what he views as "cotton wool" childhoods, [6] and, along with Denton, was a noted supporter of the September 2019 climate strikes. [8]

Bibliography

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<i>Just Macbeth!</i> Shakespeare adaptation by Andy Griffiths

Just Macbeth is an adaptation of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth. It was written by Australian children’s author Andy Griffiths and produced by Bell Shakespeare as well as being released as a book.

Just! is a series of short story collections by Australian children's author Andy Griffiths, illustrated by Terry Denton. The book series is based on Andy Griffiths's early life. The series has been described as a portrayal of the antics of a pre-teen who "thinks outside the box", and is a "notorious mischiefmaker" who plans various pranks and schemes to dodge doing a chore or going to school, among other things. There have been nine books in the series, with the first book, Just Tricking!, being released in Australia in 1997. It was later released in North America under the alternative title Just Kidding. The Canadian animated series What's with Andy?, which ran on Teletoon from 2001 to 2007, was also loosely based on this book series.

<i>The Very Bad Book</i> Book by Andy Griffiths

The Very Bad Book is a 2010 book of short stories for children written by Andy Griffiths and illustrated by Terry Denton. The Very Bad Book is the sequel to Griffiths and Denton's "The Bad Book" published in 2004. Griffiths has announced plans to release a third title in the series, The Super Bad Book, in 2011.

<i>The 13-Storey Treehouse</i> Childrens novel by Andy Griffiths

The 13-Storey Treehouse is a 2011 book written by author Andy Griffiths and illustrated by Terry Denton, and a stage play based on the book. The story follows Andy and Terry, who are living in a 13-storey treehouse, struggling to finish their book on time among many distractions and their friend Jill, who lives in a house full of animals and often visits them. According to the book, the 13-storey treehouse has "a bowling alley, a see-through swimming pool, a tank full of man-eating sharks, a secret underground laboratory, a vegetable vaporizer and a marshmallow machine that shoots marshmallows into your mouths when it sees that you are hungry".

The Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) are publishers' and literary awards held by the Australian Publishers Association annually in Sydney "to celebrate the achievements of authors and publishers in bringing Australian books to readers". Works are first selected by an academy of more than 200 industry professionals, and then a shortlist and winners are chosen by judging panels.

This is a list of all published works by Australian children's author Andy Griffiths.

References

  1. Ashby, Emily (2015). "The Day My Butt Went Psycho". Common Sense Media. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  2. Croll, Vanessa (29 July 2020). "Coles announces world-first Little Treehouse collectables". The Australian. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  3. Woodhead, Cameron (29 July 2020). "Rollicking slapstick as reluctant babysitters face sharks, whirlpool". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  4. Gothic Farmyard Music (31 December 2014). "Mowing Tentaclens and Weeding Giant Clams". Archived from the original on 19 December 2021 via YouTube.
  5. "How Can I Stop The Leak by IVORY COAST (Skippy the Butcher)". YouTube. 26 June 2010. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  6. 1 2 Blau, Annika (16 September 2018). "Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton are putting the 'anarchy' back into childhood". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  7. 1 2 Cain, Sian (4 September 2023). "This 'bum-poo-fart author' is Australia's biggest writer: Andy Griffiths on ending the Treehouse books". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  8. Fitzsimmons, Caitlin (18 September 2019). "Bestselling Treehouse authors back students striking for climate action". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 29 July 2020.