Patricia Wrightson, 1921-2010
Author Patricia Wrightson, 88, died March 15, 2010, in a hospital in New South Wales, Australia.
Born June 21, 1921 in Lismore, New South Wales, Wrightson wrote 27 children’s and YA books, many with fantasy elements, including The Nargun and the Stars (1973), The Ice Is Coming (1977), The Dark Bright Water (1978), Journey Beyond the Wind (1981), A Little Fear (1983), Moon-dark (1987), and Balyet (1989). Many of her novels drew on Australian aboriginal mythology.
Wrightson won the Australian Children’s Book Council Book of the Year award four times, and was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 1986 in recognition for her lifetime achievement in writing for young people. She was also awarded the New South Wales Premier’s Special Award in 1988 for distinguished contributions to Australian literature. The Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children’s Literature was named in her honor.
See the April issue of Locus for a complete obituary.
