2018 Banjo Paterson Writing Award Winners

Thank you to all those who entered the awards. We are pleased to announce the following winners of the 2018 Banjo Paterson Writing Awards:

Short Story

1^st – Stephen D’Arcy, Bellerave VIC, for Arthur Peters the Bard of Creswick, $2,000.

The judge said “the winning story presented the narrative as a series of letters from a very self-assured, but amateur ‘poet’ and his fiancé to a very diplomatic AB Paterson. Arthur Peters is seeking Banjo’s assistance and encouragement, while Banjo and his fiancée are less enthusiastic about Mr Peter’s poetic talents.”

“It is the subtle and wry humour of the story where its charm lays.”

“This is a thoroughly engaging and extremely well-written story on many levels and definitely a worthy winner of the Banjo Paterson Short Story writing award.”

Open Poetry

1^st Roger Vickery, of Freshwater, NSW for Jukurrpa on bark $2,000 and Varuna, the Writer’s House, Manuscript Consultation valued at $295.

The judge commented:

“Jukurrpa on bark is a powerful elegy for an indigenous artist. Intimate in tone, the poem’s meaning is enhanced through the poet’s keen sense of sound and rhythm. Like the dancing referred to in the opening stanza, the imagery and sense of spirituality throughout the poem are continually ‘circling and looping/coming home to go again’ – that sense of movement giving the reader a glimpse into the world of Jukurrpa. Succinct and compelling, the poem creates a strong sense of place, of loss, and of a spirituality that is open weaved, strong…always moving.”

ABC Central West Radio Children’s Awards

 

1^st  Miss Kodi Sawtell, 16, of Coochin QLD, for her short story Ink, $200

2^nd Isabelle Back, 11, of Clergate, near Orange, NSW for her poem Christmas in Australia, $100

3^rd Brooke Chapman, 10, of Fine Flower, NSW for her poem Bush Dance, $100.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Programs Return to Orange City Library

2018 Readers and Writers Festival

Food and travel combine to make a mouth-watering theme for the Orange Readers and Writers Festival on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 July 2018 at the Hotel Canobolas. Be ready to be entertained by the fabulous Monday Morning Cooking Club – a group of dynamic Sydney women who meet each Monday to test recipes and chat about food. The Paris dreamer Katrina Lawrence will take us on a journey to the city of light to meet the residents who have inspired us. We will nourish body and soul with Margaret Fulton’s granddaughter Louise Keats and her new book Sweet Nourish. Jacqui Newling is the resident gastronomer at Sydney Living Museums who uses food as a means of communicating our history and heritage. She will be delving into the world of our first fleet ancestors through food. To round out our table of speakers we have invited Local is Lovely blogger Sophie Hansen to talk about writing, author Anthony Hill to discuss his book Captain Cook’s Apprentice and Cook’s foodie adventures. And you can also meet Better Reading’s Cheryl Akle.

We also have an all day seminar with the History Council of NSW talking food and travel. And we will also be announcing the winners of the Banjo Paterson Writing Awards. So come and join us for what promises to be some mouth-watering literary delights. Program and bookings here.  Please book your seat by Tuesday 24 July.

July Good Reading Competition

Did you know that Good Reading magazine is available online for all library members for free? It’s packed full of reviews of all the latest books as well as interviews with authors, book trivia and fantastic competitions to win books!

This month, you can WIN a book pack of exciting new releases worth $200! To enter, simply browse through the July issue of Good Reading online to find the answer to this question: Where did Emma Harcourt’s ‘rebel grandmother’ run away to in the 1920s?

Email your name, the name of your library, and your answer to [email protected] by July 31 for your chance to win!

Jenny Old: Back of Beyond Life Story

Meet author Jenny Old when she talks and shares photos from her book Back of Beyond at Orange and Forbes libraries.

“After falling in love with my husband Rick, I moved to a property called McAllister in the remote Gulf Country of far north Queensland, where I found myself living in a shed with a 44-gallon drum for my stove and a shower hose and a bucket in a tree for the bathroom!”

Surviving fires, floods, Cyclone Ted and the 1970s Beef Crash, this is one woman’s remarkable story of love, adventure, disasters and wonderful times in the Gulf Country.

You can hear Jenny’s story at Orange City Library on Thursday 12th July at 10.30am or  Forbes Library on Friday 3rd August at 2pm. Please book your place online through eventbrite or call your library.